Research has suggested that the identity of the school counsellor is inevitably determined by what they do or are perceived to do, rather than by what they would like to do or ought to do. Thus the perception held by students, counsellors and teachers are of paramount importance in attempting to define the role and function of the counsellors. This study attempts, by a descriptive approach to determine what their perceptions are, and in addition to determine what effect, if any, the administration of a school can have on the perception held by the counsellor of that school. A questionnaire was distributed to a randomly selected sample (N-223) of students from a secondary school within the ACT, whose total population was 750. The results were shown in their-raw score form, percentage form and in years and sex. The same method was used to ascertain the perceptions held by stuff and administration of this school, and results were shown in raw score and percentage form. Similarly counsellors' perception of their role and function were obtained, although counsellors themselves were able to comment upon the design of the questionnaire before the final format was given to them. The results tend to show that counsellors within the ACT system were similar to those in the USA, in that their identity was determined by what they were perceived to do. The second part of the study used a causal - comparative approach to determine the effect of school administration on counsellors. The results of this showed that this body can potentially exert an extremely powerful influence upon the role and function of counsellors. The implications of the study for the ACT system are great. If the counsellors are to be used to their maximum, greater support must be given to them, and teachers at all levels should undergo some training to aid them in understanding and thus utilizing the counsellors to their fullest potential.

In recent years, there has been an increasing interest in Australia in structures which allow community participation in the governance of schools. The introduction of a new Education Authority in the Australian Capital Territory, beginning in 1974, brought with it a substantial commitment to such structures as school boards, a relatively new phenomenon in Australian school systems. However, there has been substantial experience of lay or community participation in governing bodies of post-secondary institutions in Australia. This study examines both the general experience of lay participation in such governing bodies and the specific experience of lay members of the governing bodies of three institutions in the Australian Capital Territory, the Australian National University, the Canberra College of Advanced Education and the Canberra College of Technical and Further Education. The principal collection of data was from structured interviews with lay or community members of the councils of these three institutions, designed to produce a picture of their attitudes towards participation in governance. It was found that lay members are most commonly "middleaged, middle-class, males", although women are more frequently found in college councils. Lay members believe that they are chosen because of their successful backgrounds, their administrative skills, and their ability to reflect general community values. They do not believe they are constrained in their participation by specific community interests. They act as independent critical, individuals. Some areas of difficulty were identified, particularly the problem of finding sufficient time to learn thoroughly the nature of complex institutions, and to participate on an equal footing with staff members of councils. It is asserted that the assumptions underlying lay participation remain broadly unquestioned, even at a time of significant change in the wide process of planning and control of post-secondary education. The relevance of this to the innovations in the A.C.T. school system is suggested.

Throughout the 1980s, there was a trend in Australia towards increased participation rates in post-compulsory education. This study examines factors that influence Year 12 retention rates in four Government secondary schools within the Wollongong Sub-Region. Factors that were thought to influence students to continue to Year 12 and sit for the New South Wales Higher School Certificate Examination included those related to Gender, Socio-economic (relating to occupation of parents, government financial assistance, and language background), Educational and Career. The study involved surveying over 400 Year 10 students in four schools by questionnaires. These schools were chosen for their geographical location and to include two schools with a history of high retention rates and two schools with low retention rates. The questions in the survey were incorporated with a larger survey conducted in 1989 by the Faculty of Education at the University of Wollongong under the coordination of Dr. Noeline Kyle ("Everyone expects you to know; A report on careers advice and industry attitudes towards female students in non-traditional study and work in the Illawarra", 1990). The questionnaire was piloted in 1988 and after seeking recommendations from students, teachers and the NSW Department of School Education Research Group, the survey was administered in 1989. The study used descriptive research methodology, and Chi-square analysis was used to establish significance levels in the data. With regard to gender, the data clearly demonstrated that female students were more inclined than male students to stay on to Year 12, and have positive reasons for their decision. Concerning Socio-Economic factors, the results of this study showed that students whose parents have a professional background are more likely to stay on to Year 12. In addition, the achievement of the Higher School Certificate as a preIV requisite for further study was a strong motivating factor for students staying on to Year 12. However, students in receipt of Austudy did not appear to relate in a statistically significant manner with any of the factors that influence the student to stay on to Year 12. As well, no statistical inference could be drawn from intention to sit for the HSC and the language most used at home by parents. With regard to educational factors, the responses from each of the four schools surveyed showed a high percentage (82 to 85%) of students intending to stay on to Year 12 and sit for the HSC examination. None of these schools had an appreciably higher proportion of students intending to sit the HSC exam. However, it was found that students from one particular school were more likely to undertake further study and students from this school had a high percentage of both parents with a professional occupation than any other school. The findings relating to career factors showed that students who have a professional career in mind are more likely to proceed to Year 12. It was also found that students who had school work experience in a professional occupation were more likely to proceed to Year 12. The study relates the survey findings to the research literature in Australia, and also includes a discussion of the limitations of the survey.

The aim of the Field Study described in this Report was to examine the nature of primary-secondary transition as perceived by students themselves. Twelve students from four A.C.T. primary schools were interviewed prior to their entry to one or other of two high schools, and subsequent interviews were conducted at intervals during the students' first six months in high school. Further information was obtained from interviews with their parents and from formal and informal assessments made by their primary and secondary teachers. To place the trends revealed in the interviews in a wider context, surveys were administered at the beginning and end of the six months' period to all Year 7 students in both high schools. A major emphasis of the Study was an investigation of how students cope with new tasks, social and academic, at a time when there is a potentially stressful conjunction of early adolescence and major educational transition. Such coping is conceptualised as the individual matching his resources against the demands made by a new situation. The initial appraisal by students of the new situation was a general perception of high school as either benign or threatening. The more differentiated, or secondary, appraisal was influenced by further information and experiences; and re-appraisal was characterised, after a further lapse of time, by either a reinforcement or reversal of original perceptions. It was found that upon moving to the more complex institutional setting of high school some students had difficulty in adjusting to a more formal organisation and a more demanding curriculum. The students' response to high school included such coping strategies as hostility, withdrawal or active striving to meet the challenge of a new school. Some students who showed a marked inability to cope with one or more of the tasks, social or academic, of high school were deemed to have experienced adaptive failure. A key factor in adjustment to high school, and one that was at least as important as academic achievement, was that of interpersonal relationships. Success in relating to both teachers and peers was found to be a crucial factor for students, whether bright or less bright, and it was found that students of limited academic achievement could find compensation if they perceived their "person environment" as benign.

The purpose of this explanatory, mixed methods case study was to examine instructional leadership within the context of rural secondary schools. This investigation followed an explanatory mixed methods design of sequential quantitative and qualitative phases (QUAL→quan). For the quantitative phase, the Principal Instructional Management Rating Scale (PIMRS) was administered to eight principals and 312 teachers in eight rural secondary schools in the southeastern United States. Descriptive analysis of principal and teacher results found that principals were most engaged in the subscales of framing school goals, coordinating curriculum, and promoting professional development and least engaged in the subscales of maintaining high visibility, protecting instructional time, and providing teaching and learning incentives. Independent t-tests found statistically significant differences in the instructional leadership of principals based on four contextual factors: school size, school SES, principal administrative experience, and district funding (per pupil expenditure). Two principals and their schools were selected for participation in the qualitative phase of the study. Interviews and observations of principals and interviews with teachers added insight to the findings of the quantitative phase. Participants characterized the principalship as a multifaceted job where secondary school principals fulfilled four leadership roles: instructional leader, district/community liaison, organizational manager, and problem solver. Participants also identified important instructional leadership behaviors not measured by the PIMRS, such as hiring effective teachers, providing instructional resources, and sharing leadership responsibilities. The study concludes with suggestions for future instructional leadership research and practical advice for rural secondary school principals.

<p>Aim: The purpose of the study was to assess the knowledge of the transmission and prevention of HIV/AIDS among secondary school students in Bekwarra, Cross River State, Nigeria / to appraise the students&rsquo / attitudes towards HIV/AIDS / to describe the risky sexual and other behaviours they engaged in and what factors influenced such behaviours. This study was conducted in the area to systematically examine the widely held notion that adolescents were deviating from the strict sexual mores of the Bekwarra people, thereby exposing themselves to the risk of acquiring HIV. Methods: Information was collected using a cross-sectional survey based on a 64 item questionnaire adapted from the Family Health International HIV/AIDS/STD Behavioural . Surveillance Surveys. A random sample of 381 male and female students aged 14 to 18 selected from 12 secondary schools participated in the survey. Results: The level of general awareness of HIV/AIDS was high - 56.9% of participants knew how HIV is transmitted - but their knowledge of STI symptoms was low. Only 24.7% knew at least two STI symptoms in women, while only 20.7% knew at least two STI symptoms in men. One hundred and twenty three (32.2%) students constituting 68 males (17.8%) and 55 females (14.4%) had experienced sexual intercourse. The mean age at first sexual experience was 15.06 years for males and 14.95 years for female students. There was a statistical association between age and experience of sexual intercourse (p = .024). Two thirds (65.0%) of the 123 sexually experienced students had intercourse in the last six months, and only 30 of them (24.4%) had used a condom during their last intercourse. The use of condom was most frequent (10.6%) at age 18 and least frequent (.8%) at age 14. About one quarter (26.1%) of the students had taken&nbsp / alcohol: 17.3% occasionally, 5.5% moderately, and 2.6% frequently. There was a statistical association between taking alcohol and age (p = .038). Over a half (56.1%) of those who had not had sexual intercourse also had not taken alcohol. In contrast, 14.2% had sexual intercourse and also took alcohol, indicating significant statistical association (p &lt / .001). 66.8% of the students had neither used drugs nor taken alcohol, whilst 6.8% had both used drugs and taken alcohol, indicating significant association, (p &lt / .001). There was a similar association between sexual intercourse and using drugs, (p = .002). Conclusions: The study revealed significant high risk sexual behaviour among adolescents in Bekwarra. The high level of risky sexual behaviour and lack of basic knowledge about STIs indicated that access to information is currently insufficient. Health and educational authorities in Bekwarra should utilize the key findings highlighted from this study to design more effective local strategies for sexual health promotion that may help to slow the spread of STIs including HIV/AIDS. Intensive child-friendly programmes for pre-teenagers organized by educators to promote postponement of the early initiation of sexual intercourse may be effective. For adolescents who are unable to control their sexual initiation, improved education on safe sexual practices, especially the use of condoms appears to be necessary.</p>

This study was conducted to investigate Turkish secondary school students&rsquo / perceptions of their science teachers&rsquo / interpersonal behaviour / teacher profiles and variables affecting Turkish students&rsquo / perceptions of their teachers&rsquo / interpersonal behaviour. Also, differences in perceptions between Turkish students and their Dutch counterparts were examined. Finally, students&rsquo / affective learning outcomes were related to their perceptions of their teachers&rsquo / interpersonal behaviour. Data were gathered from 7484 secondary school science students (grades 9-11) in 278 classes from 55 schools in thirteen cities of Turkey and collected with a specifically constructed and adapted Turkish version of QTI and translated version of TOSRA. This data set was compared to Dutch data set that contained 8503 students, located in 27 schools and 301 classes. Descriptive statistics and multilevel analysis with three levels (student, class and teacher) were conducted. Students&rsquo / perceptions on the QTI scales were aggregated to the class level and compared to an existing QTI-based typology of teaching styles. Significant differences were found between countries in terms of students&rsquo / perceptions of their teachers&rsquo / interpersonal behaviours as well as different distribution of teachers&rsquo / profiles over countries and subject. Turkish teachers&#039 / interpersonal profiles only marginally differed from existing profiles. Additionally, several teacher, student and class characteristics showed statistically significant associations with students&#039 / perceptions of teacher Influence and Proximity. Finally, students&rsquo / perceptions of their teachers&rsquo / interpersonal behaviour were related to their affective learning outcomes, to several student, class, teacher background characteristics and to the subject taught.

Thesis (M. Arch.)--University of Hong Kong, 2000. / Includes special study report entitled: Vertical schools. Includes bibliographical references.

This study was designed to collect data to determine the specific characteristics (gender, level and area of degree status, certification status, pedagogical training, gender, number of years of teaching experience, number of years teaching at the current school, and courses currently taught) of language arts teachers at Florida's low-performing pubic high schools and compare these characteristics to teachers' sense of efficacy (the extent to which teachers' believe they have the ability to bring about changes in student achievement independent of the student's background, behaviors, or motivation level). A total of 615 teachers representing 84 schools in 36 districts participated in the study. Teachers completed a researcher-created survey questionnaire and the Teachers' Sense of Efficacy Scale Long (Tschannen-Moran and Hoy, 2001). The data were collected and analyzed using descriptive and multiple regression statistics.The majority of the respondents meet the minimum re quirements of highly qualified teachers as defined by NCLB. However, only 37% of responding language arts teachers at Florida's low-performing public high schools have degrees in English education, and only 15% of responding reading teachers have degrees in reading or reading education. Additionally, the majority of the responding teachers have been only been teaching at the school site for five or fewer years.Although the majority of responding teachers reported moderate to high sense of classroom management and instructional practice efficacy, over 43% reported low sense of student engagement efficacy, suggesting the teachers do not believe they possess the skills or knowledge necessary to engage students in learning. The study suggests that improving student achievement for our lowest-performing students may require more than providing students with highly qualified teachers defined by NCLB. Districts and schools must examine more closely the characteristics of highly effective teac hers in order to recruit and retain teachers who can truly impact student achievement for students who have previously demonstrated a lack of success. Additionally, schools would benefit from professional development designed to provide teachers with classroom strategies that engage students in learning and which helps develop a school-wide literacy culture reflecting high expectations for student achievement.

published_or_final_version / Sociology / Master / Master of Social Sciences