The purpose of this publication is to recognize the roles and responsibilities of paraprofessionals in education; ways they are used in the classroom; and how they are selected and trained. The philosophical basis for the use of paraprofessionals in education is that they provide educators more time to practice, and to reflect on, their…

This paper presents findings of a study that examined how the internship experience serves as a rite of passage for the teacher making the transition to aspiring principal. The experiences of 54 participants in an administrator internship program at Bank Street College of Education in New York City were analyzed. Data were derived from analysis of…

Findings of a study that examined teachers' and principals' perceptions of organizational changes affecting their professional work as a result of restructuring are presented in this paper. The multiple case study of two elementary, two middle, and two high schools derived data from interviews with each principal and from questionnaires…

This study was conducted to investigate the perspectives of the various populations served by the secondary school counselor concerning the roles and functions of that counselor. The Counselor Roles and Functions Questionnaire was administered to 9 counselors, 8 administrators, 56 teachers, 14 counselor educators, 178 students, 26 parents, 14…

Most superintendents experience high levels of stress associated with their school administrator role. This paper reports on a survey conducted to help Maine superintendents better understand the stressors inherent in their role. The Survey of Superintendent Stressors was distributed to all 1989-90 Maine public school superintendents and a…

This study examined the hypothesis that the reason people believe the two sexes have different personality traits is because they enact roles that vary in power. Men usually enact a dominant role, expressing personality traits of self-assertion or agency, while women usually enact a subordinate role, expressing the personality traits of…

This study was designed to examine the school's role as a context of professional community for secondary school teachers. The literature suggests that conditions of shared goals, coherent instructional plans and curriculum, and collaboration within a faculty is largely a matter of effective site management. This paper questions the top down view…

The purpose of this study was to compare and contrast the role of teachers' unions in three high schools located in different school districts in California. The cases and subsequent discussion were derived from analysis of data from in-depth interviews with teachers, administrators, and union leaders. Questions focused on issues of teachers'…

A survey of and interviews with 259 college and university presidents and their spouses (65 percent response rate from 400 distributed) sought to understand their role as "living logos" of their institutions. Results found that the position of president is a way of life which involves the entire family; that presidents and their spouses represent…

The sources of faculty perspectives on the personal effectiveness of administrators are analyzed. It is proposed that faculty will be predisposed to see administrators in different lights, depending on structural elements in decision making and the orientation of the faculty members. Attention is directed to Talcott Parson's theory for classifying…

This paper focuses on the technique of role-switching as a workable field relationship tactic in the observer's work site. It describes the nature of subject use of the observer's dual status during the research activity, and conceptualizes the relationship between this type of researcher-role management and the premise of role reciprocity in…

The advantages and disadvantages of being the spouse of a male college president are considered, along with the roles of the president and his spouse. Attention is directed to the ceremonial role of the president and his wife, on-campus entertaining, travel to speak to groups, the wife's problem of securing adequate help for her social role, the…

Presents survey data which note a steady decline in the last ten years in the proportion of white people in this country who see themselves living in an all-white world. (Author/AM)

The stereotypes that girls and boys in school today have about male and female roles are discussed. Suggestions for counseling young people to help them see the options open for them are described. (EJT)

The key to understanding the Great Neck case appears to lie in what it is that board members, the community, and school administrators perceive to be the legitimate role of board incumbents and the superintendent. (Author)