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The Change Delineator Theory, a theory of change developed by the researcher, is proposed and tested for validity against an identified case of change. In the theory's propositions, the researcher describes the roles individuals play in the process of change and reform, and suggests how these roles may also impact the process of change as it occurs on organizational and societal levels. By proposing this perspective on the process of change, it is the intent of the researcher to assist leaders in schools and other organizations in becoming more knowledgeable about the phenomenon of change as it affects individuals, organizations, and societies. The Change Delineator Theory may also provide leaders with additional insights that could be useful in determining whether their organizations' policies, practices, and structures support or discourage change processes. In Change Delineator Theory, the researcher proposes that all persons involved in the process of change think and consequently behave in one of four primary modes called conceptual domains. These domains are: Creators, Translators, Innovators, and Practitioners. All persons have within them, to one degree or another, these four capacities. The environment in which an individual is functioning determines to a large degree which of these four domains will manifest itself at any given time. The four conceptual domains may also be used to describe how change tends to occur on organizational or societal levels. The researcher suggests that leaders have the power to establish organizational structures that support change by enabling persons in their schools or organizations to act more frequently out of their creator and innovator domains, or conversely, that hinder these activities through use of autocratic leadership styles or those that support maintenance of the status quo. The theory is tested by applying its propositions to an identified case of change in school-community relations known as the Computing Seniors Program. A case study approach is utilized to determine whether or not the theory has any validity when used to describe the roles people played in this case of change. / Ed. D.

This study analyses, interprets and describes the dynamics of the change process occurring as members of three secondary school communities attempted to implement a Ministry of Education initiative involving the establishment of a school-based decision-making group.A review of literature on innovation and change, organization theory and school improvement is presented as a basis for the establishment of a conceptual framework for the study. Within this framework, implementation is viewed as the interaction of the innovation with the characteristics of each adopting school. These interactions are viewed as occurring within two change environments. The first, the general change environment, is shared by all schools under study. This environment reflects the broader economic, political and educational pressures prompting change. The second environment is specific to each school. It forms the immediate context within which the implementation process occurs. Before examining the specific nature of the implementation process within each school site, attention is given to the general change environment from which the innovation emerged. This is accompanied by an analysis of the evolutionary nature of the innovation itself as it underwent progressive clarification at Ministry of Education level.To assess the influence that specific environmental characteristics have on the implementation process, schools with markedly differing setting characteristics were selected for study. An instrument to assess school organizational climate was developed, (SOCQ) and then administered to twenty three secondary schools in the Perth metropolitan area. The resulting data were analysed and used to select three schools with distinctly different organizational climate characteristics for closer study of the implementation process.For each school, detailed portrayals of the implementation ++ / events were distilled in order to capture the complexities of the change. Cross-case analysis of the casestudy data was then undertaken to draw out particular issues, events and interactions that appeared to be of importance in directing the implementation process within individual schools and across all three sites.The final chapter addresses the initial set of research questions and presents a series of findings and associated recommendations stemming from this study. Of the range of findings to emerge from the study three appear to be of critical importance for our understanding of the organizational change process. The first finding is that the implementation of a policy innovation is best viewed as a process of "interactive modification" That is, a process whereby the innovation prompts modifications to be made to the adopting system and where the adopting system prompts modifications to be made to the innovation in a complex and dynamic manner. This finding goes beyond the notion of of change as "adaptation" or "evolution" to suggest more dynamic and interrelated process of change occurring to both the innovation and the adopting system. The second finding is that adopting system, the school, is best viewed as an open social system influenced by and yet exerting an influence upon the broader change environment in which it exists. Consequently the implementation of change is subject to influence by infomation, issues, events and interventions stemming from internal and external sources. The reality of the organizational change process is therefore far more complex and dynamic than previous theories and models of change suggest. A third and related finding is that secondary schools appear to be comprised of a number of sub-systems. The extent to which these sub-systems are interdependent or linked appears to influence not only the school's initial response to ++ / change but also the schools capacity to undertake meaningful and significant implementation of an innovation. This finding has implications for the design of specific change strategies that focus on improving the degree of sub-system linkage within a school. Such change strategies might occur prior to or run concurrently with other strategies concerned with the implementation of specific organizational changes.It is hoped that these findings have value for several audiences. First, they should be of particular importance to Ministry and school personnel presently confronted by organizational change. Second, the findings should not only serve to inform those building change theory, but also those educators who might hold responsibility for the implementation of similar policy innovations.

Educational institutions have remained remarkably unchanged throughout the last century, even when the political, cultural and social environments have undergone very significant transformation (cf. Duderstadt, 2005; Fullan, 2007; Rowan & Miskel, 1999). Because of the noted similarity among educational institutions and the institutions perceived inability to change, I wanted to identify a significant change at an educational institution, and examine the context and policy process that promoted this change. The focus of this study was the process of policy development within one type of educational institution, the university.<p> In this case study, I examined the policy process involved in establishing a joint, interdisciplinary school, the School of Policy and Research. Data were gathered from three sources: interviews, documents, and policies. I conducted semi-structured interviews with thirteen participants who had some connection to the School, and analyzed the data by coding emergent themes. These were not discrete themes, but rather were interconnected and reflected the complexity of the policy development process. From the findings, the concept of policy windows, as suggested by Kingdon (2003), was evident in the policy origin stage. The policy stream, the political stream, and the problem stream came together at a critical juncture as a confluence of forces that allowed the initiative of the joint interdisciplinary policy School to move forward into adoption and implementation. Due to this presence of a policy window, the initiative moved through the adoption stage relatively smoothly, at least initially. The policy actors were essentially the same at both universities; there was a core group of grassroots level faculty members who were involved in policy work and believed in the potential of the interdisciplinary policy School. They were supported by senior administrative personnel who saw this initiative as one way to address perceived problems confronting the institutions. However, the implementation stage at both universities was messy and difficult as the proponents of the School encountered many tensions, including issues around securing resources, program development, the proposal approval process, and several sources of resistance to change. The discipline-driven culture of the universities appeared to be an impediment to innovative practices that bridge disciplinary boundaries. Although the timing of this study obviated full consideration of the evaluation stage, the participants did speculate upon several intended impacts of the School, and they proposed possible collateral impacts. Implications of this investigation for practice included a need for individual organizations to conduct a thorough examination of situation-specific organizational practices that promote or inhibit innovation, including reviews of current practice for determining what programs need to be discontinued, for articulating how to monitor progress in achieving outcomes, and for identifying how to promote a more collaborative culture. In terms of implications for research, further exploration of the implementation stage of successful policy development was seen to have some potential. In change theory, further research could address the stark absence of the voice of resistors to change. Two elements of neoinstitutional theory that merit further research are the roles of agents in initiating change, and the role of isomorphic processes (coercive, normative, and mimetic) in inhibiting change in organizations. One theoretical implication of this study was the relevance of certain lenses (political, temporal, organizational, and cultural) in examining change. Additionally, the theoretical dichotomy of incremental and transformative change merits further examination in relation to the dynamics of the policy process.

Educational institutions have remained remarkably unchanged throughout the last century, even when the political, cultural and social environments have undergone very significant transformation (cf. Duderstadt, 2005; Fullan, 2007; Rowan & Miskel, 1999). Because of the noted similarity among educational institutions and the institutions perceived inability to change, I wanted to identify a significant change at an educational institution, and examine the context and policy process that promoted this change. The focus of this study was the process of policy development within one type of educational institution, the university.<p> In this case study, I examined the policy process involved in establishing a joint, interdisciplinary school, the School of Policy and Research. Data were gathered from three sources: interviews, documents, and policies. I conducted semi-structured interviews with thirteen participants who had some connection to the School, and analyzed the data by coding emergent themes. These were not discrete themes, but rather were interconnected and reflected the complexity of the policy development process. From the findings, the concept of policy windows, as suggested by Kingdon (2003), was evident in the policy origin stage. The policy stream, the political stream, and the problem stream came together at a critical juncture as a confluence of forces that allowed the initiative of the joint interdisciplinary policy School to move forward into adoption and implementation. Due to this presence of a policy window, the initiative moved through the adoption stage relatively smoothly, at least initially. The policy actors were essentially the same at both universities; there was a core group of grassroots level faculty members who were involved in policy work and believed in the potential of the interdisciplinary policy School. They were supported by senior administrative personnel who saw this initiative as one way to address perceived problems confronting the institutions. However, the implementation stage at both universities was messy and difficult as the proponents of the School encountered many tensions, including issues around securing resources, program development, the proposal approval process, and several sources of resistance to change. The discipline-driven culture of the universities appeared to be an impediment to innovative practices that bridge disciplinary boundaries. Although the timing of this study obviated full consideration of the evaluation stage, the participants did speculate upon several intended impacts of the School, and they proposed possible collateral impacts. Implications of this investigation for practice included a need for individual organizations to conduct a thorough examination of situation-specific organizational practices that promote or inhibit innovation, including reviews of current practice for determining what programs need to be discontinued, for articulating how to monitor progress in achieving outcomes, and for identifying how to promote a more collaborative culture. In terms of implications for research, further exploration of the implementation stage of successful policy development was seen to have some potential. In change theory, further research could address the stark absence of the voice of resistors to change. Two elements of neoinstitutional theory that merit further research are the roles of agents in initiating change, and the role of isomorphic processes (coercive, normative, and mimetic) in inhibiting change in organizations. One theoretical implication of this study was the relevance of certain lenses (political, temporal, organizational, and cultural) in examining change. Additionally, the theoretical dichotomy of incremental and transformative change merits further examination in relation to the dynamics of the policy process.

Teachers are experiencing change at a constant rate within school systems across the nation. Principals are preparing teachers to adapt the curriculum to meet standards that are state mandated. This study focused on the change process adopted by the principal for use in assisting teachers with implementation of curriculum and instructional strategies. Findings from this study will provide administrators’ strengths and weaknesses that are experienced during the change process. Through analysis of interviews, focus groups and documents, the researcher was able to unfold the perspectives of teachers as they relate to Fullan’s Change Theory with initiation, implementation, and institutionalizing the change and The Concerns Based Adoption Model.

For decades there has been an ongoing push to increase student achievement through large-scale policy reform and yet far too many students in the United States still perform below proficiency levels with achievement gaps according to race and socio-economic status. Choctaw County School District (CCSD) was no different, as low performance, especially in reading/language arts, and achievement gaps according to race and SES were present. To address these issues, CCSD implemented a K-2 promotion/retention policy in 2008 to improve student achievement. The primary purpose of the study was to investigate how a school district’s implementation of a K-2 policy for promotion and retention with specific strategies may have influenced academic achievement in the area of reading/language arts. A mixed method research design was used to conduct the study. A narrative approach was used to provide a response to the first research question. A 1-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) with a Sheffe’ post-hoc test was used as the primary means of analysis for the second research question to determine if there were statistically significant differences in the Grade Three Reading/Language Arts MCT2 scores according to the length of time under the policy. A 2-way ANOVA was used as the primary means of analysis for the 3rd-5th research questions to determine whether there were interaction effects between length of time under the policy and gender, race, and/or SES. Analysis of the results from the first research question revealed themes that emerged from studying the leadership change process of the development and implementation of the K-2 promotion retention policy. The emergent themes were aligned to the steps of Kotter’s Change Theory. Statistically significant differences were found between Grade Three Reading/Language Arts MCT2 scores between no time under the implementation of the policy and three years and between 1 year and 3 years under implementation of the policy. Statistically significant differences were found for the main effect of time under policy, gender, race, and SES. However, no statistically significant differences were found for interactions of length of time under the policy and gender, race, or SES.

Thesis advisor: Maria E. Brisk / Writing is an essential tool for creating meaningful communication and as such it must be taught beginning in elementary school. Although in the past 100 years writing has become more common in our everyday lives, methods of teaching writing and teacher education have not kept pace with changes (National Commission on Writing, 2003). As a result, teachers are underprepared to teach writing and do not teach it enough (Gilbert and Graham, 2010). The goal of this study is to understand how teacher-researcher relationships can facilitate the development of a teacher's knowledge of the theoretical foundations of teaching writing through systemic functional linguistics (SFL) and the teaching and learning cycle (TLC), and how that understanding affects the implementation of meaningful writing instruction that supports bilingual students as they learn to write. Using a modified action research methodology (Herr and Anderson, 2005; Reason and Bradbury, 2001; Zeichner, 2001) the data were collected over the course of one school year and analyzed utilizing the action research spiral by examining interactions between a teacher and a researcher through seven vignettes, including planning lessons, teaching, and reviewing lessons. These vignettes reflected particular instances of support, the evolution of the teacher's understanding of teaching writing informed by SFL, and changes in instruction relating to the TLC. Student writing was also analyzed using rubrics informed by SFL theory. The findings suggest that a complex relationship exists between teachers and researchers and that multiple factors are involved in successful change initiatives. The factors include the process of change through individualized support over time, negotiation, and two types of tension: disequilibrium and resistance. In the current study, these factors helped develop the teacher-researcher relationship in ways that promoted changes in the teacher's practices and, to some extent, her beliefs about writing instruction which resulted in the creation of a hybrid pedagogy. While this pedagogy did not demonstrate a full implementation of instruction informed by SFL theory, it did improve the quality of writing instruction and the resulting student writing. / Thesis (PhD) — Boston College, 2013. / Submitted to: Boston College. Lynch School of Education. / Discipline: Teacher Education, Special Education, Curriculum and Instruction.

Using curriculum mapping to align the expected curriculum and the actual curriculum has been demonstrated as an effective approach for ensuring educational equity for all students. To improve student achievement, a private high school in the Midwest implemented curriculum mapping to better align curriculum and eliminate gaps and repetition between and within grade levels. The purpose of this qualitative study was to determine fundamental implementation strategies for the mapping process and teachers' and administrators' perceptions of those strategies. The theoretical framework was based on change theory. Data were collected from 10 participants through individual interviews and observations. Teachers and administrators were observed during their curricular mapping meeting time in order to record the strategies used, and each participant was interviewed in order to gather individual perceptions of the strategies used. Data were transcribed and then open coded based on repeating concepts. Thematic analysis indicated that administrators and teachers perceived a need for curriculum mapping training, using standards, collaboration time, and accountability. The outcome of the study was a professional development project for teachers incorporating curriculum mapping at the local site. Implications for positive social change include providing educational leaders with curricular alignment strategies to promote educational equity and the academic success of all students

With the passing of the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 and subsequent high-stakes tests, including the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test (FCAT), literacy has become top priority in the field of education (Florida Department of Education [FDOE], no date a; NCLB, 2002). Though social studies was not mentioned in NCLB, nor is it tested by the FCAT, social studies teachers are expected to teach literacy skills in their classrooms. Social studies teachers' accountability for literacy enhancement is evidenced by the fact that some states, including Florida, now require social studies teachers to complete a course in reading integration to qualify for teaching certification in that state (Stilwell, 1999). Integrating reading into the content areas is commonly referred to as content area reading. By using content area reading, social studies teachers implement teaching strategies, methods, and techniques that foster their students' comprehension of the texts and other materials used in their course (Alvermann & Phelps, 2002; Billmeyer & Barton, 2002; Tovani, 2000). Though there are many benefits to content area reading, social studies teachers have resisted implementing content area reading for decades (Carnine, 2000; Daisey & Shroyer, 1993; Jacobs & Wade, 1981; Moore, 1983; Nourie & Lenski, 1998; Ratekin, Simpson, Alvermann, & Dishner, 1985; Richardson, Anders, Tidwell, & Lloyd, 1991; Stewart & O'Brien, 1989; Vaughan, 1977). Furthermore, research suggests that content area reading courses are often associated with heightened resistance to implementing content area reading (Nourie & Lenski, 1998; Stewart & O'Brien, 1989). In order for a content area reading course to impact the classroom practices social studies teacher in the intended ways, the course instructor must be sensitive to the process of change that the student is engaged in and recognize the causes of resistance to change. The Concerns-Based Adoption Model (CBAM) is a framework that provides tools by which the process of change and resistance to change can be evaluated and better understood. This study was designed to examine the characteristics surrounding the process of change as social studies teachers learned about and implemented content area reading into the social studies curriculum.