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A STUDY OF RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN EXTERNAL FORCES, STRUCTURE, AND ORGANIZATION AND INNOVATIVENESS OF TEACHER EDUCATION PROGRAMS
Abstract
Teacher training programs as they exist today are affected by numerous factors, both external and internal. The review of literature indicated that external factors were critically related to the continued development of innovative programs which meet the needs of the student and society. The purpose of this study was to determine the extent to which various forces involved in change were utilized in two static and two innovative teacher education programs. For the purposes of this study, external forces related to change included accreditation agencies, state certification requirements, legislation and court decisions, structure and organization, central administration decisions, professional organizations, space, facilities and support services, finances, and faculty workload. The data for this study were collected from faculty members of four teacher education institutions. A static state college and university and an innovative state college and university were selected on the basis of questionnaire responses regarding innovativeness in program development. An integral part of this study was the development of a composite change model. This model provided the basis from which data of innovative and static institutions was analyzed. The change model constructs included: philosophical basis, mission and goals, needs assessment, awareness of options, examination of options, development and piloting of plan, evaluation, adoption, renewal, along with a continuous feedback loop. Elements both internal and external to the educational institution were also included in the change model. An interview guide was developed to collect data relevant to the change process employed in the four institutions. Through the use of a recorded and transcribed interview, factors were assessed which faculty members perceived as affecting program development in their institution. A mapping procedure for ethnographic reduction and analysis was utilized in the development of four descriptive profiles. The change process within innovative and static institutions was compared and contrasted. The findings of the study revealed that: (1) The two innovative teacher education institutions utilized a substantially different change process than did the static institutions. (2) The administrators and faculty members of the two innovative institutions reflected a substantive difference in the awareness of, examination, and capitalization on the external forces of this study. (3) The framework for change of the two innovative institutions was based upon an understanding of the change process. Conversely, the two static institutions possessed a fragmented understanding of the change process.
Subject Area
Teacher education
Recommended Citation
BRANDT, NANCY CLAIRE SCHULZE, "A STUDY OF RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN EXTERNAL FORCES, STRUCTURE, AND ORGANIZATION AND INNOVATIVENESS OF TEACHER EDUCATION PROGRAMS" (1980). ETD collection for University of Nebraska-Lincoln. AAI8100417.
https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/dissertations/AAI8100417