No description available.

Dissertation (Ph.D.)--Auburn University, 2004. / Abstract. Vita. Includes bibliographic references (p.123-140).

The purpose of this study was to confirm the structural relationship of goal setting variables to performance. Performance was measured in learning mathematics lessons. Linear structural modeling techniques were used to evaluate the goal setting model. The exogenous variables were prior performance, goal difficulty, and self-evaluation. The endogenous variables were self-expectancy, self-efficacy, personal goal, and performance. There was support for the model of goal setting as proposed in this study. The nested alternate structural model for goal setting was the most parsimonious model. This model evidenced a negative effect of easy specific assigned goals on self efficacy. Vague and challenging specific goals had a positive effect on self efficacy. Prior performance, assigned goal, and self evaluation had positive path coefficients to self efficacy which, in turn, had a positive path coefficient to performance. Descriptive univariate statistics tended to support the theory of goal setting. These findings corroborate the results of the structural equation analysis.

In recent years the response of the government in recognising the need for specific training for headship, albeit belatedly and against a trend in falling levels of recruitment to senior leadership positions in schools nationally, has led to serious attention being given to the issue. In 2002 the first City Academy opened and with it a new set of senior educational leadership challenges. The central thesis of this research is that of an examination and analysis of the nature and dimensions for successful leadership of Academies bearing in mind the challenges and complexities of the task in hand. At the time of writing no specifically designed or defined programme exists to train or support those becoming or already working as Principals of Academies. The focus for this research is to investigate the leadership styles, qualities, skills and contextual dimensions which enable previously seriously underperforming schools to transform themselves under the leadership of a fast growing ‘breed’ termed Academy Principals. At the start of this research 200 Academies were planned to be open by 2010. However the announcement by Tony Blair, then Prime Minister, in November 2006 to expand the programme to create 400 Academies further reinforces the importance of this research to investigate and report upon: - the general, emerging prerequisites for leading a successful Academy; - the leadership characteristics of existing effective Academy Principals; - the strategic dimensions pertaining to leading an Academy to successful outcomes; - the technical and operational dimensions specific to the leadership of Academies; - the degree to which leadership autonomy contributes to pace and direction of progress; - the key inhibitors and accelerators to successful outcomes of leadership of Academies. The primary method of research is semi-structured interviews and case studies supported by review of literature. The thesis is divided into five chapters. The first outlines the context and climate for creation of the Academies Programme, the key characteristics of such schools and the significance of the research in contributing to current knowledge in this field. The second chapter, through the examination and review of literature, establishes and outlines six key research elements to be further examined arising from the identified leadership dimensions pertaining to successful leadership of schools facing complexity and challenge. In doing so the conceptual framework model evolves and is introduced. Chapter 3 examines the possible research methodologies and approaches and considers the most appropriate forms for investigating the key elements arising from the initial thesis, subsequent review of literature and establishment of the conceptual framework model. The fourth chapter discusses the research findings and analysis from the semi- structured interviews and case studies using the six elements and applying them within the conceptual framework model. Chapter 5 provides an evaluation and makes recommendations, drawing conclusions from what has been established through the research. What can be learnt from best practice and suggestions on how to proceed in successfully leading Academies, with the programme expanding at a pace, are proposed as are opportunities for further lines of research. The thesis as a whole not only provides new information on how the challenges and complexities of leading Academies can be successfully met and supported, but also how the identification and establishment of certain leadership skills and prerequisites summarized as key elements for leadership of schools of this type can be seen as part of a larger school improvement movement to address the need to improve standards in the most challenging schools.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Texas at Austin, 2003. / Supervisors: John M. Slatin and Margaret A. Syverson. Vita. Includes bibliographical references. Also available from UMI.

The objective of this research is to formally define a spatio-temporal conceptual model that captures data semantics required for temporal and geospatial applications. We show how the proposed model provides a metaphor that bridges the semantic gap between the real world and its spatio-temporal representation in information systems. Our multi-methodological research approach includes: (i) formally defining a spatio-temporal semantic model called ST USM (Spatio-Temporal Unifying Semantic Model); (ii) evaluating the proposed model using a case study and a laboratory study; and (iii) demonstrating practicality of our proposed model using a proof-of-concept prototype system. We describe a spatio-temporal conceptual modeling approach--applicable to any conventional conceptual model--that incorporates sequenced and nonsequenced space/time semantics. We have applied our annotation-based approach to the Unifying Semantic Model (USM)--a conventional conceptual model--to propose ST USM. ST USM is an upward-compatible, snapshot reducible, annotation-based spatio-temporal conceptual model that can comprehensively capture semantics related to space and time without adding any new spatio-temporal constructs. We provide formal semantics of ST USM via a mapping to conventional USM and constraints (expressed in first-order logic), from which the logical schema can be derived. To evaluate the proposed model, we conducted a case study at the US Geological Survey that helped us assess the extent to which the proposed formalism helps capture all the spatio-temporal data semantics for an application. We show that ST USM is ontologically expressive and leads to schemas that completely capture the requisite spatio-temporal semantics. We conducted a laboratory study and found that an annotation-based approach to capturing the spatio-temporal semantics does not adversely impact the schema comprehension as compared with conventional conceptual models (e.g., USM). This implies that annotations provide an intuitive straightforward mechanism to capture the spatio-temporal requirements and can be usefully employed to capture spatio-temporal semantics accurately. We describe DISTIL (DesIgn-support environment for SpaTIo-temporaL data), a web-based conceptual modeling prototype system that can help capture semantics of spatio-temporal data. Using DISTIL, we demonstrate that the annotation-based approach to capturing spatio-temporal requirements is straightforward to implement, satisfies ontology-based and cognition-based requirements, and integrates seamlessly into existing database design methodologies.

The purpose of this research is to define grounded theoretical models about factors that influence collection development and collection management of business information resources in public libraries. The study is based on data collected from a multi-site case study of public libraries along the U.S.-Mexico border where there is a critical need for information on starting and expanding small businesses. A framework of structuration theory and cultural hegemony theory informs an analysis of the data. This paper relates to the relevant literature and sets forth implications for research, practice, and further discussion. The three main categories identified from coding the data are library location, modes of production and distribution of business information resources, and the degree of external stakeholder pressure on library business collections. Three model statements defined and supported by the data are: (1) the attributes of funding, librarian qualifications, access to information and communication technologies, size and qualities of the business community, and client expectations that influence business collection development are related to library location in metropolitan or rural areas; (2) new practices in the production of content, formats, and modes of distribution of business materials are more problematic for small libraries due to limited information and communication technology (ICT) devices and insufficient professional training; and (3) external influences and initiatives, such as federal, state, and foundation programs, have more of an impact on business collection development in small libraries than in large libraries. The various properties of these factors are discussed with a focus on how daily routine, tacit awareness, and expectations draw on structural rules and resources to produce and reproduce, or change, library systems and their business collections. The consequences of location in metropolitan or rural areas are identified, and mitigating strategies are suggested. External influences and new modes of production and distribution of business information are implicated in supporting the cultural hegemony of globalization by encouraging the introduction and use of ICTs in public libraries; however, use of ICTs to expand the business collection is dependent upon librarian interest and abilities as well as competing demands for scarce resources.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Wisconsin--Madison, 1955. / Typescript. Vita. eContent provider-neutral record in process. Description based on print version record. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 152-154).

Between 2011 and 2014, investment funding for education technology companies increased by an average of 40% per year (Catalano, 2015). With an expanding footprint and funding stream, education technology companies have access to more students, teachers, and resources than ever before. As a result, they have an unprecedented opportunity to impact education in the United States. In my Ed.L.D. residency, I served as Educator Engagement Director at Panorama Education, a mission-driven for-profit startup. Panorama helps schools collect and analyze feedback from students, staff, and family members and currently serves over 6,000 schools and reaches over 1.5 million students annually. As a vendor serving school systems, the vast majority of Panorama’s users are teachers. In most cases, purchasing lies in the hands of administrators; teachers do not have agency in the buying process within their school systems. Thus, Panorama cannot necessarily rely on market success to validate the value created for teachers. As Educator Engagement Director, I led a strategic effort to use product development as a channel to create value for teachers while increasing appeal to system administrators. The crux of my work was the development of a new professional development product for teachers, called Playbook. The product, which I first proposed early in my residency, is now in pilot testing with several districts, including a large urban district in the Southwest. In this capstone, I present how I led and worked with a team of software developers, designers, and marketers to combine startup, lean, and non-profit business methodologies to develop a product that created value for teachers. The project’s initial success, as demonstrated through teacher feedback and a successful pilot test, suggests the value of distinguishing between purchasers and users and pursuing user-defined value in education technology companies with a dual bottom line of generating profits and improving American education.

The National Board for Professional Teaching Standards was established in 1987 and is an independent, non-profit, and non-governmental organization that works to advance accomplished teaching. At the time of my residency, the National Board was in the midst of several significant changes: a major re-design of its board certification assessment, the launch of ATLAS – an online case library of accomplished teaching, the transition of a new president and CEO, and the wind-down of several large grant-funded projects. As it prepared to enter its 30th year, the National Board sought strategic renewal to more effectively scale accomplished teaching. At its surface, my residency was about articulating a model of strategy development for the National Board and creating the conditions for an emergent strategy development process – a bottom-up process that leverages the expertise, leadership and entrepreneurial spirit of staff members to develop the National Board’s next-generation strategy for scale. However, my capstone also speaks to broader themes of change management for a mature organization, leadership through transition, and of course, developing organizational conditions and culture to support current needs. I treat the development of my strategic project as a case study for how an organization in the ambiguity of transition can navigate forward towards strategic clarity. This capstone outlines the three stages of my strategic project where I refine a model of strategy development that calls out the need for top-down strategic guidance coupled with an emergent strategy development process. I rejected the binary between top-down or bottom-up and sought to articulate a top-to-bottom model. The metaphor of dripstone columns, which are formed when stalactites and stalagmites grow together symbolize the top-to-bottom model of strategy development I proposed. To analyze the strategic project, I use an adaptive leadership framework. This framework allowed me to examine the way in which transition and change affected the National Board, its leadership, and its staff members. I conclude that strategy development must not be lost in the turmoil of transition. The discipline to step back from the demands of daily work and effectively communicate strategic direction and priorities provides the steady leadership that is critically needed for an emergent strategy development process and especially in times of change.