Faculty of Education - Theses

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End date: 1999 × Start date: 1994 × Subject: Attitudes × Subject: Melbourne × Subject: Teachers × Subject: Victoria ×

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    The attitudes and concerns of Catholic parish primary school principals and teachers toward the integration of students with disabilities into regular schools
    Riley, Elizabeth A ( 1997)
    This study was undertaken to identify' and compare the attitudes of Catholic Parish Primary School principals and teachers toward the integration of students with disabilities. The study also investigated variations in attitude toward integration for sub-groups of the principals and teachers. In addition, this study ascertained the concerns these educators have about the implementation of integration in their schools. A three part questionnaire was used to collect the data. It consisted of items relating to the background characteristics of the respondents and their schools, a modified version of the Attitude Toward Mainstreaming Scale (Berryman & Neal, 1980) and an open ended question eliciting educators' concerns about integration. Fifty five principals and 145 full time classroom teachers in the Northern Area of the Archdiocese of Melbourne responded to the questionnaire. T-tests were employed to compare the attitudes of the principals and teachers toward integration., Thematic analysis was used to examine the concerns of educators. Several major findings emerged from the study. Principals were found to hold more positive attitudes toward integration than classroom teachers. Principals were also significantly more positive than teachers toward the integration of students with severe disabilities. Younger principals held significantly more positive attitudes toward integration than older principals. No significant differences were identified for sub groups of the teacher sample. Similarity existed between the two groups of educators in terms of their expressed major concerns about integration. Lack of school based support personnel, funding and training, in that order, were recorded most frequently by both groups of educators.
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    "I had tried everything, but there was nothing left in teaching for me": a small scale study of teacher resignation in Victoria: 1992-1995
    Clencie, Meredith F. ( 1995)
    The investigation set out to determine reasons for teacher resignation from the Directorate of School Education in the State of Victoria, Australia between 1992 and 1994. Specifically the study examined why 20 teachers resigned from a single secondary college in the outer western region of Melbourne. The teachers selected were highly competent as judged using criteria recently developed by the Standards Council of the Teaching Profession. Participants were interviewed and the data presented as individual causal maps. These were then analysed across the cases to discover generalisations. Of greatest concern to Victorian policy makers and administrators is the quality of the exit staff and the implications for Victorian education of the loss of such a talented and able group. Lack of mobility emerged as the most prominent factor influencing the resignation decision of the exit teachers. The second most important factor was found to be unmet expectations in teaching. Lack of career structure/opportunities was the third most important factor and lack of professional development the fourth most important factor. Peripheral factors which emerged from the research included changes following the change of government, lack of collegiality, school culture and individual achievement and unsupported post graduate study. It was found that the new career structure for Victorian teachers, the Professional Recognition Program provides some solutions for the factors affecting resignation among the group of exit teachers.