Two different operational concepts of "vision" are compared and analyzed in terms of their applicability to educational organization. The military model is vertical, hierarchical, conducive to immediate and specific action, and unambiguous responsibility. However, its inflexibility discourages communication and creativity. The Native American,…

Adding to the benefits of using metaphors as tools, "analoguing" (a method of analysis that focuses on metaphors for meanings in use and meanings of metaphors in use) helps avoid excessive categorization and separation by looking for unities and patterns in phenomena rather than for divisions. Six months of observation of patterns of…

This paper traces the history of adult education through some 50 years. The study includes the early turn-of-the-century beginnings of adult education efforts, such as immigrant schools. However, it primarily traces the emergence and growth of the American Association for Adult Education (AAAE), the parallel and intertwining history of the Adult…

Defining small talk as "superficial talk about matters of little concern," a study examined the role of small talk in the work place. Subjects, 51 white collar workers and clerical employees at three corporations, an Eastern state university, and two small businesses completed a questionnaire concerning the following questions: (1) What…

Focusing on the analysis of communication networks within organizations with an eye toward implications for study of external communication, this paper (1) develops a systems theory/communication view of the nature of formal organizations, (2) illustrates the notion of holistic organizational communication networks in organizations which include…

Although direct supervision of teachers is rare and most teachers are relatively free to exercise considerable control over their own work, schools generally manage to function without organizational or curricular chaos. The unseen force maintaining control appears to reside in the organization and culture of the school, and may affect teacher…

The body of rhetorical writing and research studies about the interrelationship of faculty bargaining and campus governance are compared and synthesized. The research is emphasized so that the findings can inform and advance the ongoing debate and operational decision about this issue. Qualified, but not complete, support is found for the belief…

Recommendations and issues concerning population growth rate and its linkage to hunger and malnutrition, family planning programs and U.S. foreign aid are presented in statements from representatives in Congress from the states of Texas, Michigan, Illinois and New York, and also representatives from World Population Society, the Futures Group,…

Issues concerning whether to centralize or decentralize decision-making are addressed, with applications for colleges. Centralization/decentralization (C/D) must be analyzed with reference to a particular decision. Three components of C/D are locus of authority, breadth of participation, and relative contribution by the decision-maker's staff. C/D…

Now more than ever, a clear knowledge and understanding of languages, cultures, and customs is essential to successfully marketing products and services around the world. Barriers to competition may occur in differences in language, technology levels, conceptions of authority, environmental perceptions, contexting, and social organization. In…

The socioeconomic characteristics of a generalizable sample of recently displaced farm households in North Dakota were compared with characteristics of a random sample of farmers who were still operating their enterprises in 1985. Data were collected in 1986 by phone and mail surveys from 162 displaced and 752 active farmers. The farm…

When a new administration came to Michigan's Wayne County Community College (WCCC) in 1985, the college evidenced several characteristics of a failing institution: poor media image, continuing budget deficits, declining enrollments, and probationary accrediation status. To address these problems and the demoralization that had accompanied them,…

This study examines the collective perspective that teachers in schools have about the relationship between the supervisory expertise of the principal, teacher work autonomy, and school environmental robustness. Supervisory expertise, and teachers' satisfaction with the supervisory process, is measured with the "Fidelity of Supervision…

This paper presents a case study of a female elementary principal whose tenure was ended with a negotiated reassignment to a lower administrative position. The case is presented from the subject's perspective with data gathered through an open-ended interview. The initial questions were designed to gather background information relative to the…

Changes in a Home Economics curriculum at Lehman College of the City University of New York from 1979-1988 are examined, and a line of inquiry first reported in 1983 is continued. A secondary, feminist analysis of the earlier data, combined with the current data, discloses the extent to which the patriarchal academy will go to attack the…