Education Commons^™

2018 Australian Talis-Pisa Link Report, Kylie Hillman, Sue Thomson

OECD Teaching and Learning International Survey (TALIS)

Australia was one of nine countries and economies to participate in the 2018 TALIS-PISA link study, together with Cuidad Autónoma de Buenos Aires (Argentina), Colombia, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Georgia, Malta, Turkey and Viet Nam. This study involved coordinating the samples of schools that participated in the Program of International Student Assessment (PISA, a study of the performance of 15-year-old students) and the Teaching and Learning International Survey (TALIS, a study that surveys teachers and principals in lower secondary schools) in 2018. A sample of teachers from schools that were selected to participate in PISA were invited to respond to …

Performance Assessment Of Aspiring School Leaders Grounded In An Epistemology Of Practice: A Case Study, Jessica E. Charles, Rebecca Cheung, Kristin Rosekrans

All Faculty and Staff Papers and Presentations

There is increasing interest in the field of leadership preparation about the opportunities that robust performance assessments may provide to capture and evaluate the complexity of school administrators’ work. Heretofore, the conversation about administrator performance assessment in leadership preparation has mainly centered on the development and impact of large statewide assessments that grow out of a Cartesian epistemology of individual knowledge possession, in which individuals must demonstrate mastery of a set of static knowledge and skills. We analyzed the characteristics of a performance assessment system that deliberately accounts for the organizational complexity of practice and knowledge generation in its design. …

A Phenomenological Study On The Motivating Factors Influencing Participation In Tennessee’S Governor’S Academy For School Leadership, Amy B. Horton Mrs.

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Educational administration is such a demanding field, so it is important to understand why an aspiring principal would self-select to commit to an optional yearlong, intensive professional development activity with very little compensation and no promotion. Motivation may prove to be a key component of the recruitment and sustainability of professional development activities. By discovering the factors affecting both personal and professional motivation of beginning administrators to participate in a professional development led by the collaboration among the Tennessee Department of Education, Vanderbilt University, and Governor Bill Haslam, the researcher hopes to gain an understanding that may apply to future …

The Impact Of High Stakes Testing On School Leadership, Yanira Oliveras Ortiz

Educational Leadership and Policy Studies Faculty Publications and Presentations

Dr. Oliveras-Ortiz describes principals' view of changing classroom environments because of the state of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness tests. Further, she shares instructional leadership viewpoints of campus principals and proponents and opponents of high-stakes testing. This mixed method study surveyed and interviewed principals from four large school districts in Texas to understand their perceptions of changes in their leadership practices working under accountability practices.

Principal Dispositions Regarding The Ohio Teacher Evaluation System, Theodore J. Kowalski, David Alan Dolph

Educational Leadership Faculty Publications

The Ohio Teacher Evaluation System (OTES) was first implemented during the 2013-14 school term. This study examined principals’ dispositions at the end of this school term. Findings revealed several major concerns. The most prominent were (a) not having sufficient time to implement the program properly, (b) basing a teacher’s performance heavily on student value-added data, and (c) being required to assist teachers in developing their annual improvement plans. Three independent variables, teaching experience, administrative experience, and level of school assignment, were found to have only a low level of association with principal dispositions. With respect to teacher evaluation generally, findings …

Program Evaluation: The Effects Of A District-Led Leadership Preparation Program On Aspiring School Leaders, Tammra Bethune Reel

Education Dissertations and Projects

The researcher of the dissertation evaluated a district-led school leadership preparation program using Stufflebeam's (2003) Context, Input, Process, and Product (CIPP) model for program evaluation. The study had a management-oriented approach to program evaluation because it will enable effective decision making regarding the program's design. In addition, the program evaluation took a formative approach as program characteristics were analyzed and collaboration with program participants occurred in order to determine which aspects of the Administrative Mentoring Program (AMP) were most beneficial to those directly involved.

Data for the study were obtained through the processes of a researcher-created participant survey and personal …

[A Library Policy Manual For Selah School District Libraries, Selah, Washington], Roberta Jean Gustafson

All Graduate Projects

This project was undertaken to develop a library policy manual for the Selah School District libraries. Topics were collected from a variety of venues, manuals on the Internet,the.librarian list serv LM-NET, American.LibraryAssociation and the Washington Library Media Association. Lists generated from these sources were then narrowed down to the important management and operations topics. It was determined that substitutes in the library would need the information to manage the library, utilize the checkout system and enforce library policies, therefore those sections are in the front of the manual. Those policies that are part of the Selah School District Board Policies …

School Safety Manual For Bennett Elementary, Milena G. Huntington

All Graduate Projects

This project examined preventative and responsive safety plans that improved the educational climate of schools through the successful elimination of negative physical, mental and emotional threats to students and employees. The review of current research found that schools were more successful in reducing or eliminating safety threats when a comprehensive school safety program was collaboratively developed and implemented Furthermore, a comprehensive school safety plan that was made easily accessible to every member of the staff and that was assessed continuously also played a vital role to the success of the school safety plan. Included is a comprehensive school safety manual …

A Process Model For Teacher Evaluation Of Education Administrators, Marla Caviness

All Graduate Projects

The purpose of this project was to design and develop a process model for teacher evaluation of administrators. To accomplish this purpose, a review of current literature regarding evaluation of school administrators was conducted. Additional information from randomly selected school districts regarding evaluation of administrators was obtained and analyzed. Information from selected school districts regarding involvement of teachers in the process of administrator evaluation was also obtained.

A Study Of Principals' Interpersonal Behaviour And School Environment, John Cresswell

Dr John Cresswell

This thesis describes a research study that investigated associations between teachers' perceptions of principals' interpersonal behaviour and psychosocial environments of secondary schools in Australia. In the past 25 years, much attention has been given to the development and use of instruments to assess the qualities of the classroom and school environment from the perspectives of students and teachers. A new instrument (the Principal Interaction Questionnaire) was developed and validated to measure principals' interpersonal behaviour as perceived by their teachers. The instrument was developed from the Questionnaire on Teacher Interaction. The teachers' perceptions of the school environments are assessed by the …

Impact Of Tennessee's Value-Added Assessment System On School Superintendents' Decision-Making, Kay M. Goode

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The problem related to this study was to develop a clearer understanding of the impact of Tennessee's Value-Added Assessment System (TVAAS) on school superintendents' decision-making responsibilities in view of school reform efforts at both the national and state levels during the last decade. The purpose of this study was to identify relationships between three independent variables (superintendents' years of experience, superintendents' perceived degree of personnel acceptance, and superintendents' perceived technical assistance availability for data analysis and interpretation of results) and superintendents perceptions of the system on eight aspects (student learning; teacher performance; school system success; educational accountability; educational equality; assessment …

Principal And Teacher Perceptions Of School Climate Related To Value-Added Assessment And Selected School Contextual Effects In The First Tennessee District, Diann B. Casteel

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The problem related to this study was to develop a clearer understanding of organizational climates in K-8 schools in Tennessee and the relationship that climate has to school performance, as measured through value-added assessment. The purpose of this study was to identify relationships between dimensions of school climate and student achievement as measured by mandated value-added assessment at the third grade level in Tennessee. The study attempted to determine if there was a significant difference between principal and teacher perceptions of school climate and if a relationship existed between the school climate and value-added assessment. The study also endeavored to …

The Development Of The Parent Effectiveness Test (Pet), Sharon S. Morrison

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Abstract Not Available.

Readiness And Achievement Motivation: An Investigation Of The Validity Of The Readiness Scales In Hersey And Blanchard's Situational Leadership, Xiaoping Wang

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of the study was to investigate the construct validity of the two instruments measuring readiness in Situational Leadership: the Readiness Scales--Manager Rating Form and Staff Member Rating Form--developed by Hambleton, Blanchard, and Hersey (1977). The study examined the relationships between readiness and achievement motivation, and between readiness and faculty education and work experience. The study also explored the concurrent validity of the two instruments measuring McClelland's (1961) achievement motivation: The Achievement Orientation Scale and The NachNaff Scale. The respondents were 66 department chairs and 156 faculty from 12 comprehensive institutions in the South. Data on faculty readiness were …

A Principal's Guide: Assertive Discipline And Honors Level Management; Two Separate Behavioral Management Systems Promoting A Positive School Climate, Ronald E. Gee

All Graduate Projects

This principal's guide presents two separate behavioral management systems used at the middle school level. The two systems are Lee Canter's Assertive Discipline and Budd Churchward's Honors Level Management. Canter's approach is effective in the classroom while Churchward's addresses total school environment. Methods for integration of the systems, materials needed, consequences/rewards, and suggested time lines are presented.

A Comprehensive Community Relations Plan For The Sunnyside School District, Gary Street

All Graduate Projects

An action planning team, composed of fifteen Sunnyside community members and school district personnel, created several comprehensive action plans designed to improve public relations within the district boundaries by increasing the interaction/involvement between the school district, parents, and community. The process for developing the plan was divided into five steps: 1) Strategy Analysis; 2) Information Gathering; 3) Action Plan Writing; 4) Cost Benefit Analysis; and 5) Presentation of the Action Plans.

The Uses And Effectiveness Of Computers In Educational Administration, Steven W. Warren

All Graduate Projects

The purpose of this study was to assess the uses and effectiveness of computers in educational administration. Principals from the high schools of Washington State's Mid-Valley AA League responded to a questionnaire regarding the uses of computers in their buildings and the perceived effectiveness of computers used for administrative tasks. Survey results indicated that the majority of high schools in the Mid-Valley AA League have used computers for common administrative tasks, and principals found that these tasks were accomplished more effectively with a computer.

Selection Procedure Utilized By Second-Class School Districts In Making Appointments To The Principalship In Washington State, Keith W. Morris

All Master's Theses

One hundred fifty-eight (158) superintendents of second-class school districts in Washington State were surveyed to determine the selection procedures utilized in the appointment to the principalship. A survey questionnaire was developed and divided into five steps of the selection procedure. The results of the survey questionnaire indicate that the selection procedure varies tremendously and no consistent procedures were found among the school district superintendents surveyed.

School Organization Placement For The Ninth Grade Student, Karen D. Garrison

All Graduate Projects

The purpose of this study was to obtain information regarding the best placement of the ninth grade student in the school organizational pattern. Thirty-six superintendents, seventy-seven high school principals and sixty-four high school teachers, in the state of Washington, responded to a questionnaire-opinionnaire regarding the physical, intellectual, emotional and social maturity level of the ninth grade student. The results showed support for the ninth grade student to be in a four-year high school grade configuration.

A Follow-Up Study To Determine Selected Characteristics And Perceptions Regarding The Academic Preparation Of Master Degree Graduates Who Majored In School Administration: Central Washington University 1976-1981, Richard P. Lynch

All Graduate Projects

The purposes of this study were (1) to determine selected demographic characteristics of master degree graduates, who majored in school administration, and who graduated from the Graduate Division of Education since the 1976 Summer quarter through the 1981 Summer quarter; (2) to ascertain the extent to which these graduates perceived the courses of instruction in their academic preparationas being relevant to subsequent educational administration functions; and (3) to determine additional courses of instruction, not in the present curriculum, that these selected graduates perceived would be professionally relevant to current educational administrative functions.

The Competency-Based Program For Preparation And Certification Of School Principals At Central Washington University: An Analysis Of Costs Incurred In Development, Implementation, And Maintenance Phases--1975-1980, Glenda Sue Shannon

All Master's Theses

Preparation and certification of school principals at Central Washington University have developed according to the requirements of the Washington State Standards. This study determined the real and estimated costs for the development, implementation, and operation of the competency-based, principal preparation program. A questionnaire elicited data from participants and revealed that professional time devoted to the project incurred the greatest costs. The developmental period was determined to be the most expensive phase. An instrument for future data collection was devised and recommended.

Guidelines For Development Of Outdoor Education Programs, Leland D. Chapman

All Master's Theses

This paper presents guidelines for development of an outdoor education program for schools in Washington, Oregon, and Idaho. This developmental study is an analysis of the information collected from nine districts in Oregon, Washington, and the Regional Office, U.S. Forest Service, Portland, Oregon. It is limited to evaluations of existing programs, interviews with resource personnel and library research. Recommendations of this study are those indicated by the districts consulted and the Washington and Oregon Departments of Public Instruction.

A Survey Of Administrators' Attitudes Regarding The Effectiveness Of The Middle School, John Charles Epperson

All Master's Theses

This study was made in order to gain data pertinent to assess the need for change from junior high school to middle school. The study did indicate that a majority of middle school administrators believe that educational philosophy was more influential than was economic expediency in the creation of the middle school. It was evident that the majority of middle school administrators believe that the students served by the middle school are more tranquil, better disciplined, and taught better, because of the middle school structure.

Due to responses received, it is recommended that further study of achievement levels be made.

A Study Of Personnel Practices Related To Teacher Aide Programs, Kent H. Pratt

All Master's Theses

A growing number of school districts have used teacher aides or paraprofessionals. State Boards of Education have voiced concern that directors and administrators develop and follow sound personnel policies in the hiring of teacher aides. It was the purpose of this study to propose guidelines for (1) selection of teacher aides, (2) training of teacher aides, (3) supervision of teacher aides, and (4) evaluation of teacher aides. The increasing use of teacher aides has focused attention on a need for an organized program related to the problem. This study investigated programs which proposed guidelines administrators and teachers could use in …

A Model Of Research Functions In Selected California Unified School Districts, Eugene Frederick Maxwell

University of the Pacific Theses and Dissertations

Statement of the probleg. The problem is to design a model of research functions in California unified school districts having an average daily attendance of approxi- mately 10,000 to 100,000 students.

Purcones. The purposes of the study are listed in teras of the following questions:

A. What is the significance of research in a school

district? B. What should be the research functions of an effective unified school district research

program? C. What should be the scope or extent of the funo- tione?

D. What is the general status of research in

California school districts?

Trends In The Problem Of De Facto Segregation, Donald E. Ramsey

Graduate Student Research Papers

It was the purpose of this study (1) to examine some of the causes and effects of de facto school segregation and (2) to discover the existing trends in practices of dealing with the problem of de facto segregation.

A Review Of The Reorganization Of School Districts In The State Of Washington, William Henry Hallett

Graduate Student Research Papers

The vast number of school districts in Washington State has been greatly reduced over a period of years by various consolidation and reorganization laws. These laws cover a span of over sixty years, and many revisions were innovated during that time. An attempt shall be made to expose the reasons why school districts have been reorganized with a short historical background which ultimately affected consolidation. The basic or main laws governing reorganization shall be written in sequential order from 1903 to 1957.

An Investigation Of Trends Towards Departmentalization In The Elementary Schools, Donald R. Breitenfeldt

Graduate Student Research Papers

There have been many organizational plans, including the departmental, intended to improve the "self-contained classroom" so as to increase the child's intellectual development without hindering his personal-social development. It may be that one or more of the new plans will improve the self-contained classroom. Research evidence, not plain argument, must be relied upon to provide the answers needed. There is very little research evidence to support the claims for any elementary school plan, the self-contained classroom plan not excepted.

A Study Of The Substitute Teacher Program, Robert Ward Salisbury

Graduate Student Research Papers

Substitute teaching is an area of tremendous importance in every school system. It is estimated that there is an average daily absence of 10 per cent among regular faculty members. If the substitute teaching program is ineffective, this means that 10 per cent of all classes and class time is wasted. It is essential that a school system have an effective program to provide for the absences of regular teachers so that there will be no appreciable loss in the educational program.