Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Professional accountability'

This thesis explores the phenomenon of workforce modernisation through the reconfiguration of professional roles, which represents a policy priority in healthcare systems in the United Kingdom (UK) and globally. Heavily informed by conflict or power accounts of professionalism, the literature presents attempts to reconfigure professional roles as opportunities for the reallocation of professional knowledge and expertise and therefore power and status. Existing work emphasises the strategic, competitive activity of professionals to establish, extend and defend jurisdiction in the face of such change. Utilising an organisational neoinstitutional approach this thesis provides a novel theoretical interpretation of the opportunities and threats that the renegotiation of roles presents to the professional groups involved, adding complexity to the accounts that dominate the literature. The thesis draws upon work that describes the evolving nature and function of professionalism to demonstrate that in the contemporary organisational environment, focussed on accountability and risk management, attempts to reconfigure professional roles are understood not only in terms of the transfer of professional knowledge and expertise but the concurrent transfer of accountability for the management of risk. This represents a more complex commodity potentially associated with professional risk in the event of untoward incidents. Using the case of changes to the roles of consultant psychiatrists in the UK National Health Service (NHS) that propose the redistribution of clinical activity and responsibility from psychiatrists across the wider mental health workforce, the thesis demonstrates that rather than competing for jurisdiction associated with the management of significant risk, professionals carefully renegotiate their roles in a manner that ensures the protection, not just of their clients, but of the professionals involved. In this case, despite institutional work from professionals and managers to create change in established practice, concern with accountability for the management of risk drove adherence to traditional, readily accepted and organisationally sanctioned interprofessional boundaries, limiting the degree of change enacted. These findings have important practical implications for those involved in the management of change as well as theoretical implications for our understandings of professional role reconfiguration attempts and the nature of contemporary professionalism more broadly.

A literature review showed that social services departments use the traditional bureaucratic methods of formalisation and centralisation to control their social workers, and that social workers report this as a source of dissatisfaction. Organisation theorists identify the professional bureaucracy as an alternative organisational model, but there is no study of a social services department operating in this way. A department was found where the social workers stated that there were few rules or procedures governing their practice, and where they expressed satisfaction with their decision making powers. A research programme was designed in order to examine the department's organisation in more detail. Interviews were conducted with 27 social workers and 23 managers, up to and including the director. Detailed transcriptions were prepared and validated by the respondents as an accurate record of their views about their practice and the workings of the department. Analysis of these transcriptions revealed that the department was a variant of the professional bureaucracy model. The thesis explores the practice of the social workers and managers in detail. Whilst the social workers expressed considerable satisfaction with their freedom from rules and procedures and with their decision making powers, a number of concerns about the model are highlighted and discussed. The thesis also examines how a department organised on these professional lines dealt with the issue of accountability, and shows that there is no inevitable conflict between professional discretion and the need for accountability.

'Profession' and 'professional' are shifting signifiers that have taken on a range of new meanings in the past two decades as professional occupations have been reshaped by moves to 'flexible' (deregulated and decentred) work processes and work practices. The role of modern professions was significant in terms of the democratic elements of the professionalising project. But how do moves away from the modern bureaucratically-structured professions, and a professional ideal based on the concept of universal service, impact on graduates currently entering professional employment domains in which new 'performativity-based' management regimes are replacing the older control structures? This study draws on a range of sociological literature to explore both the structural and discursive changes in the meaning of profession practice. The study also draws on a number of research projects, including materials from focus group interviews of final year undergraduate students, recruitment brochures, ABS (Australian Bureau of Statistics) statistical analyses and DEST (Australia: Department of Employment, Science and Training) graduate destination studies, and policy documents. These materials are used to argue that the employment destinations of those with professional qualifications and credentials are now more stratified and more diverse and no longer necessarily coupled with a lifelong career. In addtion, the new management regimes that accompany the move to more flexible work processes and work practices are changing how those in professional work locations construct their sense of themselves as professional practitioners. Changes in the nature of professional work, and in the structural and discursive location of professional workers, have implications for education and training institutions. These institutions not only prepare workers for these occupational domains but are the main conduits through which access to work in the restructured labour markets is mediated. The study concludes by drawing attention to the need for educational research to be anchored in a 'sociology of employment' that is able to provide a more critical account of the relationship between education and training and entry into high status/low status employment domains.

Thesis (Ed.D.) -- University of Maryland, College Park, 2004.
Thesis research directed by: Education Policy, and Leadership. Title from t.p. of PDF. Includes bibliographical references. Published by UMI Dissertation Services, Ann Arbor, Mich. Also available in paper.

Urban Education
Ph.D.
This study examined organizational routines and teachers' experiences in two urban public elementary schools. The study advances the scholarship on teachers' work through a nuanced examination of instructional routines in order to illuminate teachers' experiences with accountability based-reforms. Using neoinstitutional theory, this study employed ethnographic methods to examine instructional routines in two schools of varying AYP-status: one high-performing school and one low-performing school. Observations and interviews were conducted with a total of 17 teachers over the course of two school years. Findings indicated that routines were a recoupling mechanism, used to more closely align teachers' tasks with the goals of accountability policy. The implementation and performance of routines was both similar and distinct between the two schools. There were distinct differences in the intensity and the pervasiveness of mandated instructional routines between schools. However, regardless of AYP-status, routines served to rationalize teachers' instructional tasks by reducing variation in the form and content of classroom instruction. Accordingly, the process of recoupling and the resulting rationalization of teachers' tasks resulted in teachers experiencing reduced professional discretion, depleted intrinsic rewards, and compromised relationships with students and with each other. Under these circumstances, accountability policy moved teaching away from professionalization and undermined efforts to sustain teachers over time.
Temple University--Theses

Background & rationale: The rapid diffusion of social network sites such as Facebook have presented a wealth of challenge and opportunity for the nursing profession. A large majority of student nurses have adopted Facebook but [as developing professionals] may not understand the implications and unintended consequences of the information shared in a personal or innocent way. No research has yet critically analysed or explained [in depth] the underlying factors that influence and determine the relationships between professional accountability and social media or if there is actually a ‘problem’ with social media, and if there is explain how we can address it. Aim: Explain the context and relationships between professional accountability and Facebook for the pre-registration student nurse during their journey of professional socialisation. Methods: Critical realist ethnography employing focus groups (academic and practicing nursing staff n=8), semi-structured interviews with student nurses over two geographical sites (n=16) supported by online observation of three cohort groups, 30 public profiles and professional group discussion topics. Results: Six overarching models were explored, 1) the concept of professional accountability, 2) patterns of use, 3) behaviours and activities, 4) physical versus online reality, 5) unacceptable, acceptable, professional or unprofessional behaviours and, 6) perceived knowledge and awareness versus actual behaviours. To explain the relationship between the pre-registration student nurse, Facebook and accountability three frameworks were developed. The first, Socialisation-Professional socialisation-Online socialisation (SPO) explains the journey of socialisation and the relationship between the online and physical world. Unacceptable-Acceptable-Professional-Unprofessional (UAPU) explains the complex nature of Facebook behaviours and how individuals understand the difference between the concept of unprofessional and simply unacceptable. The final framework ‘Awareness to Action’ takes the principles from the previous two frameworks and outlines a proactive tool to raise awareness of online profiles and, a reactive tool using ‘the 3Cs’ (clarity, context & confirmability) to make [professional] decisions about behaviours and incidents in the online environment. Conclusion: The relationships between the accountability, Facebook and the pre-registration student nurse are individual, complex and evolving (ICE). The very nature of socialisation means that this is based on individual background, experiences and values. Society and OSNs are complex environments which are changeable and, them and our relationship with them is continuously evolving. A2A and its ‘3Cs’ provides an assessment of self-efficacy, risk and decision-making tool to proactively [for nursing students] and reactively [for educators, employers and professional groups] manage self-awareness and behaviours in the online environment.

The study examines how the Integrated Quality Management System (IQMS) is currently being implemented in South African schools. It focuses on the contradictory discourses found within the IQMS, i.e. accountability and professional development. I argue that these two discourses are in a problematic relationship to one another. They can therefore only be implemented simultaneously with great difficulty. Emphasis is also placed on the importance of context when implementing policy, also referred to as policy 'enactment' (Ball, Maguire & Braun 2011). It is argued that policy is interpreted and made sense of differently, depending on the context. Context matters on two levels. First, because the IQMS contains both international and national ideas. The former deals with the neoliberal and global trends encompassed within accountability, while the latter is a discourse aimed at addressing uniquely localised education issues in South Africa. Second, context matters insofar as the IQMS is implemented in different school and classroom contexts in South Africa. In an effort to understand teachers and school management team members' perceptions of accountability and professional development in the IQMS, a qualitative, multiple case study design was used. Teachers and school management team members were interviewed at two distinct schools, one former model C school and one township school in order to determine different contexts' effects on the enactment of the IQMS. By conducting qualitative case studies, the perceptions and experiences of teachers in real life settings are depicted. What emerged was criticism of the IQMS across contexts, in that it neither effectively holds teachers accountable nor professionally develops them. Although context did not influence teachers' views and perceptions of the IQMS, it did influence the extent to which they met certain IQMS requirements. Other noteworthy findings include South African teachers' acceptance of high-stakes accountability and, contrary to the literature, teachers stating that they prefer more, albeit revised, ways to evaluate their work.
Dissertation (MEd)--University of Pretoria, 2016.
Early Childhood Education
MEd
Unrestricted

Using the professional literature surrounding change knowledge, this study assesses Utah public school districts' response to Utah Senate Bill 64 (USB64) that was passed in 2012. USB64 required school districts to ensure that principals were evaluating teacher performance through the use of a chosen evaluation tool. The chosen evaluation tool needed to include evaluation rubrics tied to the state teacher standards. USB64 was passed with the intent to improve classroom instruction and thereby improve student learning in Utah schools. Utah school districts complied with USB64 requirements and timelines. Districts successfully identified and adopted observation tools that principals could use to assess teacher effectiveness. Once these tools were identified, districts provided training to principals covering the Utah Effective Teaching Standard Indicators so those principals could demonstrate understanding of how to use the observation tools to evaluate teacher performance. Districts then ensured principals were certified to conduct classroom observations using the relevant observation tool, a requirement set out within USB64 required in USB64, to conduct classroom observations using the adopted tool. Finally, districts successfully created systems to make sure the required number of observations were completed on time by each administrator for all teachers in all school locations. Thirteen district administrators who were responsible for their district's implementation of USB64 were interviewed for this study. Districts of all sizes were represented. Analysis of these interviews found that district implementation efforts were driven by a compliance-based approach to the legislation rather than an attempt to improve the system of learning for students. One common reason for this approach is it is an effective coping strategy that district leaders have used to balance district-initiated improvement efforts and annual state-mandated legislation like USB64.

Over the last decade government policy has transformed many aspects of the welfare state and contracted out to private or voluntary non-government organisations many of the services previously provided by the state. Currently there is very little research on the benefits or disadvantages regarding standards of professional practice and delivery of these services when controlled by voluntary organisations and this research is a case study investigating these concerns. By using the case study method it is possible to understand issues by incorporating concrete examples of practice within the context that it takes place, as it is only when seen in its proper setting that the general and conceptual significance of practice is understood. This case study explores the relationships of power, control and accountability in one such non-governmental organisation, the Royal New Zealand Plunket Society and the implications these have for professional staff in the delivery of the service. The study uses the archaeology and genealogy methods suggested by Foucault. Archival material was gained from the Minutes of the meetings of the Plunket executive (1917-1984), constitution and rules. These serve to demonstrate the historical power relationships in the organisation, Plunket nurses� working conditions and how some nurses were treated. The dominant discourse in the archaeology contains two major themes, one being volunteers� autonomous 'ownership' of the organisation, and the other, the subordination of professionalism through the discipline and management of the nursing workforce. Those same themes are also dominant in the contemporary data studied in the genealogy, which highlights the constraints imposed by volunteer 'ownership' in the contemporary period. It is a feature of the "path dependency" of the organisation that the belief that volunteers had a right to discipline and control the nursing workforce has remained largely unchanged in the contemporary period. The practice and the context are personalised through interviews with some nurses so that their real-life experiences may give an in-depth understanding of the processes going on for them as professionals. This is one of multiple sources of evidence, including reports, reviews and research, used to triangulate the findings. Through the totality of these methods, insight into Plunket�s decision-making is made possible. These serve to underline the continuing lack of accountability for service delivery of nonprofessional 'owners' of the voluntary organisation and the negative impact it can have on the delivery of professional services although the greater depth in the contemporary data also highlights two new subsidiary themes; the dominance of lay knowledge over both professional and managerial knowledge, and volunteers� motives for volunteering. The contemporary interview data demonstrated how the historical culture of the organisation enabled this process to continue through poor workplace conditions, high staff attrition and, in some cases, severe personal pressure akin to workplace bullying. This study exposes the significance of the culture of organisations, and reveals that the substance of apparent altruistic voluntary organisations may be much more complex and problematic than the ideology would lead us to believe. In a field such as this, where an NGO has sole national responsibility for such an important area and where the outcomes are so poor, change must be considered. While a path dependency explanation is pessimistic about change, it is argued that the only option for professional standards of service for this, and other NGOs, lies in much more accountability and democracy in stakeholder relationships. Recommendations are made in that direction.

This thesis is about the organization of Community Law Centres (CLCs). They are established to provide legal services for those unable to pay for them in areas of legal practice of particular importance to those whose social and economic situations prevent them from exercising their rights. They were founded on the belief that their resources, human and material, should be managed and controlled by management committees made up of representatives of those who would use them, their "client community". This study aims to explore how this has been done. The context for this study is set out in Chapters One and Two. Chapter One explores the historical, theoretical and conceptual roots of CLCs, identifies operational dilemmas and challenges discussed in the literature, and establishes a conceptual framework and the research question. The review of the literature revealed that the principal organizational dilemmas facing CLCs might be conceputalized as "professional accountability" and "community control". These twin concepts have focused this research. Chapter Two discusses the methodological issues associated with the conduct of qualitative case study research. It establishes the research framework and approach for the field work and data analysis in this study. It also explains the basis for the selection of the four case organizations. Chapters Three to Seven report and discuss the data. Chapter Three discusses the manifest organizational features of the cases, observing their similarities and differences, and is mainly based on data from documents. Chapters Four to Seven address the organizational issues emerging from the data from interviews with organizational participants. Chapter Four focuses on the perceived roles and relationships of management committees. Chapters Five and Six are concerned with the roles and relationships of paid staff and volunteers respectively. Chapter Seven identifies specific environmental factors and examines their impact on the cases. Finally, Chapter Eight reconsiders the data in light of the conceptual framework - "professional accountability" and "community control" - and proposes a new conceptualization of organizational relationships in CLCs. It also identifies some implications of the study for practitioners and makes some suggestions for further research.

Following up on the educational reform initiatives of the 1990s and early 2000s, which are centered on the notion of accountability, Secretary of Education Arne Duncan's Race to the Top initiative strives to bring such accountability down to the level of the individual teacher through the use of advanced statistical parsing of student achievement data. Through the calculation of "teacher value-added," a given teacher's "effectiveness" can be measured and ranked, hence assigned a value. Duncan's rhetoric around the issue, and the assumptions visible in the studies of teacher quality and effectiveness that he and other reformers cite, suggest that at long last we as a society will be able to know and to communicate just who our best and our worst teachers are. Such an ability will allow us as a polity, on this view, to direct public funding much more efficiently than has heretofore been possible: armed with this new knowledge, we can reward the best teachers to ensure that they do not abandon the profession for higher-paying employment, and cull the worst teachers so that they may be replaced with more effective personnel. The newfound ability to distinguish between good and bad teachers also has transformative implications for teacher training programs. By analyzing the practice of the highest-quality teachers, one might discover "what works" in classrooms, the specific behaviors, skills, or mental states involved in highly effective teaching. Once discovered, these behaviors, skills, or mental states might then be given to pre-service teachers, which would dispense with what Duncan considers to be the overly theoretical and largely abstract curricula of current teacher education programs. The problem outlined above is obviously philosophical in nature. The method of investigation involves a conceptual analysis of Race to the Top's teacher-quality and achievement-data initiatives, comparing the policies to the Secretary of Education's public rhetoric employed to market the policies to the public. Taking the public rhetoric as an expressing the various needs to which the policies will be responsive, this thesis tests the coherence of the underlying assumptions about teaching and learning, and assesses the conceptual fit between the needs visible in the rhetoric and the outcomes sought and measured according to the proposed policies. The thesis finds that Duncan's public rhetoric expresses largely unproblematic needs, fears, or disquietudes around questions of teacher quality, but that the policies intended to answer those needs are wholly insufficient to the task. At issue is a misconception of teaching as a skillful endeavor, a mistaken idea about what teaching is. This thesis concludes that the needs and desires expressed in Duncan's rhetoric do necessitate a response, but that any adequate response will require a different view of teaching and learning entirely. The thesis offers the fundamental requirements of a different notion of teaching and learning, one better suited to the needs of the public, as the Secretary of Education expresses them.

O objeto deste trabalho é o programa de formação continuada Letra e Vida, oferecido pela Secretaria Estadual de Educação de São Paulo a professores alfabetizadores da rede entre 2003 e 2006. Os objetivos da pesquisa foram avaliar os impactos do Programa nos resultados de desempenho dos alunos de 1ª série mensurados por meio do Sistema de Avaliação do Rendimento Escolar do estado de São Paulo (Saresp), considerada a aferição de 2007, e também seus possíveis efeitos sobre concepções e práticas de alfabetização dos professores que dele participaram. Para o desenvolvimento do estudo, aplicou-se o método misto, que integra abordagens quantitativa e qualitativa. Assim, realizaram-se entrevistas em três escolas, com coordenadores, diretores e professores de 1ª a 4ª série que tivessem participado do Programa, com prioridade dos professores do Ciclo 1. Os dados provenientes do Questionário para os Professores de 1ª e 2ª série do Ensino Fundamental e os resultados dos alunos na prova de 1ª série, ambos instrumentos do Saresp 2007, foram reorganizados e reinterpretados para as análises baseadas em técnicas de árvores de decisão e de regressão linear múltipla e para a comparação entre grupos de escolas com diferentes proporções de professores que participaram do Programa. Concluiu-se que o Letra e Vida influenciou o discurso dos docentes, sobretudo em sua concepção de alfabetização, embora nem sempre se tenham percebido, nas visitas às escolas, evidências da transposição desse discurso para a prática da sala de aula. No que tange aos impactos do Programa sobre o desempenho dos alunos, pode- -se afirmar que, em alguns contextos e em conjunto com outras características estudadas, o Letra e Vida se destacou na explicação dos resultados dos alunos, mas, sozinho, não teve impactos significativos.
This dissertation focuses on the continued literacy teacher education program called Letra e Vida, offered by the Sao Paulo state Department of Education during the period of 2003 to 2006. The research objectives were to assess the impact of the Program in the first grade students performance and also its possible effects on concepts and practices of teaching literacy from teachers who participated in it. To achieve these goals the São Paulo Education Achievement Assessment System (Saresp) was used, considering the evaluation of 2007 and a mixed method study was developed to integrate qualitative and quantitative approaches complementarily. Thus, interviews in three schools were conducted with coordinators, principals and 1st to 4th grade teachers with priority given to teachers of 1st and 2nd grades who attended the program. The data from the questionnaire for teachers of 1st and 2nd grades, and the results of students in the 1st grade, both collected by SARESP 2007, were reorganized and reinterpreted to be used in statistical analysis using multiple linear regression, decision trees and comparison between groups of schools with different proportions of teachers who participated in the Program. It was possible to conclude that the effects of the program in teachers discourse were considerable, although evidence of implementation of such discourse was not always possible to observe during visits to schools. With regard to the impact of the Program on student performance, it is clear that in some contexts the Letra e Vida in conjunction with other variables were able to offer some explanation to the student outcomes, but its effects are not significant when standing alone.

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O presente trabalho discute accountability e o processo de aprendizagem proporcionando um estudo sobre o acompanhamento pedagógico da educação profissional integrada à educação básica à luz das dimensões de accountability. Com referencial teórico que discute políticas públicas em educação e educação profissional, gestão da educação, processo de aprendizagem e accountability. Nessa pesquisa accountability será tratada de forma bidimensional no âmbito da justificação e responsabilização. A pesquisa tem caráter qualitativo, utilizou-se a metodologia de pesquisa-ação que objetiva simultaneamente, pesquisa e intervenção, desenvolvida a partir de pesquisa bibliográfica, documental, observação participante e expondo um planejamento de estratégias que partem do âmbito pedagógico para as outras áreas profissionais. Realiza uma reflexão sobre a importância da prestação de contas e justificação como possibilidade de correção de desvios ocorridos no processo de aprendizagem e não como um simples elemento de controle e fiscalização, mas de parceria com os stakeholders. Os resultados apontam para a necessidade de ressignificação das relações entre coletivo escolar e a esfera pedagógica, no Campus de Salvador, com a apresentação de um quadro demonstrando a aproximação dos mecanismos de accountability e o processo de aprendizagem, propondo mudanças e ajustes para a qualificação da gestão democrática e como consequência a redução das desigualdades sociais e respeito ao fortalecimento da cidadania e democracia, contribuindo para a formação de indivíduos críticos, conscientes de seus direitos e deveres e que possam interferir nos processos produtivos respeitando a si, ao próximo e a natureza. This paper discusses accountability and learning process by providing a study of the pedagogical monitoring of integrated professional education in the light of the basic dimensions of education accountability. With theoretical framework that discusses public policies in education and professional education, management education, the learning process and accountability. Accountability in this research will be treated two-dimensionally in the context of justification and accountability. The research is qualitative, we used the methodology of action research that aims to both research and intervention, developed from literature, documentary research, participant observation and exposing a planning strategies that depart from the pedagogical framework for other professional areas .Performs a reflection on the importance of accountability and justification and possible correction of deviations occurring in the learning process and not as a simple element of control and supervision, but the partnership with stakeholders. The results point to the need for redefinition of relations between school community and the educational sphere, on the campus of Salvador, with the presentation of a framework demonstrating the alignment of the accountability mechanisms and the process of learning, proposing adjustments and changes to the qualification of democratic and consequently the reduction of social inequalities and respect to strengthen citizenship and democracy by contributing to the formation of critical individuals, aware of their rights and duties and that may interfere with the processes respecting themselves, others and nature. managed

The purpose of this exploratory correlational research study was to examine the degree to which school leaders’ engagement in distributed leadership practices builds the capacity to empower expert teachers so that they can provide their colleagues with instructional and pedagogical support and thus advance teacher practice.  More specifically, the aim was to examine relationships between teachers’ perceptions of school leaders’ use of distributed leadership, which may then influence the mediating variable of collective teacher efficacy and, finally, the dependent variable, which is the level of implementation of professional learning communities in New York City public elementary schools. Online surveys were distributed to teachers in districts that serve minority students at schools with high poverty identification.

The responses were exported from the survey to SPSS (Statistical Package for Social Science) for data analysis. The results showed that scores on distributed leadership practices range from 1.33 to 6.00, with an average score of 4.48 (SD = 1.01) (1=Strongly Disagree and 6= Strongly Agree). Collective teacher efficacy correlated significantly and positively with distributed leadership practices (r = .45, p < .001); the professional learning community correlated significantly and positively with distributed leadership practices (r = .62, p < .001); and collective teacher efficacy correlated significantly and positively with professional learning community (r = .24, p = .001). A mediation analysis was conducted using multiple linear regression. The results showed that, although the first two conditions for full mediation were met, the third condition for full mediation was not. Additionally, a partial mediation analysis revealed that no significant partial mediation effect existed. The implication is that collective teacher efficacy did not have a significant mediating effect on the relationship between distributed leadership practices and the professional learning community.

Distributed leadership provides an organizational structure for reciprocal accountability and professional learning communities that affords teachers a forum for collegial discourse and capacity building. The variability within teachers’ perceptions of group members’ ability to provide quality instruction is not a predictor of collective action. Therefore, the relationship between distributed leadership and professional learning communities is not mediated by collective teacher efficacy. The level of implementation of professional learning communities is not contingent on collective teacher efficacy. Distributed leadership practices provide an essential framework for “stretching” leadership across many individuals in order to build capacity.

Keywords: distributed leadership, collective teacher efficacy, professional learning communities, reciprocal accountability, capacity building

Doctor Legum - LLD
The persistence of preventable Maternal Morbidity and Mortality (hereafter MMM), in the developing world, despite ground breaking technological and scientific advances, is unacceptable. There is no cause of death and disability for men between ages 15 and 44 that comes close to the large scale of maternal mortality and morbidity. Thus, the prevalence of high MMM ratios indicates the side-lining of women's rights. Surprisingly, the causal factors of preventable MMM and interventions needed to reverse the pervasively high numbers are now well known. Yet, hundreds of women continue to die daily and to suffer lifelong illnesses while giving birth. In Uganda, despite various regulatory, policy and programmatic strategies, the most recent survey revealed that the maternal mortality ratios were at a staggering 438 per 100,000 live births.

The present study investigated teacher motivation in a high-stakes accountability context. Specifically, this study examines elementary teachers' achievement goal orientations, self-efficacy for teaching, and perceptions of help-seeking in the context of high-stakes testing and school accountability under No Child Left Behind and an Elementary and Secondary Education Act waiver. Butler's (2007) teacher achievement goal orientation framework provided the theoretical basis of the present study; high-stakes tests and school accountability status were thought to impact teachers’ achievement goal orientations. Additionally, teachers' achievement goal orientations were thought to impact teaching self-efficacy and perceptions of help-seeking. The sample included 381 elementary school teachers. Multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) and hierarchical multiple regression were used to examine the relationships between and among high-stakes testing and issues teachers perceive to be related to these tests, stress related to high-stakes tests, school accountability status, teachers’ achievement goal orientations, teaching self-efficacy, and perceptions of teacher help-seeking. Results suggest that, for this sample, dimensions of teachers’ achievement goal orientations differ from the dimensions characterized by Butler and colleagues (Butler, 2007; Butler & Shibaz, 2008; Nitsche et al., 2010; Cho & Shim, 2013; Shim et al., 2013). Specifically, teachers in this sample exhibited mastery and work-avoidance goals, as characterized by Butler (2007), but not performance-approach and performance-avoidance goals. Teachers here distinguished between personal performance orientation, or motivation driven by external factors (e.g., recognition from administrators) and using others as the referent to which they compared their own performance (e.g., colleagues). Additionally, class performance orientation emerged as a distinct dimension of teachers’ achievement goal orientations for this sample. Those who espoused this orientation sought for their classes to compare favorably with other classes and were motivated by external factors, such as their class scoring high on state-wide tests. Teacher achievement goal orientations were related to high-stakes testing, but school issues related to high-stakes testing and stress associated with these tests were more salient predictors of teachers’ achievement goal orientations than whether teachers taught in testing grades or not. Finally, teachers’ achievement goal orientations were significant predictors of self-efficacy for teaching and teachers’ perceptions of their own help-seeking.

Institutions of higher education are entering a new era, one where cost, value, and quality are at the front of mind. To proactively ensure long-term viability, institutions must operate differently. This qualitative case study examined how the St. Alexander University School of Education's Annual Report Process impacted institutional decision-making. Additionally, the study explored how the Annual Report Process could facilitate learning and improvement for a school of education.

Using the Professional Learning Community model as the conceptual framework, document analysis, process analysis, and semi-structured interviews were used as the primary methods for data collection. Using pattern analysis, four themes emerged in the study. First, there is lack of shared vision and understanding regarding the purpose for the SOE Annual Reports. Second, there is a disconnect between the SOE Annual Reports and the impact that they play in the decision-making process related to resource allocation. Third, the level of dialogue and impact that the SOE Annual Reports facilitate at the department and programmatic level is mixed. Finally, there has been minimal training for the SOE Annual Report process, which has resulted in a lack of quality in the reports. In turn, this has resulted in an overall frustration with the process for those that are involved in the SOE Annual Report process. The findings and recommendations in this study provide the SOE at St. Alexander a pathway to move forward with an Annual Report Process that positively influences the building of learning community, while positively impacting the decision-making process.

Changed governance increased the freedom of schools but also their responsibility, with more scope for interpreting the assignment. Two models of school development were studied to see how they affect school actors’ understanding of assignment and responsibility, the relationship between the commissioner’s exaction of responsibility and the contractor’s assumption of responsibility. Two case studies examine conceptual dimensions of assumption of responsibility. These models and resulting measures shape actors’ understanding of assignment and responsibility, emphasizing different parts of the control system. The Scope for Action Model stresses the role of the local school with a bottom-up strategy for assumption of responsibility. It uses culture analysis to clarify responsibility relations by making actors aware of their accountability and the potential in their assignment. The Effective Schools Model stresses the political level in a top-down strategy. It shows organizational deficiencies in relation to the assignment and the responsibility. The models increased cooperation between professionals, exposing the organization and its boundaries, management, and occupational roles. Activities became more pupil-oriented, highlighting the task of upbringing and teaching. Lack of time, poor organizational structures, and increased administration obstructed the fulfilment of the assignment. The models led to the exposure and creation of responsibility structures for organization, management, communication and cooperation. Responsibility structures were created through firmer cooperation. These measures furthered individual and collective learning processes and (re)shaped the professionals’ understanding of assignment and responsibility. Professional autonomy is essential for commitment, motivation, and understanding. It is concluded that knowledge of the school’s responsibility reduces the discrepancy and helps professionals to improve their competence and develop school.

The need to improve on the quality and equity in education has been a direct challenge for the Department of Education in the South African post-apartheid era. The Department of Education, in agreement with the Education Labour Relation Council, implemented the Integrated Quality Management System (IQMS) as a quality management system, consisting of three programmes, aimed at enhancing and monitoring performance of the education system. The Integrated Quality Management System was the focus of this study and, in particular, the attitudes of educators towards Developmental Appraisal and Classroom Observation. The research was guided by the following three main research questions: What are the attitudes of educators towards Developmental Appraisal as an evaluation policy for accountability purposes? What are the attitudes of educators towards Classroom Observation as a practice for staff development with a developmental purpose? and To what extent do the attitudes of educators influence the implementation of Developmental Appraisal and Classroom Observation? Several factors influencing the implementation of Integrated Quality Management Systems were identified from literature and were selected for the study, namely the objectives, prevalence and frequency, benefits and difficulties of Developmental Appraisal and Classroom Observation. These were conceptualized in terms of three opposing dimensions using the Cube Model of Evaluation: internal and external, pull and push and bottom-up and top-down, all of which have varying degrees of tensions between them. Thus a point of balance on this three-dimensional continuum has to be delicately managed. The findings of this study, which resulted from analysing data collected from forty-four educators by means of questionnaires and semi-structured interviews, revealed the following: the overall conclusion regarding the educators' perceptions on the policy objectives of Developmental Appraisal is that the majority of the respondents tended to agree with the policy objective of Developmental Appraisal. However, one should take note of participants who did not agree, which illustrates the tension between policy and implementation and the possible resistance of educators. The findings of this study further revealed that initially educators were 'threatened' by Internal and External Evaluation and Developmental Appraisal, weighing heavily on the Performance Management aspect, which could be seen as manifesting a resistance to change. However, over time and through deeper understanding, there has been a shift in attitude once educators realised the developmental function of Developmental Appraisal in informing teaching and learning which consequently plays a major role in educators' professional development. In addition, this may have a positive effect on the implementation of Developmental Appraisal in future. However, the aspect of pressure, represented in the adapted model, is aimed at accountability of the various stakeholders within the schools to the Department of Education to ensure that quality education is provided. This suggests that there was a shift in the educators' attitudes from one of resistance to top-down directives to compliance and even a willingness to participate in the process of Developmental Appraisal and Classroom Observation. This could be a result of the monetary reward attached to performance. There was also a growing realisation of the potential effect on teaching and learning, which has resulted in the policy being viewed in a more positive light. However, there was concern about the lack of support, resources and facilities from the Department of Education, which resulted in the policy not being properly implemented. Finally, the findings of this study bring another dimension to the issue of the politics of resistance towards Integrated Quality Management Systems, in that rejection of evaluation is not against the system per se; educators as represented by the South African Democratic Teachers' Union (SADTU) want appraisal to be an essential part of their development and not a mechanism for enforcing control or imposing a 'police unit' on educators. Copyright
Dissertation (MEd)--University of Pretoria, 2010.
Curriculum Studies
unrestricted

xi, 112 p. A print copy of this thesis is available through the UO Libraries. Search the library catalog for the location and call number.
The purpose of this study was to conduct, as a participant observer and district-level regional administrator, three exploratory mini-case studies of elementary schools in the same district attempting to meet the same district improvement goal, imbedded in individual School Improvement Plans (SIP) during the same period of time in the school year. In order to document how each leadership team identifies strategies to meet the goal, how strategies are implemented, how each leadership team interacts with me as their district administrator, and how performance toward meeting the goal is perceived by key actors in the school this research was conducted as an action-research case study. The inter-relationships between school goals and school leadership team behaviors in a large suburban school district and the influence of these teams on the practices of the individuals on each of the three different school teams were the primary focus of this study. This study took place beginning in December 2007 and culminating in March 2008. The researcher kept a field journal of team meetings and staff development activities at each site. Interviews were conducted with principals, teachers, and parents at each site to gain multiple perspectives of school improvement and leadership. Findings of this case study may reveal a close connection between the practices of the regional administrator and school leadership teams and the outcome of school improvement initiatives. Recommendations are made for changes in practice and for future research studies.
Adviser: Diane M. Dunlap

Engaging Queensland primary teachers in professional associations can be a challenge, particularly for subject-specific associations. Professional associations are recognised providers of professional learning. By not being involved in professional associations primary teachers are missing potential quality professional learning opportunities that can impact the results of their students. The purpose of the research is twofold: Firstly, to provide a thorough understanding of the current context in order to assist professional associations who wish to change from their current level of primary teacher engagement; and secondly, to contribute to the literature in the area of professional learning for primary teachers within professional associations. Using a three part research design, interviews of primary teachers and focus groups of professional association participants and executives were conducted and themed to examine the current context of engagement. Force field analysis was used to provide the framework to identify the driving and restraining forces for primary teacher engagement in professional learning through professional associations. Communities of practice and professional learning communities were specifically examined as potential models for professional associations to consider. The outcome is a diagrammatic framework outlining the current context of primary teacher engagement, specifically the driving and restraining forces of primary teacher engagement with professional associations. This research also identifies considerations for professional associations wishing to change their level of primary teacher engagement. The results of this research show that there are key themes that provide maximum impact if wishing to increase engagement of primary teachers in professional associations. However the implications of this lies with professional associations and their alignment between intent and practice dedicated to this change.

Thesis advisor: Pamela J. Grace
As supported by extensive literature, nurses have a role to play in helping patients and families in getting their needs understood and met. This ethical responsibility includes decisions made by nurses in the context of end-of-life (EOL) care. Ethical decision-making is known to be influenced by nurses' understanding of their professional accountability and several cognitive processes that underlie moral action. Rest (1986) theorized these processes as: moral sensitivity, judgment, moral motivation, and moral character. However, few instruments have been developed to understand nurses' ethical decision-making during EOL care, and most have focused on a single dimension rather than on the multi-dimensional process. The purposes of this methodological study were: 1) to develop a scale with content domains and items capable of describing Korean nurses' ethical decision-making at EOL and 2) to evaluate the scale's psychometric properties using Korean nurses (N = 230). The criteria for participation were: Korean nurses having more than 2 years of clinical experience in the types of units where most Korean patients spend the end of their lives: critical care, general medical-surgical, and hospice units. The process followed two steps. Phase I consisted of the development of domains and items. Three domains were identified through themes derived from an integrated review of relevant literature and the findings from a preliminary qualitative study involving experts in EOL care in Korea. 95 items were generated within these three domains. Content validation was completed by a panel of six nursing ethics experts, three in Korea and three in the U.S. Next, a pilot study to test readability was conducted using three Korean nurses. During Phase II, 67 items of the NEDM-EOLCS version 3.0 were tested. After item analysis and factor analysis, a 55-item final version of the NEDM-EOLCS was established. The total scale and three subscales reported good reliability and validity. The three subscales were labeled: "perceived professional accountability," "moral reasoning and moral agency," and "moral practice at the EOL."
Thesis (PhD) — Boston College, 2009
Submitted to: Boston College. Connell School of Nursing
Discipline: Nursing

This thesis is the result of an investigation of a Queensland example of curriculum reform based on outcomes, a type of reform common to many parts of the world during the last decade. The purpose of the investigation was to determine the impact of outcomes on teacher perspectives of professional practice. The focus was chosen to permit investigation not only of changes in behaviour resulting from the reform but also of teachers' attitudes and beliefs developed during implementation. The study is based on qualitative methodology, chosen because of its suitability for the investigation of attitudes and perspectives. The study exploits the researcher's opportunities for prolonged, direct contact with groups of teachers through the selection of an over-arching ethnography approach, an approach designed to capture the holistic nature of the reform and to contextualise the data within a broad perspective. The selection of grounded theory as a basis for data analysis reflects the open nature of this inquiry and demonstrates the study's constructivist assumptions about the production of knowledge. The study also constitutes a multi-site case study by virtue of the choice of three individual school sites as objects to be studied and to form the basis of the report. Three primary school sites administered by Brisbane Catholic Education were chosen as the focus of data collection. Data were collected from three school sites as teachers engaged in the first year of implementation of Student Performance Standards, the Queensland version of English outcomes based on the current English syllabus. Teachers' experience of outcomes-driven curriculum reform was studied by means of group interviews conducted at individual school sites over a period of fourteen months, researcher observations and the collection of artefacts such as report cards. Analysis of data followed grounded theory guidelines based on a system of coding. Though classification systems were not generated prior to data analysis, the labelling of categories called on standard, non-idiosyncratic terminology and analytic frames and concepts from existing literature wherever practicable in order to permit possible comparisons with other related research. Data from school sites were examined individually and then combined to determine teacher understandings of the reform, changes that have been made to practice and teacher responses to these changes in terms of their perspectives of professionalism. Teachers in the study understood the reform as primarily an accountability mechanism. Though teachers demonstrated some acceptance of the intentions of the reform, their responses to its conceptualisation, supporting documentation and implications for changing work practices were generally characterised by reduced confidence, anger and frustration. Though the impact of outcomes-based curriculum reform must be interpreted through the inter-relationships of a broad range of elements which comprise teachers' work and their attitudes towards their work, it is proposed that the substantive findings of the study can be understood in terms of four broad themes. First, when the conceptual design of outcomes did not serve teachers' accountability requirements and outcomes were perceived to be expressed in unfamiliar technical language, most teachers in the study lost faith in the value of the reform and lost confidence in their own abilities to understand or implement it. Second, this reduction of confidence was intensified when the scope of outcomes was outside the scope of the teachers' existing curriculum and assessment planning and teachers were confronted with the necessity to include aspects of syllabuses or school programs which they had previously omitted because of a lack of understanding or appreciation. The corollary was that outcomes promoted greater syllabus fidelity when frameworks were closely aligned. Third, other benefits the teachers associated with outcomes included the development of whole school curriculum resources and greater opportunity for teacher collaboration, particularly among schools. The teachers, however, considered a wide range of factors when determining the overall impact of the reform, and perceived a number of them in terms of the costs of implementation. These included the emergence of ethical dilemmas concerning relationships with students, colleagues and parents, reduced individual autonomy, particularly with regard to the selection of valued curriculum content and intensification of workload with the capacity to erode the relationships with students which teachers strongly associated with the rewards of their profession. Finally, in banding together at the school level to resist aspects of implementation, some teachers showed growing awareness of a collective authority capable of being exercised in response to top-down reform. These findings imply that Student Performance Standards require review and, additional implementation resourcing to support teachers through times of reduced confidence in their own abilities. Outcomes prove an effective means of high-fidelity syllabus implementation, and, provided they are expressed in an accessible way and aligned with syllabus frameworks and terminology, should be considered for inclusion in future syllabuses across a range of learning areas. The study also identifies a range of unintended consequences of outcomes-based curriculum and acknowledges the complexity of relationships among all the aspects of teachers' work. It also notes that the impact of reform on teacher perspectives of professional practice may alter teacher-teacher and school-system relationships in ways that have the potential to influence the effectiveness of future curriculum reform.

Using national data from the Survey of the Status of Social Studies (S4), this study examined the associations between teacher-level and school-level factors as well as testing policy, and the self-reported levels of authority and control over key classroom tasks among secondary school social studies teachers in the context of high-stakes accountability. This research sought to identify the importance of teacher authority in the classroom and how 6-12 social studies educators' professional authority is associated with teachers' professional characteristics (their degree background, teaching experience, and licensure paths), school-related factors (school types, school context, school poverty levels, and minority enrollment levels), and state testing policy. A conceptual framework was developed to guide the selection of specific predictor and control variables and to examine the three theoretically based models through hierarchical multiple regression analysis techniques. The analytic sample included grades 6-12 social studies teachers (N=6,703). Key findings from this study indicated that, as hypothesized, teacher-level characteristics significantly predicted secondary social studies teachers' classroom authority. Self-reported levels of teacher authority were maldistributed across the types of school, school context, school poverty levels, and minority enrollment levels. Greater minority and low-income student enrollments were associated with less authority and control in the classroom. Also, state testing policy significantly predicted social studies teacher authority. Specifically, middle and junior high school teachers who gave state mandated social studies tests reported significantly lower levels of authority and control than those who did not. On the other hand, high school teachers who gave state mandated social studies tests reported significantly higher levels of authority and control than those who did not. Also, teachers who believed that state test results impacted their job security reported lower levels of authority and control than those who did not feel such pressure.

This non-experimental, census survey included the elementary, middle, and high school principals at the comprehensive schools within a large, suburban school division in Virginia. The focus of this study was the factors that influence building administrators in using data to make instructional decisions. The purpose was to discover if there is a difference in the perceptions of elementary, middle, and high school principals of data use to make instructional decisions within their buildings. McLeod’s (2006) Statewide Data-Driven Readiness Study: Principal Survey was used to assess the principals’ beliefs about the data-driven readiness of their individual schools. Each principal indicated the degree to which they agreed or disagreed with statements about acting upon data, data support systems, and the data school culture. Twenty-two items aligned with four constructs identified by White (2008) in her study of elementary school principals in Florida. These four constructs or factors were used to determine if there was a significant difference in principal beliefs concerning teacher use of data to improve student achievement, principal beliefs regarding a data-driven culture within their building, the existence of systems for supporting data-driven decision-making, and collaboration among teachers to make data-driven decisions. For each of the survey items a majority of the responses (≥62%) were in agreement with the statements, indicating the principals agreed slightly, agreed moderately, or agreed strongly that data-driven decision-making by teachers to improve student achievement was occurring within the building, a data-driven culture and data supporting systems exists, and teachers are collaborating and using data to make decisions. Multiple analyses of variance showed significant differences in the means. Some of these differences in means were based on the principals’ assignment levels. While both groups responded positively to the statement that collaboration among teachers to make data-driven decisions, the elementary principals agreed more strongly than the high school principals. When mediating variables were examined, significance was found in principals’ beliefs concerning teacher use of data to improve student achievement depending on the years of experience as a principal. Principals with six or more years of experience had a mean response for Construct 1 of 4.84 while those with five or less years of experience had a mean of 4.38, suggesting that on average those principals with more experience had a stronger belief that teachers are using data to improve student achievement. There is significance between the means of principals with three or fewer years versus those with more than three years in their current assignment on two of the constructs – a data-driven culture and collaboration among teachers. Principals with less time in their current position report a slightly higher agreement than their less experienced colleagues with statements about the data-driven culture within their school. Significant difference was also found between principals’ beliefs about teacher collaboration to improve student achievement and their beliefs regarding collaboration among teachers using data-driven decision-making and the school’s AYP status for 2008-2009. Principals assigned to schools that had made AYP for 2008-2009 moderately agreed that teachers were collaborating to make data-driven decisions. In comparison, principals assigned to schools that had not made AYP only slightly agreed that this level of collaboration was occurring in their schools.

The context for this study is that of educational policy: specifically with reference to initial teacher education in the post-compulsory sector. The research addresses a number of issues which have been relatively neglected in implementing this policy: • The extent to which the policy has redefined the epistemology underpinning being a teacher to that of ‘knowledge deliverer’ • The ways in which this epistemological shift has impacted on the role and identities of beginning teachers as individual teachers seek to resolve the relationship between the policy agenda and their constructions of their professional selves as compatible, compromising and/or compliant The methodology adopted is that of the case study within a longitudinal study of those being trained to teach in the post compulsory sector and follows the subjects of the research post-training into employment. Using trainee accounts and other data, the study examines their encounters with and connections to (Wenger, 2000:27) the various ‘learning communities’ contributing to their training. The narratives they provide are used to provide an ‘…insider’s view of the domain’ of a community (Wenger et al., 2002: 31). The findings are substantial. Analysis of trainees’ accounts reveal the extent to which they seek to adhere to community norms as a consequence of assessment and organisational demands at the expense of their own development as critical, autonomous professionals. The extent to which they supress aspects of their own emerging identities raises ethical issues about the role of professional communities in brokering and developing new professional knowledge. The ways in which the various ‘learning communities’ manage knowledge leads to discrepancies in trainees’ experiences of ‘communities of practice’. As a consequence they offer fractured accounts of their teaching identities. The implications of the research are also substantial. The study underlines the importance of giving greater attention to the voice of the trainee teacher in order to understand and assist ‘self- understanding’ (Kelchtermans, 2005). The voice of trainee teacher has been noticeably marginalised by current policies on teacher education. As new models of partnership and collaborative practice evolve in response to an agenda which prioritises school and employer led ITTE provision, it behoves those working with newly qualified teachers to provide the kind of support which will ensure commitment and the basis for future advance in their teaching careers.

Le manque d’accountability qui est reproché au marketing est un alignement insuffisant sur les objectifs stratégiques. La plupart des recherches préconisent généralement de renforcer l’accountability du marketing en développant des instruments de mesure de performance. Se différenciant de ces approches, cette recherche choisit de traiter le praticien du marketing comme unité d’analyse. Nous mettons en évidence une identité professionnelle propre aux praticiens et distinguons deux formes d’accountability ressentie : l’accountability ressentie lors d’une prise de décision (ASR) et l’accountability ressentie dans l’organisation (AOR). L’autodétermination, composante de l’identité professionnelle des praticiens du marketing, influence positivement l’ASR mais limite la conformité. En rendant accountable des praticiens du marketing sur une décision, nous observons qu’ils cherchent à prendre la meilleure décision possible du point de vue des objectifs marketing même si ceux-Ci s’opposent aux objectifs stratégiques. En étudiant les comportements de managers, nous montrons que l’ambiguïté de rôle, caractéristique de la pratique marketing, diminue l’AOR. Les cultures organisationnelles qui favorisent l’accountability augmentent alors la probabilité de conflits de rôle préjudiciables à la performance. La probabilité de conflits de rôle est néanmoins modérée sous réserve que la culture soit perçue comme encourageant la collaboration et la prise d’initiative. Ce type de culture correspond à l’identité professionnelle des praticiens du marketing contribuant à leur performance. En conclusion, nous proposons un modèle d’accountability adapté à la pratique du marketing dans l’organisation
Marketing has been criticized for its lack of accountability, which is qualified by a misalignment with strategic objectives. Most of the researches propose that marketing accountability must be reinforced with more performance measures. In this doctoral thesis, we employ a different approach in treating the marketer as unit of analysis. We identify a marketers’ professional identity and make a distinction between two types of felt accountability: an accountability felt in a decision-Making situation (ASR) and an accountability felt within an organization (AOR). ASR is positively influenced by self-Determination that is a component of marketers’ professional identity, where self-Determination reduces conformity. In making marketers accountable, we show that that they seek to make the best decision according to marketing objectives even if they are conflicting with strategic objectives. In studying managers’ behavior, we show that role ambiguity, which is consistent with marketing practice, reduces AOR. Organizational cultures that promote accountability increase the likelihood of role conflicts detrimental to performance. However, the likelihood of role conflict is moderated by organizational cultures provided they encourage collaboration and initiatives. This type of culture is consistent with marketers’ professional identity therefore contributing to performance. Finally, we propose an accountability model tailored to marketing practice within the organization

After implementing a statewide standardized testing program in 1998, the Virginia Department of Education realized that some schools were making great gains in student achievement while other schools continued to struggle. The Department conducted a study to identify the practices used by schools showing improvement. Six effective practice domains were identified. The current study was a follow-up to the research conducted by the Virginia Department of Education. A questionnaire measuring the six effective practice domains: (a) curriculum alignment, (b) time and scheduling, (c) use of data, (d) professional development, (e) school culture, and (f) leadership was administered to teachers in 148 schools in Virginia; 80 schools participated. Two questions guided the study: (1) How frequently do schools use the Virginia Department of Education effective practices, and (2) what is the relationship between the use of the effective practices and school pass rates on the 3rd grade 2005 Standards of Learning (SOL) reading test? Descriptive statistics, linear regression, and discriminant function analysis were applied to explore the relationships between the predictor variables (percentage of students receiving free or reduced-price lunch and the use of the effective practices) and the criterion variable (school pass rate on the 2005 SOL 3rd grade reading test). Academic culture and the percentage of students receiving free or reduced-price lunch accounted for significant amounts of the variance in school pass rates. The remaining five effective practice measures were not related to school pass rates. The measures may have affected the results. In most cases, one person was used as the proxy for the school, and this person may have provided a biased assessment of what was happening in the school.
Ed. D.

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CAPES - Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior
Essa tese investigou as influências do Ideb sobre a satisfação profissional na visão de professores do 1º ao 5º ano em seis Escolas Estaduais em Juiz de Fora / MG. Teve como objetivo principal conhecer e verificar se e como a divulgação e os resultados do Ideb estão relacionados e influenciam na satisfação profissional docente e na condição de trabalho do professor e de que maneira isso afeta o contentamento que ele possa ter em relação à carreira. Selecionamos inicialmente, de forma intencional, quatro escolas estaduais e, posteriormente foram incluídas mais duas, somando seis escolas participantes da investigação. Os sujeitos de pesquisa foram os professores de 1º ao 5º ano, visando delimitar melhor a análise e nível de interesse para a pesquisa. Utilizamos como instrumento para recolhimento dos dados os questionários, aplicados somente na primeira etapa da pasquisa, nas quatro escolas selecionadas a priori, e, após, realizamos entrevistas semi-estruturadas. Com o intento de envolver uma gama de entendimentos sobre os assuntos analisados nesse estudo, é apresentado um multirreferencial teórico. Ou seja, não foi pré-determinado uma única teoria metodológica a fim de que, a partir das discussões engendradas e teorias diversas, pudéssemos compreender o tema proposto, oportunizando uma ampla visão, não única e generalista, mas que abrange um campo maior de entendimentos. A hipótese trabalhada neste percurso é de que os usos e a divulgação dos resultados do Ideb são causadores ou colaboram de alguma forma para a insatisfação profissional do professor. Diante dessa premissa, percorremos uma trajetória a fim de contextualizar o trabalho e recolher pistas sobre tal conjectura, dialogando com os sujeitos de pesquisa e articulando as informações obtidas com o estudo de diversos autores. Discorremos sobre: - as políticas de avaliação com o propósito de estabelecer um entendimento sobre o contexto em que o Ideb se insere e verificar seus efeitos relativos aos docentes; - a satisfação profissional, abarcando teorias que focalizam esse aspecto, visando compreender como isso se dá na profissão docente; apresentamos -os caminhos metodológicos percorridos, o campo de pesquisa e o perfil dos participantes e, por fim, - exploramos os dados para as análises e reflexões sobre o tema principal dessa investigação. Legitimamos alguns aspectos causadores de satisfação e insatisfação já apontados por alguns estudos e pesquisas, como o fato de gostar do que faz, o retorno positivo de aprendizagem e desenvolvimento dos alunos, a questão da rotatividade e itinerância, as condições salariais e as condições de trabalho, a desvalorização profissional, a competição entre escolas e professores, entre outros. Entretanto, apresentou-se como aspectos substanciais e singulares que influenciam diretamente na insatisfação docente a apropriação e usos dos resultados das avaliações pelas escolas e professores, enfatizando o Ideb; a decorrência da Lei 100/MG e sua impugnação para professores que se enquadravam nela e a forma como a bonificação e a responsabilização provocam um sentimento de coerção aos docentes.
This thesis investigated the effects and consequences of the Basic Education Development Index (IDEB) on job satisfaction of 1st to 5th grade teachers in six state schools of Juiz de Fora / MG. We aimed to meet and see if and how the disclosure and Ideb results are related and influence in teacher job satisfaction and teacher working condition and how it affects the contentment he may have regarding the career. We selected initially, intentionally, four state schools and were subsequently included two more, totaling six participating research schools. The research subjects were the 1st to 5th grade teachers, to better define the analysis and level of interest for research. Used as a tool for data gathering questionnaires, applied only in the first stage of the research, the four schools selected first, and after, we conducted semi-structured interviews. With the intent to involve a range of understandings on the issues analyzed in this study, a theoretical multi-referential is presented. So it was not predetermined a unique methodological theory so that, as of engineered and several theories discussions, we could understand the theme, providing opportunities for a broad view, not single, generalist, but covering a larger field of understanding. The hypothesis worked this route is that the use and disclosure of IDEB results are cause or collaborate in some way to the professional dissatisfaction of the teacher. Given this premise, we go through a path in order to contextualize the work and collect clues such conjecture, dialoguing with research subjects and articulating the information obtained from the study of various authors. We discuss: - assessment of policies in order to establish an understanding of the context in which the IDEB falls and check its effects relating to teachers; - Job satisfaction, embracing theories that focus on this aspect in order to understand how this happens in the teaching profession; -the present methodological paths taken, the search field and the profile of participants and, finally, - explore the data for analysis and reflection on the main theme of this investigation. Legitimize some causative aspects of satisfaction and dissatisfaction already mentioned by some studies and surveys, such as the fact that love what you do, the positive feedback from learning and development of students, the issue of turnover and roaming, wage conditions and working conditions , professional devaluation, competition among schools and teachers, among others. However, it appeared as a substantial and unique aspects that directly influence teacher dissatisfaction ownership and use of evaluation results by schools and teachers, emphasizing the IDEB; the result of Law 100 / MG and its challenge to teachers who fit into it and how the bonus and accountability provoke a sense of coercion to teachers.

This study discussed the need for a broader public discourse on high-stakes accountability-based school reform that underscores teachersâ perspectives. Also, the study discussed the need for fuller disclosure of the possible undesirable classroom effects of the reform. To address these needs, the study described teachersâ perspectives on the Standards of Learning (SOL) school reform in Virginia, focusing upon teachersâ views on the reformâ s classroom effects. The domains of interest were (1) the adequacy of curriculum and the diversity of teachersâ instructional strategies, (2) the quality of student learning, (3) teachersâ sense of professional autonomy and level of teacher tension, and (4) school quality. The study examined whether there are differences in teachersâ views based the income level of the school locale where teachers teach (low-, middle-, or high-income), the school type (elementary, middle, or high school) in which they teach, and teachersâ status on whether they teach a SOL-tested subject (yes/no). The participants of the study included 360 randomly selected teachers who were listed as members of Virginia Education Association (VEA). A survey research design was employed. The instrument included 80 Likert-type items, eight demographic items, and three open-ended questions. Inferential and descriptive statistics were reported for eight scales of the survey as were thematic trends in the qualitative data. The studyâ s results suggested that the SOL program contributes to a hurried, high-pressure classroom culture that depletes the potentiality of the very ends of education the program is intended to achieve. Teachers tended to report (1) an inadequacy of the SOL content standards, (2) a reduction of teachersâ use of diverse instructional strategies and an inability of the SOL program to meet diverse student needs, (3) arbitrary SOL test cut-scores, (4) an inadequacy of the SOL pass rates to represent school quality, (5) a lack of diagnostic usefulness of SOL test scores, (6) an inadequacy of SOL testing and SOL test scores to hold schools accountable, (7) teachersâ sense of diminished professional autonomy, and (8) teachersâ mounting tension in the classroom. These results were juxtaposed to the views of policymakers and business leaders, the public at large, parents, and scholars in the field of education concerning the issue of high-stakes accountability-based school reform. Finally, the study discussed a conflict related to the purpose of public schooling between a prevailing narrative of many policymakers and business leaders and what have been the marginalized views of classroom teachers.
Ph. D.

This thesis aims to contribute to the improvement and advancement of university learning, teaching, and staff development; to integrate educational theory and the practice of university teaching; and to contribute to the establishment of a new, emerging paradigm in higher education. The strategy towards achieving these aims comprises (1) an alternative research methodology in the interpretive, non-positivist paradigm; (2) an integrated framework drawing on a variety of previously unrelated theories to form an alternative model of university education; and (3) reference to the dialectical relationship between educational theory and teaching practice and their integration through action research in higher education. The thesis is not so much a critique of the traditional paradigm and of existing functionalist-structuralist approaches to higher education, but more a development and clarification of an alternative, dialectical, human action approach to higher education. The original contribution of this thesis to the theory and practice of higher education lies in the development (1) of an alternative model of university education based on an integration of previously unrelated domains of theory; (2) of a theoretical model of professional development as action research (the CRASP Model: Critical attitude, Research into teaching, Accountability, Self-evaluation, Professionalism); and (3) of action research projects in higher education. Action research is research by the university teachers themselves into their teaching practice, i.e. into problems of the curriculum and student learning. The case studies included in and appended to this thesis show that in one educational setting at least it was possible to improve and advance university learning and teaching through action research. The evidence for this advancement is provided in a number of previously published case studies compiled in the Appendix.

Traditionally, models of instructional leadership espouse data-informed decision making in response to student assessment outcomes as one of the core school leader behaviors. In recent years, rising expectations from accountability policies and related assessment practices have myriad implications for school districts, specifically in the areas of standards-driven reform, student assessment systems, and professional development models. As a result, demands on schools to collect and use student assessment data to inform curricular and instructional decisions has expanded. While principals are typically held responsible for school improvement efforts, more contemporary models of instructional leadership incorporate teachers as classroom-based leaders of assessment practices in forums such as professional learning communities. School and classroom assessment leaders engage in behaviors such as (a) identifying an assessment vision, (b) fostering group goals, (c) providing a model of data- informed decision making, (d) promoting teacher job-embedded professional learning experiences, (e) evaluating instructional practices with specific feedback, and (f) strategically aligning resources to school improvement goals. Unfortunately, school districts face many challenges with assessment leadership due to barriers in beliefs about assessments, time with and access to tools and training, and knowledge and skills about how to operationalize effective assessment practices that yield positive student outcomes. The purpose of this study was to explore assessment leadership as a construct among P-12 school and classroom leaders in one large district in Florida. Data were collected using an Internet-based survey constructed from existing qualitative and quantitative measures of key components of assessment leadership established in the literature. A series of descriptive and inferential analyses were conducted to (a) explore the factor structure of the instrument and (b) evaluate the influence of assessment learning experiences, beliefs, and knowledge on assessment practices. Relationships among variables were examined when considering moderating variables for school role (i.e., school-level administrator or classroom teacher as professional learning communities facilitator) and school type (elementary or secondary). Limitations were discussed to inform future research in this critical area of school improvement.

This study explored the views and experiences of School Management Teams (SMTs) when implementing Integrated Quality Management System (IQMS) in three primary schools in the Nkangala Region of the Mpumalanga Province, South Africa. A qualitative research approach was adopted and the data were collected by means of semi-structured interviews and document retrieval in schools. The data were then analysed by the constant comparative method. All the participants in this study expressed the view that IQMS is a teacher appraisal system with a potential to develop educators in schools provided both evaluators and evaluatees are honest with the evaluation process and are able to identify their areas of development. However the experience of the principals and deputy principals with the implementation of IQMS in schools reveals that educators inflate their scores and do not identify areas where they need development. The Development Support Groups (DSGs) do not conduct authentic evaluation since they serve the purpose of helping educators to qualify for salary progression. Participants recommended external evaluation as a solution to subjective ratings since external evaluators have a potential to provide objective and credible evaluation because they are unfamiliar with educators and do not experience the pressure to maintain collegiality in schools. A key recommendation is that the Department of Education should conduct effective training for the stakeholders involved with the implementation of IQMS in schools.
Dissertation (MEd)--University of Pretoria, 2010.
Education Management and Policy Studies
unrestricted

One of the major issues confronting public relations practitioners over the past decade has been how to measure the performance of theμ- activities in order to meet the increasing accountability expectations of senior management. However, the literature over this time has focussed on issues relating to the use of evaluation to demonstrate accountability and there has been very little research into the actual experiences of practitioners in endeavouring to meet these accountability expectations. This research adds to the body of knowledge by considering how Australian public relations practitioners address these issues by posing the question: How do public relations practitioners account for themselves within the corporate environment? Case study methodology was used to address this research question. Nine public relations managers from a range of state-based, national and international organisations located in Queensland, New South Wales and Victoria were selected. A survey was used to interview the managers to ascertain their perspective on issues relating seven research questions covering: • role and influence of public relations practitioners within organisations; • activities undertaken by public relations practitioners; • benefits from demonstrate accountability; • program planning; • evaluation; • conveying performance; and • communication models. The data was analysed using pattern-matching, matrices and cross-case analysis. The results of the research indicate that accountability and evaluation are current issues of concern to Australian public relations practitioners. The ability to demonstrate accountability is seen to have ramifications for both practitioners and the profession in terms of professional status, what is actually encompassed by public relations practice and resource levels. Additionally, this study highlighted that practitioners view evaluation and accountability from a highly politicised perspective which has implications for future research in this area. This study has provided in-depth qualitative data which contributes to the professional literature on evaluation and accountability.

This thesis is concerned with teacher agency and how this is achieved within the autonomous schooling model of England’s academies programme. The enquiry draws upon the empirical work conducted in a single case study sponsored academy (‘Bucklands Academy’ ) in 2012. The research was conducted in order to investigate whether the autonomy and freedoms afforded to one such school extended to the teachers working in it and how this affected their professional roles as classroom educators. The thesis begins by sharing my research interest, which relates to whether greater levels of school autonomy enhance the pedagogical approaches taken by teachers. This interest then develops towards the notion of teacher agency and asks the fundamental research question: Is this academy a place where teacher agency can flourish? The study sets out the policy context for academies in England, including an analysis of the historical development of state secondary schooling since 1944. It is shown that the continued ‘need’ to develop a new approach to schooling, eventually in the form of academies, started with claims of unfairness, discrimination and waste of talent brought about by the tripartite system of schooling established by the 1944 Education Act. It then analyses later concerns about the alleged failure of the comprehensive system to achieve its aim of raising standards for all children. The political contexts of state schooling are considered, and particular attention is given to the neo-liberal ideology developed after 1979 of ‘rolling back the state’, introducing choice and competition between schools and increasing the role of the private sector in the delivery of public services. However, the scope of the investigation is not restricted to the national policy context; the research interest lies in establishing what the key reforms have meant for teachers in the classroom and how this has affected the agency they achieve. A number of themes emerged in the review of key literature, including school autonomy, teacher professionalism, the policy to practice paradox and discourses around the academies programme. This thesis sets out a clear theoretical position, which draws upon the critical realist social theory developed by Roy Bhaskar and Margaret Archer. This approach offers a centrist alternative to what Pring (2000b) describes as the false dualism of the two epistemological positions of educational research. Critical realism posits that the world is real and that its structures exist beyond our understanding, but that our knowledge of this stratified world is socially constructed. Within the structure-agency debate, the ecological view of agency developed by Priestley et al. (2015) is adopted, which sees it as being context-dependent and something that individuals achieve in concrete settings. The empirical work within this study consisted of semi-structured interviews, observations and documentary analysis. The main findings from the research are that the case-study school had significant autonomy to develop its own policies and approaches to raising standards. However, this autonomy did not extend to any significant extent below the level of the academy sponsors and the principal. The school had developed a highly performative culture where teachers’ work was centrally directed and through which they were held highly accountable for the attainment of their students. It was found that the way in which autonomy was distributed throughout the school affected the agency of key stakeholders. The sponsors achieved high levels of agency, the principal achieved restricted agency and teachers achieved limited agency. It was found that teachers took one of two approaches to a new curricular reform being introduced by the academy sponsors. They either adopted it or used their limited agency to modify it so that it aligned more closely with their own educational philosophies. There was no indication that any teachers rejected the school’s reform, and it is suggested that this may have been the result of them subordinating this key policy to their ultimate concern of working in a school recognised by school inspectors to be highly effective. This thesis concludes that, contrary to the policy rhetoric, teachers working in one sponsored academy may have had less autonomy than those teaching in local authority maintained schools. This in turn affected the agency they achieved, which appears to undermine the original vision and aims of the academies programme. The thesis concludes by offering possible areas for further research which emerged during this study.

O caráter privativo das informações de saúde, reconhecido e valorizado desde a antigüidade clássica, hoje é considerado como um dos fatores indispensáveis à manutenção da sociedade, das garantias constitucionais de liberdade e também, em última instância, à própria democracia. Essa importância é demonstrada pela existência do segredo profissional, que, para as profissões da área da saúde (como medicina, odontologia, psicologia, nutrição etc.) de um modo positivo, coloca aos profissionais a necessidade de se guardar segredo a respeito de todas as informações sobre as quais adquire-se conhecimento no exercício de suas profissões. No Brasil, a questão da manutenção do segredo profissional das profissões de saúde adquire um caráter dramático quando se leva em consideração a implementação da Troca de Informações em Saúde Suplementar por parte da Agência Nacional de Saúde Suplementar, autarquia especial que regula o setor de saúde suplementar. Pretendendo facilitar a troca de informações entre prestadores de serviços e operadoras, e também permitir e homogeneizar a obtenção de informação para o estabelecimento de políticas públicas, a Troca de Informações em Saúde Suplementar já é realizada desde 2008, envolvendo todas as informações de saúde de mais de 52 milhões de beneficiários. A utilização de tecnologias de troca de informação e a criação de bancos de dados, associados a um histórico de vazamento de dados sensíveis, criam dúvidas sobre a manutenção do segredo profissional e o caráter privado das informações de saúde. Neste trabalho, foi analisada a legislação estruturante da Troca de Informações em Saúde Suplementar no que diz respeito aos requisitos de segurança para a troca e armazenamento de informação sensível com o intuito de verificar se essa legislação supre, de modo eficaz, a exigência de proteção à manutenção do caráter privativo das informações de saúde que existe nos Códigos de Ética Profissionais e no Código Civil Brasileiro. Apesar das exigências para a segurança das informações ser, hoje, adequada à manutenção do segredo profissional enquanto essas informações são trocadas ou encontram-se armazenadas nas operadoras de planos de saúde, a norma se fia nos requisitos estabelecidos por um órgão privado cujas prioridades, naturalmente, podem, no futuro, não estar vinculadas exclusivamente ao maior bem social. Ademais, não se observa na legislação uma atenção ou recomendações dedicadas ao profissional em consultório isolado e que armazena os dados de seus pacientes em computadores pessoais previamente ao envio via internet. Além disso, em consultas realizadas à ANS em agosto e setembro de 2009 a respeito dos dados transmitidos pelas operadoras à Agência para o cumprimento do disposto nos artigos 20 e 32 da lei 9656/98, não se obteve resposta a respeito de quais dados são repassados pelas operadoras à ANS, nem sobre quais os padrões de segurança a que estes dados estão submetidos, nem, tampouco, sobre quais os indivíduos que têm acesso a estes dados, indicando falta da necessária transparência que é essencial a uma autarquia regulatória de um setor de interesse social. Estes fatos indicam claramente que a manutenção do segredo profissional está em risco nas atuais condições.
Health information is valued and recognized as sensible and private since ancient times. It is also considered one of the most important factors in maintaining and supporting the fabric of society, the constitutional guarantee of liberty and also, democracy itself. Health professionals have the duty to keep all their patients information private. In Brazil, this acquires a dramatic character when one considers the recently implemented Information Exchange in Suplementary Health (TISS) by the Agência Nacional de Saúde Suplementar, governments regulating bureau for the suplementary health sector. Intending to facilitate the information exchange between service providers and health operators, and also to standardize the process of obtaining and providing information for policy makers, the Information Exchange has been in use since 2008 and involves identifiable health information of more than 52 million users. Technologies to allow health information exchange and the creation of data banks associated with sensible information data leaks raise doubts over the ability to keep health information safe from prying eyes. In this study, the structural legislation of the Information Exchange in Suplementary Health was analysed regarding the safety requirements proposed for the health information exchange and storage, to verify if it addresses the demand that exists in professional codes of ethics and also in Brazils Código Civil to protect the privacy of health information. Although - by todays standards - the requirements for information security are deemed adequate for the safekeeping and in addressing the need for privacy and security while the information is exchanged or stored by the health plans operators, theres no dedicated attention to recomendations for the professionals on their small practice offices, who hold their patients information on their personal computers. Also, the law establishes that a private agency is responsible for dictating the requirements that keep the information safe, a measure that is not entirely risk-safe as the interests of the private sector may shift with the market, leaving the social needs/interests behind. Besides these facts, when consulting the Agência Nacional de Saúde Suplementar in august and september 2009 regarding what kind of data is transmitted by the Health Plans operators and what kind of security measures are undertaken to protect this data, no answer was obtained, indicating a lack of transparency that is apalling in a regulatory bureau that serves the society. These facts clearly indicate that the maintenance of professional secrecy and patient privacy is threatened in current conditions. Keywords: computer systems security management, professional secrecy, information accountability, Agência Nacional de Saúde Suplementar (Brazil)

The aim of this study is to increase the knowledge and understanding of how leisure-time pedagogues´ professional identity is changed as a consequence of altered governance and resulting new tasks. More specifically the study is oriented towards understanding how external demands for quality accounts, assessments and documentation in leisure-time centers and schools, affect leisure-time pedagogues´ practice of their profession and professional identity, and how the leisure-time pedagogues relate to these demands. The empirical data are generated through interviews with 23 leisure-time pedagogues, 8 school leaders, document analyses, and a survey among 105 leisure-time pedagogues. The analysis draws on profession theories perspective and concepts like knowledge base, jurisdiction and discretion to understand what is central in the leisure-time pedagogues’ profession and in what direction the profession is developing: de-professionalization, professionalization or re-configuration. Bourdieu´s sociological theories with concepts of field, capital and habitus are also used for understanding of the leisure-time pedagogues´ positions, actions, and explicit relations to other professional groups. The results indicate dilemmas that the leisure-time pedagogues face related to far-going decentralisation, introduction of new public management, reduced resources, and closer links between leisure-time centres and schools. Working with traditional methods creates problems and it becomes hard to balance the work between leisure-time centre and school. The thesis shows that leisure-time pedagogues constantly conduct independent individual assessments that are mainly hidden. This has not been pointed out before but is linked to the leisure-time pedagogues´ professional identity. Assess­ment as an accounting task has on the other hand been added in connection with the transfer to the educational sector and altered forms of governance. Leisure-time pedagogues are both ambivalent and critical to these demands for transparency and accountability. Even though the leisure-time pedagogues are subjected to increased control and expected to work more with assessments in different forms, and are forced to reduce their professional work in leisure-time centres, we cannot entirely talk about de-professionalization. Also features of professionalization and signs of reconfiguration of the profession are visible. The thesis illustrates that the profession of leisure-time pedagogue is being reshaped and that the leisure-time pedagogues’ professional identity can be understood in different ways. The thesis also illustrates how a core of traditional knowledge base stands out as central for most of the professionals in the various professional identities that are found. The differences that are found are related to the local governance of schools’ organisation; to what extent the leisure-time pedagogues’ work is placed in the compulsory school day; and how strong the leisure-time pedagogues’ collective base is in the school unit.

This study is exploratory research examining the relationship between the news media and environmental collaborations. It reports the results of a 2008 online survey of the 250 members of the EPA's National Roster of Environmental Conflict Resolution and Consensus Building Professionals. The study asked about the impact of the media on environmental collaborations, but the major finding actually concerned the significant impact that the process of collaboration has had on the press and its role in environmental problem-solving. Collaboration professionals in this study apparently no longer see the press as a major influence in environmental dispute resolution. The most common estimate of press impact was "slight". A large majority of respondents (71%) said the news media overall have a positive or neutral impact on environmental collaboration outcomes -- surprising numbers, considering the past negative history of the press and environmental issues. From the practitioner's perspective, the most important finding may concern Media Ground Rules (guidelines that govern how collaborations interact with the news media). With Media Ground Rules in place, 74% of collaborations reported the press had a positive impact. In contrast, a negative press impact was reported by 60% of collaborations without Media Ground Rules in place. Since 2008, we have seen growth in environmental collaboration, but at the same time, wholesale closures of American newspapers, along with a stunning decline in the number of environmental reporters and environmental coverage in local news. This study looks at the implications of these developments for accountability and environmental collaborations.
Ph. D.

Philosophiae Doctor - PhD
The value of accountability as a key feature of strengthening health systems and reducing maternal, newborn and child mortality is increasingly emphasised globally, nationally and locally. Frontline health professionals and managers play a crucial role in promoting maternal, newborn and child health (MNCH) services in an equitable and accountable manner. They are at the interface between higher-level health system management and communities, facing demands from both sides and often expected to perform beyond their available means. Although accountability is a central topic in the governance of MNCH literature, it has mostly been approached at global and national levels, with little understanding of how accountability is integrated into the routine functioning of local health systems. This PhD explores the forms and functioning of accountability at the district level focusing on MNCH as a programmatic area with long-established institutional mechanisms (structures and processes) in South Africa (SA). The thesis is presented in the form of four empirical papers (published or submitted), exploring different dimensions of accountability, which are embedded in a series of narrative chapters. In this thesis, accountability is understood as a set of relations between an accountholder and ‘accountor’ (or duty bearer), in which the latter provides information or justification for actions or decisions taken, and faces the resulting consequences of his/her actions (reward or sanction). Accountability mechanisms are the means to regulate accountability relationships and include broad strategies, interventions or instruments. These mechanisms can take various forms including performance, financial and public accountability, and operate both vertically (accountability inside bureaucratic hierarchies, or towards external stakeholders and/or the community), or horizontally (between peers, ‘neighbour’ units, departments or ministries in a national health system). Drawing conceptually on the field of governance and considering the complexity of the accountability phenomenon, I adopted a case study approach to the PhD research, using a combination of policy document review, interviews (with managers, providers, community representatives and members of labour unions) and field observations, conducted iteratively over 16 months. The study was conducted in Gert Sibande District, one of the three South African health districts in Mpumalanga Province, with an in-depth focus on two of the seven sub-districts in the District. The research found that frontline health professionals have a clear understanding and conceptualisation of accountability in the SA health policy context, despite the reported inability to define accountability by health professionals described in the literature. Respondents referred to accountability as responsibility, answerability and virtue, and also argued for strengthening accountability mechanisms as critical to addressing maternal and child mortality. While deeming accountability as important, frontline professionals experienced the existing accountability mechanisms as ‘too much’ and indicated the desire for the streamlining of existing mechanisms. In this regard, the study documented numerous mechanisms at district level, almost all related to performance accountability in MNCH. These included a performance management system, quality assessment and accreditation processes, quarterly reviews, and death surveillance and response processes. The existence of multiple and overlapping accountability mechanisms engenders operational confusion and ‘accountability overload’ for frontline providers, encouraging empty bureaucratic compliance, while critical gaps – notably in community accountability – remain. In practice, at their best, some mechanisms operate following a reciprocal1 pathway of capacity building with resource provision (from management) and expectation for better performance (from providers). There were, however, contextual variations in the implementation and practice of the mechanisms between sub-district settings. The fieldwork observations and interviews were also able to document how formal institutionalised mechanisms are embedded within a complex system of informal accountability relationships and social norms (‘accountability ecosystem’) that enables or constrains the ability of frontline professionals to fulfil their tasks. In addition, using a Social Network Analysis approach, the research identified key actors and their involved network, which form the relational backdrop to the functioning of accountability mechanisms for MNCH. By revealing complex relationships and collaboration patterns among frontline health professionals, the study was able to show the multi-level action and multiple actors required to achieve MNCH goals.

En un intent per millorar l’eficiència i l’equitat dels sistemes educatius, un nombre creixent de sistemes educatius han adoptat polítiques de rendició de comptes (RdC) basades en el rendiment escolar. Si bé la investigació sobre les reformes de RdC s’ha expandit en les últimes dècades, la literatura existent no adreça en profunditat per què els decisors de polítiques, en contextos tan diversos, opten per la RdC basada en el rendiment a l’hora de reformar els seus sistemes educatius. De manera similar, la comprensió dels mecanismes i condicions sota els quals la RdC genera resultats diferents és limitada. Amb l’objectiu de contribuir a omplir aquests buits en la literatura existent, aquesta tesi doctoral adopta un aproximació multiescalar a l’estudi del desplegament de les polítiques de RdC basades en el rendiment a Noruega, un país nòrdic anteriorment considerat “immune” a aquest fenomen de política globalitzadora. Concretament, la tesi explora com la RdC basada en el rendiment s’adopta, configura i implementa en el sistema educatiu noruec. Per examinar la trajectòria de la RdC a Noruega, l’estui es basa en dues fonts de dades principals; 37 entrevistes en profunditat amb polítics d’alt rang, decisors de polítiques i agents clau de l’educació noruega, així com 4 llibres blancs. A més, per il·lustrar el paper exercit per organitzacions que intercedeixen en el desenvolupament i recontextualització de la RdC, es realitza una anàlisi sistemàtica de 3.046 articles de premsa publicats per 155 diaris regionals i locals noruecs entre 2004-2018. Finalment, per obtenir una comprensió més profunda de com s’interpreten, experimenten i posen en pràctica les demandes de RdC a nivell escolar, he portat a terme entrevistes en profunditat a 23 directors que treballen en escoles primàries públiques de nou municipis urbans. Els resultats destaquen que, a Noruega, la RdC s’ha adoptat i institucionalitzat com una forma d’assegurar els estàndards d’aprenentatge en un sistema educatiu altament descentralitzat. Si bé els factors i les idees de polítiques globals han influït clarament en els processos de disseny de la política, la trajectòria de la RdC a Noruega està determinada simultàniament per les institucions polítiques, el règim de benestar i el sistema educatiu del país, així com pels processos d’implementació de polítiques. Els mitjans de comunicació juguen un paper central en la mediació de l’impacte de la publicació dels resultats de les proves de rendiment; són un mecanisme de pressió clau a l’hora de desencadenar canvis de comportament entre les escoles. L’anàlisi identifica quatre marcs de significat dominants en la cobertura dels mitjans regionals i locals sobre les proves estandarditzades, així com importants diferències en la informació que els mitjans ofereixen sobre rendiment escolar al llarg del temps i entre les diferents localitats. Finalment, els resultats identifiquen patrons de resposta diferents en la forma en què els directors noruecs perceben, interpreten i tradueixen les demandes de RdC. La tesi posa de relleu que la RdC basada en el rendiment promou canvis de comportament a través de la reformulació de les normes i nocions sobre bones pràctiques educatives, i de com els educadors donen sentit als aspectes centrals del seu treball. Al fer-ho, aquesta tesi desafia una premissa central de la investigació sobre la RdC educativa; és a dir, que els incentius extrínsecs i les sancions formen els principals factors explicatius del canvi de comportament impulsat per la RdC. A més, la tesi contribueix a la literatura sobre la RdC educativa en proporcionar evidències empíriques noves sobre un règim de RdC de baixes conseqüències en un entorn educatiu nòrdic, així com en demostrar el valor d’un enfocament multiescalar per comprendre el desplegament de les polítiques de RdC.
En un intento por mejorar la eficiencia y la equidad de los sistemas educativos, un número creciente de sistemas educativos han adoptado políticas de rendición de cuentas (RdC) basadas en el desempeño escolar. Si bien la investigación sobre las reformas de RdC se ha expandido en las últimas décadas, la literatura existente no aborda en profundidad los motivos por los que los decisores de políticas, en contextos tan diversos, optan por la RdC basada en el rendimiento a la hora de reformar sus sistemas educativos. De manera similar, la comprensión de los mecanismos y condiciones bajo los cuales la RdC genera resultados diferenciados es todavía limitada. Con el objetivo de contribuir a llenar estos vacíos en la literatura existente, esta tesis doctoral adopta una aproximación multiescalar al estudio del despliegue de las políticas de RdC basadas en el desempeño en Noruega, un país nórdico anteriormente considerado ""inmune"" a este fenómeno de política globalizadora. Concretamente, la tesis explora cómo la RdC basada en el desempeño se adopta, configura e implementa en el sistema educativo noruego. Para examinar la trayectoria de la RdC en Noruega, el análisis se basa en dos fuentes de datos principales; 37 entrevistas en profundidad con políticos de alto rango, decisores de políticas y agentes clave de la educación noruega, así como 4 libros blancos. Además, para ilustrar el papel desempeñado por organizaciones que intermedian en las formas en que la RdC se desarrolla y recontextualiza en el ámbito de la práctica educativa, se realiza un análisis sistemático de 3.046 artículos de prensa publicados por 155 periódicos regionales y locales noruegos entre 2004-2018. Finalmente, para obtener una comprensión más profunda de cómo se interpretan y ponen en práctica las demandas de RdC a nivel escolar, el análisis se basa en entrevistas en profundidad a 23 directores que trabajan en escuelas primarias. Los resultados destacan que, en Noruega, la RdC se ha adoptado e institucionalizado como una forma de asegurar los estándares de aprendizaje en un sistema educativo altamente descentralizado. Si bien los factores y las ideas de políticas globales han influido claramente en los procesos de diseño de la política, la trayectoria de la RdC en Noruega está determinada simultáneamente por las instituciones políticas, el régimen de bienestar y el sistema educativo del país, así como por los procesos de implementación de políticas. Los medios de comunicación juegan un rol central en la mediación del impacto de la publicación de los resultados de las pruebas de desempeño como un mecanismo de presión clave para provocar el cambio de comportamiento deseado entre las escuelas. El análisis identifica cuatro marcos de significado dominantes en la cobertura de los medios regionales y locales sobre las pruebas estandarizadas, así como importantes diferencias en la información de los medios sobre desempeño escolar a lo largo del tiempo y entre las diferentes localidades. Finalmente, los resultados identifican patrones de respuesta distintos en la forma en que los directores noruegos perciben, interpretan y traducen las demandas de RdC. La tesis pone de relieve que la RdC basada en el desempeño promueve cambios de comportamiento a través de la reformulación de las normas y nociones sobre buenas prácticas educativas y de cómo los educadores dan sentido a los aspectos centrales de su trabajo. Al hacerlo esta tesis desafía una premisa central de la investigación sobre la RdC educativa; es decir, que los incentivos extrínsecos y las sanciones son los principales factores explicativos del cambio de comportamiento impulsado por la RdC. Además, la tesis contribuye a la literatura sobre la RdC educativa al demostrar el valor de un enfoque multiescalar para comprender el despliegue de políticas de RdC.
“In an attempt to raise the performance, efficiency and equity of education systems, performance-based accountability policies have been adopted or strengthened by an increasing number of countries, characterized by highly diverse political institutional regimes, education systems, and levels of economic development. While research interest in accountability reforms has sparked in recent decades, the existing literature remains characterized by an insufficient understanding of why policymakers, in such diverse contexts, turn towards performance-based accountability to reform their education systems, in particular considering the absence of strong evidence regarding the benefits produced by this reform approach. In a similar vein, a limited understanding prevails of the mechanisms and conditions under which performance-based accountability generates particular policy outcomes. With the aim of contributing to filling some of the gaps in the existing literature, this doctoral dissertation adopts a multi-scalar case-study, which scrutinizes the different (but interconnected) scales in the deployment of performance-based accountability policies in Norway, a Nordic country formerly considered ‘immune’ to this globalizing policy phenomenon. More specifically, the dissertation examines how performance-based accountability, as a global policy for education reform, is adopted, shaped and enacted in the Norwegian education system. In order to examine the trajectory of performance-based accountability in Norway, the analysis relies on two principal data sources; 37 in-depth interviews with top-level politicians, policymakers and education stakeholders, as well as 4 White Papers. Moreover, to shed light on the role played by intermediate bodies in mediating the ways in which accountability plays out in practice, a systematic analysis of 3,046 newspaper articles published by 155 Norwegian regional and local newspapers between 2004-2018 is performed. Finally, to gain a deeper understanding of how accountability demands are interpreted, experienced and put into practice at the school level, the analysis relies on in-depth interviews with 23 school principals working at public, primary schools in nine urban municipalities. The findings highlight how performance-based accountability has been adopted and institutionalized in Norway as a way to secure equity and quality standards in a highly decentralized education system. While global drivers and policy ideas have clearly influenced policy design processes, the trajectory of performance-based accountability in Norway is simultaneously shaped by the country’s political institutions, welfare regime, and education system, as well as by policy enactment processes. The media play a key role in mediating the impact of the publication of test results as a key pressure mechanism to elicit the desired behavioral change. The analysis identifies four dominant frames present in regional and local media coverage on standardized testing, as well as important differences in media reporting over time and across localities. Finally, the findings identify distinct response patterns in how Norwegian principals perceive, interpret and translate accountability demands, which range from alignment to accountability expectations to symbolic responses. By highlighting how performance-based accountability can drive behavioral change by reframing norms of good educational practice, and by changing how educators make sense of core aspects of their work, this dissertation challenges a central premise of educational accountability research; i.e. that external incentives and sanctions form the prime explanatory factors of behavioral change instigated by accountability reforms. Moreover, the dissertation contributes to the educational accountability literature by providing novel empirical findings on a lesser documented accountability regime in a Nordic educational setting, as well as by demonstrating the value of a multi-scalar approach to understand the deployment of accountability policies. The dissertation advocates that lowering the stakes forms an insufficient measure to prevent perverse effects from occurring, and calls for the need to re-think current dominant accountability approaches in education.
Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona. Programa de Doctorat en Sociologia

Magister Pharmaceuticae - MPharm
The World Health Organisation (WHO) has stated that “there is no health without a workforce” (Campbell et al., 2013). The health workforce is essential for every health care system. The availability, accessibility and quality of health care workers play an important role in improving and overcoming health system challenges, in particular the call to universal health coverage (UHC) as stipulated in sustainable development goal 3. It has been observed that there is limited collaboration between healthcare systems and academic institutions. According to an article by Frenk et al., 2010, this limited collaboration has resulted in a mismatch between health care graduates’ competencies (such as inter-professional collaboration) and the needs of the population that they serve. One of the problems of health education institutions is the emphasis on curriculum content and learning methods as opposed to social purpose and moral obligations.
2021-08-30

Many researchers have suggested positive patient-health provider relationships can positively impact patient outcomes. A few focused explicitly on bariatric weight loss surgery (BWLS) professional-patient interactions. This study is significant because BWLS is a recommended tool to combat obesity. The purpose of this study was to analyze the perceptions of BWLS education nurses regarding their patient encounters. This mixed methods research study used an online survey combining quantitative Likert scale questions and open-ended qualitative questions, with social cognitive theory as the theoretical foundation. These explored viewpoints relate to their patient relations expressed by a health professional. Health professional beliefs incorporated into patient interactions has merit within BWLS continuum from presurgery requirements, to the procedure, and post-surgery lifestyle. Many respondents are employed in obesity services programs and received 'snowballs' from other contacted health professionals. The analyzed written response word clouds favor patient-focused care. Participation reluctance by not answering or skipping short answer perspective questions was a quantitative trend. Data revealed survey specific noticeable qualitative tendencies favorable toward patient-centered care and patient health accountability. The anticipated positive social change is a better understanding of issues surrounding the choice for and against BWLS and improved healthcare and health professional-patient communications.

The focus of this research was to investigate the use of a district created formative benchmark assessment in reading to predict student achievement for 10th-grade students on the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test (FCAT) in one county in north central Florida. The purpose of the study was to provide information to high school principals and teachers to better understand how students were performing and learning and to maximize use of the formative district benchmark assessment in order to modify instruction and positively impact student achievement. This study expanded a prior limited study which correlated district benchmark assessment scores to FCAT scores for students in grades three through five in five elementary schools in the targeted county. The high correlations suggested further study. This research focused on secondary reading, specifically in 10th grade where both state and targeted county FCAT scores were low in years preceding this research. Investigated were (a) the district formative assessment in reading as a predictor of FCAT Reading scores, (b) differences in strength of correlation and prediction among student subgroups and between high schools, and (c) any relationships between reading formative assessment scores and Mathematics FCAT scores. An additional focus of this study was to determine best leadership practices in schools where there were the highest correlations between the formative assessment and FCAT Reading scores. Research on best practices was reviewed, and principals were interviewed to determine trends and themes in practice. Tenth grade students in the seven Florida targeted district high schools were included in the study. The findings of the study supported the effective use of formative assessments both in instruction and as predictors of students' performance on the FCAT. The results of the study also showed a significant correlation between performance on the reading formative assessment and performance on FCAT Mathematics. The data indicated no significant differences in the strength of correlation between student subgroups or between the high schools included in the study. Additionally, the practices of effective principals in using formative assessment data to inform instruction, gathered through personal interviews, were documented and described.
Ed.D.
Department of Educational Research, Technology and Leadership
Education
Education EdD