Call number: LD2668 .T4 1952 S3 / Master of Science

The Texas Education Code has specific requirements for public schools as it relates to emergency planning and response expectations. There are no similar requirements for Catholic schools in state statute. Through a survey, this report will show that Catholic schools in Texas already have planning and response programs in place. This report will make specific recommendations intended to enhance those current programs. / text

The purpose of this research study was to consider the understanding and experience of a selected number of lay principals of diocesan secondary Catholic schools in Victoria as to the religious and spiritual dimensions of their leadership role and to identify what supported them in the discharge of their responsibilities in these domains of their leadership. Based on this purpose, I identified three research questions: 1. What is the understanding of lay Catholic secondary principals in Victoria, of their role as a ministry within the Catholic Church? 2. In what ways have principals experienced the spiritual and religious dimensions of their leadership role? 3. In what ways have principals sought and/or experienced formation beyond academic study which has enriched their practice of principalship? The theoretical perspective of the research is Interpretative Constructionism and the methodology adopted is Multiple Informant Case Study. The researcher has taken the stance of ‘interrogatory fellow traveller’ in relation to the research informants. The methods used to gather data are (a) focus group, (b) biographical written statements, (c) document analysis and (d) personal reflection in response to the previous three methods. In general, the findings of this research study suggest that lay principals of Catholic secondary schools who were informants in the study understand the role of principal of a diocesan secondary school as a ministry within the Catholic Church. While the informants did not use overtly theological terms to articulate this understanding, the accounts of their experience in principalship and the insights gained through reflection on their leadership behaviour have led them to believe that they are in fact exercising a legitimate ministry within the field of Catholic secondary education in Victoria. This research has brought to light a body of knowledge about the work of a group of principals which has not previously been subject to critical scrutiny. While the study is of intrinsic merit in recognising and describing the work of secondary lay principals, from an instrumental perspective these findings raise a number of issues relating to the preparation, induction and support available to newly appointed and continuing principals in diocesan Catholic secondary schools in Victoria. As a consequence the following propositions are offered: Further study using a wider informant group of principals is warranted to confirm the findings of this enquiry and to expand on the knowledge already gained. Such study might include parallel studies of lay principals in congregation-owned schools, in other states of Australia or in other countries where the Catholic Church has established schools as an agency of its evangelising mission in education. This study is of potential assistance to aspiring principals, principals and system authorities in the planning and development of appropriate professional learning and support, including formal academic study and formational opportunities. The findings confirm the importance for leaders and aspiring leaders in Catholic education of sound theological and spiritual education as a necessary part of their preparation for leadership, both pre-service and in-service. The findings confirm the significance of appropriate liturgical induction or commissioning for principals. It is suggested that one practical form of support for principals is the provision of access to regular professional supervision and spiritual direction. It is recommended that the process of appointment and induction of principals be undertaken more systematically, perhaps using the principles of project management, especially in relation to the identification of enhancing and inhibiting factors present within the staff community at the time of the appointment of a new principal. The findings indicate that schools have had varied experiences of developing a distinctive ethos and charism, based on a particular founder or group of founders. It is recommended that all diocesan secondary schools be encouraged to develop an appropriate charism and spirituality, based on the character of the local faith community and the history of the particular school. The findings point to the need for further development of an authentic spirituality of educational and faith leadership, based in the reality of principals’ lives as family and community members and educators in faith of their staff and wider community. Informants to the study indicated their awareness of the tension between occupying a leadership role in the Church and personal positions in conscience on matters of Church teaching. Some further study of this issue may be warranted.

The focus of this research project was the changing perception amongst practising Catholic school principals of the nature and purpose of the contemporary Catholic school. This examination was set within the changing social, ecclesial and educational contexts within which the Catholic school has operated in the decades following the Second Vatican Council (1962–1965). The research which was conducted amongst principals in the Archdiocese of Brisbane, Australia, was focused by two research questions. These were:How do principals currently perceive the purpose of Catholic schools? How do they perceive Catholic schools changing? The review of the literature examined elements of the changing environment of the contemporary Catholic school. It also surveyed the ways in which that literature described the effects of changing social, ecclesial and educational contexts upon the sense of purpose amongst principals of Catholic schools. The demise of “inherited meanings” and the reconstruction or reimagining of a new meaning structure provided the conceptual template for the study. Since the study explores the perceptions of leaders concerning their schools in times of extensive and foundational contextual change, it involved an interpretive research design. An epistemological stance of constructionism was adopted because it acknowledges the impact which engagement with the research exerts upon participants’ construction of meaning. An interpretivist theoretical perspective served to structure the research in a manner that was congruent with the philosophical foundations of the research questions. The employment of the research orientation of symbolic interactionism was appropriate because it holds that meaning and interpretation of phenomena are to be understood by listening to the voices and perspectives of the participants within a given context. A case study approach was utilised in the execution of the research design which allowed for flexible, systematic and continuing data collection, analysis and participant feedback. Data were collected through the use of personal, open-ended questionnaire, semistructured interviews, critical review interviews, focus groups and independent review and were analysed using constant comparative method. The research led to the conclusion that in the contemporary Catholic school, a high priority is given to the offering of a holistic educational experience to students. This, in turn, is predicated upon an anthropology which adopts a more unitive rather than dualistic view of the human person. This represents a significant conceptual movement within the period under study. A greater emphasis is also placed upon the evangelising role the Catholic school, which, in turn, acknowledges the increasingly secular environment within which it operates. At the same time, there is a strong, expressed belief amongst its leaders that the contemporary Catholic school offers an experience of a redemptive community in which its members can find acceptance, inclusion and a sense of the spiritual dimension of life which transcends the status of affiliation with the institutional Church.

This thesis takes the position that once schools and school systems adopt reform programs,the values and meanings inherent in those programs create and perpetuate powerful forms of discourse that characterize the projects themselves, evoke loyalty and commitment and may ultimately serve to stifle other voices. The thesis examines several primary schools involved with the Children’s Literacy Success Strategy (CLaSS) in the Victorian Catholic Education system. It is an analysis of the dominant discourse created and perpetuated by the CLaSS documentation, education officers, principals, and classroom teachers. The study characterizes the nature of that discourse and explores its effects on the work of teachers, principals, and on school improvement. The analysis proposed in no way disparages CLaSS itself, nor does it seek to judge its objectives, or offer a critique of the specific methods used to improve literacy. Rather, it advocates that genuine school improvement requires one to step outside the circle of discourse engendered by reform programs such as CLaSS which promote a ‘single minded’ discourse about themselves and that which the school is attempting. When programs such as CLaSS are introduced into schools as part of a sector wide reform agenda they are expected to provide proof of improved results in order to justify the financial investment associated with the initiative. The values and beliefs of the reform initiative are expected to be accepted by school systems usually without question (Apple, 2000). The effects of such unquestioned acceptance of particular values are examined in the current study. As schools are expected to accept programs like CLaSS in their entirety, it is not possible within the rhetoric of CLaSS to select what elements of the program to adopt. This appears to lead to the creation and perpetuation of an ‘officially’ sanctioned way of thinking about school reform and teaching. Proponents of reform programs may argue that such sanctions are a necessary feature of whole school reform programs and provide a focus for energy and activism, for winning people’s support, and for conveying to parents and the wider school community a sense of purposeful action and rational planning. However, these dominant discourses seem to obscure other perspectives, disallowing critique and preventing reflective discourse and analysis. Indeed, this study holds that genuine school reform requires schools to break out of the imprisonment of dominant discourses and remain open to critical reflection

Observation has been made of an amalgamation of two Catholic Girls' Schools with the twofold aim of: i) identifying the elements that have contributed positively to the functional organisation, and ii) formulating guidelines to assist future amalgamation planners. The three core elements of High Morale, Effective Communication and Efficient Decision-making were found to be strongly operative and apparently - as evidence indicated - were facilitated by: i) principal's attitude and behaviour towards Staff, ii) administration being open to query and advice, iii) principal-staff commitment to the task and expressed goals of the school. While these factors contributed to the success of the organisation functionally, specific activities, in some cases exclusive to Catholic schools, were seen as valuable also. Opportunities for spiritual support and community building were used positively and effectively. The findings indicated that the organisational procedures employed were sound and, that in distinguishing amalgamation planning from single-school planning, the basic need is to foster a unity of purpose and mutual acceptance of persons with persons' rights.

This study traces the development of the system of Catholic systemic schools in the Archdiocese of Sydney from early colonial times to the present, and analyses the perceptions and expectations that a sample of secondary school principals in the System had of the systems level administration in 1985. The development of Catholic schools in the penal colony of New South Wales was extremely slow. The first Catholic school was opened in 1817, and from 1833 to the 'free, secular, and compulsory' education act in New South Wales in 1880, denominational schools received some government grants. When 'state-aid' was withdrawn in 1880, the wonder of education history in Australia was that a separate Catholic school 'system' emerged. This was brought about in large measure by the ability of the Bishops and Clergy to activate the Catholic community, which had been generally apathetic religiously and educationally, and by their recruiting teachers who were members of Religious Congregations both from abroad and locally. The Religious carried the Catholic Schools 'system' in Sydney for some seventy-five years (1880-1955). However, the recruiting of Religious teachers declined from the 1950s. This, together with rapid increases in school population, widening of the curriculum, decreased class sizes and lighter teaching loads brought on a crisis of survival for the Catholic schools. It was averted by the reintroduction of 'State-Aid' and the recruiting and training of lay teachers. Following the Karmel Report of 1973, Commonwealth Government grants and programs grew many fold. In order to cope with the new organisational complexities, including both financial and educational accountability requirements of the government, many of the Catholic schools, which had previously been organised on an individual parish or Religious Congregation basis, joined together to form systems. These Catholic Education Office systems (or CEO systems) rapidly developed administrative bureaucracies. The Sydney CEO System is the largest in Australia with nearly 6000 teachers and over 110,000 pupils. In this process of building an organisational system, the vital role of the school principal is changing. This study examines the responses of twenty-four secondary school principals, in the interview situation, to questions on their perceptions and expectations of the systems level administration. The researcher has analysed the data in the light of some of the literature on motivation theory and theories about complex organisations and has suggested some facets of the systems level administration that need to be addressed if the system is to grow in effectiveness.

In early 1983, the Catholic Education Authority in Sydney issued a major curriculum document for the systems 210 Primary schools on Religious Education. One year after the documents' release there was evidence of its negligible impact in classrooms. Studies of overseas, Australian, and local system-level changes supported the view that there was relatively limited documentation of the processes followed in the implementation of system-level change. As its starting point, the Field Study pursues the development in eight schools of a system-stimulated implementation process over twelve months. A historical perspective of the system is given; implementation of change is defined; and the approach used in the study is sited in the theoretical context of Action Research. The body of the study is written in an 'inter-leaving' style. In each Chapter a chronological descriptive approach is followed and, as appropriate, theoretical considerations are introduced as a method of reflection and interpretation of the process. Among the processes under investigation, major consideration is given to planning, monitoring and collaborative staff development. The specific strategy of change developed is that of a Co-operative Peer Support Scheme, based on Goodlad's concept of a "league". Concerns - Based Adoption Methodology (CBAM) is used as a monitoring technique. An original contribution to the monitoring processes is the invention and application of a micro-computer program for analysis of the Stages of Concern of the teacher participants in the Project. The salient findings of the Study are that the particular plan had been effective, and that system planning can only be directional. Monitoring procedures that are are amenable to use in system-level change were demonstrated to have been useful. Clear focussing of issues, the generation of locally produced learning materials, and conscious use of adult learning process enhances the outcomes of the Project. Finally, the goal-free descriptive approach followed identifies more sharply new questions requiring further exploration: mechanisms leading to group formation; the interrelationship between psychic-group and socio-group processes; the roles of change-agents and the support system; and the quality of use rather than the percentage of users.

Thesis supervisor: Steve McGuire. Includes bibliographic references (p. 141-144).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Wisconsin--Madison, 2002. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 377-396). Also available on the Internet.