During the past decade national Commission reports have called attention to the need for reform and improvement in education and, in particular, in teaching. A review of the literature, however, indicates that teachers have had little input, through Commissions or otherwise, on educational issues to which they are central. / The Commission on Excellence in Education (1983) and the Carnegie Commission's Forum on Education and the Economy (1986) have indicated that increasing professionalism will have effects on educational improvement and teachers' participation in decision-making. However, the critical literature reviewed here casts doubt on the possibility and purported benefits of increased "professionalism" for teachers, and contributes to an understanding of the endemic exclusion of teachers from decision-making. / To add teachers' perspectives to the consideration of educational reform and improvement, telephone interviews were conducted with secondary teachers throughout Florida to address the following research questions: (A) What problems in teaching conditions are identified by teachers? How do presently practicing teachers rate conditions of teaching compared with ratings of former teachers of the same conditions? (B) Are problems and recommendations identified by teachers consistent with problems and recommendations identified by commissions and panels? (C) To what degree do teachers' responses indicate that they are satisfied with their role in the policy/decision-making process? / This study demonstrates that when teachers' voices are examined, they represent a different perspective than those of prominent national Commissions. The two groups differed substantially in their recommendations regarding salary, the paperwork and record-keeping required of teachers, and the status and prestige associated with teaching. Teachers alone addressed students' lack of interest in learning and inadequate parents' support of their child's learning as two of the most unsatisfactory conditions. / Recommendations include the following: (A) Future Commissions should conscientiously and explicitly include teachers in their structure, deliberations, and recommendations. (B) Forceful leadership at all policy levels is needed to incorporate teachers' perspectives in the organization and management of schooling. (C) Teachers cannot afford to wait for "professionalization," but must actively assert their desires for more control over educational policies. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 49-08, Section: A, page: 2067. / Major Professor: Steven J. Klees. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1988.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:fsu.edu/oai:fsu.digital.flvc.org:fsu_77835 |
| Contributors | Williams, Charles Howard., Florida State University |
| Source Sets | Florida State University |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Text |
| Format | 221 p. |
| Rights | On campus use only. |
| Relation | Dissertation Abstracts International |
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