ORGANIZATIONAL EFFECTIVENESS OF ALTERNATIVE AND TRADITIONAL SCHOOLS (NEW YORK)
Abstract
The purpose of this study was to determine and compare the organizational effectiveness of alternative and traditional junior high schools. The independent variables, alternative and traditional junior high schools, were selected from schools located in New York City. The dependent variables, namely, achievement and satisfaction, were identified. Organizational effectiveness was mediated by the variables of organizational and environmental characteristics as delineated by school structure in terms of school size and student-teacher ratio and school climate as evidenced by work satisfaction, organizational climate, principal's leadership, teacher-principal behavior and communication, and influence sharing processes. Moreover, this study sought to determine if significant interrelationships existed among the perceptions of the junior high school staff with respect to the dimensions of organizational characteristics and environmental characteristics. Furthermore, this study sought to determine if significant relationships existed between the perceptions of junior high school teachers with respect to each of the dimensions and subdimensions of organizational effectiveness, namely, organizational and environmental characteristics, and each of the demographic variables of the number of years teaching in alternative schools, the number of years teaching in alternative schools, the number of years teaching in traditional schools, the number of years teaching in other schools, the teaching of innovative courses, and sex. The sample for this study consisted of 144 eighth grade junior high school teachers assigned to 24 schools in 9 school districts in New York City. The instruments used in this study consisted of: the Profile of a School (Likert, 1978); the Sergiovanni-Trusty Job Satisfaction Questionnaire (Sergiovanni & Trusty, 1966); the California Achievement Test administered to eighth grade students in April, 1985, and a Personal Data Questionnaire. The statistical tests used included: frequencies, means, standard deviations, t tests, and the Pearson Product Moment Coefficient of Correlation. The minimal level of significance accepted was the 0.05 level. The major findings of this study were: (1) alternative school teachers experienced more autonomy in their school positions; and (2) there were intercorrelations among the environmental characteristics of work satisfaction, organizational climate, principal's leadership, teacher-principal behavior and communication, and influence sharing for alternative and traditional school teachers. (Abstract shortened with permission of author.)
Subject Area
School administration
Recommended Citation
MAHON-LOWE, KATHRYN, "ORGANIZATIONAL EFFECTIVENESS OF ALTERNATIVE AND TRADITIONAL SCHOOLS (NEW YORK)" (1986). ETD Collection for Fordham University. AAI8624491.
https://research.library.fordham.edu/dissertations/AAI8624491
