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Showing papers in "Canadian Journal of Education in 1985"


Journal ArticleDOI

48 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The authors found that four identifiable job-related factors accounted for a significant part of teacher work-related stress, and that the selected background variables failed to account for significant variation in jobrelated stress levels.
Abstract: Even though the concept of stress has received much attention in the popular press, in research, and in teacher workshops, the actual sources of work-related stress among Canadian teachers remain far from clearly established The major purpose of this study was to obtain from teachers their perceptions of major sources of work-related stress and to assess the degree to which these stressors accounted for the overall stress on the job This was achieved by controlling for the selected background variables of sex, age, level of education, grade level taught, years of teaching experience, size of the school, and perceived personallife stress Major findings showed that four identifiable job-related factors accounted for a significant part of teacher work-related stress, and that the selected background variables failed to account for significant variation in job-related stress levels The four factors which made the most substantial contribution to overall job-related stress of teachers were Role Overload, Relationships with Students, Work Load, and Relationships with Colleagues

24 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors argue that starting from the teacher's perspective might be a more promising way to do research and make policies aimed at improving schooling, rather than reform through management through greater teacher awareness of dilemmas-in-practice and how they resolve them.
Abstract: Current approaches to school reform stress tighter coupling of system plans and teacher behaviour, but ignore dilemmas inherent in teaching which may place limits on efforts to manage teacher behaviour. Starting from the teacher's perspective might be a more promising way to do research and make policies aimed at improving schooling. The notion of dilemma is lodged within a conception of school reform which takes the perspective of the teacher seriously. Rather than reform through management; the argument here is for reform through greater teacher awareness of dilemmas-in-practice and how they resolve them. The consequences of these resolutions become the agenda for reform.

21 citations



Journal ArticleDOI

18 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: This article reported data on the retention of problem-solving performance after one month, four months, and six months, in three separate studies conducted in school settings involving a variety of grades and subjects.
Abstract: Previous research into retention issues has been limited by the narrow range of learning outcomes investigated, by the preference for laboratory contexts rather than naturalistic settings, and by the short duration of the retention periods studied. This article reports data on the retention of problem-solving performance after one month, four months, and six months, in three separate studies conducted in school settings involving a variety of grades and subjects.

13 citations






Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: This paper investigated the relationship between performance in professional course work and performance in the practicum in a professional year program for prospective elementary teachers at the University of Alberta and found that little if any relationship between theoretical courses and student teaching performance.
Abstract: In recent years, in an attempt to bridge the so-called theory-practice gap, teacher education programs have sought to bring professional course work and the practicum experience into a closer and more meaningful relationship. This study investigates an expected relationship between performance in professional course work and performance in the practicum in a professional year program for prospective elementary teachers at the University of Alberta. Its findings confirm those of other researchers who have discovered little if any relationship between theoretical course work and student teaching performance. In the discussion, it is argued that the implications for teacher education to be drawn from such findings are not primarily data-driven; rather, they depend upon various assumptions concerning the nature, purposes, and priorities of professional education.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, a two-dimensional matrix consisting of factors extracted from macro-political, economic, social, and cultural domains having constraining effects on school operation and environmental attributes -change rate, complexity, organization, routineness (certainty), and directness) is proposed.
Abstract: Amid the growing complexities and turmoil that characterize the environment of the public school, it is curious that there have been few comprehensive efforts to assess systematically the impact of these changes on school operation. Based on current literature, this article proposes a two-dimensional matrix consisting, on the one hand, of factors extracted from macro-political, economic, social, and cultural domains having constraining effects on school operation and, on the other hand, of environmental attributes - change rate, complexity, organization, routineness (certainty), and directness - that conceivably describe those external factors identified. Although all relevant factors cannot be included, the model provides a basis for generating a 40-item instrument having a universal and dynamic orientation capable of constructing concrete graphic representation of sizes of external constraints on school for longitudinal and cross-cultural analysis.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, an ecological approach to the study of day care, addressing the interaction of such factors as the developmental needs of children, the role of family structure and dynamics, and the impact of governmental funding and regulatory policies in the context of social and cultural values regarding the family and the socialization of children is presented.
Abstract: With more preschool and school-aged children in need of day care, the need for research to inform policy evaluation and development in this area becomes more pressing Research on day care has traditionally been fragmented between the disciplines of early childhood education, child development, and child care, with each discipline focusing on isolated aspects of the day care experience This paper will argue that day care is an interdisciplinary phenomenon including individual, familial, governmental, and societal factors which interact with and impact upon each other The paper presents an ecological approach to the study of day care, addressing the interaction of such factors as the developmental needs of children, the role of family structure and dynamics, and the impact of governmental funding and regulatory policies in the context of social and cultural values regarding the family and the socialization of children Recent research on the ecology of day care in Canada and elsewhere is reviewed, and a day care research agenda for Canada in this decade is presented

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, questionnaires were sent to 619 school board trustees throughout Canada in an attempt to gather information on the superintendent - trustee relationship, and 55% of the boards which were surveyed responding, the study found that even though the trustees possess the potential to control these three areas, it is actually the senior administrative officers of the board who currently wield power over these three categories, and hence dominate the board.
Abstract: Questionnaires were sent to 619 school board trustees throughout Canada in an attempt to gather information on the superintendent - trustee relationship. The study acknowledges that these two parties generally operate in a non-adversarial manner. However, at times, the superintendent and board may have some differences of opinion. In the latter instances, the party that controls the power sources generally has its opinion prevail. This study first examined several of these sources identified through previous research studies and then focused on the three areas of finance, personnel and communications. With 55% of the boards which were surveyed responding, the study found that even though the trustees possess the potential to control these areas, it is actually the senior administrative officers of the board who currently wield power over these three categories, and hence dominate the





Journal ArticleDOI
Abstract: The early 1970s was a period of renaissance in Native Canadian Indian language and culture. At Mt. Currie, British Columbia, this rebirth was closely linked to the transformation of the school into a locally controlled Native institution. This article uses interview data to review changing role relationships of School Board and staff. The analysis reveals concerns in common with community education ventures across North America. Unique to the Native community is the integration of contemporary Anglo and traditional Native role relationships. Recommendations for responding to these concerns should be useful not only to Native communities but to other groups with school programs calling for community input and parental involvement.



Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the authors examined the case of Margaret Caldwell, whose contract was not renewed by the Catholic school at which she was teaching because she married a divorced Methodist in a civil ceremony.
Abstract: This paper examines the case of Margaret Caldwell, whose contract was not renewed by the Catholic school at which she was teaching because she married a divorced Methodist in a civil ceremony. Conflicting judgments by British Columbian courts have favoured both parties, and the dispute now faces adjudication by the Supreme Court of Canada. The discussion focuses on the case by examining: the background of the case, the legal status of denominational schools, the rights of the individual in a Canadian context, freedom from discrimination, and the resolution of rights in conflict. It concludes by considering the possible ramifications of the ultimate decision of the Supreme Court of Canada for both the school and Caldwell.