Public School Administrators Research Articles

Lifelong Effects of Poverty

Poverty in the United States impacts children in public schools. In reviewing the literature on poverty, several themes emerged. The themes included: the struggle to define poverty in the United States, characteristics of families in poverty, the impact of poverty on school and lifelong effects of poverty on children. Additionally, a personal story of a public school administrator who grew up in poverty is shared. This includes how the impact of that experience still impacts the way she thinks about poverty and interacts with families from poverty.

Shared Realities: Perceptions and Experiences of Gay and Lesbian School Administrators

This article discusses research about LGBTQ school leadership and notes differences in participants’ perceptions of treatment in their professional environments. The study employed mixed methods to identify the perceptions and experiences of unfair treatment and discrimination of lesbian and gay public-school administrators working in K–12 settings. A small, purposeful sample of 32 participants reported having experienced varying degrees of unfair treatment or discrimination either in their professional lives or in their private/personal lives. Findings suggest that educational leaders have a role in addressing and preventing unfair treatment and discrimination that contribute to the dissatisfaction and diminished leadership of lesbian and gay administrators serving in K–12 education.

Phased Return of Students to 77 Transitional Kindergarten-8th Grade Schools With Cohesive Mitigation Strategies Serving as Protective Factors Against the Increase of COVID-19 Cases in Marin County: September 2020-January 2021.

Background and objectiveEarlier uncertain implications of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic on the pediatric population prompted the authorities to close schools worldwide under the premise that school settings would serve as drivers of an increase in the cases of COVID-19. Safe and equitable full-in-person school instruction is a critical factor in the continued educational gains of children and for their general well-being. The objective of this study was to report epidemiological trends related to the increasing percentage of students returning to in-person instruction, the suspected in-school transmission of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS‐CoV‐2), the virus that causes COVID-19, and countywide COVID-19 case rates during the first 21 weeks of school reopening in Marin County, CA, in the fall of 2020.Materials and methodsThe institutional review board (IRB) approval was waived for this study as it did not involve any identifiable human subjects data. Retrospective electronic reviews of countywide COVID-19 daily case count and COVID-19-related reports associated with in-person school participants from 77 schools in Marin County, CA, from September 8, 2020, to January 29, 2021, were conducted. The data were made available in collaboration with the Marin County Office of Education (MCOE) and Marin County Department of Health and Human Services (Marin HHS). Descriptive trends analyses were performed to determine whether the phased increase of students attending in-person learning was a significant contributor to countywide COVID-19 incidence rate, crude rate, and in-school COVID-19 viral transmission. This is the first long retrospective study of COVID-19 data among the reopened school population during the second half of the first pandemic year. It was conducted in a 21-week surveillance period involving an immense collaboration between Marin County’s public health officials and school administrators.ResultsOver the 21-week observational period involving 17,639 students, 4,938 school staff, and 899,175 student days, the countywide COVID-19 crude rate decreased (from 89.9 to 35.89 per 10,000) as more students returned to in-person learning. The schools’ strict adherence to public health guidance and site-specific safety plans against COVID-19 yielded a significantly reduced incidence rate of 0.84% among in-person learning participants; only nine cases were traced to suspected in-school SARS-CoV-2 transmission by way of rigorous contact tracing. The countywide COVID-19 incidence rate was 2.09%.ConclusionsIt is possible to minimize COVID-19 transmissions in in-person learning settings with cohesive mitigation strategies, specifically strict adherence to proper masking by students and staff while on school grounds. There is no clear correlation that the increasing phased return of students to in-person school drove an increase in countywide COVID-19 cases in Marin County, CA. Our findings revealed that schools were capable of safely resuming operations by following public health orders and recommendations. The increasing percentage of students returning to in-person school did not drive an increased COVID-19 case rate in the community. On the contrary, this analysis revealed that there was a drop in countywide COVID-19 cases as the phased student return percentage increased.

Extent of School-Based Management Committee Involvement in Public Secondary Schools Administration in Abuja, Nigeria

Given that managing schools to attain expected goals is becoming challenging in the present competitive society, it becomes paramount that collaborations, especially with a highly innovative group of people are encouraged. In the light of this, the purpose of this study is to investigate the extent of School-Based Management Committees' (SBMCs) involvement in public secondary school administration in Abuja. A descriptive survey design was used for the study, and 3 research questions were answered in relation to the 3 research objectives of the study. The population of the study was 460 respondents, and a sample size of 250 respondents was drawn through proportionate random and convenience sampling techniques. A structured questionnaire was used for data collection. Arithmetic mean was employed in analyzing the research questions. The result revealed among others, that the school-based management committees play a passive role in planning in public secondary schools in Abuja. It was concluded that for schools to effectively meet the academic need of the Abuja community, their collaborations with the SBMCs have to be very active and productive. To this end, SBMCs need to become more committed to collaborating and helping the schools in terms of planning, staffing and monitoring.

Problems of Public Primary Schoolsadministrationin Federal Capital Teritory Abuja, Nigeria and Possible Solutions

Public primary schools in Federal Capital Territory, Abuja are confronted with many problems. These problems are the central ideas of this article. Secondary data sourced from print and online materials were used to make the literatures of this article robust. The article identified a number of problems facing the administration of public primary schools in FCT and discussions were made on the points identified. Key areas were suggested as lean way to addressing the prevailing problems. The paper opines that, if the concerned authorities will key into the suggestions made, it will leverage the present administrative problems public primary schools in FCT are confronted with.

School Administrators’ Intentions to Promote Adapted Physical Education

A survey, developed with the Theory of Planned Behavior, was used to assess school administrators’ intention to promote adapted physical education (APE). Survey results indicated that when school administrators’ attitudes and subjective norms were favorable, the intention to promote APE was subsequently higher. The results indicate that if we expect public school administrators to promote APE in schools, they must know the importance of high-quality physical education to students with disabilities.

Mentoring Roles of the School Principals in Turkey: A Literature Review

It is important to explain the scope of the concept of mentoring, which has been becoming increasingly important in training and supporting the professional development of educational administrators. In this context, the aim of this study is to examine the concept of mentoring, the functions of mentoring, and the studies carried out on the mentoring functions of school administrators in Turkey. For this purpose, the study was designed as a literature review, and the studies which were indexed in the TR index and Council of Higher Education Thesis Center between the years 2000 and 2020 were analyzed. As a result of the analysis, it was found out that there were 16 studies conducted on the mentoring roles of school administrators in Turkey, and they were carried out as graduate studies at Master’s level. It was also concluded that the studies generally focused on the mentoring functions of the education administrators in public schools, the level of mentoring functions of the school administrators, and the correlation between the mentoring functions of the school administrators and the job satisfaction of the teachers and vice-principals, academic optimism, organizational adaptation, and professional development. As a result of the study, it may be suggested that more studies are needed for a better understanding of mentoring among the school principals in Turkey.

Evolution of Educational Administration in Chile and Professionalizing School Administration in 2020

As is in many other countries, educational administration in Chile has adapted to the emerging needs of the country. In 2020, a new public school educational system was gradually implemented, thereby, ending the municipal educational model established 40 years before by the military government. School administration has become more complex given the rise in schoolwide coverage. The objective of this study is to describe events that led to the current administration model using a timeline of policies pertaining to the educational system and the evolution of a professional career path for public school principals. This study is based on qualitative research using a descriptive approach based on a literature review. Public school administration efforts initially focused on school coverage and afterwards on improving the quality of education. The last few decades were characterized by educational reforms and paradigm innovations with an emphasis on school inclusion with a focus on non-profit education. Becoming a principal in the Chilean public school system is not an easy feat. Currently, Chile is considered to be one of the countries with the highest demands in accessing this position since it is based on merit with oversight based on the Law of Transparency. It is concluded that the rigorous nature of Chile´s public educational administrative system should also extend to the private school system to ensure that administrative decisions will, most likely, be based on academic criteria and respect for each institution´s educational goals.

Relationship between Management Potential and Cognitive Characteristics of Managers of Different Government Levels

The article deals with leading role of managers in improving the efficiency and effectiveness of management in all spheres of social life. At the same time, the relevance is dictated by the need, in this regard, to study more deeply the factors of the formation and development of managerial potential, and, consequently, increase the efficiency of managerial activity and the success of a managerial career. The material for the analysis was the data obtained at the Faculty of Evaluation and Development of Managerial Human Resources of the Graduate School of Public Administration of Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration in the course of personal and professional diagnostics of managers of different government levels working in the state and non-state spheres. The questionnaire “Assessment of management potential”, developed at the Faculty, as well as the method for assessing the cognitive characteristics of management personnel were used by us as diagnostic tools. Cognitive characteristics have been identified that provide the greatest opportunities for the formation of cognitive characteristics (expert competence, persistence and dedication and strategic leadership). The dynamics of the relationship between cognitive characteristics and managerial leaders, depending on their position in the structure of the hierarchy, is shown in this article. It was found that cognitive characteristics make the greatest contribution to the formation of managerial potential among managers at the initial level of management, having a decisive influence on meta-competence, ensuring the performance of leadership functions and continuous self-improvement of the manager. At the same time, it was shown that the managers of the highest group have the influence of cognitive characteristics on managerial analytical potential, an increase in the ability for self-development and expert competence, an increase in the ability to compare, the ability to quality, and the total indicator for the identified cognitive characteristics. Increased creativity and flexibility of thinking leads to a decrease in the level of strategic leadership, willingness to work together, as well as competencies and self-management.

"We've Had to Build the Plane as We Flew It.": Impacts of the COVID-19 Pandemic on School-Based Weight Management Interventions.

Background: In response to the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, elementary and secondary schools in the United States transitioned to remote learning to slow viral spread and protect students and school officials. This move interrupted academic education and school-based health interventions focused on physical activity (PA) and healthy eating behaviors to help combat childhood obesity. Little is known on how these interventions were affected by COVID-19. Methods: This concurrent multimethodological study incorporated two independent components: qualitative descriptive semistructured interviews with public school administrators and quantitative descriptive cross-sectional needs assessment survey of public school personnel. Results: Three themes were identified from interviews with school administrators (N = 28): changes in school-based interventions addressing PA and healthy eating behaviors, changes in academic delivery affecting PA and healthy eating behaviors, and needs of school administrators. From the survey (N = 1311), 635 (48.4%) participants indicated that schools' abilities to address PA and healthy eating behaviors were negatively impacted by COVID-19. The majority (n = 876, 66.8%) of participants strongly agreed or agreed that the pandemic would affect future school-based interventions related to PA and healthy eating behaviors. Conclusions: While schools are prime locations for delivering school-based weight management interventions related to childhood obesity, participants reported the pandemic had overall negative impacts on interventions addressing PA and healthy eating behaviors. Understanding these impacts is essential to adapting school-based interventions to changes from COVID-19 so students may receive health information and access health promotion interventions in remote learning environments and during social distancing.

The Reopening of a School during the COVID-19 Pandemic: An Administrative Lens

In an effort to investigate school administrator self-efficacy during the COVID-19 pandemic, two public high school administrators from the same high school in a Southeastern U.S. state were interviewed virtually two times a week during the first six weeks of the 2020-2021 school year. Selection of participants was accomplished using convenience sampling, as both persons completed a principal preparation program where the lead researcher served as an instructor. The participants were surveyed before and after the study using questions from the Principal Self-Efficacy Survey (PSES) as well as researcher-developed questions specifically related to work life during the pandemic. The study revealed the degree that these administrators defined their work experiences during this period, based on four distinct perspectives, including: (a) structural, (b) symbolic, (c) political, and (d) human resources. Also, the study revealed administrator perceptions of equity and access among various constituents at their school, including teachers, support staff, students, parents, and members of the broader school community. Using open systems theory as a theoretical perspective, the study revealed six emergent themes that related to their work while opening school during a world crisis: (a) technology access/instruction, (b) informational/procedural ambiguity, (c) resource dependency, (d) policy adaptability, (e) stakeholder disposition, and (f) methods of communication. Focused on a principal and assistant principal at a single high school, this case-study illuminates the personal and professional challenges faced by these administrators during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Experience of Conflict Management of Public Secondary School Administrators: A Phenomenological Inquiry

The school administrators' skill in managing conflict and resolution is vital towards creating a peaceful and productive working environment. The purpose of this phenomenological study is to explore the lived experiences of public secondary school administrators on conflict management. Using a purposive sampling technique, three school administrators participated in an in-depth interview. The data were analyzed using the recursive textual analysis aided by the framework of Lichtman. The study's findings show that school administrators primarily consider the source of conflict to understand the appropriate approach to apply. By classification, the conflict between teachers usually rooted in jealousy, faction, personal grudges, and pride. In contrast, conflicts between teachers and administrators would usually involve the performance of duties. Moreover, they believe that there is no single approach to be followed in the implementation of conflict resolution strategies since it depends on the situation and the parties involved. The findings suggest that each person is dynamic, and the beauty of dynamism of people enables them to understand and resolve conflicts in the end.

Using Roger’s Diffusion of Innovation Theory to Implement the Healthy Schools National Accreditation

Background: In Jordan, The Healthy School National Accreditation has been introduced in 2008 as anational health-promoting school program where schools are invited to voluntarily join the accreditation.Unfortunately, financial challenges and lack of resources among many other factors led to very low enrollmentrate. Method: Adopting a selected change theory can be beneficial in making the decision and successfullyimplementing the intended change. Rogers’s diffusion of innovations theory was adopted by a public schooladministration to join the accreditation. This theory provides an explanation on how and at what rate newinnovations take place and spread out over time in any system.The school health committee went throughthe five stages proposed by the theory and successfully implemented the accreditation.Conclusion: Adopting Rogers’s diffusion of innovations theory can be beneficial iN implementing theschool health-promoting programs.Implication for School Health: School administrators, school health nurses and school health teachersare strongly advised to adopt this theory while they are considering joining the school health-promotingprograms.

Teachers Commitment for the Administration of Public Senior Secondary Schools in Rivers State, Nigeria

The study investigated teachers’ commitment for the administration of public senior secondary schools in Rivers State. Two research questions and two hypotheses guided the study. Design adopted for this study was descriptive survey research design. Population of the study was 7425 teachers (3854 males and 3571 females) while 380 teachers (198 male and 182 female) were sampled for the study using multistage sampling technique. The instrument used for data collection was a 26 item questionnaire titled “Teachers Commitment for School Administration Questionnaire” (TCSAQ). The instrument was validated by three experts; two in Measurement and Evaluation and one in Educational Management. Cronbach Alpha was used to determine the internal consistency of the instrument with an index of 0.86 which was considered sufficient for the study. The research questions were answered using mean and rank order while z-test was used to test the hypotheses at 0.05 level of significance. Findings of the study showed a high level commitment to teachers work and students academic performance for the administration of public senior secondary schools in Rivers State. It was recommended that the government should endeavour to provide sufficient educational resources to promote teachers commitment. Keywords: Teachers, Commitment, Administration, Secondary Schools, Rivers State DOI: 10.7176/JEP/12-16-07 Publication date: June 30 th 2021

Popular Attitudes Toward the Distribution of Vaccines Against COVID‐19: The Swiss Case

With the arrival of vaccines against the novel coronavirus in late 2020, the issue of how vaccines should be distributed and which groups should be prioritized has become salient. We study popular attitudes toward the distribution of COVID‐19 vaccines and how these have changed over the course of the pandemic in Switzerland, drawing on data from two rounds of an original public opinion survey conducted in the spring and winter of 2020. We find that the public supports prioritizing vulnerable groups such as health care workers or the elderly. We also find a notable degree of cross‐generational solidarity: younger age cohorts prioritize the elderly, while older groups prioritize (typically younger) health care workers. We then examine whether this finding is not in fact driven by vaccine hesitancy. This is not the case for older age groups, whose solidarity thus seems to be genuine. Vaccine hesitancy is an issue among younger groups, however.

Profesionalización en la contratación pública

La profesionalización de la Administración pública es una de las dimensiones, de los aspectos más importantes de su reforma y modernización pues contar con personas preparadas que ingresan y progresan en la carrera de acuerdo con la idoneidad, el mérito y la capacidad, es, como se comprueba a diario, garantía de objetividad y acierto en el trabajo del sector público. Los países que han implementado sistemas de profesionalización integrales y dinámicos que garanticen el ingreso y la progresión en la carrera a través del mérito. Por otra parte, en el ámbito europeo, la Directiva 2014/24/UE de 26 de febrero, cuando se refiere a las compras agregadas, se refiere a la necesidad de mejorar y profesionalizar la gestión. La Recomendación de la OCDE de 2015 sobre contratación pública, como es sabido, y más adelante comentaremos, insta a sus Estados miembros a asegurarse de que los profesionales de la contratación tengan un alto nivel de integridad, capacitación técnica y aptitud para la puesta en práctica, a ofrecer a los profesionales de la contratación pública un sistema de carrera atractivo, competitivo, basado en el mérito. En efecto, la OCDE desde 2009 y la UE en 2017, a partir de la Recomendación de la Comisión europea especialmente, recomiendan que los Estados asuman proyectos integrales de profesionalización en materia de contratación pública. Finalmente, el Comité Económico y Social Europeo emitió un Dictamen el 15 de febrero de 2020 analizando la Recomendación europea de 2017 en la que se indica que es esencial avanzar con resolución hacia una gran profesionalización de los servicios contratantes y un claro reconocimiento de las cualificaciones adquiridas. En España, la vigente Ley de contratos del sector público de 8 de noviembre de 2017 dedica dos breves consideraciones a la profesionalización en el marco del artículo 334 en materia de estrategia nacional de contratación. Abordar dicha estrategia se encuentra la promoción de la profesionalización en contratación pública mediante actuaciones de formación de personal del sector público. En los años 1990-1996, época en la dirigí la Escuela Gallega de Administración Pública, justo en los primeros años de funcionamiento pusimos en práctica un diploma para dirigir en la Administración pública. La Administración electrónica opera también en el ámbito de la contratación y debe ser concebida para garantizar los principios propios de esta materia: igualdad, no discriminación, transparencia, publicidad, concurrencia, eficiencia.

Administrators' Instructional Leadership Perspective of the Role of Instructional Coaches and Teacher Librarians

The purpose of this collective case study was to develop an understanding of why California K–12 public school administrators distribute instructional leadership responsibilities to either instructional coaches or teacher librarians and how the two roles compare within the context of the implementation of the California Common Core State Standards in English Language Arts (ELA/Literacy). Results demonstrated that administrators’ personal values influence their decisions to select and utilize instructional coaches or teacher librarians to provide instructional leadership. Instructional coaches are considered to be extensions of administrators as instructional leaders in ELA while teacher librarians are considered resources who may be called upon to provide occasional instructional support in ELA.

INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY USE ON EFFECTIVE ADMINISTRATION OF PUBLIC SECONDARY SCHOOLS, LAGOS STATE, NIGERIA

This study investigated information and communication technology use on effective administration of senior secondary schools. It evaluated the extent of use of the various ICT devices and their influence on the administration of secondary schools. To guide the study, one research question and one hypothesis were tested. The design used for the study was survey design and the population comprised the school administrators involved in the running of the schools on a daily basis and these were the principals, vice- principals and heads of the various subjects’ departments in the public senior schools in Lagos State, Nigeria. The instrument for data collection was a 19-item questionnaire while means and t-test statistics were used for data analysis. Findings from the study showed ICT use has a significant positive influence on the effective administrations of public senior secondary schools in Lagos state. Additionally, the study found that the level of ICT use for administrative purposes in public senior secondary schools in Lagos State was moderate. The ICT devices highly utilized were photocopiers and mobile telephones. While printer, computer systems, social media, e-mails services, internet, and scanners were moderately utilized. However, ICT devices like projectors and smart boards were rarely utilized. The study recommends the provision of the necessary ICT equipment and infrastructure in an enabling physical and psychological technological environment for effective public secondary school administration.

PENGEMBANGAN INSTRUMEN DIAGNOSIS KESEHATAN SUPERVISI PEMBELAJARAN

The research entitled "Development of Learning Supervision Health Diagnostic Instruments". Participants in this study were three education management experts, 102 school principals, 317 teachers and 135 well-known administrators in public and private junior high schools (SMP) throughout Purwakarta Regency. The purpose of this study was to analyze the learning surveillance health diagnosis instrument, see the health picture of learning supervision at State and Private Junior High Schools (SMP) in Purwakarta Regency and follow up on the results of the learning supervision health diagnosis. This study uses a descriptive method with a quantitative approach. The technique of using data using a questionnaire. The instrument was developed based on the dimensions of the program, planning, implementation, evaluation and supervision reporting. As for the instrument development technique through construction tests with expert lecturers by revising the item questions, respondent construct tests by distributing questionnaires with the help of Google in the form of validity tests, reliability tests and Weight Mean Score. The researcher concluded that the output of this study was in the form of a learning supervision health diagnosis instrument that could be used as a research measurement tool and a measuring tool to diagnose the health of learning supervision consisting of instruments for the principal who handled 23 questions, the teacher entered 22 questions and the administration that was asked. 16 question items; health picture Learning Supervision in Public and Private Junior High Schools throughout Purwakarta Regency as a whole is in a very healthy condition and based on school accreditation is also in a very healthy condition; and follow-up on the results of the learning supervision health diagnosis in the form of maintenance and the current condition of the supervision of learning in schools for each and existing indicators.

“We live in the age of choice”: school administrators, school choice policies, and the shaping of dual language bilingual education

In the past 20 years, both school choice policies and dual language bilingual education (DLBE) programs have proliferated across the US. This project examines the intersection of the two trends, examining how school choice policies have shaped DLBE at the district, school, and program level, through the eyes of 22 public school administrators in Arizona, California, and Texas. Prior work has shown how general neoliberal logic has shaped parents' desire for DLBE as well as how DLBE is marketed and who attends, but we argue here that school choice—itself a product of neoliberal logic—is a unique and powerful force shaping DLBE. We found that it spurred both the creation of new DLBE education programs (i.e., to help districts compete) and influenced existing programs (e.g., made principals hesitant to collaborate with those whom they see as competitors). We address the potential of these shifts to undermine goals of equity for Latinx and Spanish-speaking students. Yet, we also address the potential for administrators to co-opt the language and logic of school choice as a means to create programs that might ultimately serve the ends of social justice.