Award Date

1-1-2001

Degree Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Education (EdD)

Department

Educational Administration and Higher Education

First Committee Member

Carl R. Steinhoff

Number of Pages

266

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to survey teachers at five accelerated schools in the Clark County School District to determine their perceptions of the organizational culture and properties of their respective schools, and to determine if there are any differences between the results on these surveys and the original studies; Two instruments, the Organisational Culture Assessment Inventory (OCAI) and the Structural Properties Questionnaire (SPQ), were administered in the Spring of 2001 to 277 teachers from five selected accelerated schools in the Clark County School District. This resulted in a response rate of 35%. The stories and metaphors obtained from the OCAI were analyzed using Spradley's participant observation method. Cultural phenotypes were created that characterized each of the five schools: a small town haven; an under-nurtured garden; an express train; a beehive; and a research vessel. Each of the schools were found to have unique cultures, however, there were some similarities to the original phenotypes. There were many factors which impacted the culture of the school such as having a new principal or being connected to the university which appeared to have impacted the culture of the schools; The data provided by the SPQ was analyzed first by using a factor analysis which extracted seven factors (Supervision with Hierarchy, General Rules for Teachers, Professional Training, Decision Making with Hierarchy, General Professional Latitude, Decision Making-Classroom Teacher, and Professional Latitude Provided by Principal) and accounted 36.7% of the variance in the responses. As the result of an analysis of variance and a post hoc comparison, Factor 1, Supervision with Hierarchy, and Factor 2, General Rules for Teachers, were found to be statistically significant. Specifically, the amount of perceived supervision in two of the schools were higher than those of teachers in the other three schools. The amount of perceived rules for teachers varied among the five schools, however, School D appeared to have consistently well-defined and implemented rules. There was no statistical significance found among the schools in the other five factors. All three structural properties (centralization, formalization, and complexity) were represented in the seven factors extracted; In conclusion, the organizational culture and structure of accelerated schools have both similarities due to the cultural and structural aspects of the program and differences due to the individual needs of each school community.

Keywords

Accelerated; Accelerated Schools; Culture; Descriptive; Organizational; Organizational Culture; Reform; Schools; Structures; Study

Controlled Subject

School management and organization

File Format

pdf

File Size

5570.56 KB

Degree Grantor

University of Nevada, Las Vegas

Language

English

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