Clusters of opportunity: results of research on educational effects of participation in the project “School for High School Students”

The objective of the research presented in this article is to study the opportunities for students, teachers, and administrative teams to take part in the project “School for High School Students”. The main research method is a survey conducted among students, teachers, and administrations of educational institutions of the city of Moscow taking part in the project “School for High School Students”. The survey data were analyzed with the help of content analysis (text analysis based on Zipf’s law). The data obtained as a result of the sampling of schools that were taking part in the project “School for High School Students” were analyzed in terms of opportunities for the main participants of educational relations. Substantive and infrastructure changes in the projects provide possibilities: for high schoolers — in terms of creating individual educational routes, forming a subjective position, professional and personal self-determination, trying out their potential profession, and choosing their career path; for teachers — in terms of professional development, acquiring new methodological experience, using new teaching frameworks, gaining experience of working with new equipment and electronic resources; for administrative teams — in terms of improvement of the quality of conditions, process, result, and management, namely, improvement of the school status, positive dynamics of students’ educational results, resourcing of the project, forming a motivating learning environment and environment for occupational trials, and networking interactions with educational and other organizations.

Taking phonership: an initiative to improve telephone access for patients receiving services at a dental hospital in the UK

BackgroundAt Bristol Dental Hospital, we received almost 5000 calls per week, and we were not answering over 60% of these. This led to numerous informal complaints from frustrated patients and families to clinicians and administrative staff, reducing patient experience and affecting staff morale.MethodWe set up a Task and Finish group with clinical and managerial leadership using staff engagement and a clear message to improve our performance. We agreed metrics and feedback to administrative teams about weekly performance.ResultsCalls received fell from nearly 5000 calls per week to under 3000. Calls answered when available; we term ‘when available’ to indicate during standard operating hours when the line is not already occupied. During core hours call answering improved significantly from around 35% to over 75%. Complaints have dropped significantly in the same time period.ReflectionsEffective leadership with staff engagement has improved telephony at a dental hospital in the UK significantly. This initiative has been adopted by other areas in the Trust and helped inform good practice around the Trust.

Drug Use: Impact, Rules, Regulations and Mitigation Practices in the Construction Industry in the U.S

Abusing intoxicating substances such as alcohol and drugs in the construction industry poses a serious threat to the safety of workers. It is a pervasive problem that often results in fatal accidents and other relevant risks. This paper aimed to investigate the impacts of substance abuse at job sites, the perception of industry professionals about the issue, and the current practices of the industry. The objective was to compare the perception of the industry to the findings of the background study conducted in this area. To achieve this goal, the authors conducted a survey to analyze (1) the difference in perception between onsite and administrative teams regarding the issue of onsite substance abuse, (2) comparing possibilities of occurrence of diverse impacts of substance abuse as per the industry perspective, and (3) effectiveness of the available mitigation practices according to industry professionals. The results show that (1) there is a significant difference in perception regarding the existence and the seriousness of the problem of substance abuse in the construction companies between the onsite and the administrative teams, (2) though fatal accidents are the worst possible impact, loss in productivity is considered as the most common impact, and (3) drug-testing is not considered as the best mitigation practice by construction professionals. It was concluded that there is a need for education on the seriousness of drug abuse as well as extensive research for developing more efficient mitigation systems.

Effect of educational intervention on knowledge and attitude towards research, research ethics, and biobanks among paramedical and administrative teams in the National Liver Institute, Egypt

Background Medical research has increased greatly in many developing countries during the recent decade, motivated by the need to improve health in these countries. Such research needs to be guided by fundamental ethical principles to ensure the protection of patient’s rights and welfare. Also, biobanks have become increasingly important for the study of health and disease. There is a significant public interest in the outcomes of genetic research, which include diagnostic, therapeutic, and preventive health methods. This study was conducted assess and raise the knowledge and attitude towards several aspects of research, related ethics, and biobank ethical issues for paramedical and administrative teams working at the National Liver Institute (NLI). Results The education intervention study was effective in increasing percentage of good knowledge in paramedical and administrative teams (p value < 0.001). Also, the education intervention study was effective in increasing percentage of positive attitude in paramedical and administrative teams (p value < 0.001). Conclusion There were good knowledge and attitude about research and related ethics, but poor knowledge and attitude about biobanking. The educational intervention study significantly increased knowledge and attitude about research, related ethics, and biobanks.

El involucramiento familiar en el marco de la relación Familia-Escuela. Un análisis desde el Equipo de Gestión Escolar en una Escuela Municipal chilena

En Chile las iniciativas de intervención social escolar son procesos emergentes, que se proyectan considerando el marco normativo de la educación y las políticas públicas en el área. Especial interés revisten aquellas iniciativas que apuntan a fortalecer la relación familia-escuela. De esta forma, el artículo busca dar a conocer las visiones del equipo de gestión escolar municipal respecto a situaciones problemáticas vivenciadas por la familia y caracterizar el vínculo familia-escuela. Los antecedentes teóricos a la base del estudio, provienen de la teoría del cambio educativo, el cambio contextualizado y el involucramiento familiar. Se trabajó en base a una metodología cualitativa, a través de un estudio de caso, en que cada caso corresponde a una escuela. Aquí se presentarán los hallazgos parciales correspondientes a un establecimiento. A modo de resultados, destaca una visión negativa de la familia por parte del equipo de gestión, reconociendo una relación jerárquica entre ambas esferas y niveles de vinculación familia-escuela unidireccionales y de bajo protagonismo por parte de las familias.School social interventions in Chile are recently emerging and flourishing due to new educational policies and norms. These interventions have placed a specific focus on expanding and improving the relationship between the family and the school. Drawing from a larger case study that included 5 schools which sought to explore and compare the perspectives of municipal school administrative teams in regards to the family school relationship as well as problematic family situations, this article presents the findings from one particular school. The study is framed from the theory of educational change, contextualized change, and the family involvement literature. Findings from the study reveal school administrative teams hold a negative vision of the family and the relationship between the school and the family is hierarchical and unidirectional in nature, with little participation from families.

The politics of coaching assistant principals: exploring principal control

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to explore how school principals influenced or controlled leadership coaches working with assistant principals in urban secondary schools. Design/methodology/approach – This longitudinal qualitative case study drew upon semi-structured interviews and program documents obtained from participants in a university-based leadership coaching program across three academic years. The study included 22 total participants, including ten assistant principals, nine leadership coaches, and three program staff. Findings – A thematic analysis of the data produced three themes. First, principals controlled coaches’ work with assistant principals both directly and indirectly. Second, the extent of principal control influenced how coaches developed a confidential relationship with the assistant principals and what strategies they used to preserve the confidential nature of the coaching relationship. Third, the focus of the coaching support evolved in response to the assignment of responsibilities and duties to the assistant principals, which were largely outside the assistant principal and leadership coach’s control. The absence of alignment between coaching priorities and leadership responsibilities frustrated coaches. Originality/value – The findings from this study make two significant empirical contributions to the literature. First, the study provides critical new insights about the extent to which politics generated by principals and administrative teams may influence the work of leadership coaches. Second, the study contributes to the sparse literature about leadership coaching for assistant principals, particularly those working in secondary school settings in the USA.

Personal Skills, Job Satisfaction, And Productivity In Members Of High Performance Teams

The intention of the study is to identify the development of personal skills, as well as the increase of job satisfaction and productivity of the employee, as a result of their participation in high performance teams. Volunteered in the study 139 members of self-managed teams belonging to the Production Area, 39 of Operational Administrative teams, 19 members of Cross-Functional teams and 6 of 6-Sigma Projects, all of them belonging to a company of the Maquiladora Industry in Tijuana, B.C., Mico. The study indicates that 100% of the members of the Production Area teams and the Operational Administrative teams developed some personal skills or increased their satisfaction or productivity as a result of their participation in some kind of self-managed team. In Cross-Functional teams members, the changes took place in the 94.3% of the cases and in the 97% of the 6-Sigma teams members. There was also a significant difference found between the results of the four types of self-managed teams studied. This paper provides information to CEOs regarding the importance of the design and the implementation of working programs for self-managed teams; these not only will strengthen the employee achievement of a greater satisfaction and productivity, but will also allow them to develop personal skills.