Some school divisions find themselves with a limited number of qualified applicants for administration positions. Aspirants require suggestions of and guidance toward effective leadership training programs and supports. A clear understanding of essential leadership skills may create an incentive for classroom teachers to apply for administration positions and potentially decrease the strain on school divisions. Selection and suitability of qualified candidates applying for vacancies will diminish school boards struggles to fill administrative vacancies. <p>The purpose of this case study was to describe what administrative personnel superintendents, principals, and vice principals in one Saskatchewan urban school division consider essential skills for classroom teachers to develop as a means to position themselves as future school administrators. Furthermore, the case study set out to identify appropriate leadership development programs and supports to assist aspiring administrators in leadership development. This study aspired to isolate programs that practicing administrators in the school division posited as most useful in their own skill acquisition and development.<p>A mixed-methods survey questionnaire was administered to 117 administrators of one Saskatchewan urban school division. The administrators insights and expertise as to the essential skills required to be an effective administrator will assist classroom teachers prepare for the potential of becoming formal leaders. Forty percent of this group responded to the survey. Data from this case study were compared to a similar case study conducted by John Daresh (1994) in the United States.<p>Participants believed aspiring administrators must develop self-awareness skills to be effective educational leaders and must be offered appropriate leadership programs and supports through which aspirants could develop essential leadership skills. Even though the majority of respondents suggested self-awareness skills were essential to develop for effective leadership, they posited the importance of also developing technical and social skills. This case study found that while a commonality of skills were identified by participants as essential, it was extremely important for aspiring administrators, with the assistance of their school board, to build on their own personal leadership strengths.

The purpose of this study was to examine the views of parents and preschool school administrators about preschool movement education and the practices regarding the teaching movement education to young children in early childhood programs. Participants (8 preschool administrators and 21 parents) were from 8 randomly selected private preschool in the region of &Ccedil / ankaya, Ankara, Turkey. Semi structured interview and document analysis methods were used for data collection. Content analysis method was used for data analysis. The results suggested that play and movement activities had no effects on parents&rsquo / school choice and parents did not seem to be influential on curriculum decisions about movement education activities. Structured play and movement activities were not considered as an academic subject by both groups. Instead participants perceived structured play and movement activities as a free play. Parents were aware of subjects as math, science and language / but they had limited knowledge about movement education activities. Parents generally focused on children&rsquo / s such sport specific activities as swimming, tennis, horse riding which were not developmentally appropriate for children&rsquo / s fundamental movement skills. Demands about the additional skills related with the movement education focused more on sport specialized activities and large environments for children to play comfortable. To conclude, parents and administrators have little knowledge about movement education so they are needed to be informed about the subject through educative workshops or seminars given by the people who are professional in their field.

This study assessed indicators of adoption of abstinence-only-until-marriage education as an innovation by middle school principals in the state of Texas. It also assessed school principals?? likelihood of adopting such programs. This study was conducted in the context of changing school policies related to sexuality education and an influx of governmental funding intended to encourage instruction about abstinence-only-until-marriage. The impact of school-based, abstinence education and the role of the principal are of special interest for those promoting healthy sexual behavior among youth. The study??s sample consisted of 433 responses from a proportional random sample of middle school principals selected from 20 Education Service Center Regions in the state of Texas. Rogers?? Diffusion of Innovations Theory provided the theoretical framework and foundation for this research. Five perceived attributions of an innovation??relative advantage, compatibility, complexity, trialability and observability??were the study??s independent variables. The dependent variable was defined as the likelihood of principals adopting abstinence-only-until-marriage education in their schools. Location of schools (i.e., in rural or urban counties), was examined as having a possible moderating effect on other variables. Findings from this study indicated the middle school principal who was most willing to adopt abstinence-only-until-marriage education programs into his or her school??s curriculum strongly believed abstinence education provided important advantages for youth, and strongly perceived abstinence-only-until-marriage education to be consistent with his or her professional and personal beliefs and values. The average principal also did not perceive abstinence-only-until-marriage education to be complex. The typical respondent agreed that elements of abstinence-only-until-marriage education could be easily tried in the school, and considered it important to observe other principals adopting abstinence-only-until-marriage education prior to adopting the innovation. Trialability, complexity and religion were the strongest predictors for likelihood of adoption. Efforts to promote abstinence-only-until-marriage education in the public schools are dependent upon an understanding of the role of administrators in the curriculum adoption process. This study contributes to the knowledge base related to the school principal??s influence on abstinence promoting programs.

Thesis (Ed D.)--University of Missouri-Columbia, 2001. / Typescript. Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 178-181). Also available on the Internet.

Title from second page of PDF document. Includes bibliographical references (p. 109-113).

Thesis (Ed.D.)--University of West Florida, 2009. / Submitted to the Division of Teacher Education. Title from title page of source document. Document formatted into pages; contains 185 pages. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ed. D.)--University of Missouri-Columbia, 2002. / Typescript. Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 75-80). Also available on the Internet.

Thesis (Ed. D.)--University of Missouri-Columbia, 2002. / Typescript. Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 75-80). Also available on the Internet.

ABSTRACT There has been a renewed interest in the inclusion of ethics as part of educators' training and interest in understanding the moral and ethical dimensions of educational practice. This research was designed to study the types of dilemmas school level leaders face, the characteristics of typical dilemmas, and the implications for leader preparation, professional development, and practice. In documenting the lived experiences of former school level leaders, the grounded theory approach to qualitative inquiry and the critical incident technique (CIT) were employed. Data collected from interview sessions, dialogs, journals and reflections were used to analyze the types of dilemmas school level leaders faced, the characteristics of typical dilemmas, and the implications for leader preparation, professional development, and practice. This study confirmed the prevalence of ethical dilemmas for school level leadership. The critical incidents shared by the participants revealed that school leaders were guided by district policies and experienced dissonance or tension between their guiding ethical beliefs and policies or expectations of the district. The data determined that school level leaders sought to act in the best interests of students. Participants acknowledged that the core of their ethical and moral fiber was developed early in their youth and was reinforced by pivotal life experiences. This acknowledgement suggested that pivotal life experiences could influence an individual's ethical and moral fiber. The findings also indicated that professional development in ethics could be effective for school level leaders. Additionally, the data revealed a dichotomy around whether ethics could be taught. The findings were inconclusive in determining how race and/or gender played a significant role in the dilemmas that school level leaders face or the resolution of the dilemmas. Further research and study of this issue may be warranted in light of the changing demographics of our schools, communities, and school level leaders. Critical reflection proved to be a process that could benefit practicing and aspiring school level leaders. Exploring how this process could be implemented in school leader preparation and professional development programs is a phenomenon worthy of further research.

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