COURSE DESCRIPTION:

Study of the organization and administration of public school systems and the influence of governmental, political and social forces in the control and development of educational policy making.

THE SCHOOL OF EDUCATION THEME

Excellence—Integrity--Caring

CANDIDATE DISPOSITIONS

Candidates preparing to work in schools as teachers or other professional school personnel know and demonstrate the content, pedagogical, and professional knowledge, skills, and dispositions necessary to help all students learn.

Professional Collaboration

Candidates will participate in action-oriented collaboration that will enable them to learn from others and provide leadership in partnerships with all stakeholders.

Reflective Practitioner

Candidates are reflective, life long learners who apply problem solving and critical thinking strategies and the respectful appreciation of differing points of view.

Ethical Professional

Candidates’ actions are based on accepted professional standards of conduct and reflect insight and awareness with respect to diverse perspectives, opinions, obligations and ethical responsibilities of the profession.

Student/Client Centered

Candidates, throughout their programs, will prioritize the needs of the students/clients they serve by maintaining trusting relationships built upon caring, nurturing (respective) and meaningful interactions.

Professional Leader

Candidates, throughout their programs, will be strong, determined, professional leaders with a clear instructional focus using effective communication skills and a willingness to take risks to ensure the advancement, safety, and welfare of all students in our communities.

Professional Competence

Candidates will maintain high programmatic outcomes that reflect research-based practices, principles of learning differentiation, and standards based instruction.

GOALS OF COURSE:

To develop knowledge and understanding of the governmental arrangements for American education at the local, state, and federal levels and the political forces external and internal to the school system which influence or seek to control education.

COURSE OBJECTIVES:

1. Candidates will use various analytic models of administrative behavior as tools in the understanding of school governance and political decision-making. (Cognitive)

2. Candidates will understand and be able to describe the political decision-making model from the proposal development to the evaluation stage by using concrete examples of school district activities. (Cognitive)

3. Candidates will be able to analyze and understand the roles of the key operatives in the school district decision-making process, such as the superintendent, central office staff, board, teachers and members of the community at large as well as organized groups within that community. (Cognitive, Affective, Social)

4. Candidates will have a thorough understanding of the roles, responsibilities, and limitations of the local board of education. (Cognitive, Social)

5. Candidates will be able to identify in an examination situation the key functions of the office of the county superintendent, identifying such functions as leadership coordination and services to districts, with particular emphasis on its budgetary functions. (Cognitive, Social)

6. Candidates will understand the role and functions of the key agencies of state government related to education:

a. the role of the Governor including staff and Department of Finance;

b. the role of the State Legislature;

c. the role of the State Superintendent of Public Instruction (Social)

7. Candidates will understand the role of the federal government and the courts in education, as well as key court decisions such as Brown vs. Topeka, Lau vs. Nichols, etc. (Cognitive, Affective)

8. Candidates will examine the extent to which proposals for improving business may be applied to education. (Social)

9. Candidates will identify the nature of the relationships between local, state, and federal governments through examination and discussion, such actions as the administration of Chapter 1 and Civil Rights Action of 1964. (Cognitive, Social)

School of Education Theme: "Caring and Reflective Professionals for a Democratic Society."

TEXTS:

Hoy, Wayne and Miskel, Cecil, Educational Administration: Theory, Research, and Practice (6th Edition).Boston: McGraw Hill, 2001.

Spring, Joel, Conflict of Interests. Boston: McGraw Hill, 2002.

REFERENCES: 

Boyan, Norman, Handbook of Research on Educational Administration. New York: Longman, 1988.

Campbell, Roald, et.al., The Organization and Control of American Schools. Columbus, Ohio: Charles Merrill PublishingCompany, 1985.

Clausen, Henry, Why Public Schools? Washington, D.C.: The Order of Freemasonry, 1979.

Clemens, John and Mayer, Douglas, The Classic Touch: Lessons in Leadership from Homer to Hemingway. Homewood, Illinois: DowJones-Irwin, 1987.

Cookson, Peter and Persell, Caroline Hodges, Preparing For Power: America's Elite Boarding Schools. New York: BasicBooks, 1985.

Donaldson, Gordon, and Lorsch, Jay, Decision Making At the Top. New York: Basic Books, 1983.

Fehl, Noah, The Idea of a University in East and West. Hong Kong: Chung Chi College, 1962.

Green, Richard, Challenges to Urban Education: Results in the Making. Washington, D.C.: The Council of the Great City Schools, 1987.

Gregory, Thomas and Smith, Gerald, High Schools As Communities: The Small School Reconsidered. Bloomington, Indiana: Phi Delta Kappa Educational Foundation, 1987.

Hicks, David, Norms and Nobility. New York: Praeger Scientific, 1981.

Kelly, Henry, et.al., Technology And The American Economic Transition: Choices For The Future. Washington, D.C.: Office of Technology Assessment, 1988.

Pechman, Ellen, The Condition of Being An Educator. Raleigh, North Carolina: Public School Forum of North Carolina, 1987.

Peters, Tom, Thriving on Chaos. New York: Alfred A. Knopf,1987.

Ravitch, Diane and Finn, Chester, What Do Our 17-Year-OldsKnow? New York: Harper & Row, Publishers, 1987.

Rohlen, Thomas, Japan's High Schools. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1983.

Sikula, John, Visions of Reform. Reston, Virginia: Association of Teacher Educators, 1986.

Strike, Kenneth and Egan, Kieran (editors), Ethics and Educational Policy. London: Routledge & Kegan Paul, Publishers, 1978.

Van Loozen, Luann, Becoming A Better Board Member. Washington, D.C.: National School Boards Association, 1982.

Zeigler, Harmon and Kehoe, Ellen and Reisman, Jane, City Managers and School Superintendents: Response to Community Conflict. New York: Praeger Scientific, 1985.

TOPIC OUTLINE:

The Notion of a Learning Community

Educational Change--The Corporate Perspective

Educational Change--The Union Perspective

Educational Change--The Carnegie Foundation Perspective

How Can Education Help America Become Competitive?

The Federal Role

The State Role

The Local School District Role

Changing America's Businesses and Schools--Some Analogies?

Administrative Theory and Organization

The Role of the Courts

CLASS ACTIVITIES AND REQUIREMENTS:

This seminar uses a variety of educational tools and techniques to link theory and practice. These include role-playing, simulation, small group interaction, lectures, discussion and presentation. Throughout the course, participants are expected to take active roles in discussion and debate, lead parts of the seminar and exchange ideas and information.

1. Seminar participants will select differing subtopics in response to the text, To Secure Our Future: The Federal Role in Education, write a researched response (either pro or con) pertinent to that subtopic, and lead a brief discussion of their paper. The paper, with footnotes and bibliography, will be graded for the quality of writing as well as content. (Due Session #5)

2. "Choice" is the most controversial current topic in school governance and politics. Seminar participants will conduct interviews in Kern County, utilizing a survey instrument designed by seminar participants and the instructor, pertinent to the applicability of "choice" in public education. Interviews will include questions such as: Do you think parents in your community should or should not have the right to choose which local public schools their children should attend? If given the opportunity to choose, what factors do you think parents would utilize in making their decision? In other words, the interview will examine preferences for or against choice, by looking at the actual factors the public and educators feel parents would utilize in their specific local settings, and inquiring about the respondent's perspective on the role of public education.

Historically, public educators have argued that one of the major purposes of a high school education is preparation for citizenship--i.e. education for decision making in a free society. While the concept of "choice" is framed in terms of "parental choice," educators recognize that contemporary parents have less impact upon essentially "student choices" than parents had forty years ago. Hence, it will be important to determine if the way the public feels about choice differs if one asks, "Do you think students should or should not have the right to choose which local public school to attend?"

Likewise, we will need to inquire about the relation between selection factors and the socio-economic-educational background of respondents. There is research evidence which indicates that parents from low socio-economic-educational backgrounds favor schools that stress the older "basics," whereas parents from higher socio-economic-educational backgrounds favor schools that stress higher-order thinking strategies, information retrieval techniques and various analytical methods. If this characterization is correct, such choices would profoundly change the role of schools as an institution trying to hold society together, even though some proponents of "choice" have developed legislation prohibiting the use of "choice" to racially re-segregate the schools. If this characterization is not correct, such choices may take advantage of the individual student's learning style with resulting significant student achievement benefits.

While a national survey (National Center for Educational Information) found that 76% of public school parents favor "choice," that same survey found that 79% of the parents said that they have "the right amount" of influence over curriculum now. Hence we will need to examine this partial contradiction.

Ultimately, the central question is: to what extent does the market model apply to the field of education?

3. On each day on which a discussion of a reading is scheduled there may or may not be a quiz on the reading.

4. Each student is required to attend a school board meeting, take minutes, bring a copy of those board minutes to the instructor at the next class meeting, and obtain a copy of the officially approved minutes after the next regular session of the board, and also send the approved board minutes to the instructor.

5. All students are required to take a final written examination.

Note: Each of the above assignments has been chosen to further the goals of this course. Occasionally an assignment will not be appropriate for an individual student. When you feel this is the case, discuss the matter with your instructor who will consider changing the assignment to better meet your needs.

Note: Since this is a professional course in preparation for administrative positions such as the principalship, the instructor's goal has been to set standards which match what is expected of school administrators. For example, principals are required to attend faculty meetings on time, and speak and write cogently. Therefore professional standards consistent with these expectations have been set as follows:

ATTENDANCE REQUIRED:

Students are expected to arrive promptly and attend all class meetings. Students should participate actively, and, if at all possible, inform the instructor if they plan on missing a class.

To benefit from this seminar, students must be in attendance.

Further, cooperative group work is frequently assigned, and each member of the cooperative group must be confident that all members will be in attendance.

Attendance Standard: The grade of any student that misses more than one session (one session=one evening=two periods) will be reduced one grade level for each additional session missed. Since principals must set an example of promptness in their attendance, tardiness to a session will count as one period missed.

PROFESSIONAL WRITING STANDARDS REQUIRED:

This graduate course is part of a larger effort to improve the preparation of educational administrators. As future instructional leaders, students in this course are expected to model an understanding of the liberal arts, which includes, but is certainly much more than applying correct spelling and grammar in written assignments. While the instructor expects students to enter the course with these writing skills and understandings, students in need of assistance should work closely with the instructor, starting early in the course, to obtain help in perfecting their writing. The instructor eagerly wants to help students, but also insists upon quality work.

Grading Standards for Writing Assignments

REQUIRED FORMAT FOR PAPERS AND TESTS COMPLETED OUT OF CLASS

All papers must be typed. Use a single-space format with one blank line between paragraphs, as in this syllabus. Footnotes maybe included in the body of the text, placed at the bottom of the page, or listed at the end of the document, in accordance with your preference. The form of the bibliographic citations should be consistent with that used in this syllabus. There is no need to use plastic binders or purchased covers for papers. Place your name, last name first, in the upper right hand corner; place the name of the course on the next line; and the date on the third line. Skip a line and then center the title of your paper. If the paper is more than one page long, staple the pages together in the upper left hand corner. In completing examinations, repeat the question, skip a line, and then provide your answer.

METHOD OF EVALUATION:

Students will be evaluated on the following: 

The wisdom, pertinence, clarity, and perceptiveness of class commentary: 20%

Presentation and response to the text, To Secure Our Future: 20%

Participation in the "Choice" Project 20%

School Board Minutes: 20%

Quizzes (if given) and Final: 20%

DAILY OUTLINE:

Session #1: The Notion of a Learning Community

Introductions:

a. Take a few moments to write a few sentences about yourself.

b. Pair yourself with someone in the class that you do not know, and get to know each other.

c. Introduce your partner to the class.

Your instructor's vision.

The medieval universities as examples of learning communities:

material from Noah Fehl, The Idea of a University in East and West.

Contemporary examples of learning communities, called "collegial learning": Stuart Smith, "The Collaborative School Takes Shape."

Distribution and comments on syllabus.

Educational Change--Do citizens still have the final say?

Case Study: The School Calendar

Educational Change--The Corporate Perspective

Correspondence with Xerox Chairman David T. Kearns.

What are the issues? List the pro and con arguments.

Reading: A Nation At Risk.

The Union Perspective--Al Shanker

The Foundation Perspective--Mark Tucker

Session #3: How Can Education Help America Become Competitive?

Effective Corporations and Effective Schools

What helpful analogies can education draw upon from business?

To what extent does the market model apply in education?

Session #4: The Federal Role

What should the federal role be?

Where do federal expenditures for education go?

Principle lines of criticism of federal spending.

The "bully pulpit" role.

Group Discussion: "A Nation at Risk--Still True?"

Session #5: The State Role

The Increase in State Influence

Serrano v. Priest

Rodriquez v. San Antonio Independent School District

Politics-of-Education Research

Educational Policy Research

Six Basic Stages in the Policy Process

Policy Implementation or the Lack Thereof

Session #6: Local School District Politics

Local influence vs. professional expertise

What do we know about local politics?

How is size related to responsiveness?

Socio-Economic-Status and School Conflict

Participation and Public Approval

School District Consolidation Issues

Harmon Zeigler, et al., City Managers and School

Superintendents: Response to Community Conflict.

The Preparation and Conduct of Board Meetings

Session #7-8: Changing America's Businesses and Schools--Some

Specific Analogies

Session #9: Administrative Theory and Organization

The Future Executive by Harland Cleveland.

Getzels' Administrative Relationship Model

The Getzels-Guba Model

The Ellett and Walberg Model

The Pitner Model

Duckworth's Three Models

Substitutes for Leadership

Group Use of the Models

Session #10: The Role of the Courts

Equal Educational Opportunity

Pleassy v. Ferguson (1896)

Brown v. Board of Education (1954)

Lau v. Nichols (1974)

Final Review

Final Examination

Are you, or anyone you know in this class, disabled?

If so, how many we accommodate you?

Policy on Academic Honesty at CSUB 

Academic Honesty--The principles of truth and honesty are recognized as fundamental to a community of teachers and scholars. The University expects that both faculty and students will honor these principles and in so doing will protect the integrity of all academic work and student grades. Students are expected to do all work assigned to them without unauthorized assistance and not to give unauthorized assistance. Faculty have the responsibility of exercising care in the planning and supervision of academic work so that honest effort will be positively encouraged. 

There are certain forms of conduct that violate this community's  principles. ACADEMIC DISHONESTY (CHEATING) is a broad category of actions that use fraud and deception to improve a grade or obtain course credit. Academic dishonesty (cheating) is not limited to examination situations alone, but arise whenever students attempt to gain an unearned academic advantage. PLAGIARISM is a specific form of academic dishonesty (cheating) which consists of the misuse of published or unpublished works of another by claiming them as one's own. It may consist of handing in someone else's work, copying or purchasing a composition, using ideas, paragraphs, sentences, or phrases written by another, or using data and/or statistics compiled by another without giving citation. Another example of academic dishonesty (cheating) is the SUBMISSION OF THE SAME, or essentially the same, PAPER or other assignment for credit in two different courses without receiving prior approval. 

When a faculty member discovers a violation of the community's principles, the faculty member is required to give a failing grade to the student for the course. In addition to assigning the final grade, the faculty member also notifies in writing the Dean of Students and the relevant school dean that an act of academic dishonesty has occurred and a grade of F has been assigned. The student receives a copy of this letter. 

The letter becomes part of the student's permanent file. If a second act of dishonesty occurs, the student is administratively dismissed from CSUB. 

Under the Student Academic Grievance Procedures, a student may appeal any sanction employed by faculty or the University based on an allegation of academic dishonesty. The initiation of the grievance must occur within fifteen (15) school days after notification of the grade is mailed or personally given to the student. Copies of these procedures are available in the offices of the school deans. 

ACCOMMODATIONS  FOR DISABILITIES

Bakersfield, Santa Clarita, or Hanford Participants—To request academic accommodations due to a disability, please contact the Office of Services for Students with Disabilities (SSD) as soon as possible.  Their office is located in SA 140, and they may be reached at 661-654-3360 (voice), or 661-654-6288 (TDD).  If you have an accommodations letter from the SSD Office documenting that you have a disability, please present the letter to me during my office hours as soon as possible so we can discuss the specific accommodations that you might need in this class.

Antelope Valley Participants—To request academic accommodations due to a disability, please contact the Office of Services for Students with Disabilities (SSD) as soon as possible.  Their office is located in Bldg. 200, and they may be reached at 661-952-5061 (voice) or 661-952-5120 (tdd).  If you have an accommodation letter from the SSD Office documenting that you have a disability, please present the letter to me during my office hours so we can discuss the specific accommodations that you might need in this class.

Rights and Responsibilities of Students

Academic Integrity

            The principles of truth and integrity are recognized as fundamental to a community of teachers and scholars.  The University expects that both faculty and students will honor these principles and in so doing will protect the integrity of all academic work and student grades.  Students are expected to do all work assigned to them without unauthorized assistance and without giving unauthorized assistance.  Faculty have the responsibility of exercising care in the planning and supervision of academic work so that honest effort will be encouraged and positively reinforced.

            There are certain forms of conduct that violate the university's policy of academic integrity.  ACADEMIC DISHONESTY (CHEATING) is a broad category of actions that involve fraud and deception to improve a grade or obtain course credit.  Academic dishonesty (cheating) is not limited to examination situations alone, but arises whenever students attempt to gain an unearned academic advantage.  PLAGIARISM is a specific form of academic dishonesty (cheating) which consists of the misuse of published or unpublished works of another by claiming them as one's own.  Plagiarism may consist of handing in someone else's work as one's own, copying or purchasing a pre-written composition and claiming it as one's own, using paragraphs, sentences, phrases, words or ideas written by another without giving appropriate citation, or using data and/or statistics compiled by another without giving appropriate citation.  Another example of academic dishonesty (cheating) is the SUBMISSION OF THE SAME, OR ESSENTIALLY THE SAME, PAPER or other assignment for credit in two different courses without receiving prior approval from the instructors of the affected courses.

            When a faculty member discovers a violation of the university's policy of academic integrity, the faculty member is required to notify the CSUB Dean of Student Life and CSUB Student Conduct Coordinator and the student(s) involved.  A course grade of 'F' may be assigned or another grade penalty may be applied at the discretion of the courses instructor.  Additional academic sanctions are determined by the student conduct coordinator.  Academic sanctions may include disciplinary probation, suspension, permanent expulsion from the university or from the California State University system, administrative hold on the release of records, and withholding a degree.  Disciplinary probation shall be noted on the student's formal academic record only for the duration of the probationary period.  Disciplinary suspension and expulsion are a part of the student's permanent record.

            The student may pursue a formal hearing or make a settlement agreement with the student conduct coordinator.  CSUB Dean of Student Life and CSUB Student Conduct Coordinator shall conduct an investigation, confer with the faculty member, students and any witnesses identified, and review all evidence.  The student is entitled to a formal hearing scheduled by the CSUB Dean of Student Life and CSUB Student Conduct Coordinator, in which the evidence of the alleged violation shall be presented before an impartial Hearing Officer (appointed by the President) and the student shall be present to provide an explanation or defense.  The Hearing Officer shall submit a written report to the President containing the findings, conclusions, and recommendations.  Alternatively, a settlement agreement may be made with the CSUB Dean of Student Life and CSUB Student Conduct Coordinator.  The settlement agreement will specify the academic sanctions, the length and terms of disciplinary probation or suspension, and the conditions the student is expected to meet in order to remain in good standing (e.g., training or regular meetings with the CSUB Dean of Student Life and CSUB Student Conduct Coordinator).  All sanctions are reported to the instructor reporting the incident, the student's Chair, and the student's Dean.

            Any repeated violation of academic integrity shall result in more serious academic sanctions.  Normally, this will include suspension or expulsion from the university with a note on the student's permanent record.

Academic Freedom

            Freedom to pursue truth and to achieve personal and intellectual development is essential to CSUB's community of scholars.  The University is firmly committed to such freedom for both students and faculty.  Academic freedom is the University's guarantee of freedom of expression by all students and faculty under the First Amendment.

            For the achievement of academic freedom, a necessary condition for such pursuit is an acceptance of the spirit of inquiry and appreciation for diverse ideas, viewpoints, cultures, and life-styles.  Acceptance must be demonstrated not only in the classroom but in all other areas of the campus.  The achievement of academic freedom, however, must occur within a respect for law and the protection of the opinions and dignity of others.

Civility and Respectful Conduct

            The classroom is essential for the achievement of academic freedom, the pursuit of truth, and the development of students.  Because of its importance, students are expected to exhibit respect for the views of others, the professionalism of the instructor, and the goals of academic freedom whenever they are in the classroom.

            Faculty are obligated to recognize and respect student diversity, ideas, perceptions, and opinions.  At the same time, faculty have a fundamental responsibility to maintain the integrity of the learning environment.  When confronted by unreasonable disruption in the classroom, faculty are expected to initiate actions to correct such conditions.  Such actions may result in disciplinary action ranging from removal from the classroom to formal disciplinary sanctions, including probation, suspension, or expulsion.