JOURNAL OF NEW APPROACH IN EDUCATIONAL ADMINISTRATION
Year:2013 | Volume:4 | Issue:3 (15)|Papers Count:12

The main goal of this descriptive-correlational study is to explore the effect of the two dimensions of trust in leader, that is, cognitive trust and affective trust on the organizational identity level through the mediating role of organizational trust. To this end, 105 secondary school teachers were sampled from among 305 teachers in Chenaran city in Khorasan Razavi province using stratified sampling. They were administered a questionnaire assessing the variables of interest. Data analysis was carried out through structural equation modeling (path analysis) employing LISREL software. The findings indicated that both cognitive and affective components of trust in school principals affected teachers’ trust in school. Compared to the cognitive trust, the affective trust more strongly could predict trust in school. The findings also revealed that trust in school might be a valid mediating variable in predicting organizational identity by cognitive and affective trust in principals.

The main purpose of this descriptive-correlational research was to study the relationship of self-efficacy and organizational commitment of faculty members to their teaching quality. The target population included 2181 faculty members of branches of Islamic Azad University in zone one. A sample of 436 respondents was selected through stratified-cluster sampling method. Research instruments included a researcher-made questionnaire of teaching quality with 27 Liker-scale statements and Cronbach’s alpha of 0.861, Allen and Meyer’s questionnaire of organizational commitment, and Schwartzer et al. questionnaire of teachers’ self-efficacy. A use was made of multiple regression and structural equation modeling to examine the effect of exogenous factors on teaching quality. One-way ANOVA was also run to analyze the role of faculty members’ demographic variables. The results revealed that self-efficacy (with an index of 0.42) and organizational commitment (with an index of 0.22) had a positive, direct, and significant relationship with teaching quality. From among the dimensions of organizational commitment, emotional commitment and continuous commitment could strongly predict the variance of teaching quality. In addition, self-efficacy and organizational commitment had a significant bidirectional effect on each other. Demographic variables were found to have no significant effect on self-efficacy and organizational commitment of the faculty members.

The main purpose of the present research was to identify the basic components of successful educational principals in order to develop a scale to measure characteristics of successful school principals. The main research approach in this exploratory study was quantitative. The target population involved teachers of all three levels of schooling (elementary, secondary and high schools) in Kermanshah province. Using stage sampling strategy 356 teachers were selected to participate in the study. The main data collection instrument was a researcher-made questionnaire developed based on the qualitative stage of the study with a Cranach’s alpha of 0.94. Exploratory factor analysis was utilized to analyze data. The results suggested, according to the teachers’ opinions, that the Successful Educational Principal Scale has five basic sub-scales: developing social capital in school, personal capability and manner, relationship, professional development of staff, and self-orientated and close vision. The reliability indexes of the sub-scales ranged from 0.78 to 0.90 based on Cronbach’s alpha.

When new technologies develop, new approaches to learning and teaching will grow. As a new approach to learning, blended learning that combines online learning with traditional face-to-face learning was established in order to remove the limitations of an entirely virtual learning or a totally traditional learning. To apply this new approach, it is essential to study students' capabilities and their attitudes toward it. Thus, this study aimed to investigate the effect of academic motivation and computer skills on their views about blended learning. This descriptive-comparative study included all students in Mashhad Payame-Noor University. Out of this population, 382 students were selected randomly as the study sample. Research instruments were Welrand et. al.’s academic motivation questionnaire and a researcher-made questionnaire of students’ computer skills and students’ attitudes toward blended learning. The results suggested that they had a positive attitude toward blended learning and that it was not significantly affected by their gender. The external motivation of female students was higher than that of male ones. The students’ computer skills, external and internal motivations were appropriate predictors of their attitudes toward blended learning.

This study aimed at studying strategies to increase quality in in-service training of personnel and teachers of education organization in Semnan in 1389-90. This survey involved all teachers (1438), personnel (264), and (30) experts of education organization in Semnan. A sample of 306 teachers, 148 personnel was selected using stratified sampling method. All 30 experts were also included in the study. Two researcher-made Likert scale questionnaires were utilized to collect data. They included 8 sub-scales of quality including instruction process model, quality of teachers, quality of instruction equipments, holding virtual terms, providing continuous terms, participation of teachers in planning and setting aims, executive management of terms, and quality of learners. Collected data was analyzed running t-test. The results indicated that instruction process, teachers’ quality, quality of facilities, quality of learners, continuous terms, participation of teachers in planning and setting aims, executive management of terms, and distance learning played a significant role in improving the quality of in-service terms.  Virtual terms, however, had no important role in this regard according to the teachers and personnel.

This research sought to study the relationship of creativity and cooperation to the empowerment of faculties of Marvdasht Islamic Azad University. This research was descriptive and correlational. The target population (n=211) involved all faculty members of the university in 2010-2011. A sample of 136 faculty members was drawn as suggested by Morgan’s table. In order to collect data a use was made of Torrens’s (2001) creativity questionnaire (r=0.81), Lethal and Kejner’s (1965) job cooperation questionnaires (r=0.70), and Short and Rinehart’s (1992) empowerment questionnaire (r=0.90). Data analysis involved both descriptive (mean, standard deviation) and inferential statistics (Pearson correlation and multiple regression). The results indicated that the relationship between both creativity and cooperation and empowerment of faculty members was statistically significant. There was a significantly positive relationship between dimensions of creativity (flexibility, and development) and empowerment. In addition, it was revealed that there was a significant and positive relationship among cooperation dimensions (job involvement, dutifulness, and changeability) and empowerment. It was also suggested that creativity and cooperation along with development and dutifulness could account for empowerment.

The aim of this study was to study the relationship between thinking styles and the sources of power among school principals in Birjand. This descriptive correlational study comprised all principals and teachers in Birjand. One hundred and seven principals and 321 school teachers were sampled through stratified sampling technique. A use was made of questionnaires of thinking styles (Sternberg-Wagner, 1991) and sources of power (Hinkin & Schrieshim, 1989) to collect data. Data were analyzed employing both descriptive (mean and standard deviation) and inferential statistics (Pearson correlation coefficient, t-test, and one-way ANOVA). The findings revealed that external thinking and referent power were the most prevailing thinking style and power source of the principals respectively. Data analysis indicated that liberal thinking style had a significantly positive relation with expertise power of school principals. Except legislative thinking style of principals, other thinking styles had no significant relationship with their power sources.

The purpose of this paper was to examine the role of social capital in knowledge management and intellectual capital performance among the employees of Islamic Azad University of Arsanjan. Research method in this survey was descriptive and correlational. Research population included employees in Islamic Azad University of Arsanjan. The study sample involved 93 respondents. To collect data, a use was made of Bontis’s intellectual capital questionnaire, Quink’s knowledge management questionnaire, and a questionnaire of social capital. Data analysis involved correlation and regression techniques using SPSS. The results of this study indicated that, overall, there was a significantly positive relationship among knowledge management and intellectual capital, and social capital and its components. It was also suggested that social capital could be considered as one of the organization's capabilities and that it might help in creating and sharing knowledge in organization's intellectual capital and knowledge management.

This study aimed to investigate the relationship between organizational culture and school effectiveness from the viewpoints of high school principals and teachers working in Shiraz. Research method in this survey was descriptive and correlational. From among the principals and teachers working in Shiraz in the academic year 88-89, 300 (60 principals and 240 teachers) respondents were selected through stratified sampling. Two scales of “organizational culture” and “school effectiveness” were used to collect data. The results indicated that: a. There was a significant relationship among organizational culture and school effectiveness and organizational culture variables. b. From among all variables of organizational culture, attention to teamwork and development could significantly predict school effectiveness. b. From the viewpoints of high school principals, attention to teamwork and development could significantly predict school effectiveness. d. From the point of view of teachers, attention to teamwork and aim could significantly account for school effectiveness. e. There was no significant difference between principals and teachers’ views about the relationship between organizational culture and school effectiveness.

The purpose of the study was to examine the quality of work life of faculty members. This survey included all (n=95) faculty members of Garmsar Branch of Islamic Azad University. A sample of 127 respondents was selected randomly. The research instrument was a questionnaire of work life developed by Norshahi (2011). Data were analyzed using Pearson product-moment correlation and student t-test.

This study compared educators’ critical thinking in elementary, secondary, high, and pre-university schools and sought to provide strategies to promote such skills. In this study, a descriptive research method was used. A sample of 280 educators (teachers and managers) from elementary, secondary, high, and pre-university schools of Boushehr province was selected through multi-stage sampling. Research instrument was the California Critical Thinking Skills Test. In order to answer research questions a use was made of t-test and factorial ANOVA. The results suggested that there was no significant difference among educators' critical thinking. The results also indicated that teacher' inductive and deductive reasoning critical thinking skills were highest. In addition, no significant difference was found between male and female educators, and educators with different degrees, or with different work experience levels in terms of critical thinking skills. Besides, Arts teachers exceeded all other teachers in critical thinking skills.

Generation gap is one of the most important factors affecting contemporary social and cultural changes. Generation gap, itself, has emerged from such social changes. Schools, families and societies are among such influential factors which played sociable roles and gave rise to the evolution and formation of the character and value systems dominating the thought and behavior of all people in society. The present study aimed to survey generational gap and to extract dimensions of intergenerational education in the realm of curriculum drawing upon resources and an interview with sociology and curriculum studies experts. This qualitative study employs both phenomenology and content analysis. Fifteen experts were selected through purposeful sampling method. Data were analyzed utilizing inductive content analysis. The analysis lead to eight main value strata of individual-family, economical, political-social, artistic, scientific-theoretical, religious, national, and globalization. These strata further included sub-strata. The current survey of research, theories and expert views pointed to generational gap as well.