The research was designed to assess the comparative effectiveness of the schools in question with reference to explicit functions, endeavouring to deduce connexions between effects and patterns of process. The study was based on observation and testing in the five intermediate and senior List D schools for girls in Scotland over a period of eighteen months. A unified approach was adopted: the same concept visa employed both in assessing the process of carrying out the functions of the school, and in measuring the difference between input and output levels in the girls. This concept was "social adjustment", chosen because (i) available evidence suggested that enhancement of social adjustment was a more important explicit function of the schools than, say, lowering of conviction rates (ii) the criterion of reconviction as a measure of effectiveness was found to be misleading when applied to girls' schools and thus (iii) the concept of social adjustment provided a common approach to measuring both process and effectiveness which should facilitate the interpretation of any connexions found between the two. Patterns of process were approached also from a theoretical standpoint, leading to three 'paradigms of therapeutic education' differentiated by their basic social values, and schools were subsequently analysed in terms of these paradigms. Some differential improvements in social adjustment were found which could not be explained by any factors considered except those relating to school process. It was concluded that different approaches to the schools' function could influence in certain ways the resulting levels and types of social adjustment in girls. Using the theoretical paradigms, derived from the concept of social adjustment, these relationships between process and effect were explored interpretively. It was concluded that further research would be necessary to establish the relationships more firmly, but that the unified approach and the use of value-based paradigms offered a profitable framework for such a study.

This thesis is an account of an action research that took place in Israel between May 2000 and December 2001 investigating a programme for the professional development of primary principals. Most of this programme was conducted through virtual channels. In addition to the improvement of managerial behaviours of principals, this programme attempted to form a professional support group for its ten participants. There were three types of sessions: face-to-face, synchronized and a-synchronized. The research presented five questions. First, it investigated the effectiveness of the programme; secondly --- the feasibility of it generating a professional support group. The third question compared the user-friendliness of synchronized sessions with a-synchronized. The fourth question looked into the substance and degree of the use of virtual channels of communication by the principals following their experience in the programme; the fifth question investigated the principals' preferences regarding participating in virtual sessions compared to face-to-face sessions. The research was qualitative, attempting to look into the processes of development that the programme generated. The small size of the group required the use of methodical elements of case study, too. The data was obtained through interviews, observations and document-analysis. The findings show that participants have experienced differing degrees of openness to changes and to 'others', as well as of 'involvement' with one another and with some 'relevant others'. They have adopted, in limited forms, the use of ICT. Whilst they participated in the a-synchronized sessions, the synchronized session failed. There was evidence of a lasting effect of the programme six months after the programme had come to its end.

Since 1997 the government has introduced a number ofsignificant policy initiatives which have impacted heavily on the professional knowledge base ofheadteachers. In 2000 National Professional Standards for headteachers were introduced; in 2001 a National College of School Leadership (NCSL) was opened, and in 2002 the National Professional Qualification for Headship (NPQH) was made compulsory. But these initiatives do not apply to independent schools, their headteachers are not compelled to engage with them and there has been relatively little take-up ofthe NPQH or involvement with the NCSL within the sector. This research seeks to investigate what is informing and sustaining the professional knowledge base ofheadteachers in independent schools in light ofthe apparent absence of much ofthe provision which is available for maintained sector colleagues.

No description available.

This Research studies leadership in Roman Catholic primary and secondary schools in Malta. The study takes a grounded approach in order to investigate what it is like to be a headteacher in a church-run school, through an exploration of attitudes, behaviours, leadership styles and managerial skills and approaches. The initial phase of the project involved interviews with ten Roman Catholic school headteachers (five primary and five secondary). On the basis of these interviews a questionnaire was constructed, focusing on what had been identified as the key issues. The questionnaire was then distributed to the Heads of all Roman Catholic schools in Malta (forty schools). The findings of the study give some privileged insights into the perceptions and experiences of church school Heads, providing information about positive and negative aspects of the job, indicating areas where organisational and / or administrative changes would be helpful and also highlighting areas for further headteacher education and training.

This thesis is a case study of an attempt by a large education authority, Strathclyde Regional Council, to implement a planned rationalisation of school provision in an exercise named Adapting to Change. It examines the policy implications, in the Scottish education system, of roll decline at a time of financial retrenchment. The background to the exercise is given by describing the history and geography of Strathclyde Region, the administration of the council and the demographic factors forcing review of educational provision. Also explored are the contemporary political background in Scotland and Strathclyde. Theoretical concepts relevant to power and influence in educational policy, namely pluralism, partnership, corporatism, centralism are then considered. This is supplemented by examination of recent work by writers on Scottish educational policy. The rationale and methodology of the work are discussed and this is followed by an in-depth study of the overall process. The authority attempted to devolve limited decision making to 'area review groups' and detailed examination is made of two areas reviewed by Strathclyde. This is supplemented by briefer investigation of two other areas. The study involved detailed examination of documentary evidence from council files, public sources and campaign group documentation. The issues raised by Adapting to Change are considered from the points of view of those who were centrally involved i.e. parents and teachers, churches and teachers organisations, the education directorate, councillors and central government. Analysis is informed by interviews, carried out by the researcher, with senior councillors who were centrally involved in Adapting to Change.

Managing change in education is a complex process. The Malawi education sector has many current trends including Complementary Basic Education (CBE). The practice of Change Management (CM), however, is subtle in education literature and as such limited on how it can be used for the improvement of CBE. This study explores how CM can be practiced in order to improve the CBE programme in Malawi. The inherent characteristics that call for a CBE specific CM framework are its positioning within the education system, stakeholder role complexities, implementation model and size of the programme. The study approaches CBE as a single case holistic. Through a cross-sectional approach, it concentrates on the 2006-2011 period. Key informants, community members and learners were interviewed individually and through focus groups. Content analysis is used to analyse the data. While there is a growing body of literature on CM in education, there is limited applicability to the CBE programme. This study proposes the 3 Step CM Model as a clearly defined framework for practicing CM in CBE and a clear road map for managing change to all stakeholders in CBE. Results from a comparative analysis of CM theories from literature are fused with empirical data to construct a clearly defined change management framework for CBE. Three themes of Planning Change, Implementing Change and Institutionalising Change are discovered as key categories of CM in CBE. Thereafter, a 3 step-CM framework, as intimated above, is constructed based on these themes and overlaps of CM theories as revealed from literature. Factors that influence CM in CBE are categorized under the three steps to provide an elegant CM framework with managerial terms. Factors like Strategy, Evaluation and Communication are exposed as those on which other CM steps hinge on. All data in the study was collected within the CBE programme and so, the findings may not be generalised for other non formal education systems operating elsewhere.

No description available.

This study critically examines the value of a university-based staff-student shadowing scheme, the aims of which were to increase staff understanding of the daily experience of students and through this to suggest ways in which students’ experience could be enhanced, for example through improvements to services, systems or facilities. The value, as perceived by eleven staff participants, is situated within an exploration of issues of ethics and power relations arising from the application of a limited form of corporate ethnography to a higher education context, when both researcher and ‘shadowers’ are insiders. Shadowers were drawn from a range of academic and non-academic role across the University, with differing levels of seniority. Students were volunteers representing a variety of programmes. Principal research methods were interviews with staff, together with questionnaire surveys of staff and students and my own participation as a shadower. The project was conducted as insider/practitioner action research and was, in a sense, institutional research into a form of institutional research, investigating the insights gained by staff. The study employed ethnographic methods to explore ethical issues which emerged for participants and the effects of power relations and positions on perceptions of the scheme, its operation and outcomes. These are discussed with reference to Foucault’s writings on discipline, surveillance and power. The study raises questions about shadowing as a method, discussing in particular its focus on unique experiences of individuals, thus aiming to contribute to the limited body of literature in this area. A key contribution of the study is its exploration of the interplay of power relations in a senior management-initiated scheme, within a context of increased marketization in higher education in which students may be more likely to perceive themselves as consumers.

Truancy is currently (DfElS, 2001) right at the top of the government's list of educational issues to be addressed. On any one day, 400,000 pupils who should be in school are absent. That is 5% of the school population. The education welfare officer (EWO) has a very specific role in supporting a school to maintain high levels of attendance but these figures indicate there is clearly a need to examine ways in which different Education Welfare Services (EWSs) and their officers tackle school non-attendance. The research documented in this study set out to examine the working practice of EWOs engaged to improve school attendance. The methodology employed to do trIis comprised of a postal questionnaire, 16 in-depth interviews over a six-month period and a two-year action research investigation in one 'failing' secondary school. The lead methodological approach has been the interview technique that has enabled the researcher to pursue the collection of data as part of a social process. The research strategy involved a survey of 90 EWOs and from this sample 16 volunteers were sought to take part in the next phase of the research. The research findings strongly suggest the status and position of the EWS within education hierarchy is not at all clear. Issues regarding practitioner's title, training, supervision, skills required, qualifications and interventions have all been discussed leading to a conclusion that the EWS needs to be professionalised, the role of the EWO needs to be specialised and basic administrative tasks need to be undertaken by an administrator. The findings from this study are entirely in keeping with evidence from other research in that there are no national guidelines; staff tend to disagree with the fundamentals of their job; some staff do not work in partnership with schools; others try to change what happens in a school without the position and authority to succeed. However, this investigation has taken matters a stage further by extending this knowledge through interviews with EWOs and managers to develop a model of effective practice that has been tried and tested.