How Much Do School Principals Matter When It Comes to Teacher Working Conditions?

2016 ◽  
Vol 39 (1) ◽  
pp. 126-145 ◽  
Author(s):  
Susan Burkhauser

Teacher turnover is a challenge for U.S. public schools. Research suggests that teachers’ perceptions of their school working conditions influence their leaving decisions. Related research suggests that principals may be in the best position to influence school working conditions. Using 4 years of panel data constructed from the North Carolina Teacher Working Condition Survey, this study uses value-added modeling approaches to explore the relationship between teachers’ perceptions of four measures of their working conditions and their principal. It finds that teacher ratings of the school environment depend on which principal is leading the school, independent of other school and district contextual factors, suggesting districts struggling with teacher turnover should assess climate and use that information to advise and support principals.

2012 ◽  
Vol 114 (3) ◽  
pp. 1-26 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yongmei Ni

Background/Context Teachers affect student performance through their interaction with students in the context of the classrooms and schools where teaching and learning take place. Although it is widely assumed that supportive working conditions improve the quality of instruction and teachers’ willingness to remain in a school, little is known about whether or how the organizational structure of charter schools influences teacher working conditions. Purpose/Research Question This article compares teacher working conditions in charter and traditional public schools and among various types of charter schools. In doing so, it seeks to understand whether the different working conditions are influenced by the intrinsic institutional features of charter schools such as autonomy and competition, or by the extraneous factors such as measureable school and teacher characteristics. Research Design This study utilized data from the 2003–2004 Schools and Staffing Survey (SASS), the nation's most extensive survey of K–12 schools and teachers, both for charter schools and traditional public schools (TPSs). This article is a quantitative analysis that involves three main steps. First, based on the responses to the SASS teacher questionnaire, confirmatory factor analysis was performed to generate multiple factors corresponding to key dimensions of teacher working conditions. Second, propensity score matching was used to pair charter schools with TPSs that are similar in terms of school location, educational level, school type, and student demographics. This matching process mitigates the confounding effects of these extraneous factors on teachers’ perceptions of working conditions. Finally, a series of weighted Hierarchical Linear Models were utilized to compare teachers’ perceptions of working conditions between charter and traditional public schools, controlling for teacher and school characteristics. Conclusions/Recommendations The results show that charter and traditional public school teachers perceive their working conditions to be similar in many regards, including principal leadership, sense of community and collegiality, classroom autonomy, opportunities for professional development, and adequacy of instructional supplies. However, charter school teachers perceive that they have significantly more influence over school policies, but a heavier workload than traditional school teachers. Among charter schools, district-granted charter schools show consistently more supportive working environments than charters granted by other organizations. This implies that state policy can have some indirect influence over charter school working conditions by providing substantial administrative support and oversight to charter schools authorized by independent organizations other than the established structure of school districts.


2017 ◽  
Vol 119 (6) ◽  
pp. 1-38
Author(s):  
Yongmei Ni

Background The charter school movement relies on teachers as critical components. Teacher commitment is an important aspect of teachers’ lives, because it is an internal force for teachers to grow as professionals. It is also considered one of the crucial factors in influencing various educational outcomes, including teacher effectiveness, teacher retention, and student learning. However, no empirical studies have examined teacher commitment in charter schools. Purpose To address this knowledge gap, this study compares organizational and professional commitment of teachers in charter schools and traditional public schools (TPSs) and explores how these differences are associated with teachers’ characteristics, school contextual factors, and working conditions in the two types of schools. Research Design This study utilizes quantitative analyses of national data from the 2007– 2008 School and Staffing Survey. Hierarchical linear models were developed to examine whether teacher commitment differs between charter schools and TPSs; how teacher characteristics, school contextual factors, and teachers’ perceptions of working conditions contribute to the difference; and finally, whether these variables differentially influence teacher commitment in charter schools and TPSs. Conclusions On average, teachers in charter schools experienced lower levels of organizational commitment than teachers in TPSs, but similar levels of professional commitment. Teacher working conditions explained a large amount of the variance in between-school teacher commitment, suggesting that improving principal leadership, increasing opportunities for professional development, and alleviating teachers’ workload would be effective ways to promote teacher commitment in charter schools.


Author(s):  
Abdurrahman Ilgan ◽  
Mustafa Ekiz

This study aimed to analyze the teachers’ expectations related to the school principals’ ethical behaviors and the frequency of the school principals’ performing ethical leadership behaviors based on the teachers’ perceptions. Data were collected through the Teacher Ethical Expectation Scale (ÖEBÖ) and School Principal’s Performing Ethical Leadership Scale (PELBS) which were developed by the researchers for the aim of this research. The sample of the study consisted of 541 participant teachers selected from the population of the teachers working at public schools located in Sakarya, province of Turkey, during the 2018-2019 academic year. According to the teachers’ perceptions, it was found that the teachers’ expectations of the school principals’ ethical behaviors and the frequency of the principals’ performing ethical leadership behaviors were quite high. It was also seen that there was a significant positive relationship at a low level because of the path analysis, which was done to predict the school principals’ performing ethical behaviors through the teachers’ expectations on ethical behaviors. It was concluded that the ethical behaviors from the school principals expected by the teachers as the independent variable were seen to explain 8.6% of the variance in ethical behaviors performed by the school principals as the dependent variable.


2021 ◽  
Vol 8 (3) ◽  
pp. 202-211
Author(s):  
Daniel Bandoni ◽  
Daniela Canella

Objective: Considering that the school environment can impact food consumption and children’s weight, our aim was to evaluate the relationship between the origin of foods consumed at school and children’s nutritional status. Methods: We used data from the nationally representative Brazilian Household Budget Survey of children under 10 years old. The relationship between consumption of foods at school and its origin (offered by the school; taken from home; bought at the canteens) and nutritional status were evaluated using linear (BMI-for-age) and logistic (excess weight and obesity) regression models stratified by type of school (private or public). Results: A total of 95.5% of children referred consumption of food at school, independent of its origin, and 28.0% had excess weight and 10.2% had obesity. In private schools, 70.7% of children ate food taken from home, whereas in public schools, 90.6% of children ate food offered by the school through a school food service program. According to adjusted analyses related to public schools, consuming food offered by the school decreased BMI-for-age and the odds of having obesity. No differences were verified among children from private schools. Conclusion: Eating food offered by public schools seems to be better for Brazilian children’s nutritional status.


2020 ◽  
pp. 57-84
Author(s):  
Maria Deptuła ◽  
Anna Borucka

Deptuła Maria, Borucka Anna, Problemy i potrzeby uczniów klas IV szkoły podstawowej w relacjach z rówieśnikami [Problems and Needs of 4th Grade Students in their Relations with Peers]. Studia Edukacyjne nr 56, 2020, Poznań 2020, pp. 57-84. Adam Mickiewicz University Press. ISSN 1233-6688. DOI: 10.14746/se.2020.56.4The aim of the paper is to present the results of longitudinal questionnaire surveys carried out amongstudents of the 4th grade on their problems and needs in relations with peers. Method: Students from 17 classes from all IV grades existing in the 2017/2018 school year in public schools in Bydgoszcz took part in the study. An anonymous questionnaire containing 21 closed-end questions and open questions regarding the relationship with peers and teachers was used. Results: The qualitative analysis was used to distinguish categories of students’ statements, whichreferred to individual experiences related to (1) functioning among peers and (2) the social climate ofthe school.Quantitative analyses did not show any correlation between student statements and variables relatedto the school environment. In contrast, there was a correlation between the frequency of statementsabout changes in the class and the wishes related to the desirable behavior towards the respondentand the quality of the conditions of psychosocial development in relation with peers.


2016 ◽  
Vol 56 (1) ◽  
pp. 91-122
Author(s):  
Dara H. Blackwell ◽  
Tamara Young

Using the 2012 North Carolina Teacher Working Conditions Survey data, school demographic information, and school’s urban-centric locale census designation, hierarchical linear modeling was conducted to examine the relationship between locale and teachers’ perceptions of school leadership as a working condition and explore any variance in the relationship between school contextual factors and teachers’ perceptions of school leadership associated with locale. After controlling for school contextual factors, the results showed urban-centric locale is not a predictor of teachers’ perceptions of school leadership, and most of the variance in teachers’ perceptions of school leadership is explained by factors within, not between, schools.


2021 ◽  
Vol 15 (57) ◽  
pp. 616-627
Author(s):  
Maria Natália Barboza Santos ◽  
Maria do Socorro Cordeiro de Sousa ◽  
Fernanda Jaylane Da Silva Viana

Resumo: A presente pesquisa tem como objeto de análise a Gestão Democrática na escola pública, buscando assim compreender como se dá esse processo. Toda escola é regida por um gestor, que ocupa um papel primordial no que tange a sua organização, principalmente na questão pedagógica. Todavia, o conceito de Gestão Democrática implica exatamente na divisão dessa responsabilidade entre todos os componentes do recinto escolar. Desta forma, a escolha deste tema para escrita do trabalho parte de observações feitas durante a Residência Pedagógica na escola Dr Severino Alves de Sá, tendo por objetivo analisar como se dá o processo de Gestão Democrática nas escolas e como essa forma de gestão implica em melhorias no ensino público. Entende-se por Gestão Democrática o ato de gerenciar uma escola através da participação de todos, evitando atribuir somente ao gestor a responsabilidade de nortear a instituição escolar, embora ele seja a figura de maior atuação, pois a ele cabe o gerenciamento da parta administrativa, financeira e pedagógica, além de ser um mediador na relação entre todos os membros da escola, a família e a comunidade geral. Dentro do ambiente escolar surge a necessidade de um documento que contenha os direitos e deveres de todos aqueles que compõem aquele espaço, devendo ser desenvolvido em conjunto com todos os envolvidos, ficando exposto em um lugar onde todos possam ter acesso. Esse documento é o Plano Político Pedagógico (PPP), que visa estabelecer as diretrizes que irão permear o ano letivo, e no contexto educacional. Assim, o presente estudo partiu do princípio disposto na legislação vigente, fundamentando-se através de ideias de diferentes estudiosos acerca do assunto, que defendem dentre outras coisas, sua aplicação como essencial para a melhoria do ensino nas escolas públicas. Para tanto, o aporte teórico adveio de Lima (2018), Paro (2006), Luck (2005, 2009), Gadotti (2004) e Souza (2018), dentre outros. Metodologicamente, a pesquisa é qualitativa de cunho bibliográfico. Assim, foi possível constatar que uma gestão democrática se faz através de ações que torne possível a divisão da responsabilidade do processo educativo entre o gestor e todos que compõe a escola, buscando assim uma educação de qualidade para todos, tendo como base o Art:206 e a LDB (Lei n. 9.394/96), além do Projeto Político Pedagógico, documento norteador das ações e decisões referente as instituições escolares. Palavras-chave: Escola Pública, Gestão Escolar, Projeto Político Pedagógico. Abstract: This research has as its object of analysis the Democratic Management in public schools, seeking to understand how this process takes place. Every school is governed by a manager, who plays a key role in terms of its organization, especially in terms of teaching. However, the concept of Democratic Management implies exactly the division of this responsibility among all the components of the school premises. Thus, the choice of this theme for the writing of the work is based on observations made during the Pedagogical Residency at the Dr Severino Alves de Sá school, aiming to analyze how the process of Democratic Management in schools takes place and how this form of management implies improvements in public education. Democratic Management is understood as the act of managing a school through the participation of all, avoiding assigning only the manager the responsibility of guiding the school institution, although he is the most active figure, as he is responsible for managing the administrative part, financial and pedagogical, in addition to being a mediator in the relationship between all members of the school, the family and the general community. Within the school environment, there is a need for a document that contains the rights and duties of all those who make up that space, which should be developed together with everyone involved, being exposed in a place where everyone can have access. This document is the Pedagogical Political Plan (PPP), which aims to establish the guidelines that will permeate the school year, and in the educational context. Thus, the present study started from the principle established in the current legislation, based on ideas from different scholars on the subject, who defend, among other things, its application as essential for the improvement of teaching in public schools. Therefore, the theoretical support came from Lima (2018), Paro (2006), Luck (2005, 2009), Gadotti (2004) and Souza (2018), among others. Methodologically, the research is qualitative and bibliographical in nature. Thus, it was possible to see that democratic management is done through actions that make it possible to divide the responsibility of the educational process between the manager and everyone who makes up the school, thus seeking quality education for all, based on Art:206 and the LDB (Law No. 9,394/96), in addition to the Pedagogical Political Project, a document that guides actions and decisions regarding school institutions. Keywords: Public School, School Management, Pedagogical Political Project.


Author(s):  
Paul G. Fitchett ◽  
Sally Lineback ◽  
Christopher J. McCarthy ◽  
Richard G. Lambert

Teacher attrition can have a disruptive effect within a school, negatively impacting student learning. Moreover, teachers' reported working conditions are an important factor in determining whether they leave or stay within the field. The majority of research examining workplace climate in schools fails to consider the perceptual nature of these reports and how they might be related to teachers' risk for stress and other occupational health measures. This chapter provides an overview of the research relating teacher working conditions to teacher mobility and other workplace dispositions. Then, the authors present the transactional stress model as an alternative to traditional approaches for examining teacher mobility. Policy implications for educational agencies, schools, and teacher education are then presented.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Claude Anama-Green

As educator attrition continues to plague public education in the United States, attention turns to teacher burnout as a major component of the problem. Statistics suggest that up to half of new teachers will quit the profession or leave their district within the first five years of their careers. In either case, public schools and students continue to experience negative outcomes associated with ongoing teacher turnover. The burden of the problem in Eastern Kentucky is significant, though little is published regarding the burnout experiences of Eastern Kentucky teachers. Some published research findings suggest that teacher mindfulness practice may be associated with reduced risk of burnout, which could ultimately help retain teachers. This study evaluated the relationship between teacher mindfulness and burnout with a focus on identifying factors that reduce the risk of burnout. Findings from the study indicate that the construct Intrapersonal Mindfulness can predict the level of burnout experienced by teachers in the study population. Further, Odds Ratio and Relative Risk calculations suggest that those with elevated Intrapersonal Mindfulness have reduced risk of “average” or “high” burnout and increased risk of “low” burnout. Consistent with published literature, the results also suggest that Eastern Kentucky teachers experience significantly higher levels of burnout than those in other “helping” professions. Findings from this study can be used to inform intervention studies designed to reduce the burden of burnout on teachers, districts, and students.


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