bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Theory and Research Needs in the Study of American Educational Politics
Authors: WIRT FREDERICK M.
Published: February 2008

This article employs a system analytic framework to categorize the available research literature on the politics of education in order to explain the inter‐relationship of private and public interests and of different levels in primary and secondary American schools. The objectives are several: to explain and develop the analytical framework of David Easton; to illustrate its heuristic utility by categorizing empirically‐based research within the components of that framework, and to suggest and encourage future research directions in the subject. Education has escaped application of traditional policy analysis in America because educators have convinced scholars and laymen that they are “non‐political,” a label which even most political scientists have accepted without challenge. However, during the 1960s, a few scholars in education and political science began to apply political analytical methods to public school conflict. This research has begun to change perceptions of education and to provide a beginning set of research projects whose data support tentative generalization about the policy‐making process and the total system of public schools. This orientation is bound to increase because of increasing national government intervention in local schools, both through integration and financial policies. These have provoked growing conflict locally over the proper direction of school policies. In this article, we see how such stress is transmitted in the form of “demands” and “supports” into the “political system”, that persistent social mechanism known in all societies in different forms provides an “authoritative allocation of values and resources”. The political system, in this case public school bodies, “converts” such “inputs” into “outputs” of public policy, which in their administration create outcomes which later cause a “feedback” into the political system as the material for new policy demands. For each component of this Eastonian system, this article examines relevant research, providing an extensive annotated bibliography. From this review, it is possible to suggest lines of needed research.
The Principal and Machiavelli
Authors: KNILL WILLIAM D.
Published: February 2008

We have just marked the quincentennial anniversary of Niccolo Machiavelli, one of the greatest, if not the greatest of political theorists. His views and observations on the art of political leadership have direct relevance to the problems of democratic government today and his writings are being read with renewed interest. In this article the writer (who may or may not have his tongue in his cheek) sets forth a direct interpretation of Machiavellian philosophy as it may be applied to the “real life” political role of the school principal. Principals and other practising school administrators will have strong reactions to the position set forth in this article which was written expressly for this purpose. The article has been used by the Author for several years in his graduate course at the University of Alberta, “The Social and Political Environment of Educational Administration.”
Leadership Perceptions of the Ambitious Education
Authors: TRONC K.E.
Published: February 2008

In a recent investigation undertaken in Western Canada, it was found that school personnel, particularly those at the administrative level, who strongly desired promotion placed a significantly higher emphasis in their role perceptions on Initiating Structure (the organization‐oriented dimension of leader behaviour), and a significantly lower emphasis upon Consideration (the person‐oriented aspect of leader behaviour), than those who possessed low levels of promotional aspiration. Tills impersonal, procedural, and task‐oriented emphasis was evident not only in the administrators' perceptions of the leader behaviour deemed most appropriate for their own present role, but also in their perceptions of the actual leader behaviour exhibited by their immediate superiors. If such highly ambitious individuals gain advancement, it appears likely that the type of administrative climate which they would induce, with such a pronounced emphasis on Initiating Structure allied with a de‐emphasis of Consideration, would lead to future conflict and dysfunctional effects for the educational organization, as teachers become more professional, and newer approaches such as team teaching, collegial organization, and consensual decision‐making—all of which demand rapport and consideration for people—become more widespread.
Eric Clearinghouse on Educational Administration: Modern Day Prometheus for Educational Administrators
Authors: PIELE PHILIP K.
Published: February 2008

The ERIC Clearinghouse on Educational Administration at the University of Oregon acquires, indexes and abstracts documents relating to the theory and practice of administration and publishes newsletters, bibliographies and interpretive reviews of research studies. The Clearinghouse is responsible for documents dealing with the leadership, management and structure of public and private educational organizations at the elementary and secondary levels. Attention is paid to documents bearing upon not only educational but also other areas of administration and to relevant publications relating to the humanities and the social and behavioral sciences. In this paper administrators and scholars in the field are advised how to draw on the resources of ERIC Clearinghouse on Educational Administration.
Innovation in the Commonwealth: The International Intervisitation Program, Australia, 1970
Authors: WALKER W.G.
Published: February 2008

Among the recommendations of the first International Intervisitation Program held in North America in 1966 was the organization of a second program at a later date. The 1970 International Intervisitation Program, held in Australia, was jointly sponsored by the University Council for Educational Administration and the University of New England. The themes of the Program were Centralization and Bureaucracy, Planning and Systems Analysis, Accountability and Assessment and Teacher Negotiation and Participation in Policy Making. These themes were the subject of papers at the orientation phase, of observation in a two week visitation phase and of group discussion at a conference held in Armidale. Perhaps the most important outcome of the Program was the decision to establish a Commonwealth Council for Educational Administration, a professional association for those interested in educational administration, which seems likely to hold its first plenary meeting at the third International Intervisitation Program to be held in England in 1974.
Complexity, Adaptability and Job Satisfaction in High Schools: An Axiomatic Theory Applied
Authors: CARVER FRED. D. , SERGIOVANNI THOMAS J.
Published: February 2008

The major purpose of this study is to test the applicability of an eight‐variable axiomatic theory of organizations to the secondary school. Three corollaries, derived from the seven major propositions of the theory, were tested with data from 36 secondary schools in Illinois. The methodological processes employed to obtain measures of complexity, adaptability, and job satisfaction are presented following explication of the larger theoretical framework. An extended discussion of the findings and their implications for the theory applied to schools concludes with suggestions for methodological changes and an expanded research approach.
Status Obeisance and Pupil Control Ideology
Authors: RAY HELSEL A.
Published: February 2008

Schools are viewed as a special type of organization in which neither the organization nor its clients can exercise choice in the organization‐client relationship. That pupil control should he identified as central to organizational life in schools seemed reasonable. Status obeisance was theoretically related to a typology of pupil control ideology which ranges from “custodialism” at one extreme to “humanism” at the other: Teachers' status obeisance was hypothesized to be positively related to custodialism in pupil control ideology. This prediction along with two hypotheses from an earlier study were tested by multiple regression analysis. The principal hypothesis received strong support. The results of the study combined with those of previous investigations suggest that psychological variables may be important determinants of educators' orientations toward pupil control. Several directions for further inquiry on pupil control are presented.
A “Democratic Authority” for Bureaucracy
Authors: CAREY MARGARET D.
Published: February 2008

After an analysis of Weberian theory the author describes recent “augmentations” to the bureaucratic model. Although accepted as a residual feature of organizations, bureaucracy is shown to be amenable to personalization and democratization. In particular this appears true of the Catholic church as the repercussions of Vatican II are felt. The resultant decentralization of authority and the amelioration of strict bureaucratic procedures in an Australian Archdiocesan school system are described. Data presented lend support to the initial hypothesis that greater organizational effectiveness and increased administrative efficiency have resulted.
A Note on the Evaluation of Teaching Performance
Authors: THOMSON J.
Published: February 2008

The author critically examines “The Evaluation of Teaching Performance” (Journal of Educational Administration. VII 2. October, 1969) by T. J. Moore and W. D. Neale. An examination of the assumptions underlying the selection of certain criteria is made. The author challenges the interpretation of the data alleging a bias within the framework of the Victorian Education Department's inspectorial survey. Moore and Neale's conclusion that their survey showed that little stress is placed by inspectors upon product criteria in teacher assessment is also examined.
The Management of Schools in New South Wales 1848–1880: Local Initiative Suppressed?
Authors: ELY M.J.
Published: February 2008

In his article “The Management of Schools in Ncw South Wales (1848–1886): Local Initiative Suppressed”, E. J. Payne has argued that “The distinctly centralised pattern of educational administration did not evolve but was deliberately imposed, acceded to, and perpetuated, by reasonable people with varied motives, but their compromise was such that it has restricted the exercise of local initiative and the development of local institutions”. The purpose of the present article is to understand Wilkins and his employers' administrative problems and decisions rather than to judge them. The complexity of the historical situation in which they found themselves, the range of their possible decisions, and their day to day dealings with teachers and Local Boards as contained in archival records form the basis of the story told. This is mainly a story of the failure of many of the Local Boards to fulfil their responsibilities and the assessment by the Central administrators of the circumstances of their educational enterprise in country areas. To illustrate the financial, administrative, and geographical problems facing both the central and the local Boards a case study which is both typical and a‐typical of Local Patron performance is presented.
The Commonwealth Foundation: An Overview
Authors: CHADWICK JOHN
Published: February 2008

The Commonwealth Foundation, now five years old, administers a fund designed to increase interchanges between Commonwealth organizations in professional fields. Twenty‐six Commonwealth Governments subscribe to the Foundation's annual income and nominate trustees to serve on its board. A non‐political organization, its activities have included: encouraging the growth of Commonwealth‐wide professional associations, creating national professional centres, helping to create national professional societies, promoting regional professional activity, increasing the personal interchange of skills and experience and broadening professional knowledge through the printed word. It adheres to the view that the Commonwealth remains an association of peoples who, at professional and other levels, still have much in common; much to build on, much to conserve.
Resource Allocation in Education
Authors: SELBY SMITH C.
Published: February 2008

The paper is devoted to the question of how to allocate a given educational budget. Alternative avenues of expenditure on post‐secondary education are treated as investment projects and their benefit‐cost ratios are compared. The analysis is essentially static and is based on two investigations carried out by the author, one in Canada, the other in the United Kingdom. The paper is organised into three sections. The first discusses the methodology underlying the two detailed studies. The second presents conclusions on particular aspects of the general problem of allocating resources within formal education, and is divided into four parts: the balance between private and social costs and benefits, between academic levels of education, between types of education and between male and female education. The final section of the paper contains four more general points and emphasises our ignorance in much of this area.
Changing the Perspective: A First Note Towards a Field Theory of Administration
Authors: HODGKINSON CHRISTOPHER
Published: February 2008

Three concepts central to a philosophy of administration, viz., power, authority and leadership are examined in the light of theory propounded by Professor Donald Rogers. This theory is in the history of ideas and traces over the long term, for Western culture, the successive emergence of hierarchial, atomic‐mechanical and organic patterns. The last is closely related to the field theory approach in physics. It is argued that a conventional set persists in contemporary administrative thought which lags the emergence of field‐type constructs. An alternative mode of conceiving organizational structure is postulated taking educational administration as an illustration. The implications for the major concepts of power, authority and leadership are examined as well as those for administrative status. Conclusions reached tend to support the pattern of preparation for administration developed by the British Civil Service. Persistence of atomic‐mechanical thinking would tend to aggravate Thompson's organizational theory which points to conflict between professional experts and line administrators.
Behind the Resource Domino Part I: Acquisition
Authors: BUMBARGER C.S. , THIEMANN F.C.
Published: February 2008

There is, in the literature on administration, a general implication that resource levels are to be largely taken as givens, operating as constraints within which the administrator must work. A contrary view may be taken, namely that the level of resources made available to a specific operating unit may be increased by the insightful administrator. Careful analysis of the situation coupled with a reasoned strategy which utilizes an expanded definition of resources, a definition which rejects superficial categorization in favor of intensive examination of its finer nuances, are necessary to the achievement of this end.
Criteria Employed by High School Principals in Evaluating Teachers in Victoria
Authors: BARRINGTON THOMAS E.
Published: February 2008

Principals' evaluation of teachers for classroom and administrative promotion was the focus of this study. Data were collected from 230 principals of Victorian high schools by means of the instrument developed by Moore based on Mitzel's process, product and presage criteria. Findings revealed that although a common body of criteria was used principals placed prime emphasis upon process criteria in evaluating teachers for classroom promotion and upon presage criteria in evaluating teachers for administrative promotion. The study also established relationships between some of the evaluative criteria and certain “biographical” variables such as principal's age and extent of administrative experience.
Organizational Control Strategies and the Emergence of Trust
Authors: BELASCO JAMES A.
Published: February 2008

The purpose of this study was to examine the relutionsliip of the control structure in selected public educational systems as perceived by teachers and the expressed willingness of teachers to adopt trusting attitudes. This relationship was examined by testing for the independence of the two variables using the chi square statistic. In this study, control structure was defined in two ways: first, as the perceived structure of decision‐making and second, as the perceived influence or control which teachers feel they exert over daily activities. Trust was defined as the mutual expectations and predictability persons have toward one another as they are developed through the social exchange process. The findings revealed that (I) perceived participation in decision‐making and trust were not independent; (IT) perceived control of influence over daily activities was independent of the willingness of teachers to adopt trusting attitudes; and (III) background variables did not affect the independence of the relationship between either perceived participation or perceived control and trust.
Innovation in a Large State Primary School
Authors: BADHAM C.E.
Published: February 2008

A Principal's decision to change the “graded” organization of pupils in a large primary school in New South Wales forms the basis for this report. Using the Clark and Guba classification of processes related to and necessary for change in education, the Principal enlists the co‐operation and collaboration of teachers to change the existing form of grading. The decisions to innovate and the types of innovation to be adopted are made within the framework of a permissive organizational climate. Decision making is identified as the key factor in the process of innovation. Suggestions are made for its inclusion in the Clark and Guba model.
Pluralistic Ignorance and Pupil Control Ideology
Authors: PACKARD JOHN S. , WILLOYVER DONALD J.
Published: February 2008

Pupil control ideology, which is expressed in terms of a custodial‐humanistic continuum, refers to educators' views concerning the rights and status of the school's pupil clients. Pluralistic ignorance is defined as the shared misperception of an attitude, norm or belief held by members of a group. 480 respondents were asked to complete four identical forms of the PCI instrument—first, as they personally reacted to the 20 Likert items and then as they estimated the responses of the typical teacher, principal and counselor respectively. Findings revealed inter alia that teachers and principals attribute to each other a much greater custodial pupil control ideology than is reported by members of the respective groups.
Structural and Administrative Decentralization in Education: A Clarification of Concepts
Authors: HANSON MARK
Published: February 2008

In this paper the sometimes confusing concepts of structural centralization and decentralization and administrative centralization and decentralization are classified. Brief contrast Is made between the Latin American and North American models. It is hypothesized that there is a positive relationship between administrative decentralization and (I) leadership development at lower hierarchical levels, (II) greater participation in the decision‐making process by people at lower hierarchical levels, (III) an increased sense of responsibility, for the final output, by those at lower hierarchical levels, (IV) implementation of innovative changes which are proposed by individuals at lower hierarchical levels, (V) the development of different approaches to solving problems in the various subsystems at lower hier‐archical levels, (VI) the rapidity at which decisions can be made concerning local issues.
Notes on Administration and Philosophy
Authors: OLIVER GIBSON R.
Published: February 2008

Administration and philosophy are seen as having to do with human behavior. Philosophy, in its concern for interpretation of human behavior, provides a useful method in hemeneutics. Praxiology, as the study of goal‐oriented practice, lends itself to the study of administrative behavior. The two areas of analytic study provide a nexus between administration and philosophy. Human experience is seen as having two components, the one objective (signness) and the other subjective (symbolic). The symbolic aspect is an integral part of culture and provides the basis for social control through ideology which constitutes a patterned symbolic belief‐value system. The continuing creation of a symbolic representation of “reality” may be seen as social creation of text. Interpretation of that text is the task of hermeneutic method. Since goals are, by their very nature, primarily symbolic, praxiology needs to focus upon the role of symbolism in administrative behavior, particularly as it relates to organizational legitimacy and compliance. Issues that cut across the two fields included the nature of man, the nature of freedom and necessity, and the nature of the good society.
Values and Facts in Educational Administrative Decisions
Authors: GLASMAN NAFTALY S. , ROGER SELL G.
Published: February 2008

The approach used here to the study of philsophical influences on educational administration is an examination of case studies of administrative decisions in educational organizations where the decisions are considered as dependent variables, and the value and/or fact bases of the decisions are considered as independent variables. Nine such case studies are summarized. Decision‐making which deals with educational purpose is viewed as one significant area in educational administration where philosophical consideration can be studied. The study of correlations between administrative decisions and the value and factual bases should make contributions toward the prediction of administrative decisions. Additional significance of this study should focus on the development of strategies to influence or change administrative decisions.
THE INSPECTOR AT THE CROSSROADS
Authors: JONES A.W.
Published: February 2008

The office of Inspector of Schools, so long an important part of the Australian State Education systems, has become the target for a barrage of criticism. There is no doubt that the function and image of the Inspector must move in new directions, particularly in view of an increasing professionalism in teachers. In this paper the history of the position is briefly reviewed and alternative new directions are explored. It is maintained that with a decreasing emphasis on assessment in school systems, the Inspector is still the most appropriate assessor of teachers, in conjunction with Heads. However, it is suggested that his major function must become that of the system's supervisor ‐ co‐ordinator, with both professional and public relations involved.
IMPACT OF THE INSPECTORIAL SYSTEM: A PROFESSION DEMEANED?
Authors: ENGLAND G.C.
Published: February 2008

Reaction to supervision is a neglected area in the study of Educational Administration. In this study the reactions of teachers to inspectorial supervision were determined by asking a sample of the members of the Queensland Teachers Union to list five (if any) of the worst abuses that they personally had suffered under the inspectorial system, to list five (if any) outstanding experiences which had improved their teaching, and, if they desired, to make general comments on the inspectorial system. The results illustrate a finding of many studies of organizations that there are likely to be misperceptions between status levels. It was found that the inspectorial system has demeaned both teachers and inspectors in three senses: relations between them were inauthentic, they were forced to play a game of “cat and mouse” with each other and teachers were under pressure to be deceptive and unhealthily deferent to inspectors. Finally the results suggest that teachers vary in their orientations to inspectorial supervision. The implications of the findings for the nature and the quality of pupil‐teacher interaction are discussed.
ROLE SIMULATION IN EDUCATIONAL ADMINISTRATION: SOME ISSUES AND DEVELOPMENTS
Authors: GAYNOR ALAN K. , DUVALL LLOYD A.
Published: February 2008

The University Council for Educational Administration (UCEA) is a principal producer of instructional simulations for preparing educational administrators. The most recent simulation product of the Council is the Monroe City Simulation, parts of which are currently being disseminated and other parts of which are still in various stages of planning and development. The authors describe in this article five generic issues which UCEA simulation developers have had to resolve and which continue to face others engaged in similar kinds of development work. The issues described include those of (1) the use of theoretical vs. empirical models, (2) realism, (3) bias, (4) complexity and (5) learning effects.
HUMAN PROBLEMS IN ADMINISTRATIVE CHANGE: A NEW ZEALAND CASE STUDY
Authors: BARRINGTON JOHN M. , EWING JOHN L.
Published: February 2008

Decisions on changes in administration are as old as recorded history if we may judge from the example to be found in Exodus in which Jethro persuaded Moses to delegate some of his responsibilities so that he would not “wear away”. But the study of such decisions with the idea of deriving principles which may conceivably guide the behaviour of administrators is comparatively recent. For the student of educational administration a case study of the events and influences surrounding a particular administrative act, which can be examined and discussed, so that the springs of action are defined and assessed, offers material for such study. With these thoughts in mind, the authors of this paper have analysed the circumstances that led to the governmental decision to transfer the administrative control of the separate group of Maori primary schools in New Zealand from the central Department of Education to the regional education boards. The mode of decision also raises questions and issues that may be instructive in the study of administrative change.
HOW DO IDEOLOGUES GET THAT WAY?
Authors: COLEMAN PETER
Published: February 2008

This paper is a study of the political socialization of the young. It attempts to identify the important elements in socialization which help to account for the existence of the class of political sophisticates and actives known as ideologues. To a large extent, the continuity and stability of our political institutions depends upon these people, and thus it seems desirable to further our knowledge of how they are developed. Recent work on the political socialization of children has demonstrated that children differentiate themselves early in terms of their interest in or participation in politics. Thus it is maintained that a group of potential ideologues can be identified before children reach the age of 13 years. Since one of the characteristics of ideologues is independence of party, it is the development of such independence in children which is of particular interest here. This seems to be associated with upper socioeconomic status. Similarly, some children shift their attention from personalities to issues; these too form part of the cohort of potential ideologues. The main lines of political socialization seem now relatively clear. Somewhat less clear is the relationship between socialization and the development of ideologues, but reasonable hypotheses seem to be available, and await empirical test, probably in the form of a longitudinal study.
COMPUTER‐ASSISTED INSTRUCTION AND INCREASED EDUCATIONAL PRODUCTIVITY
Authors: CROPLEY A.J. , GROSS P.F.
Published: February 2008

Increasing educational costs have led to pressures for increased educational productivity. Although the basic parameters of educational productivity are difficult to define precisely, computer‐assisted instruction (CAI) looks to offer the possibility of reduced instructional costs on the one hand, and increased output from the educational system on the other. Such increased output includes the ability of CAI procedures to extend educational facilities to persons and groups to whom they would otherwise probably be denied, and thus represents a role for CAI in increasing equality of educational opportunity. There is, however, a number of key questions concerning CAI and its interrelationship with the traditional educational structure which must be answered, and some of these questions are enumerated.
PARTICIPATIVE AND HIERARCHICAL MANAGEMENT OF SCHOOLS: SOME EMERGING GENERALIZATIONS
Authors: RATSOY EUGENE W.
Published: February 2008

Recent studies of bureaucracy and decision making in education using differing methodologies and populations are, the writer claims, pointing to generalizations which are largely supportive of each other. An important question only partly answered is whether the relationships identified as between the bureaucratic variables and situational and personal variables examined are causal. Caution should therefore be exercised in drawing implications for practice. Nevertheless, on the basis of overall consistency in the findings, the writer proposes that moves toward participative management approaches and away from rigid hierarchical organization of schools should lead to positive consequences such as improved supervisor effectiveness, greater teacher satisfaction, a decrease in student alienation, and improved student achievement.
PRINCIPALS AS BUREAUCRATS
Authors: BRENNAN BARRIE
Published: February 2008

In this study administrative behaviour of secondary Principals is examined to test hypotheses that assume this behaviour to be bureaucratic. Overall, non‐bureaucratic behaviour is found in the responses of a sample of twenty New South Wales high school Principals to a set of in‐basket items. An alternative role definition is therefore suggested — that of leader — and the implications of the Principals' leadership role definition are discussed.
SCHOOL BOARD INCUMBENT DEFEAT IN PARTISAN ELECTIONS
Authors: LUTZ FRANK W. , LYNCH PATRICK D.
Published: February 2008

This research replicated earlier research done in non‐partisan school district elections, concerning the effect of school board member incumbent defeat on non‐voluntary superintendent turnover. In earlier research incumbent defeat was related to involuntary superintendent turnover at the .001 level. It was felt that the partisan (Democratic‐Republican) nature of school board elections in Pennsylvania might change the nature of this relationship and offer some insight into the effect of partisan politics on the local politics of education. Based on the research reported in this article it does not appear that partisan elections have the predicted influence on the politics of local school districts. No partisan predictors supplied a more significant relationship with non‐voluntary superintendent turnover than the general category of incumbent defeat regardless of partisan relationships.
SOME OCCUPATIONAL AND ORGANIZATIONAL IMPLICATIONS FOR DESIGNING AN EXPERIMENTAL PROGRAM IN EDUCATIONAL ADMINISTRATION
Authors: EVAN WILLIAM M.
Published: February 2008

The purpose of this paper is to design an experimentally‐oriented program for the training of a new generation of educational a administrators. The rationale for the program is based on selected concepts and propositions of occupational sociology, organization theory, and systems theory. Some of the salient features of the program are as follows: (i) The design is guided by the logic of Campbell's quasi‐experiment. (ii) A principal goal is to stimulate the professionalization of educational administration by increasing (a) the body of systematic knowledge: and (b) the commitment to an ideal of service in education. (iii) Another major goal is to sensitize educational administrators to the dilemmas of organizational change and to strategies for inducing change. (iv) A systems analysis is set forth of five sequentially interrelated processes: goal formation, recruitment of faculty and students, specification of the content of the curriculum, placement of graduates, and an evaluation of the program. (v) A sample curriculum for a three‐year period, guided by six pedagogical conceptions. (vi) A design for an experimental program for four cohorts of students is outlined.
THE ORGANIZATIONAL INVENTORY MEETING: GAINING AND INTEGRATING ADMINISTRATIVE COMMITMENT
Authors: CROFT JOHN C. , BARKER CATHERINE
Published: February 2008

This paper reports on the history, rationale, procedures, and results of a 4‐day meeting of some 96 administrators from 2 large school systems, representing all levels of administration, down through and including the principals. The meeting described was part of a large‐scale Organization Development (OD) effort by the first writer which had the general purpose of beginning and sustaining organizational renewal processes in the entire system. Organization Development is a planned, organization‐wide effort that is managed from the top and designed to increase organization's “processes”, using behavioural science knowledge. The Organizational Inventory Meeting (OIM) was designed and conducted by three Organization Development consultants employed by the system. The meeting which was observed by the two authors of this paper, was largely that of the “Confrontation” type which has been used successfully with largely decentralized industries and businesses, but special adaptations were made to fit the school situation. This paper presents both case observations and results of the Organizational Inventory Meeting. It also summarizes and integrates the reactions of participants in terms of the dilemma between (i) the necessity for organizing and directing information in order to “rationalize” administrative functions and (ii) the necessity for obtaining and sharing complete and valid information critical to reaching decisions which demand creative and innovative solutions.
DIFFERENCES BETWEEN WOMEN TEACHERS WHO DO AND WHO DO NOT SEEK PROMOTION
Authors: McINTOSH JANET
Published: February 2008

This research study compares women elementary school teachers who have and have not applied for promotion. The variables considered include degree of family responsibilities, and extent of commitment to the roles played both inside and outside the home. A picture of the women applicant for promotion emerges. While she is as likely as other women teachers to follow the traditional marriage with children pattern, she does take a markedly different approach to her home life and responsibilities there.
THE SIGNIFICANCE OF THE COMMONWEALTH GRANTS COMMISSION FOR EDUCATION POLICY‐MAKING IN WESTERN AUSTRALIA
Authors: JONES P.J.
Published: February 2008

This case study investigates the contention that the Commonwealth Grants Commission, through the methods and procedures it employed to determine the special grants it recommended for payment to Western Australia, was influential in education policy formulation in that State. Although certain benefits were gained for education in relation to the level of finance expended on it, the State surrendered a considerable degree of its control over the direction which educational expenditure could have taken because it depended on the special grants to balance its budget during its period of claimancy.
REFORM IN SCHOOL ADMINISTRATION IN NEW SOUTH WALES: THE ROLE OF THE INSPECTOR
Authors: LOGAN N.M.
Published: February 2008

Despite general agreement amongst educators, both in Australia and other countries, that an authoritarian inspection system, whatever its virtues, has outlived some of its original purpose, reformist demands in this aspect of school administration have been slow to be met. In N.S.W. inspectors of schools have advanced proposals for change and the Department of Education has implemented some of these, together with other recommendations from its own committee of inquiry into the inspectorial system. The result has been a further liberalization of school inspection, although some traditional aspects remain. Arising out of the reforms are questions about whether inspections are necessary, how accountability and promotion are to be managed if they are not, and whether inspectors are justified in feeling insecure. The view is held that the growing professionalism of teachers will assist them to become more accountable directly to those they serve, but that regional education officers will still perform indispensable functions aimed at improving the educational quality of schools.
WHO SHOULD CONTROL THE SCHOOLS?
Authors: JOHNSTON G.L.
Published: February 2008

In many contemporary societies, the legitimacy of traditional sources of authority is the subject of controversy. The consequent re‐examination of the public policy‐making process has not surprisingly been extended to include the field of education, where diverse social groups seek to exert an influence on decisions. A major problem is the development and application of principles for the determination of legitimate, democratic authority. In this article, the principles adopted are those propounded by the prominent political theorist, Robert Dahl, who postulates three criteria: the Criterion of Personal Choice, the Criterion of Competence, and the Criterion of Economy. Some of the current claims of teachers' organizations to an increased influence in the control of education policy making are assessed in the light of Dahl's criteria and the rival claims of alternative, non‐professional groups are weighed against them. It is emphasised that in a democracy the allocation of authority requires a balancing of both ethical and empirical judgments.
A COMPARISON OF STAFF UTILIZATION IN EDUCATION IN AUSTRALIA AND CANADA
Authors: HOLDAWAY E.A.
Published: February 2008

This study was undertaken in 1971–72 to compare the proportions of staff in various types of positions in public K—12 education in two Australian states and two Canadian provinces. For reasons of accessibility of data, cost, travel time, and familiarity of the researcher with the systems, the Australian states of Victoria and Queensland and the Canadian provinces of Alberta and British Columbia were selected as being representative of structurally “centralized” and “decentralized” educational systems. In addition, the study has as asociated objectives the comparison of (1) the proportions of salaries paid to personnel in various types of positions, and (2) the various administrative structures.
OCLEA — A COOPERATIVE VENTURE IN LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT
Authors: MUSELLA DONALD , ARIKADO MARJORIE
Published: February 2008

The Ontario Council for Leadership in Educational Administration is a newly‐formed cooperative representing the following major educational organizations in Ontario, Canada: Association of Colleges of Applied Arts and Technology, Ministry of Colleges and Universities, Ministry of Education, Ontario Association of Education Administrative Officials, Ontario Institute for Studies in Education, Ontario Teachers‘ Federation, Ontario School Trustees’ Council and Ontario Universities offering courses in Educational Administration. OCLEA'S primary purpose is to improve leadership in Ontario and beyond. To achieve this purpose three basic programs have been developed, one dealing with professional development activities, one dealing with information services, and one dealing with research and development. The professional development program consists of major workshops focusing on those professional development needs identified by the practicing administrators and supervisory officials. The information services includes a field representatives system of communication, and information collection/dissemination system, and a formal publication. The research and development program consists of the development of R and D activities directed to the high priority needs of the province. The funding of OCLEA is provided for by a four‐year grant from the W. K. Kellogg Foundation and from fees generated for services rendered. The OCLEA model is built on five generalizable principles: (1) maximum involvement by constituent client groups in all aspects of planning, implementation, and evaluation, (2) comprehensive communication coverage based on a firmly established communication network, (3) decentralization of all programs to maximize the “self‐help” concept, (4) continuous evaluation and professional development needs assessments to guide program development, and (5) maximum representation on all policy bodies.
SCHOOL ADMINISTRATION AND EDUCATIONAL RITUALS: A CASE STUDY OF PARTICIPATIVE DECISION MAKING
Authors: BARRINGTON J.M. , MARSHALL G.N.
Published: February 2008

In recent years, a number of what could be described as “educational rituals” have come under challenge in many New Zealand secondary schools. These rituals include school assemblies, the prefect system, and school uniforms. This article recounts a recent attempt on the part of a New Zealand secondary school to resolve a challenge to the tradition of compulsory school uniforms. The course of events contained many of the elements of participative decision making, and is none the less significant for having failed to bring about immediate change. The article also questions the validity of some assumptions which are implicit in much of the contemporary writing about educational decision making.
AN EXPLORATION OF THE SUBCOMMUNITY POLITICS OF EDUCATION: FOUR COMPARATIVE CASE STUDIES
Authors: CHU MORGAN
Published: February 2008

Four comparative case studies of subcommunities within a single school district were conducted. For the purposes of this study each subcommunity was operationally defined by the attendance area of an elementary school. The purposes of the study were: (i) to develop analytically the concept of a subcommunity; (ii) to develop the concept of a subcommunity's political influence; (iii) to test the application of these concepts with data collected from four low income subcommunities; (iv) to analyze and explore the possible relationships of environmental and school characteristics on the political influence of subcommunities. As a result of this study some of the problems of operationally defining and measuring political influence became apparent. Nevertheless, the data did suggest that focusing on the subcommunity politics of education might be a fruitful approach for studying political processes within large urban school districts. In addition, a number of possible determinants of subcommunity political influence were identified.
THE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PRINCIPALSHIP IN ISRAEL
Authors: GOLDSTEIN JOSEPH
Published: February 2008

This study seeks to examine the status, role and authority of the elementary school principalship. A short theoretical discussion of the central topics is followed by a presentation of research findings based on an attitudes questionnaire that was administered to a sample of school system personnel and elementary school inspectors. The school principal is perceived as determining the character of the institution more than any other factor in the system, and must be autonomous to a large extent in performing his tasks. He is expected to devote much of his time to organization and administration, but must not allow his occupation with questions of finance and maintenance to come at the expense of his other activities. Guiding teachers in their work, keeping informed of both teachers' and pupils' performance, and maintaining discipline in the school are perceived, in this order, and the most important pedagogical functions of the principal. The principal's most important source of authority is his intimate knowledge of his school, and his successful experience as a teacher. An extension of his authority at “the expense” of the Ministry is supported by respondents, while its extension at the expense of his subordinates is not. A principal is regarded suitable for his position as long as he generally gets along with his staff. He should be given greater authority in the adaptation of the curriculum to the needs of his school, in the flexibility he can exercise in the allocation of class hours and budget, and in the interpretation of Ministry of Education instructions to suit his school's special requirements.
WHAT PECULIARITIES IN EDUCATIONAL ADMINISTRATION MAKE IT DIFFICULT TO PROFESS: AN ESSAY
Authors: MANN DALE
Published: February 2008

The purpose of this paper is to outline the peculiarities of educational administration. The author's approach is admittedly intuitive and impressionistic. It is argued that several features of the knowledge base of administration and of its graduate teaching‐learning system place extraordinary demands on departments providing training in this field. Similarly, the teaching‐learning system brings both professor and practitioner into a strange relationship. The professor must deal with students who are practicing administrators, many of whom are “good” or “successful” in their profession, display an enormous range of competencies, and are disdainful of the academic pursuit of educational administration. The author suggests that only through the type of interaction between professor and student and the analysis of important problems accessible to reasoned intervention, may a satisfactory solution be found.
MANAGEMENT TECHNIQUES AND UNIVERSITY ADMINISTRATORS: A SURVEY OF TRAINING NEEDS IN BRITISH UNIVERSITIES
Authors: THORPE R.M. , WHITTINGTON B.
Published: February 2008

In the past few years a new debate has started and blossomed among those concerned with British university administration. It has centred around the lack of specific provision of training for university administrators. This research is a reflection of this debate. In an attempt to provide, firstly, information which would facilitate the construction of a course appropriate for “middle grade” administrators and, secondly, knowledge of a more general kind on the weaknesses of present administrator training, the authors carried out an attitudinal survey by postal questionnaire of 52 university and university college institutions in Britain. Interest focussed upon the training needs perceived by middle range administrators. This information was used to construct a course for these administrators which was offered at the University of Bradford in September 1973. Further, biographical and attitudinal data were used to attempt to explain variations in perceived training need. A consideration of several propositions suggested to explain such apparent variations served to indicate the evident need for more training in these techniques, either through the perceived need of a majority of respondents, or through the respondents' self confessed lack of knowledge about the applicability of these techniques. The authors conclude with a call for more non‐survey data based research into training needs and the expansion of specific university administrative training in management techniques.
STAFF DEVELOPMENT FOR UNIVERSITY AND COLLEGE ADMINISTRATORS IN AUSTRALIA
Authors: McCAIG ROBERT
Published: February 2008

The universities have traditionally seen as one of their major functions the preparation of persons for the higher professions. Though the definition of high profession has been expanded in recent decades to include a wide spectrum of occupations ranging all the way from forestry to accountancy and including various kinds of administration, whether it be business or hospital or school, the universities hate been very slow in recognising university administration as an area requiring their attention. Universities provide preparation for many professions including those relating to administration, but they have been slow to develop courses to meet the requirements of their own complex administrative systems. The reason for this lies in an outmoded perspective of the modern university. In Australia, programmes of training are now being introduced. Some of these are examined and described.