School restructuring by teachers
Article Abstract:
School districts around the country are in the process of initiating projects to restructure their schools. A small but growing number of these projects have been initiated by teachers, but, as yet, little has been written documenting the experience of classroom practitioners involved in such efforts. This article examines the experience of a group of teachers at the Edward Devotion School in Brookline, Massachusetts during the first year of a school restructuring project. Initiated by two teachers in 1987, the Teaching Project restructured a portion of this public elementary school, altered the work of a team of third- and fourth-grade teachers, and introduced a preservice teacher training collaborative with Wheelock College. This articel highlights both the opportunities and the difficulties encountered in a teacher-initiated project. It also provides insights into the potential complexity of altering teachers' job responsibilities and describes the numerous benefits that can accrue when teachers are the initiators of school reform. (Reprinted by permission of the publisher.)
Publication Name: Journal of Applied Behavioral Science
Subject: Social sciences
ISSN: 0021-8863
Year: 1992
User Contributions:
Comment about this article or add new information about this topic:
Group representatives in educational institutions: an empirical study of superintendents and teacher union presidents
Article Abstract:
As critical group representatives in public school districts (K-12), superintendents and teacher union presidents have a direct impact on the success of education reform programs. Aspects of the superintendent-union president interface were explored by focusing on one ingredient of effective work relations, namely, interpersonal trust. Regression analyses of survey data from 305 superintendents and 293 presidents investigated potential differences across the two samples concerning variables influencing respondents' willingness to trust the other group representative. For both samples, willingness to trust was influenced primarily by expectations about the other group representative's future trustworthy behavior. Social judgment factors were important predictors of expectations for both superintendents and presidents. Perceptions of normative referent groups suggested that superintendents operate under conflicting intergroup pressures. (Reprinted by permission of the publisher.)
Publication Name: Journal of Applied Behavioral Science
Subject: Social sciences
ISSN: 0021-8863
Year: 1992
User Contributions:
Comment about this article or add new information about this topic:
A case study of an assistant director of special services: special problems in educational leadership
Article Abstract:
This article presents a case study of an assistant director of special services. The study examines various components of his position including his work as supervisor of child study teams and as administrative team member and his work with parents, teachers, and the Board of Education. He emphasizes an inclusive environment that is responsive to the unique needs of each child. The challenges of including special needs children into the culture and community of schools included. Also, the complex changes both in the school district and in special education during the 24 years of his career are presented to show the great challenges facing leaders in education today. (Reprinted by permission of the publisher.)
Publication Name: Journal of Applied Behavioral Science
Subject: Social sciences
ISSN: 0021-8863
Year: 1992
User Contributions:
Comment about this article or add new information about this topic:
- Abstracts: Power relinquishment versus power sharing: theoretical clarification and empirical comparison of delegation and participation. part 2
- Abstracts: The facilitation of organizational change: an empirical study of factors predicting change agents' effectiveness
- Abstracts: The facilitation of organizational change: an empirical study of factors predicting change agents' effectiveness. part 2
- Abstracts: Getting everyone involved: how one organization involved its employees, supervisors, and managers in redesigning the organization
- Abstracts: Dualism and reform in China. Permanent income and wealth accumulation: a cross-sectional study of Chinese urban and rural households