This monograph provides educational staff with a theoretical basis for decision-making skills for application in quality circles. Roadblocks to good decisions are outlined, as well as the differences between group decision-making and individual decision-making (both have problems). The influence of values and personality characteristics on…

Presents a mini-unit designed to integrate the topic of pet ownership into the teaching of responsible decision making. Includes a general discussion on the nature of decision making, rationale for the unit, and suggested activities. Although activities are designed for upper elementary grades and older, they can be adapted for younger students.…

This paper argues the importance of not only understanding how "cultural editing" may limit our images and those of our children for creating non-violent futures, but also of the need for quality responses by teachers and teacher educators to such editing. Cultural editing is a term futurists use to describe processes both within formal and…

Reports on a study designed to define the demographic and career characteristics and the values of lawmakers in the United States and Canada. Discusses how this information was used to predict policy decisions. (TW)

Discusses the use of the opinion poll technique which requires students to take a stand on an issue and to defend or give reasons for taking the stand they chose. Students become aware of their values and how they affect decisions. Issues for elementary students are suggested. (RM)

Suggests how personal and situational aspects of decision making can contribute to effective leadership strategies. Discusses the administrator's role and program development and clientele. (CT)

Management theory as a morally neutral science aiming to improve educational institutions is doomed to failure. School administration is inescapably bound up with ethical values and depends on democratic decision making by staff with high self-esteem. Staff with little confidence or pride in their work cannot make good decisions. Includes 13…

The administration of the Department of Education in Victoria (Australia) went through many organizational structural changes in the period 1970-1986. This paper describes the sequence of these changes, identifies the persons and more general social forces behind them, and details their major effects on various levels of the educational system.…

This monograph's purpose is to provide a basis for team development for quality circle groups involved in problem-solving and decision-making. Training group members in team building is a crucial factor for success in quality circles. The following are important needs for group members: a sense of belonging, a commitment to group goals, a sense of…

Although superintendents reflect their districts' value systems, very little attention is paid to values in administrative preparation programs. This study uses relatively routine external and internal conflicts in school districts as a means to explore superintendents' value orientations. Most prefer action and are aware of their personal values.…

Reported are results from two runs of the simulation "Bureaucratic Bargaining," developed to help students understand the inherent tension between roles and belief systems in American foreign policy decision making. To determine their belief systems, 165 students enrolled in an introductory international relations course were tested with…

How fiction is used in a college-level political science seminar to teach about democratic decision making and U.S. politics is described. The fiction used is clustered around the following topics: community-level decisions, limits to consensus, group values and politics, acquiring elected offices and trying to keep them, and public bureaucracies.…

Describes a semester long simulation of Supreme Court procedures. Recommends this activity for generating an understanding of the decision making process and the impact of the Justices' personal values and attitudes upon Supreme Court decisions. Notes that the course engages students in the learning process while encouraging the acquisition of…

Five models of organizational decision-making are described, and a case study of the rational model as seen in the budget process at Stanford University during the 1970s is presented. Several issues are addressed to help administrators who are interested in increasing the organization's rational decision-making. The five models are as follows: the…

Proposes some functional definitions for three commonly used words in value-laden decision making. Discusses how rules, ethics, and morals enter into engineering practice as well as engineering education. (TW)