Faculty of Education - Theses
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ItemThe impact of the zone based professional development program, "Skill review and professional development", on knowledge, understanding and practice within selected school communities( 1995)While engaged in documenting a retrospective account of a zone based professional development program, Skill Review and Professional Development, which aimed to support school communities in the implementation of skill review and professional development according to the Tripartite Agreement on School Development Planning, I reflected on a statement by Harwayne (1992): 'We take courses. We attend workshops. We read books, We get lots of information. But the really important information comes later on. It comes when we take that seed information back to our classrooms, when we experiment and innovate and invent, when we make it our own. The story really is 'to be continued' (p.337 ). This reflection led to the following questions which drove my investigation: # has the 'seed information' collected during the program been taken back to the school level?; # have school communities been able to 'experiment', 'innovate' and 'invent' in order to make skill review and professional development their own?; and, # in what areas has the zone based professional development program, Skill Review and Professional Development, impacted at the school level? The information gathered to discover the answers to these questions was qualitative in nature and comes from those involved directly with the delivery and implementation of the program. The information draws on what happened at the zone level and what is now happening at the school level. The gathered data took the form of words: written and anecdotal; record and document observations; and transcripts of discussions and interviews, as words captured the spirit of the happenings. The writings of Joyce and Showers (1987), Joyce and Weil (1992), Fullan and Stiegelbauer (1991), Hargreaves (1992), Fullan (1993), Johnson (1993), Guskey (1994) and others have helped make sense of the impact of this program at the school level.
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ItemThe year co-ordinator in selected Victorian metropolitan independent schools : profile, practice and prospects( 1987)This study was designed to examine the position and role of the Year Co-ordinator in selected Victorian Metropolitan Independent schools. The principal objectives of the study were: (i) to discover what sorts of persons undertake this role and establish whether they have personal, academic and career characteristics in common; (ii) to look at the year co-ordinator's perception of the role; and (iii) to examine the career interests of year co-ordinators and, in particular, to gauge their opinions on how well their present role is preparing them for future responsibilities, such as Deputy Principal or Principal. A questionnaire was distributed to forty AHISA affiliated Independent schools in Victoria. Twenty eight valid responses were received. Six Principals returned their questionnaires stating that the position of year co-ordinator did not exist in their schools. The schools who did not reply were telephoned and it was established that year co-ordinators did exist in those schools.
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ItemA comparative analysis of the role of deputy principal in independent schools in Victoria( 1983)The purpose of this study was to investigate the position and role of deputy principal, or its equivalent, in independent schools in Victoria. Due to the diverse nature of independent schools, the study had as its objectives: (i) To determine whether there were one or more deputy principal positions in each school, or none at all, and whether there were identifiable structural patterns of the principal-deputy principal relationship. (ii) To determine whether there were personal, academic and career characteristics that deputy principals had in common. (iii) To determine whether there was any common role definition for the deputy principal position in independent schools. A questionnaire was distributed to the 65 HMC and AHIGSV affiliated independent schools in Victoria. 46 valid responses were received from 41 deputy principals defined, for the purposes of the study, as the person(s) officially designated to act in the place of the principal in his/her absence. 5 other respondents, occupying the position(s) most closely resembling that of deputy principal, provided valid responses that were included for the purposes of statistical analysis as they appeared to occupy positions of similar status to that of deputy principal. These responses were from 42 schools. The general findings of the study were that: (i) The position did exist in most schools and the one-to-one principal-deputy principal structural relationship existed in the vast majority of schools. 'Deputy Head' was the most common title for the position. (ii) There appeared to be tendencies: (a) against females attaining the position in coeducational schools. (b) for deputy principals from Roman Catholic and Anglican schools to be at the extremes, with those from Roman Catholic schools occupying the younger and less experienced end of the spectrum. (c) for a low incidence of deputy principals to have higher degrees and formal training in the field of educational administration. (d) for a high proportion to view the position as a career' position, especially those from Anglican schools. (iii) It was not possible to develop a common role definition due to a low incidence of the use of written job descriptions and lack of commonality for the role, as currently performed. Deputy principals had a hand in almost every school duty area but the clear tendency was for shared rather than full responsibility.
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ItemRegionalisation and organisational effectiveness in state education in the mid 1980s : a study in the evolution to the mid 1980s of an organisational form( 1989)The purpose of this study was to investigate the perceptions held by incumbent Regional Directors in the mid 1980s about the contribution of the regionalisation process to the organisational effectiveness of the then Education Department of Victoria. Regionalisation practice since its introduction in 1971 was reviewed in order to demonstrate that the process was an evolving one in terms of its scope and complexity and to frame a focus question to direct the overall direction of the research to be undertaken. The literature relevant to the key concepts perception and organisational effectiveness was reviewed extensively to secure a specific conceptual framework to underpin the research project and its instruments of investigation. The instrument selected was a semi-structured interview schedule administered to the twelve Regional Directors and the Executive Director (Schools). Conceptually, the instrument's design was based upon the work of Lawrence Mohr (1973) The perceptions of the thirteen respondents were schematically arranged and the research focus question was then analysed in depth. No attempt was made to test the perceptions of the respondents about the organisational effectiveness of the Education Department against some assumed objective reality. A number of additional discoveries were discussed in detail. The theory and practice of regionalisation were reviewed in depth in the light of the research outcomes. Particular attention was paid to the predictions of the respondents as to the amount of "thrust" the regionalisation process would be able to effect for itself in the period 1985-88. The actual development of this thrust in the context of the re-organisation of the Education Department of Victoria into the Ministry of Education was compared with the respondents' predictions. The vehicle for this final and extra piece of analysis was an additional preface and retrospect annexed to the body of the thesis. A brief analysis of the rationale for regionalisation as practised in 1989/1990 was essayed at this point.
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ItemImposed change and the transmutation of established career paradigms( 1994)Sikes (1985) suggests that although fundamental career patterns for teachers may be recognised, external influences more often imposed changes which disrupted womens' careers as teachers. Few studies have, however, been attempted in Australia. This study examines the impact of a particular imposed change on a specific group of senior women teachers and their resultant careers within/out the school. It looks specifically at the breaking of an established culture in a Catholic girls' school with the amalgamation of a neighbouring Catholic boys' school. The impact on the careers and lives of a group of senior female staff members from the former girls' school are examined. These teachers' stories were told to the author, who was also a colleague, in a series of confidential interviews and discussions. The stories raise important theoretical issues about the nature of womens' careers in teaching, but also critical questions about the rationality of models of institutional reconstruction that deny or ignore the unique qualities of individuals or groups of individuals, networks and connections that characterize educational life in that school.
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ItemSchool organization as an internal teaching context : case studies of two Hong Kong aided secondary schools( 1996)In this study, school organization is investigated as a teaching context from the teachers' perspective. The study investigates the theoretical position that characteristics of the school organization affect teachers' job-related attitudes which, in turn, affect educational outcomes. A review of the literature shows that various characteristics of school organization are related to teachers' attitudes and performance and educational outcomes of schools. In this study, the case study approach is adopted and both qualitative and quantitative research methods are used. The teachers' job-related attitudes of two aided secondary schools in Hong Kong are analyzed. The internal teaching contexts of the schools are then described in terms of structural, cultural and social relations perspectives. Factors of school organization which may affect teachers' attitudes are identified. The findings from this study provide support for previous research into the influence of teachers' working environments or the internal context of teaching on school effectiveness. Implications for efforts directed at improving workplace conditions in Hong Kong secondary schools and an agenda for further research are discussed.
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ItemAdministrative decision making : a critical examination of H.A. Simon's and T.B. Greenfield's theoretical frameworks( 1987)In the thesis that follows, an examination of various trends in educational administration reveals distinctive claims and counterclaims regarding the process of decision-making. The current debate in this field centres around two key issues: firstly, the identification and isolation of the types of problems an educational administrator may encounter, and secondly, the proposition of a philosophical basis for action for the individual who seeks to solve these problems. It is argued in this thesis that administrators need not only to make decisions but to make the 'right' decisions. Consequently, the role played by the theoretical framework one assumes as a guide to action, becomes central. Once accepted and adopted, such a framework provides the very justification for decisions which allow for the distinction of correct or incorrect decisions in practice. Because of this insistence on the quality of a decision, the dichotomy between facts and values in the decision making process is both recognised and thoroughly investigated within the boundaries of two well-established schools of thought, namely the logical-positivists and the interpretivists. An overview of the basic tenets of logical-positivism and of an opposing school, represented here by T.B. Greenfield and his alternative theory, precedes the presentation of a hypothetical problem in educational administration. A consideration of this single problem of educational administration from these two different theoretical perspectives then follows. A critical examination of the contribution of each school of thought, in moving towards a solution to the stated problem, reveals fundamental contradictions which prevent the applied union of theory and practice. The realisation of the inadequacy of these frameworks as the sole guidance for the practising administrator extends to a projection of where administrative theory should now be directed if theory is to be aligned with the practice of educational administration.
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ItemMinisterial review of education in Victoria 1979-1980( 1983)In 1979, a unique event took place in the history of education in Victoria. For the first time this century, a total review of the education system was set in motion. Following a State election and the return of the Liberal Government, two Ministers - both new to the Education Portfolio - initiated a wide ranging Review of Education in Victoria. As the review process advanced, however, its focus narrowed at each stage from a review of all education, to a review of education in Government schools and finally to a review of administrative and organisational processes, virtually shelving educational issues. During the process, considerable emphasis was placed on consultation and public participation. Yet, when the White Paper on Government policy was tabled at the culmination of the Review, it freely admitted that most of its content was contrary to the majority of views expressed through that consultation process and that its change of focus away from educational issues to administrative issues also ran contrary to the major concerns expressed through consultation. Throughout the Review, a most striking feature was the virtual exclusion from the process of the permanent head of the Department, the Director-General of Education. (His replacement and removal to a newly created position was the first step in the implementation phase). This thesis attempts to show that the Ministerial Review of Education in Victoria, while being announced as a major review of education, was, as it turned out, nothing of the sort. In the final analysis, the Review shelved educational issues and became instead the means for introducing administrative change with the possible hidden agenda of removing one or more senior administrators.
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ItemThe establishment and operation of school councils in Victorian government high schools, 1973-1978( 1979)In 1976 reforms to the administration of Victorian government schools were instituted in response to pressure from political and education theorists, Education Department officials, parents and teachers. Advocates for reform were critical of a centralized and hierarchically administered education system which, they felt, was unresponsive to the needs of people affected by it - parents, teachers and students. Pressure for reforms to permit more broadly based participation in the administration of public institutions was responsible, between 1965 and 1973, for the granting of teacher autonomy in curriculum development. Finance was also allocated to schools by federal and state governments to enable them to define community needs and develop facilities to provide for those needs. Advisory councils came to be seen as too limited in powers and composition to effectively discharge these new responsibilities. Consequently, in 1973, the movement for reform of school councils commenced with discussions and negotiations between ministers, Education Department officials, representatives of parent, teacher and student organisations and interested groups in schools. These discussions were to result in the reform of the powers and composition of school councils and the election of newly constituted councils late in 1976. This study describes that reform movement and isolates the expectations of the advocates for reform. Interviews with principals and questionnaires administered to all councillors in nine high schools in the Ballarat Regional Directorate enable an analysis of the extent to which those expectations have been fulfilled over two years of operation of a limited sample of reformed councils from 1976 to 1978. Although new councils are now more representative and more actively involved in school administration the study shows that parental interest is still low, councils are not representative of all groups in society, and their powers are still too restrictive to allow them to influence the content and methods of instruction. These findings direct attention to the need for more detailed studies of community expectations for involvement in schools as well as careful analysis of decentralization of school government in view of the failure of the initial representative procedures in school councils.
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ItemPrincipal expertise and problem-solving processes( 1997)This case study is an exploration of Principal expertise and problem-solving in a large, co-educational, independent school in the eastern metropolitan area of Melbourne. Cognitive science perspectives are adopted to develop the nature of expert administrative practice, in order to highlight Principals' internal mental processes and their direct relationship to Principals' practices. Four characteristics or dimensions of expertise are examined, including a strong commitment to shared goals, cognitive flexibility, the Principal's contribution to the long-term development of staff and his or her use of the capacity of the staff to obtain solutions. The literature review involves an analysis of both expert, as opposed to typical Principals, since they vary in the processes they adopt to solve problems in group settings. Fourteen themes related to Principal expertise and problem-solving emerged from the findings of this particular case study. These include vision, communication of the vision and goals to the staff and decision making. This Principal demonstrated creative, future thinking; knowledge and information gathering; delegation; cognitive flexibility; strong values, especially when problems were non-routine and challenging together with a concentration on the change process. Also, the affect or feelings, mood and self-confidence that the Principal experiences when involved in problem-solving was studied. Finally, the possible relationship between expert problem-solving and transformational leadership, followed by the desirable features of school leadership expertise training programs, were examined. The findings from this study recommend a combination of strong theoretical knowledge, practical experience together with training in the human resource area and personnel management to include sound decision making processes and effective delegation. Further research is recommended concerning both the nature of educational expertise and problems encountered by school Principals as well as the identification of features for school leadership training programs.