The general problem was that vast resources (time, money, etc.) have been invested in the Integrated Quality Management System. Besides the generally positive feedback it was not yet known for certain to what extent IQMS contributed to the perception of improved educator performance and the problems which existed with the implementation. The objectives of this dissertation were to determine what the perceived impact of the Integrated Quality Management System on Educator Performance was and prove the validity of a proposed model of factors related to Educator Performance. In order to construct a theoretical frame of reference of the existing knowledge, an extensive literature review of the Performance Management theory in the private sector was followed by a review of the Department of Education publications about the practical implementation of these principles in the management of educator performance in schools by means of the Integrated Quality Management System. Both qualitative (a pilot study consisting of several in depth interviews with educators and principals) and quantitative research (a questionnaire based on the literature study, objectives and hypothesis and using a five point Likert scale) methods were used to determine the impact ofthe implementation of Integrated Quality Management System on Educator Performance in South African public schools. The results from the four hundred and twelve respondents were analysed with the aid of the EXCEL and SPSS computer programmes. It was found that the implementation of the Integrated Quality Management System has contributed significantly to all areas of perceived Education Performance, i.e. structure, staff development, motivation, class visits, feedback, goal setting, problem solving and forms. The IQMS was negatively related to disciplinary management. The non parametric nature of the data could not allow for statistical techniques such as multiple regressions to be run, but the proposed model still revealed itself as valid in the factor analysis. It was concluded that the Integrated Quality Management System has done what it was meant to do: it had a positive impact on perceived Educator Performance. Furthermore, it was found that the factors: structure, staff development, motivation, class visits, feedback, goal setting, problem solving, accurate scores and disciplinary measures had a significant relation with perceived Educator Performance. It was recommended that the success story of the implementation of the Integrated Quality Management System be made public, neutral educators be brought on board, the accuracy of the scores be upgraded and even more structure added to the staff development programme. It was also recommended that School Management Teams be trained in motivating staff, class visits be increased and feedback to staff on their performance be improved. It was also recommended that School Management Teams be trained in goal setting programmes and the implementation of the Educator Performance Model. / Thesis (MBA)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, [2006]

This research is intended for educational policy makers. This is an exploratory study that investigates Quebec's classrooms as a new educational reform is implemented. There are two relevant pieces of legislation in the reform that elicited this study. First, teachers are required to adopt constructivist teaching practices; second, teachers must use ICT in classrooms. The questions being addressed are: (1) What are the current challenges and benefits impacting teachers with the integration of computers in the classroom environment? (2) What do classroom practices look like given (a) in the context of Quebec's constructivist-learning environment and (b) the possibility of ICT support. Case studies with teachers from elementary and high schools show changes in teacher and student role; however, lack of guidelines hinder constructivist teaching practices. Five predominant challenges were identified: lack of personal development, lack of time, technical support, accessibility, and classroom management. The study also identifies five elements as benefits: sharing of information; communication; editing; monitoring; web access.

This study was designed to determine: (a) the nature and extent of programmatic changes that occurred in the nine Indiana "High Schools That Work" pilot sites, (b) how the implementation of these changes has impacted administrative roles and responsibilities, and (c) whether the principal's role is different in program implementation when another educator is directly responsible for a specific school-improvement initiative. Questionnaires were mailed to principals and site coordinators at each pilot site, and personal interviews were subsequently conducted with each of them.Findings and conclusions were:1. All pilot sites used some form of integrated, non-linear planning. Integrated, non-linear planning helped pilot-site principals and site coordinators gain support for their programs and implement a greater number of changes than the researcher expected to find.2. Communication and finding time to plan were the two most significant planning problems. When there was a breakdown in communication among constituent groups, the level of support for various initiatives diminished. Releasing teachers from classroom activities to plan this initiative provided help in the planning process.3. Administrators at each school incorporated programmatic changes to reflect changes in philosophy, curriculum, and instruction. These changes included: (a) raising academic expectations, (b) eliminating the general track, (c) revising curriculum and instructional techniques, (d) integrating subject areas across academic disciplines and between academic and vocational subjects, (e) restructuring guidance programs, (f) collaborating with business communities, (g) modifying student assessment methods, and (h) changing the structure of the school day. Changes made through the "High Schools That Work" initiative have impacted all constituent groups affiliated with the pilot-site schools.4. Educators in dual roles of principal and site coordinator maintained direct control of their projects, and their time commitments were significantly greater than those of principals at schools with separate site coordinators. In situations where a site coordinator was present, the principal primarily assumed the role of supporter. This support role was especially critical with regard to communication and problem-solving.5. When there was no separate site coordinator, the principal assumed a broader range of responsibilities and acted as initiator, supporter, facilitator, and problem-solver for the initiative. When a site coordinator was present, the principal delegated power and leadership responsibilities to him or her. / Department of Educational Leadership

This study examined the leadership style and readiness for change exhibited by elementary school principals in two urban school districts. More specifically, the study examined leadership style and four demographic variables; gender, age, highest academic degree earned, and years of principal experience. One hundred and twenty elementary school principals employed in two urban school districts were invited to participate in the study, 108 completed the required instruments: Leader Behavior Description Questionnaire, Survey of Readiness for Change (an instrument created by the researcher), and a demographic information sheet. The t-test statistical technique was used to determine whether leadership style, gender, age, years of administrative experience, and highest earned academic degrees had an effect on personal readiness for change.Results revealed that a significant relationship (alpha level of .05) existed between personal readiness for change and leadership style (p=.009), and also between personal readiness for change and highest earned academic degrees (p=.019). Principals with a considerate leadership behavior and those holding a doctorate appeared more ready for change. The remaining independent variables gender (p=.394), age (p=.350), and years of administrative experience (p=.801) were not found to be significant with respect to a personal readiness for change.Results from the research produced the following recommendations: (a) school district administrators may encourage their principals to determine how their leader behavior effect change, (b) staff development on the change process needs to become a priority, (c) findings from this study should be considered by school officials who employ principals and especially for districts promoting a change agenda. / Department of Educational Leadership

This study examined the social work environment and the innovation or change potential of administrators in a large midwestern school district. It examined three dimensions of the social work environment: (a) relationships, (b) personal growth, and (c) system maintenance and change. It also examined 10 dimensions of innovation and change potential: (a) challenge, (b) freedom, (c) dynamism, (d) trust/openness, (e) idea time, (f) playfulness/humor, (g) conflict, (h) idea support, (e) debates, and (j) risk-taking. The primary purposes were as follows: (a) to determine if relationships existed between dimensions of the social work environment and the administrative group's propensity for change, and (b) to determine if selected demographic variables (age, gender, race, length of service in the district, employee classification) are associated with the group's propensity for change.The study population included 214 administrators and professional and technical staff members responsible for leadership functions within the district. Two standard instruments were used to gather data. The Work Environment Scale (WES) developed by Moos at Stanford University in 1986, was used to assess the social environment. The second instrument, used to assess the 10 dimensions, was the Climate for Innovation Questionnaire (CIQ), developed by Ekvall and Arnonen in 1983; it provided a measure of the propensity of the work climate to support change as perceived by organizational members.Findings indicated that this school district is innovative, that there was a positive potential for change, that the administrative employees were committed to and concerned about their jobs, and that friendly, supportive relationships existed and were supported by organizational leaders.The personal growth dimension suggested that change within the district was moving in a positive direction and that administrators felt encouraged to be self-sufficient. Idea support (i.e., the manner in which an organization treats new ideas) was strongly related to the work environment, again suggesting conduciveness to change.Results of this study were used by the school district to move toward substantial school renewal. The process used in this research provides a framework that can be replicated in other school districts to determine possible factors in the work environment that support or inhibit personal dispositions toward change and innovation. / Department of Educational Leadership

Background Sustainability involves progressing economic, social and environmental goals together in an attempt to meet current needs without compromising with the needs of future generations. Universities can play an important role in educating young people in sustainability. Many future managers study at business schools which makes this discipline particularly interesting in terms of creating sustainability across society. Swedish universities are by law encouraged to embed sustainability which requires significant changes at all levels including the work of lecturers. Aim The purpose of this study is to examine lecturers’ attitudes and perceptions on making changes to embed sustainability into the courses they teach. Methods A qualitative research method with semi-structured interviews was applied. An interview guideline was developed and eight lecturers from basic and intermediate education programmes at Umeå Business School and Economics (UBSE) were recruited. Data was transcribed and analysed in relation to the theoretical framework of change models. Findings Eight lecturers were interviewed and overall they reported positive attitudes towards making changes to incorporate sustainability into their courses but many of them found it difficult to do so in practice. Obstacles to make such changes included being limited in the decision-making of changes to the syllabus, limited knowledge, time constraints and motivation. Findings show that management plays an essential role in making changes and that a number of key persons (change agents) who want to implement more sustainability to the courses already exist in the organisation. ConclusionsLecturers are important to fulfil changes to their existing courses to incorporate sustainability but in need of more time and training in this subject. A sustainable approach at UBSE positively affects lecturers’ attitudes to incorporate sustainability to their teaching.

This study traces the development of British policy towards the universities and other Hochschulen in the British Zone of Germany during 1945-49. It starts by describing in outline the salient features of the German university against the background of the criticisms levelled against it by those in Britain who had been working on the problems of dealing with a defeated Germany. Chapter Two describes the war-time planning; the allied conferences and statements, the influence of Vansittart and Morgenthau, the role of Professor E.R. Dodds and the émigrés and others, and the military government handbooks and directives. There follows a description of the university institutions of the Zone and their students. Chapter Four addresses the question of British control and the universities, focussing on the military governors, chains of communication, Education Branch, the Educational Adviser,;.and, more particularly, the University Officers and their duties. It considers also the 'dereservation' of education, denazification, democratisation, and re-education. Chapter Five describes the report of the AUT delegation to Germany of January 1947: this is analysed in full and seen in its relation to the setting-up of the Studienausschuß für Hochschulreform, the subject of the succeeding chapter. The work of the Studienausschuß is described, and the genesis of the Blaues Gutachten of 1948 is reconstructed and its findings are related to British policy. The part played by Lord Lindsay in the work of the Commission is considered in detail. Chapter Seven examines the impact of the Gutachten on the universities of Germany and a final chapter reaches conclusions about the nature of British policy towards higher education in the Zone. The footnotes provide a guide to the unpublished material; the bibliography lists published sources, and a separate volume of appendices provides the essential documentation.

The decision to undertake this research was a pragmatic response to the debates which followed the introduction of a new innovative secondary education system in Ghana. This paper will investigate the said innovation during its formation since 1974, inception from 1987 and, in respect of field research, aspects of its operation from 1998 to 2000. The innovation was designed as a complex package offering an integrated approach to change educational values, orientation and learning outcomes. The changes subsumed in each aspect of the innovation have far-reaching implications for the entire education system. One element, the vocationalised curriculum, caused immediate concern at the time of implementation because of pre-existing evidence of similar attempts made previously in Ghana and other countries which yielded unsatisfactory results. This concern was increased by the complexity of subsequent changes in the examination system and in the new structure of Junior Secondary Schooling (JSS). Furthermore, there were mixed opinions regarding a new emphasis on the individual learner as the focus of school activities augmented by the introduction of guidance and counselling. The primary aim of the research was to monitor the implementation processes in as many aspects as possible. This was done in order to see what benefits might be gained, and what lessons in order to continue the innovation. In order to conduct this assessment it was necessary to examine critically the characteristics of each element of the reform and their implications, using a variety of research methods to generate relevant data. This approach yielded a substantial amount of original evidence on the dynamics of educational change. While this evaluation specifically helps to deepen understanding of the said innovation, it also makes a contribution to the literature on educational innovation in developing countries. The particular theoretical framework used to direct analysis of the processes is derived from the IAC evaluation model developed by Havelock and Huberman (1977) and is used in their study of educational innovations in the developing countries. The theory proposes that a large and complex problem requires a sophisticated level of competency to handle it. An innovative situation requires an efficient system in order to muster the relevant level of IAC factors as were required. This paper explores and extends the IAC model by incorporating the new research regarding the Ghanaian educational innovation. In this new dimension, the Ghanaian model has tended to display far more interactive and cohesive characteristics than in the original Havelock and Huberman study, thus making the measure for success relatively more complex. There is overwhelming evidence to show that by the end of its second cycle in December 1999, none of the JSS innovation components had been in any way implemented. In all respects, the level of systemic competency was far below what was demanded by the innovation. When placed in the framework of the IAC theoretical model, analysis of the conclusive empirical findings provides key recommendations for future innovative educational projects. Crucial coordinating factors must be considered and necessarily established to ensure that strategies are put in place which strengthen the infrastructure. This coordinating initiative should encompass internal and external logistics coordination for resource persons and materials, while simultaneously linking the organizational management of the project with key administrative, political, and social interest groups.

This study investigates human resources management, training and development and their compliance with the skills development legislation and the link to the strategic goals of the Cape Technikon. The Cape Technikon is known as a previously &ldquo / white&rdquo / or advantaged institution. The institution's political history and consequent demographic profile display some scars of ignorance. This resulted in the institution's neglecting to invest in the development of those competencies needed to function in a constantly changing education, training and development environment. The success of any organisation depends on its human resources, who are the most important asset of any organisation, therefore effective and efficient human resources management and training and development management play a critical role in the well-being of employees. Human resources training and development policies, practices and activities guide the institution with implementation and should be considered to take on a strategic role to achieve their objectives.

<p>This thesis was undertaken as an empirical study which focused on curriculum implementation in a remote geographical region in post-apartheid South Africa, known as the Overberg. The identity basis on which teachers receive and implement CUrriculum 2005 in the Overberg region, served as the cenrtal focus for undertaking this study. Accordingly, it was found that the personal, ontological, contextual, training, professional and pedagogical influences have had an impact on the composition of the identity basis of teachers in the Overberg region. The teachers received and implemented Curriculum 2005 in the light of the impact of their prior identities.</p>