The concept of distributed leadership articulates principals need to develop a shared vision and empower the teachers with expertise to build strong organizational capacity. Though empirical evidence grows steadily, there still lacks the complete evidence on how each of the school leadership responsibilities is actually distributed among the…

Many students in middle and secondary school face challenges in understanding complex content expressed in disciplinary-specific discourses. Disciplinary literacy (DL) has emerged as a viable approach to these challenges. Yet, to date, the assessment of disciplinary literacy remains relatively underdeveloped. The current paper examines the…

The purpose of this study was to examine the effectiveness of using a Competency-based Achievement System (CBAS) (a formative tool) in the practice ready assessment (PRA) of internationally-trained physicians seeking licensure to practice in Canada (summative assessment). The study was a retrospective analysis of over 5,000 FieldNotes completed…

The purpose of this doctoral research study is to add to our knowledge about principal decision relational networks across a recently consolidated group of school districts in Newfoundland, Canada. By studying principals making district-wide technology policy, we outline the key decision making factors found among rural and urban leaders. We use a…

This study explored how teachers and school administrators connect large-scale assessment results with school improvement planning. Using a semi-structured format, 20 teachers and 18 administrators were interviewed from two school districts in southern Ontario, Canada. The interview protocol contained a range of questions related to teaching and…

This beginning paper attempts to explicate the myth of autonomy and individuality and the impact of this myth upon people in Western society. Focusing upon the work of the Dutch philosopher Gerrit Manenschijn, the authors briefly explore: (1) the history of autonomy as a myth as well as (2) how the West's monomythical culture shapes human…

A fact-finding exercise used in a study of principals' problem-solving behaviors is analyzed in this paper. Forty-two subjects with varying degrees of administrative experience participated in fact-finding and thinking-aloud exercises prior to responding to a case study. Problem definition, a key component of the problem-solving process, was a…

Parents living in the Coquitlam School District in British Columbia can choose between public and private schools and between English language and French immersion programs in the public schools. This study investigates the choice-making behavior of parents enrolling their children in kindergarten in fall 1977 in terms of socioeconomic factors,…

The way in which intraorganizational context can influence strategy making is shown by comparing six Canadian universities formulating retrenchment strategies. "Strategy" involves the components of the strategy, the process by which strategy is made, and the context in which strategy is formed. A variety of university contexts are…

Discusses results of the final part of a study of the environmental scanning behavior of chief executive officers in two Canadian industries--publishing and telecommunications. The results of personal interviews were analyzed to determine their main sources of environmental information and how they made use of the information in decision making.…

Decision-making in dual-career families is a salient issue due to the lack of societal norms for this type of family unit. A process-oriented model of joint decision making served as the basis for questionnaires and interviews used to study the predictive value of communication style on the outcomes of the decision making process in dual-career…

This paper describes the construction and application of a framework to investigate control at the policy-making level in education. The minutes of the regular meetings of 21 school boards in British Columbia were analyzed for the period January to December of 1975. Construction of the framework involved (1) definitions of control and…

The author (1) explains a system analysis approach developed by the Sports Institute for Research through Change Agent Research (SIR/CAR) for working with government, business, and service organizations in sport-related areas; (2) examines the distinction between professional athletics and amateur sport; (3) discusses conflict resolution by…

This study attempted to determine the actual and preferred decision-making levels of teachers and principals in schools. Subjects included approximately 30 principals and 675 teachers from elementary and secondary schools in a large suburban school district in Vancouver, British Columbia. Subjects completed a questionnaire on decision-making in…

In the past few years, the concept of local control of public education through elected school boards has been superseded by legislation mandating other forms of citizen involvement in educational decision-making. Specifically Alberta's enactment of the Department of Education Act and approval of Operational Plans for Early Childhood Services…