69-20,869 HARRIS, Gail A lice, 1935AN INVESTIGATION OF THE PREPARATION PATTERNS AND ADMINISTRATIVE ACTIVITIES OF SPECIAL EDUCATION DIRECTORS IN MICHIGAN. Michigan State U niversity, Ed.D., 1969 Education, adm inistration University Microfilms, Inc., Ann Arbor, Michigan (c) Copyright by GAIL ALICE HARRIS 1969 AN INVESTIGATION OF THE PREPARATION PATTERNS AND ADMINISTRATIVE ACTIVITI ES OF SPECIAL EDUCATION DI REC TORS IN MICHIGAN By Gail Alice Harris A THESIS Submitted to Mich ig an State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF EDUCATION Department of Admi nis tration and Higher Education ABSTRACT AN INVESTIGAT ION OP THE PREPARATION PATTERNS AND AD MI NIS TRATIV E ACTIVITIES OF SPECIAL EDUCATION DIRECTORS IN MICHIGA N By Gail Alice Harris Purpose of Study The purpose of this study was to investigate the present role and determine the specific administrative activities of directors of special education in Mic hi ga n through the ut iliz ati on of a survey of all such personnel who were employed full-time during the 1966-67 school year. Included was information regarding: 1. The configuration of specific adm inistrative activities typically performed by special e d u ­ cation administrators, and how this varies from other administrators, 2. The variation bet we en the administrative activities of local school directors of special education and intermediate school directors of special education. 3. Which majo r administrative areas are perceived by the directors and other administrators being of more importance than others, and which major areas consume the most time. as Gail Alice Harris 4. How the academic preparati on and previous p r o ­ fessional experience patterns of special e du­ cation administrators differ from those of other administrators. 5. The number of supervisory personnel assisting the special education administrators, and the types of special education programs they serve. Procedure of Study A survey form was mailed to all local and inter­ mediate school district directors of special education who were employed full-time during the 1966-67 school year. The same survey form was sent to the local or interme di­ ate superintendent, a local elementary and secondary principal in each school district re pr ese nted by the special education directors in the study population. The study po pul ation included one hundred eighty-two school administrators. The survey form consisted of three parts: formation regardi ng the respondent, administrative activities, and (a) in ­ (b) a check list of (c) inform at ion regarding the school district. The survey information was collated by data p r o ­ cessing and hand tabulation techniques. It was then reviewed in terms of response numbers and percentages. Gail Alice Harris Ma.jor Findings of Study The study res ulted in the following major findings: 1. It was pos sible to define the general a d m i n i s ­ trative role and the depth administrative role of directors of special education. 2. The administr ati ve activities of intermediate directors of special educat ion were most similar to those of intermediate superintendents; while the ad ministrative activities of local directors of special educati on were most com­ parable to elementary and secondary principals. 3. All groups agreed they should ideally spend most of their time pe rform in g the activities in the m a jor administ rat ive area of Cur ri culu m and Instruction. 4. In termediate and local directors of special edu cation reported they actually spend most of their time perf or mi ng the activities in the maj or adm inistrative areas of Staff Relations and Personnel Administration. 5. Directors of special educat ion typically r e ­ ceived academic maj or prepar ation in special edu ca tio n at the graduate level, thus differin g from the other administrators in the study, who typical ly held graduate academic majors in administration. Gall Alice Harris Of the administrators in the study, the sho rt­ est tenure in their present positions was r e ­ ported by local and intermediate directors special education„ of They also had the least previous number of years pro fessional experience. Few special education curriculum supervisors were employed at the time of the study. school district programs Local supervisors typically served for the mentally handicapped, while intermediate school district supervisors ty pi ­ cally served speech correction programs. ACKNOWLED GME NTS M a n y individuals have contributed to the finali­ zation of this dissertation. The wri ter is sincerely grateful and aware of those who have encouraged and assisted beyond the limits of pr ofe ssional duty. Specific thanks are extended to the following persons and agencies: To Dr. Fr e d Vescoloni, for serving several years as Ch air man of my doctoral committee. To Dr. Charles Henley, for his assistance as Project D i re ctor for the dis ser ta ti on study, and his ent hu sia sm regard ing the potential professional contri­ buti on of the rese ar ch findings. To Dr. Clyde Campbell, Dr, Useem, Carl Gross and Dr. Joh n committee members, who provided sound professional counsel and w er e outstanding examples of educational leaders in their respective specialties. To my employers during the course of the doctoral p r ogr am and the agencies they represent are due special thanks for their personal encouragement and pro fessional assistance. They include Dr. Ira Polley, tendent of Public Instruction, iii State Sup e ri n­ rep resenting the Mic higan Department of Education; and Dr. Wilfred Webb, Su p e r i n ­ tendent of Hazel Park Public Schools. The Data Pro ce ssin g Divisions of the Mic higa n Department of Ed uc a t i o n and Oakland Intermediate Schools deserve special ap pre ci at ion for con sultation and ass is ­ tance in the survey form development and data processing. The personal encouragement, interest and prodding of Dr. Jo h n Lee, Chairman, Div isi on of Special Ed uc ati on and Vo cat io na l Rehabilitation, Wayne State University, has been invaluable to the writer throughout the doctoral program. The patient, my typists, Mrs. careful and conscientious efforts of Carolyn Piersma and Mrs. Ann Brown are appreciated. And finally, acknowledgment and ap prec ia ti on is extended to all those Mi c h i g a n educators who parti cipate d as members of the study population. iv TABLE OF CONTENTS Page LIST OF T A B L E S ...........................................vii Chapter I. INTRODUCTION. .................. The Growth of Special Educ at ion . . . The Complexity of Special Educ a t i o n . . The Need for Special Educ at io n Coordination and Leadership. . . . A General Statement of the Purpose of the S t u d y ................................ A Specific Statement of the Prob lem ' and Purpose of the S t u d y .............. Del imi tations of the S t u d y .............. Definitions of Terms ..................... Organizat ion of the Study . . . . . The Importance of the Study. . . . . S u m m a r y ................. II. REVIEW OF LITERATURE . . . . . . . . Preparation Patterns for Special Educ ati on A d m i n i s t r a t o r s .............. Special Educati on Adm inis trati on Role Studies. . . . . . . . . General Adminis tra tion Role Studies . . Implications from the Litera ture for Needed R e s e a r c h ......................... III. METHODS AND PROCEDURES . . . . . . . The Study Population ..................... Method of Collecting the Data . . . . Developing the Survey F o r m .............. Collection of the Data . . . . . . v 1 1 3 10 13 14 16 16 18 18 19 21 21 25 32 35 37 37 38 39 Chapter IV. Page ANALYSIS OP I N F O R M A T I O N ................. *17 Information Regard ing the Subjects . . Information R ega rding the School D i s t r i c t s ........................... 71 Ideal and Actual Time Ranking for Major Administrative Areas . . . . Specific Administrative Activities of Directors of Special Education Compared to Other Administrative G r o u p s ............................... 91 S u m m a r y ................................. Ill V. CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMEN DATIONS . . . . *17 78 112 C o n c l u s i o n s ............................. 112 R e c o m m e n d a t i o n s .......................... 130 S u m m a r y ................................. 135 BIBLIOGRAPHY ............................................ A P P E N D I X ........................................... 1*10 APPENDIX A. Survey F o r m ................... 1*11 APP END IX B. Raw Data T a b l e ............... 151 vi I 36 LIST OF TABLES Table Page 1. The Study P o p u l a t i o n ......................... 38 2. The Numb er and Percentage of Returned Survey Forms from the Six A d m i n i s ­ trative G r o u p s ............................ 48 3. D es cr ipti on of Respondents by Sex. 49 4. Descri pti on of Respondents by Age Groups 5. Des cr iptio n of Respondents by Salary Range. 6. Salary Range.Variations of Directors of Special Ed uca tion A cc or ding to Size of District (More or Less Than 15,000 P u p i l s ) ................................... 54 Descr ip ti on of Respondents by Highest Degrees H e l d ................................ 56 Variatio ns in Highest Degree Held by Directors of Special Edu cat io n A c c o r d ­ ing to Size of District (More or Less. Than 15,000 P u p i l s ) ..................... 57 Descrip tio n of Respondents by Teaching Certificates H e l d ......................... 59 De scr ipti on of Respondents by Their Undergraduate Majors . . . . . 6l 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. . . . . . . 50 52 Des cr ip ti on of Respondents by Their Graduate M a j o r s ............................ 62 Areas of Special Ed ucat ion Pre paration for Which Directors of Special Education Are Eligible for State Temporary A p p r o v a l ................................... 64 vii Table 13 - m. Page Number of Special E ducat io n Areas for Which Directors of Special E du ca ti on Are Eligible for State Approval as Cla ss roo m Teachers (Special Service Areas Not I n c l u d e d ) ..................... 66 Variations in Academic Pr epa rati on of Directors of Special Edu ca ti on Ac cor ding to Size of District (More or Less Than 15,000 Pupils) . . . 67 . The Professional Experiences of the Six Adm ini strati ve Groups .................. 68 Selected Pro fessional Experi enc e V a r i ­ ations Bet ween Directors Ac co r d i n g to Size of District (More or Less Than 15 ,000 Pupils ) ............................ 70 17. Pupil Membership Size of School Districts. 72 18. Len gth of Time District (A) Operated a Special Educati on Program; (B) Emp loy ed a Full-Time Special Educ at io n Director. 73 Number, Percent and Frequency Rank of Professional Personnel in Each Special Edu ca ti on Area . . . . . . 75 15. 16. 19. 20 . Range of Special Ed uca ti on Supervisors Employed, 21 » 22. 23. 24. 77 . Number of Programs Served by Supervisors in Specific Special E ducat io n Areas, 77 . Ideal (I) Versus Actual (A) Time Spent by Majo r Admi nistra tiv e Areas with Rank Difference (D) N o t e d ................ 79 Rank Difference Between the Ideal Time Ranking of Intermediate Directors and Other Groups . 83 Rank Difference Betw ee n the Actual Time Rank ing of Inter mediat e Directors and Other Groups .................. 84 viii Table 25. 26. 27. 28, 29. Page Rank Difference Between the Ideal Time Ranking of Local Directors and Other Groups . 85 Rank Di fference Between the Actual Time Rank ing of Local Directors and Other ............................ Groups 87 Ideal (I) and Actual (A) Rank Order of Time Consumed by Directors of Special Educatio n in Major Administ rat ive Areas Accordin g to Size of School District (More or Less than 15,000 Pupils). Rank Difference (D) is Indicated . . . 88 Ideal (I) and Actual (A) Rank Order of Time Consumed by Directors of Special Educatio n in Maj or Adm ini strative Areas According to Length of Time District Has Emp lo ye d a Director (More or Less Than Four Years). Rank Difference (D) is I n d i c a t e d ............................ 90 The Special Educat io n Admi nistrati ve Role (50 Per Cent or More Positive Responses of Directors of Special E du ca ti on for Specific Adm inistrative Activities Compared to the Responses of the Other ................. Administr ati ve Groups). 93 30. Rank Order of Involvement at the Depth Role Level of Directors in Maj or A d m i n i s ­ trative Areas. ...................... 106 31. Fifty Per Cent Negative Responses of Directors of Special Ed uca tion for Specific Administrative Activities Compared to the Responses of the Other Administrative Groups . 109 Survey Form Administrati ve Activity Responses . 152 32. ix CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION The Growth of Special Edu ca ti on Handi cap ped children, as defined by Title VI of Public Law 89-10, as amended, include those describ ed as . . . mentally retarded, hard of hearing, deaf, speech impaired, visually handicapped, seriously emotionally disturbed, crippled, or other health impaired children, who by reason thereof require special education. The numbers of these children have bee n estimated by various sources and differ considerably. The Mich ig an Board of Ed uc a t i o n stated that for every one thousand pupils one may generally find twen ty-three who are m e n ­ tally retarded, hard of hearing, ten physically handicapped, six deaf or one blind or partially-sighted, emotionally or socially maladjusted, twenty ten with special health problems and thirty-five with speech defects, or a total of 105 with handicapp ing conditions which may require special educational provisions.'1' Day classes and programs for h an di ca pp ed children first made their appearance in this country during the "''State Board of Education, "Organizing Educational Programs for Children with Handicaps," Circular No. ^ 8 , Revised, Lansing, Michigan, 1966. 1 2 latter part of the 19th century. A class for the deaf was Instituted in Bost on in 1 8 6 9 , and was the first of the type of p r ovisi on for ha nd icapp ed children w hi c h is today known as special education. Other early classes for additional types of handic ap ped chi ldren whi ch ap ­ peared in the years following included: for the delinquent, New York, 1874, the mentally retarded, Providence, for crippled, 1899, and Chicago, the blind, Chicago, (1 ) first class (2) first class for 1 8 9 6 , (3) first class (4) the first class for 1 9 0 0 .3 These early beginnings, however, were not followed by a rapid general expansion of provisions capped children throughout the country. for h a n d i ­ In general the movement rema ine d basically a part of large city e d u ­ cation programs with little movement into the more rural 4 areas. In 19^8, Martens estimated that the nation's entire special educati on effort was re ach ing only 442,000 pupils in 1,500 school districts. These chi ldr en were served by 2 Calvin Grieder, Truma n Pierce, and W i ll ia m Rosenstengel, Public School Ad mi ni s t r a t i o n (2nd ed.; New York: The Ronald Press Co., 1961). 3I b i d . 4 U. S. Department of Health, Ed ucat ion and Welfare, Special E duc at io n for H a n d i ca pped C h i l d r e n , First Annual Report of the National Advisory Committee on Ha ndic app ed Children, Washington, D. C., 1968, p. 40. 3 some 16,000 teachers and other specialized personnel. It was also estimated that this number of pupils const i­ tuted only approximately 10 per cent of those handica ppe d 5 children in need of special education services. Since World War II, however, the growth pattern in this field has changed rapidly. The numbers served from 1948 to 1958 increased at a rate which was three times that of the rise in total public elementary and secondary school enrollment for the same period.^ By 1963, the total national enrollment in special programs had risen to 1 ,6 6 6 ,0 0 0 ,^ and in 1967 to .approximately 2 ,500,000 p u p i l s .® The Complexity of Special Educati on Accompanying this increase in numbers of han dicapped pupils served in the public school programs of the nation, has been the development of a total pro gram which is not ^Elise H. Martens, "Statistics of Special Schools and Classes for Exc eptional Children, 1947-48," Biennial Survey of Ed uca tion in the United States, 1946-4H~ (Washington, D. C .: U. S. Government Printing O f f i c e , 1950). ^Romaine P. Mackie, Harold M. Williams, and Patricia M. Robbins, "Special Edu cation En rollments in Local School Systems: A Directory," Bul letin OE-35027, U. S. Office of Education, Washington, D. C., 1966. 7 Romaine P. Mackie, "Special Ed ucation Reaches Nearly Two Mil lion Children," School L i f e , XLVII (December, 1964), p. 8 . 0 United States Department of Health, Education and Welfare, o p . c i t . , p. 2. to be exceeded in complexity by any other area of public education. The special education program of a local district may serve a wide variety of exceptional children, including: the blind, the partially sighted, deaf, hard of hearing, mentally retarded, crippled and otherwise physically handicapped, the speech impaired, with emotional problems, children children with specific learning disabilities and various combinations of these types of ha ndi capping conditions. Besides m e e t i n g state and national standards as a condition for rec eiv ing special grants, there are other factors which add to the complexity of adminis tr at io n of these programs. range of pupils Such factors include: served, conditions included, (1) the wide age (2 ) the variety of handic app ing (3 ) rapid growth of the programs, (4) the necessity for inter-agency coordination and planning, (5 ) plan ni ng and providing special tra nspo rt ation arrangements for pupils, (6 ) interpreting this atypical program to general educators and the community, and (7 ) cooperating with other local school districts in operating programs which serve non-resident pupils. The educational programs needed by these children will vary with the han dica pp in g condition, and the types of provisions which have been developed to meet their needs encompass many facets, g including diagnostic g Michigan Department of Education, "Annual R e p o r t — Programs for the Mentally Ha n d i c a p p e d — 1965-66 School Year," Lansing, Michigan, 1 9 6 6 . 5 evaluation, indivi du al ized educational planning, prepared teachers, specially small teacher-pupil ratios, provisi on for integr ation with regular classes, ancillary services and counseling. Adminis tra tive approaches to special education, must, therefore, include w o r k i n g with many individuals and groups, many types of pupils, ancillary services and various related agencies. Federal Involvement in Special Educati on Nationally, large amounts of money are app ro priated yearly for the ed ucation of handic ap ped pupils. For fiscal 1968, the Congress approp riated $53,400,000 for educational improvement for the h a n d i c a p p e d .1*"1 It was distribut ed as follows: Research $11,100,000 Tr aining of Professional Pe r­ sonnel (including a d mi ni s­ trators) Medi a Services and Captioned Films for the Deaf Title VI, Elementary and Secondary E du catio n Act In addition, 24,500,000 2,800,000 15,000,000 an estimated $15 to $24 million of the total ap propriati on for Title I, E lem entary and Secondary Edu ca tio n Act, will be available in 1968 for the Public Law 89-313 pr og ram of support to the states for state 10 U. S. Office of Education, "Appropriations for the Bureau of E ducat io n for the Handicapp ed ," Washington, D. C., 1 9 6 8 . 6 operated and state supported schools for the handicapped. The total amount of federal funds appropriated for the Improvement of educational programs for the ha ndicapped for fiscal year 1968, therefore, was $68.4 to $77.4 million. The Bureau of Edu ca ti on for the H an dicapped was established in the United States Office of E ducat io n on January 12, 1967. The purpose of the Bureau is to adm in ­ ister and carry out programs and projects, re lating to the educat ion and trai ni ng of the handicapped, including research and development p r o j e c t s , 1^ as provided under Public Law 89-750. Also included under the provisions of this Act was the establishment of a National Advisory Committee on Handic app ed Children. appointed in July, This committee was 1967, and is composed of a group of individuals repres enting broad interests in the education of han dicapped children. 12 The purposes of the advisory committee includes the review of the ad mi nistrati on of the prog ram administered by the Commissioner of Educati on with respect to handicapp ed children, including their effect in improvi ng the educational attainment of such X 1U. S. Department of Health, Education and Welfare, o p . c l t . , p. 9 - 12 I b i d . , p. 1 . 7 children, and the development of rec ommendat ion s improvement of such administration. for the 13 The development of state special ed ucatio n plans was required for those states req ues ting grants under Title VI of Public Law 89-750. These plans provide assurance that any federal funds granted under this title will be expended to initiate, programs and projects, and projects, expand, or improve including pre-school programs designed to meet the special needs of handic app ed children throughout the state. Since I960, as a result lation, of congr es sio nal legi s­ (Public Law 85-926, as amended) 32,000 p r o f e s ­ sional personnel have been trained to serve handi ca pp ed children, resulti ng in over 70,000 persons pr epa red in this field of education. 14 Thus, the federal government has become increasingly involved in the stimulation of special education programs, and this pa rt icip at io n has added new dimensions to the ad ministra tio n of such p r o ­ grams at state and local levels. Samuel A. Kirk, "The National Adv isory Committee on Han dicapped Children," A Richer Future for H an di ca pped Children (Washington, D. C.: Council for Exc ep ti onal Children, March, 1968), p. 481. 14 U. S. Department of Health, E du ca tion and Welfare, o p . c i t . , p. 24. 8 State and Local Involvement In Special Educ ati on State and local school systems appropriate large sums of mon ey annually for special educational programs for the handicapped. Act 21 of the Mi ch igan Public Acts of 1968 approp ria ted $30 mi ll ion in state aid for the reimbursement of local and intermediate special education programs. The involvement of state departments of ed u­ cation in stimulating special education program growth is extensive and involves: 15 1. Prepari ng the state budget for the education of exceptional children. 2. Help in g in the passage of sound legislation and di sco uraging the passage of unsound legislation. 3. Dis tr ibuti ng the ap pro priated state funds to local school districts on an equitable and legal basis. 4. Fos tering and improving local programs. 5. Es ta blis hi ng standards for eligibility of children for special classes or services, teacher certification, and quality of ed u­ cation. 6 . R ec ruiting teachers and cooperating in teacher education. 7. En co ura ging in-service growth of teachers by pro vi din g for state workshops, conferences, and other in-service tra ini ng programs. 8 . Supervising educational programs in residential schools for the mentally retarded, blind and deaf. 9. M a i n t aini ng interagency relationships. 10. Preparing publications in a wide variety of areas for the guidance of local school systems. 11. Selecti ng and directi ng a corps of specialized assistants for the various programs of ex ­ ceptional children. 15 Samuel A. Kirk, Educ ati ng Except io nal Children (Boston: Hou gh ton M i f fl in Co., 1962), p. 369. 9 12. En co ur a g i n g and sponsoring research on p r o ­ blems in the education of exceptional children. The involvement of the state in the stimulation and control of special education programs results in a c o m ­ plexity of administr ati ve activity at the intermediate and local school district levels. Local School District L e v e l .— Local school districts, as the operati ng unit, are highly involved in the admi ni s­ tration of special education programs. Ther e is, however, a var ia tion in the offering of educational opportunity for the handicapp ed among local school districts. A recent study of school finance and educational opportunity in M ic hi gan uti lized the criteria of programs offered for mentally and physically handicapped children as a factor in judging educational op po rtunit y. 1^ In every Instance it was found that as the size of the district increases the likelihood of having these programs increases as well. Similar relationships were found between geographical regions and the availability of programs for the h a n d i ­ capped, with the more densely populated areas providi ng a larger numbe r of special education programs. Local school districts throughout the nation have consolidated Into larger units which provide a more sub­ stantial financial and pupil populat ion base for school ■^J. Alan Thomas, "School Finance and Educational Opportunity in Michigan," Michigan School Finance Study (Lansing, Michigan: M i ch ig an Department of Education, 1968), p. 33. 10 programs. One result of consolidation Is the con c e n ­ tration of individual districts, m a ki ng it possible to develop more appropriate special educational programs for ha ndi capped children. This trend toward con so li ­ dation in Mich ig an has resulted in a reduction of the number of school districts from 2,854 in 1956-57 to 7^3 in 1 9 6 6 - 6 7 .17 The special education pro gr am in M i ch ig an included 4,623 state approved special educati on teachers in the 1967-68 school year. X8 This repres ent ed 3,071 special education classr oom teachers and 1,652 special service personnel (school social workers, or psychologists school diagnosticians and speech correctioriists) and il lu ­ strates the large number of pro fessional personnel in special education in one state. The Need for Special Educ ati on Coo rdination and Leadership The expanded federal, state and local special ed u­ cation programs have undoubtedly been a maj or factor in predicting an increased awareness of the need for app r o ­ priate special education leadership at the state and local levels. 17 I b i d ., p. 304. 18 Letter, Jane Walline to Gail Harris, July 2, 1968, Mic h ig an Department of Education, Lansing, Michigan. 11 The United States Office of E d uc at ion officially recognized the need for directors of special education, interpreting Public Law 85 -926 in 1966 to include p r o ­ gram development grants and scholarship provisions for persons preparing to become special educati on a d m i n i s ­ tr a t o r s . 1 ^ In the 1968 fiscal year, a total of fifteen special education administration program development grants had been awarded to universities. 20 One example of state rec ognition of the need for a special education director is found in the "Plan to Combat Mental Retard ation in Michigan," 21 which stated: It is desirable that a requirement be est ab­ lished for acqu iring an appropriately trained special education coordinator or supervisor when a certain minimal number of special education pro­ grams exist in a local school district. It is proposed that the Department of E d u ­ cation study local school special education p r o ­ grams in order to determine: at what stage of development in the growth of a special education prog ram a coordinator or supervisor should be hired, what would be an appropriate formula for state and local pa rt ici pation for financial r e ­ imbursement for such a position, what personal, professional, and academic requirements would be desirable criteria for such a position, what rules and regulations would be n e c e s ­ sary in order to create such a position. The Planning Committee proposes State Aid for such a position. ^ u . S. Office of Education, Federal Listin g of Expenditures of Funds, Washington, D. C., 1967. 20 James R. Tompkins, "Program Development Concept," A Richer Future for Handicapped Children (Washington, fT cT i Council for Exc eptional Children, 1968), p. 5^8. “^ M i c h i g a n Department of Mental Health, "Plan to 12 Also, In April of 1966, a M ic higan Senate Ed uca tion Committee Subco mmit tee recommended: 22 There should be reimbursement under the State Aid Act of full-time intermediate and local school district directors and coordinators of special e d u ­ cation and other supervisory and consultant p e r ­ sonnel for special edu ca tio n programs, subject to general rules and regulations establ ished by the Department of Education. The M i ch ig an Legislature, 1966 (Public Act 271), in the State Aid Act of included a pro vi sion for r e i m b u r s e ­ ment for directors and other supervisory and consultant personnel for special ed uca tion programs, and authorized the M ic hi ga n Depart men t of Edu ca ti on to esta bl is h standards for such positions. As a result of this action, Mich ig an reimbursed seventy-two directo rs of special educati on in 1966-67 and eighty-nine and a half in 1 9 6 7 - 6 8 . ^ A copy of the rules and regulations arti culating the M i ch ig an standard is appended to this study Similarly, (see appendix). other states have established standards for the reimbursement of directors of special education. In summary, it is seen that the need for c o o r d i ­ nation and leadership for special edu cational programs Combat Ment al Re tar da ti on in Michigan," Progress R e p o r t , Lansing, Michigan, 1 9 6 6 , p. 6 9 . 22 Mi ch iga n State Senate, "Report on Special E d u ­ cation in Michigan," Lansing, Michigan, 1966. 28 Letter, Jane Wal l in e to Gail Harris, op. clt. 13 has been recognized at all levels. The national go ve r n ­ ment has provided leadership and funds to disseminate to state and local school systems for the purpose of stimu ­ lating the development of special education programs. Ac com panying such financial grants, are control factors which add to the complexity of administration. In add i­ tion, the United States Office of E duca ti on has provided funds to universities to develop prepar at ion programs for special education administrators, and to provide in di ­ vidual grants to such persons. State school systems have set specific standards for the operation of special education programs, thus further adding to the complexity of the admi nis tration of such programs. Logically, therefore, many states now p r o ­ vide reimbursement for local or intermediate school district directors of special education who have specific prepar ati on in the administra tio n of these growing, complex programs. Through the employment of increasing numbers of directors of special education, it is apparent that local school systems have also recognized the increasing need for improved ad mi nis tra tion of special education programs. A General Statement of the Purpose of the Study Ac companyi ng the increased numbers of administrators of special edu cation has been a growing concern regardi ng the appropriate pr epar at io n patterns for this type of 14 position. In a 1967 conference presentation, Dr. Kenneth Blessing stated: 24 Current attenti on is now focusing upon the del in eat io n of the major administra tiv e and su p e r ­ visory functions necessary for the effective op e r ­ ation of special education programs at the state, reg ional or local levels and on the major areas of knowledge necessary to competently carry out these basic functions. These are the current imperatives, and they appear to rate top priority in our d e l i b e r ­ ations in light of the antici pate d impetus and thrust Title Six of the Elemen tary and Secondary Edu ca tio n Act of 1965 will be giving to special ed uca tion across the nation. It is the general purpose of this study to obtain information with regard to the specific nature of the position of dire ctor of special ed uca tion in the belief that this type of data will be of value in the development of better state certificatin g standards and better college and university pre pa ra ti on programs for such personnel. A Specific Statement of the Problem and Purpose of the Study At this time, there has b e e n little research data regarding the specific administrative activities of special education administrators other administrators. in compari son to the activities of Because of the a fo re ment ion ed fac­ tors which create a mu lt i- fa ceted complexity to the ad m i n i s ­ tration of special education programs, 24 and the increasing Kenneth Blessing, "Preparation for State L e a d e r ­ ship Roles," Presentation, Ame rican Associ at io n on Mental Deficiency Conference, March 29, 1967, St. Louis, Missouri. 15 numbers of administrators assigned full-time to such roles, there is an increasing need for the in for ma tio n gained from this investigation. The purpose of this study was to investigate the present role and determine the specific administr ati ve activities of directors of special edu cat ion in Mic higa n through the uti liza ti on of a survey of all such per sonnel who were emp loyed full-time duri ng the 1966-67 school year. Included was in formation regarding: 1. The configura tio n of specific administrative activities typically per for med by special ed u­ cation administrators, and how this varies from other administrators. 2. The variation be tw een the admi nistra tiv e act ivi­ ties of local school directors of special ed u­ cation and intermediate school directors of special education. 3. Which major administra tiv e areas are pe rce ived by the directors and other administr ato rs as being of more importance than others, and which maj or areas consume the most time. . How the academic p r ep ar at ion and previous p r o ­ fessional experience patterns of special e d u ­ cation administrators differ from those of other administrators. 16 5. The number of supervisory personnel assist ing the special educati on administrators, and the types of special education programs they serve. Delimitations of the Study This study is del imited in the following ways: The study was restri cted to the state of Mic h ig an as the most practical meth od of m a ki ng a comprehensive in-depth study of a total group w i thin a defined geo­ graphical area. It may later serve as a compa ris on source for similar studies, uti li zin g special education a d m i n i s ­ trative personnel from other states. The mailed survey meth od of inv estigation was utilized in gathering the study data. Every effort was made to construct the survey form and all individual questions as clearly as possible through a careful refinement of the survey form and through pre -te sting with a representative group. Definitions of Terms For the purposes of this study, the following d e f i n i ­ tions were employed: Special Edu cation D i r e c t o r . A person employed by a local or intermediate school district to per fo rm such duties as the development, organization and ad mi nis tra tion of special edu cation programs; the pla nni ng and conduc ti ng of in-service educati on programs for employees in special 17 education; the development and mai ntenance of continuous evaluative procedures for special educati on programs; the provis ion of liaison with the school staff and the com­ munity; and the pr epa rat ion of reports concerning special education p r o g r a m s . 2 ^ Special Ed uca tion S u p e r v i s o r . A person employed by a local or intermediate school district in a supervisory or consultative capacity for the instructional phases of a specific area or areas of special education. Intermediate School D i s t r i c t . 26 A corporate body, established by state school laws, which encompasses a local school district or districts, fied services to those districts. 27 and provides speci- The intermediate district may also be known as the county school district. Administrative R o l e . General functions concerned with the management of an educational pro gr am or area. For the purposes of this study, the Special Education Ad ministrative Role is inclusive of those specific a d mi ni s­ trative activities with in the ten major administrative areas which are performe d by 50 per cent or more of the 2S Department of Education, "State-Aid for Special Educati on Directors and Supervisors," Mic hi ga n Board of Education, Lansing, Michigan, 1967. 26 I b i d . 27 Mi chi gan State Board of Education, Michigan General School Laws (Lansing, Michigan, 1966). 18 special ed uca tion directors who pa rti cipa ted in this study. Role Depth includes the specific administrative ac ti v i ­ ties p er fo rmed by 75 per cent or more of those in the responding g r o u p s . Adm inistrative A c t i v i t i e s . cerned with the management Specific actions co n­ of an educational prog ram or area. O rg anizat ion of the Study This study is organized into five chapters. Two reviews the related literature; the research procedures; Chapter Chapter Three details Chapter Four presents and sum­ marizes the survey responses; and Chapter Five provides the conclusions, implications and recommendations r e s u l t ­ ing from the investigation. The Importance of the Study This study was the most extensive inv est igation to date of administrative activities with in an entire state, utilizing all full-time special education administrators. Its importance will be felt by its value and assistance to: 1. New directors in defining their roles. 2. Persons preparing to be directors in developing individual preparation patterns. 3. State departments standards of education in setting for the positio n of special edu­ cation director. 19 4. School districts In det er mi ning what admi nis ­ trative activities are typically assigned to the special education director. 5. Superintendents and principals in a better understa ndi ng of the administrative activities typically assigned to their positions and to that of the director of special education. 6. Universities in develop ing a pr epa rat ion pattern for the pos ition of special educat ion director, including appropriate prac ti cu m and internship provisions for those p r epa ri ng to be employed at the federal, state, intermediate or local school level. The study also specifies typical additional special education supervisory personnel who are employed to assist the director. The study may also serve as a comparison base for other states where they do not have special education millage in intermediate districts; such millage having been a special education growth stimulating factor in Michigan, Summary This study was initiated in response to an urgent and timely need to define the specific professional activities of full-time special educati on administrators. 20 With the utilization of a survey which was sent to all full-time special educati on administrators in Michigan, it was possible to analyze these activities in comparison with other school administrative positions. The study presented herein describes the research procedures, analyzes the data and presents conclusions and r e c o m ­ mendations which should be helpful to all school a d m i n i s ­ trators and others who have a pr ofessional relationship to directors of special education, such as state d e p a r t ­ ments of education and universities. CHAPTER II REVI EW OP LITERATURE The literature was reviewed relative to: (a) p r e p a r ­ ation patterns of special education administrators, special education administrative role studies, (b) and (c) general educational administration role studies. At the present time, there is a paucity of literature in the area of special education a d m i n i s t r a t i o n . Pre paration Patterns for Special Educatio n Administrators Van Miller 28 stressed the need for a common b a c k ­ ground in three areas for all administrators: of the task and purpose of education, controls of education and of society, standing of leadershi p— power, communication, (a) a sense (b) the structure and influence, and (c) an u n d e r ­ group processes, and political strategy. Several writers have emphasized that special education information should be included in pre parat io n programs for special education administrators. In 1955, the United States Office of Ed uc ati on reported on a study of 1,625 PR Van Miller, The Public Ad min is tr at ion of American School Systems (New Y o r k : The M a cMill an Co., 1 $ 6 5 ). 21 22 special educators regarding the competencies, experiences, professional p re paration and personal characteristics which con tributed to the success of directors and supervisors of special educati on in local school systems. 29 It was concluded that the special education administrative role required the professional to be cognizant of: (a) the physical, mental and emotional deviations of han d i ­ capped and gifted children; on the family; (c) the specific agencies and community services available; programs (b) the effects of handicaps (d) current trends in educational for exceptional children; and (e) maj or studies about each group of exceptional children. Concern reg ard ing the special education prepa rat ion of administrators was expressed by Mil azzo and B l e s s i n g ^ 0 after 23 per cent of 174 universities surveyed indicated they were offeri ng special edu cat ion administ rat ive and supervisory pre pa ra tion programs with little contact in special education. It was possible for students com­ pleting masters or specialists programs in special edu­ cation adm inis tratio n to have had no special education teaching experience and but one year of training in the 29 U. S. Office of Education, Directors and Supe r­ visors of Special E ducat io n in Local School Systems (Washington, D. C.: U. S. Government Printing O f f i c e , 1955) . ^ T o n y C. Mila zzo and Kenneth R. Blessing, "The Training of Directors of Special Educa ti on Programs," Exceptional C h i l d r e n , Vol. XXXI, No. 3 (1964), 129-141. 23 total field of special education. It was also found that the emphasis in training at the masters level tended to concentrate in one area of exceptionality with little or no training in administration. It was generally con­ cluded that more attention should be given to providing aspirants to leadership positions with a br oade r b a c k ­ ground of academic course work as well as tra ining and internship experience in administration in special edu­ cation. It was further reported that there should be closer cooperation bet ween training institutions, state departments of education and local school systems co nc er n­ ing certification, internships, programs and needs in the total area of adm inistration of special education. Most sources reviewed recommended that the special education ad ministrator be dually prepared in special e d u ­ cation and general education administration. Association of School Administrators stated: The American 31 Educational administrators . . . should be educated in the same core curriculum and program, but with provisions made to have specialized practical experiences and special study in areas designed to give them the specialized competencies peculiar to their job. An exploratory study of ten directors education in I960 by Cli fford E. Howe 32 of special recommended that 31 American Association of School Administrators, Educational Administr ati on in a Changing Community (Washington, D. C., 19^B), p. 185. ^ C l i f f o r d E. Howe, Roles of the Local Special Education Director (Urbana, 1 1 1 . : University of Illinois, I960). 24 graduate tra ining programs for directors of special ed u­ cation should provide some backgr oun d in general education curriculum and administration, but that the majo r emphasis might well be on pr ovidin g comprehensive knowledge of the major ideas and techniques in each area of exceptionality,. Howe specified that such a training program would require a minimum of two years of graduate study. Connor has stated: Special education administrators must be increasingly prepared for and conversant with the body of facts, attitudes and competencies that make up the field of general educational administration. Thus, the commonalities of the educational efforts fundamental to special education and regular educati on should at least equal the emphasis placed upon the specialized techniques, pre par at io n and pride of various ex­ ceptional specialities. . . . Wh ate ver their prior preparation or profe ss ion al commitments, the in­ structional objectives and nature of the educational program for exceptional children take precedence in shaping administrative emphasis and decisions by all who head special education programs. Upon the base of instruction must be built the theory of special education administr atio n which is destined to best meet the needs of exceptional children. . . . Thus, general school administrators who are entering special education must assimilate the complex methods and materials which make schooling for exceptional chil­ dren so specialized. Without the latter type of preparation, general administrators are interlopers in the field of special education; without the former, special educators may be excellent teachers or other professionals, but they are seldom competent admi ni s­ trators . 3O Leo E. Connor, "Preliminaries to a Theory of Administration for Special Education," Except ion al Children, Vol. XXIX, No. 9 (May, 1963). 25 In referring to appropriate preparat ion relative to the role of the special edu cat ion administrator, the Qii Michigan Senate Education Subco mmi ttee report concluded: Much of the special knowledge (of h an di ca pping conditions) which is considered necessary for special education per son nel involved in actual daily contact wi th h a nd ic ap ped children and their parents, appears to also be necessary for the administr ato r of special education. The cumulative implications of the literature is that the academic pre pa ratio n of special education directors should include basic core information in general educational a dm in istr ati on in concert with specialized information re gar ding more than one type of exception alit y and its effects. There are, however, no comprehensive listings of the administrative activities pe rfo rmed by special educati on directors whi ch would specifically p r e ­ dicate the necessity of these required competencies. Special Educ ation Ad ministr ati on Role Studies It Is generally agreed that the duties and r e s p o n s i ­ bilities of special educati on directors vary greatly. In a prese nta tion at a conference of the Council for Excep tio nal Children, Dean Fogle, 3^ 35 35 indicat ed a few factors which Mi ch iga n State Senate, o p . c l t . , pp. VII-B-1. Dean Fogle, "Preparation of Adm inistrators and Supervisors in Special E d u c a t i o n — the View from School Administration" (presentation at Council for Exc eptional Children Conference, St. Louis, Missouri, March 29, 1967). 26 contribute to the variati on of the responsibilities and duties of special educati on administrators. They in­ cluded : 1. The philosophy of the program. 2. The size of the program. 3. The density of area population. 4. The scope of the program. 5. The economic factors of the community. 6. The availability of supportive personnel. 7. The previous training and experience of the administrator. 8. The state rules and regulations. Leo Connor concurred: "An analysis of the duties of leaders of special education programs will reveal a diversity of time devoted to each of them." However, he did indicate eight main function categories which appear to be common to all school administrators. gories were: and buildings, These cate­ planni ng and evaluation, personnel, business auxiliary services, coordination and direction, information and advice, ins truction and organization. There have been a few studies withi n the last fifteen years which have indicated the broad administrative roles of directors of special education. States Office of Educ ati on Programs 37 In 1955, the United study report concluded that Leo Connor, Adm in istratio n of Special Education (New York: Teachers College, l£6l), p. T T . 37U. S. Office of Education, op. clt. 27 the functions of adm inistration and supervision each con­ sumed approximately one-thir d of the time of local dir ec ­ tors and supervisors. The remaining third was divided almost evenly among the functions of in-service e d u ­ cation, professional study and research, public relations, and direct services to exceptional children. Directors and supervisors ranked the relative importance of thirtysix areas of competency as related to their role. The major area of competency indicated was the ability to give leadership in directing and carrying on a special education program in keeping with community needs and resources. qO Clifford Howe reported wide differences among the directors included in his study, both as to how they p e r ­ ceived their jobs and as to the duties they performed. He classified them roughly into two groups, according to their attitudes regarding their positions. The first group felt there was nothing unique which would d i ff er en­ tiate their functions trator. from those of a regular a d m i n i s ­ The second group believed that the unique r e ­ quirement was something whi c h could probably best be labeled "content competency in various areas of special education." with the most He found in general, that those individuals comprehensive backgr ou nd in special ed u­ cation, both by virtue of tra ining and experience, were OQ H o w e , op. cit. 28 the ones who geared their work as directors to staff development and improvement of the quality of instruction within their system. Others, who had minimal training, seemed to confine themselves primarily to administrative details and to quantitative expansion of services. The preparatio n and work pe rfo rmed by sixty-four directors and twenty-four supervisors of special edu­ cation in the Great Lakes by Ellyn G. Lauber. ' five state region was reviewed She uti lized the survey method, with the survey items for the main part dup licating the items included in the 1955 study report by the United States Office of Education. She found a great gap b e ­ tween pro fessional prepar at io n and the work performed by special education directors and supervisors. Dr. Lauber stressed the need for further research as to needed special education administrative personnel and the re ­ sponsibilities and roles of such personnel. A work publish ed by the Council for Exceptional Children 40 recently stated: The responsibilities of the administrator of special edu cation will vary with the size and ^ E l l y n G. Lauber, "Special Edu ca ti on Ad m i n i s ­ tration and Supervisory Personnel in Selected States" (unpublished Ph.D. dissertation, Ohio State University, 1962) . 4o Council for Exc eptional Children, Professional Standards for Personnel in the E duc ation of Exceptional Children (Washington, D. C .: Council for Exceptional Children, 1966). 29 type of program. In some cases, the administra tor may have total res ponsibility for the a d m i n i s ­ tration and supervision of all special education. In others, he may be responsible for the a d m i n i s ­ tration of special education, but may delegate all or part of the res ponsibilities for su pe r­ vision. The same p ubl ication concluded that there are fifteen major competency areas necessary for special education administration. They are: 1. Under stan din g of total education process. 2. Knowledge of school org an ization and a d m i n i s ­ trative practices. 3. Knowledge of various admi nist rat ive provisions. 4. Knowledge of fiscal procedures. 5. Knowledge of curriculum development and methodology. 6. Knowledge of supervisory practices and techniques 7. Knowledge and theory of staff development. of psycho-educa tio nal and other diagnostic procedures. 8. Knowledge of personnel practices. 9. Knowledge and u ti lization of community org an ­ izations and resources. 10. Ability to identify, define, and influence the power structure both with in and outside e d u ­ cation. 11. Knowledge of public relations. 30 12. Knowledge of school law and legislative p r o ­ cesses and their implementation. 13. Knowledge of school plant planning and utilization. 14. Knowledge of research techniques and p r o ­ cedures , and 15. Knowledge of professional responsibilities to the field. Two studies researched problems encountered by directors of special education, and thus have been in­ cluded in this revi ew as related to the role of special education administrators. Richard J. Kothera in request ed eleven directors of special education in Kansas to re ­ cord graphically or orally all the problems they dealt with in special education during four separate periods of one week each. A total of 815 problems were collected, compiled and fitted to the competencies as described in the United States Office 1955 report and to the ten major special education administrative problems as developed by the Wi sla nd -V au ghan study. 1)2 The purpose of K o t h e r a ’s l)i Richard J. Kothera, "A Criterion and Set of Reality Based Problems for Simulation in Special E d u ­ cation Administration" (unpublished Ph.D. dissertation, University of Kansas, 1967). lip Milton V. Wisland and Tony D. Vaughan, "Ad min is­ trative Problems in Special Education," Exceptional C h i l d r e n , Vol. XXXI, No. 2 (1964), 87-89. 31 study was to est ablish 100 reality based problems In major categories for si mu lat ion in special education administration preparation. Maj or categories under whi ch problems were listed were: inter-staff relations, placement procedures, sultant to generalists, d eve loping ind ividualized p r o ­ grams, tra nsp ortation problems, and coordination, con­ curriculum construction inter-district relationships, budget and finance, policy formation, public relations, pupil identification and evaluation, pupil discipline, research, classroom and pro gr am supply, recruitment, parent coun se l­ ing, general p r ogram development, in-service training and no category. In a study of 263 special educatio n administrators, Wisland and V a u gh an 43 developed a list of the ten most significant problems encountered by special education administrators. They were: obtaining adequately p r e ­ pared personnel, adequately pro vi di ng for the multiply handicapped, helping parents understand their children, adequately provid in g for all types of exceptionality, having adequate time for res earch activities, parents, developing various curriculas, counseling Initiating new programs and services to expand existing programs, ob­ taining adequate facilities and initiating n e w .p r o g r a m s . 32 In summary, a review of the literature regarding special educ ation adminis tra tive roles reveals general agreement that the role of directors varies greatly. Certain factors have been pre sented which might account for some of the variation. A few studies wit h in the past fifteen years have generally indicated the role of d i r e c ­ tors of special education. However, there are no c om p r e ­ hensive studies of the specific adm inistrative activities of this group of administrators. General Ad mi nist ra ti on Role Studies In May of 1967, W i l l i a m Southw ort h MU stated: Constant change and increased w o rk lo ad are the lot of the superintendent. . . . Moreover, demands on the superintendent's time are incr eas­ ing, in part because there is no real job d e ­ scription for the position, and no universally accepted limits to the demands that can be placed on him. Thus, the lack of a specific job de scr ip tio n is ind i­ cated also in other areas of administration. However, there is much more literature regarding the role of general education administrators than there is reg ard ing special education administration. It is widely accepted that the maj or function of educational adm in is tr at ion is to provide the best possible ^ W i l l i a m Southworth, "The Superintendency: A Position in Flux," School Board Journal (May, 1 9 6 7 ). 33 pr og ra m of instruction for children and youth. functions whi ch contribute end have been indicated, planning, organizing, 45 ^ Other to the achievement of this and include: communicating, 46 decision making, influencing, coor di­ nating and evaluating. J47 Wil liam J, Early conducted a survey study of sixty administrators enrolled in a Mich iga n State U n i ­ versity educational administr ati on externship course to evaluate the course and suggest areas for improvement. The externs responded wit h activity areas which indicate a high degree of involvement. Pro viding for instructional leadership was the single activity which received the highest point value for the specific activity experienced, as well as for the effect of the experience by all externs. The study Indicated that the general area of staff r e ­ lations yielded the highest percentage of experiences for all externs. was The area of curriculum and instruction of the greatest value to the extern whose professional position encompassed the responsibilities of a specific 45 John A. Ham seyer et a l ., "Factors Affecting E d u ­ cational Adm in istration," School-Community Development Study (Columbus, Ohio: The Ohio State University Press. T^5T, pp. 74-76. 46 Russell T. Gregg, "The Administrative Process," Administrative Beha vi or in E d u c a t i o n , Russell Gregg and Roald Campbell (editors) (New York: Harper and Brothers, 1957). 47 Wil li am J. Early, "An Evalua tion and Analysis of the Extern Program in Edu cational Ad mi nis trat ion at Michigan State University" (unpublished Ph.D. dissertation, Michigan State University, 1963 ). building or educational program, and the area of pupilpersonnel guidance had the greatest effect upon this extern. For externs with district-wide responsibilities the area of school board relations had both the greatest value and effect. Current literature emphasizes the leadership and integrative nature of educational administration. 48 Miller argued that administration is first and foremost communication. Morphet 49 expanded on the need to make an art of the process of mobilizing resources to work through problems, stating that the ad ministrator must work eff ectively wi t h the staff, the board of education, citizens committees, the representatives of the mass media of communication, and with the representatives the various power groups in the society. of Ac cordin g to Morphet, the administr ator must be able to assist these groups in develop ing a program that will lead to the fuller achievement of the goals of education; he must enlist, energize, in short, facilitate, but not dominate. School administrative roles have thus been broadly defined by several writers. E a r l y ’s study 50 attempted to 48 Van Miller, The Public Adm ini stration of American School Systems (New Y o r k : The Mac Mil lan Co., 19&5), PP. ^73-5. 49 Edgar L. Morphet, Roe L. Johns, and Theodore L. Reller, Educational Administration (Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey! tr'entice-Hall, Inc., 1959), p. 150. 50 Early, op. cit. 35 define more precisely the adm inistrative activities of educational administrators. Implications from the Literature for Need ed Research The literature indicates that special edu cation administrators should receive academic prepar at io n in both special educatio n and general educational a d mi ni s­ tration. A few role studies have been acc omplished regard ing special educati on administration, and several writers have pr esente d infor mat ion regardi ng the co m­ petencies required for general educational administration. Yet there is no comprehensive specific listing of the administrative activities typically per fo rm ed by special education administrators. This study meets a distinct need in special education adm ini st ra ti on research, by providing: 1. An examination of all currently employed full­ time directors of special education in a total state, for the purpose of determ ini ng specific administ rat ive activities. 2. A comparison of the administrative activities of special education directors with those of superintendents and principals employed in the same school systems. 3. A de te rmin ati on of the administrative activities which special education administrators have primary res ponsibility for effectuating. . A definit ion of the number and variety of p r o ­ fessional persons supervised by special e d u ­ cation administrators. 5. A specification of the supervisory positions which typically assist the director of special education. 6. A comparison of the administrative activities of directors of special education at the local level with those of the director of special education at the intermediate level. 7. A comparison of the administrative activities of directors of special education in larger districts with those in smaller districts. In addition, this study indicates other areas of special education admi nistrati on which require further research. The total study makes an important contributi to the field of special education administration. CHAPTER III METHODS AND PROCEDURES The Study Population In order to properly investigate the areas of con­ cern, the study populat ion was selected to include all full-time directors of special education in the state of Mic hig an who were employed in the public schools during the 1966-67 school year. In addition, other administrative personnel were selected from the school systems these special education directors served by for the purpose of com­ paring differences in administrative roles and isolating those activities which appeared to make up the expected duties of a director o' special education. The a d mini s­ trative positions selec ed for comparison with the position of director of special education were those of the superin­ tendent and principal. Although it was recognized that other types of administrative positions exist in most school systems, the positions of superintendent and p r in ci ­ pal were selected as being the most consistent in their defined roles and therefore the most appropriate for com­ parison purposes. level, At the intermediate school district the comparison position was limited to that of 37 38 the superintendent due to the fact that the pos iti on of principal does not occur at that level. In selecting the partic ul ar pr incipa l for the study from each local district, the deci si on was made to consistently survey the elementary and secondary princip al hav ing the largest number of staff in the district. The total po pul ation selected for study is shown in Table 1. TABLE 1. — The study population. Group Number Intermediate school district directors of special ed ucat ion 26 Intermediate superintendents of schools 26 Local school district directors of special education 55 Local school district of schools 55 superintendents Local school district elementary principals 55 Local school district principals 55 secondary Meth od of Collect ing the Data The method of collecting the data uti lized a mailed questionnaire to each of the individuals in the study population. The names of the local and intermediate district directors of special education were obtained 39 from a mai li ng list of such persons developed by the Mic hig an Department of Education. The names of the p e r ­ sons in the four other administrative positions were obtained from the Mich igan Ed uc atio n Directory. Develop ing the Survey Form When this study was initiated, it was the theory of the writer that while the administrative activities of directors of special education were deemed by previous writers (indicated in Chapter II) to vary greatly, it would be possible, through careful investigation, to identify a specific group of such activities which ty p i ­ cally are performed by these administrators. Furthermore, it was felt that certain identifiable factors might account for the variation of administrative activities among the directors of special education. factors which might be responsible The for the variati on would include those descriptive of the program to be ad m i n i s ­ tered, including age, size, the program. location and composition of The other factors to be studied related directly to the special education administrator, including his previous profe ss ion al experience and academic p r e p a r ­ ation . In order to define the administrative activities of directors of special education, it was decided to include 37 'Mi chi ga n Edu cation Directory and Buyers G u i d e , 1966-67 (Lansing, Michigan: Mic hi gan Educ at io n A s s o c i ­ ation Directory, 1967). 40 in this survey study a broad and general check list of known administrative activities in education with an additional category labeled "Other" for the respondents to write in any omitted areas. In develo pin g the survey, various materials were reviewed which listed administrative activities in education rjfi >->*> 40 and consultation occurred with university personnel in the Mic higa n State University College of Education. Of the various a d m i n i s ­ trative activity lists, the mat erial developed by Early (see appendix) appeared to be the most inclusive. Dr. Early had reviewed several listings of administrative activities in the process of developing his final doc u­ ment. This listing was therefore selected as the basis for the development of the administrative activity items utilized in this study. reviewed, Early's listing was carefully some items omitted, and other items were ad­ justed to more clearly develop the purpose of this study. Several items were added as a result of consultation with university personnel and other profe ssi onal colleagues, the writer's experience and the review of the literature. The items which were added to Early's listing of administrative activities were as follows: *3 Q Council for Exceptional Children, 39 40 U. S. Office of Education, Early, op. cit. op. op. cit. cit. Area Item Curriculum and Instruction Writ in g articles for p r o ­ fessional journals. Initiating new programs. Keeping aware of state school laws. Personnel Adminis tra tion Recommend in g tenure a p poi nt ­ ments . Finance Requesti ng and administering federal f u n d s . Business Management & Practices A rr an ging to serve n o n ­ resident pupils. School Plant De te rm ining plant utiliz ati on for non -educational p u r ­ poses . De te rm ining re modeling needs of school facilities. De t e r mi ni ng physical location of classes. Auxiliary Services Supervis in g or coordinating school diagnostician program. Supervisin g or coordinating school nurse program. Supervisin g or coordinating school social worker program. S up er vising or coordinating speech correction program. Pupil-Personnel Guidance Counseling of students and parents. Community Relations Making speeches at state and national conferences. Arranging student teaching and internship experiences with universities. Meeting with legislators regarding school issues. Developi ng cooperative agreements bet ween school districts for programs. 42 Area Item Staff Relations Repres ent ing school board in profe ssi onal n e g o t i ­ ations wit h teachers. Int erpreting specialized educational programs to other educators. Thus, twenty items were added to the rev ision of Early's listing of administrative activities. Further refinement of the survey form occurred after a pre-test was administered to seven persons, one in each of the six groups studied, plus an additional intermediate director of special education. These refinements in­ cluded r ear ranging the order of survey form sections, clarifying the language in a few instances, and changing the numerical significance in the rank order areas ”0" rep resented "least" rather than "most." so that No additional items were added to the listing of pos sible administrative activities as a result of the pre-test. The data pr ocessing section of the Mic h i g a n D e pa rt­ ment of Edu ca ti on provided many valuable suggestions in the development of the final survey form reg ardi ng app r o ­ priate styling of the form for ease of tabulation and summarization of the information through data pr ocessi ng techniques. The final survey form (see appendix) consisted of three parts: 1. Inf ormation re gar ding the r e s p o n d e n t — including professional experiences, academic preparation, 43 age, sex, salary and other relevant factors, was obtained in order to describe and compare the administrators in each of the six groups. A check list of adm inistrative activities for the purpose of specifying the constellation of administrative activities per fo rme d by each of the groups studied. This section was divided into ten major adm inistrative areas. These ten major areas were further divided into specific administrative activities. There was a total of 113 specific adm inistrative a c t i v i ­ ties listed. The ten major areas, number of specific items under each, and an example of a specific administrative activity are: Maj or Area Number of Specific Activities Example Curriculum & Instruc­ tion 15 Developi ng curricu lum for total school or specialized area Personnel Adminis­ tration 12 Preparing criteria for p e r ­ sonnel selection Finance 12 Preparing a budget Business Management & Practice 10 D ev el oping a systematic con­ trol of records and funds School Plant 15 Selecting a school architect Auxiliary Services 12 Evaluati ng transport ati on needs 44 Number of Specific Activities Maj or Area Example Planning and evaluating a guidance and testing prog ram PupilPersonnel Guidance Community Relations 14 Staff Relations 9 Arranging for and/or co n­ ducting staff meetings School Board Relations 8 Re com mendin g items for the school board agenda 3. Organizing lay and p r o f e s ­ sional groups for p a r t i c i ­ pation in educational planning and other e d u c a ­ tional activities. Information regarding the school d i s t r i c t — including questions about the population size of the district, scope and age of the special education program, and tenure of a special educati on director in the p a r t i c u l a r .district The purpose of this section was to provide a basis for comparisons of administrative activities in light of the school district variations specified above. Collect ion of the Data After the refinement of the pre-test, consultation with the doctoral committee chairman, project director and the data pr oc ess ing consultants, the finalized survey form was sent to the study populat ion in late June of 1967. A cover letter (see appendix) requested the com­ pleted survey forms to be returned within ten days. 45 Pour weeks later, follow-up letters and phone calls were directed to those individuals who had not yet r e ­ turned the survey form. The group of intermediate school district directors of special education returned the forms more promptly and in a higher percentage other groups, (100 per cent) followed by the local school district directors of special education. pals, than any of the The elementary p r i n c i ­ followed by the secondary principals, forms later than the others. returned the This is probably due to the fact that most elementary principals are typically e m ­ ployed on a shorter yearly contract than the other a d m i n i s ­ trators studied. Perhaps the faster return, in higher percentages, by both groups of directors of special ed u­ cation also indicated a greater degree of interest in the results of this study, since it applies more directly to them. In order to obtain a clearer picture of the specific administrative activities of directors of special education, it was important to Include only administrators who were assigned full-time to such a role, and whose survey r e ­ sponses would not include those activities which were necessitated by additional role assignments. The survey form requested them to check their full-time position. When the survey forms were returned, the responses of four local school district directors of special 46 education indicated they were not assigned full-time to that role, but were specifically assigned other r e ­ sponsibilities as well withi n the school system. In order to main ta in the invest igation procedure as de ­ scribed, all forms from these four districts were di s­ carded. Thus, a total of sixteen from the original study population were deleted, leaving a re vised total survey populat ion of 272 administrators. All twenty-six or 100 per cent of the intermediate school district directors of special education returned the completed survey forms. Ninety-three per cent or fifty-one of the local school district directors of special education responded. The returned responses of the four other administrative groups ranged from 49 to 69 per cent. The investigation po pul ati on was judged to be adequate, especially for the two groups of d i r e c ­ tors of special education. CHAPTER IV ANALYSI S OF INFORMATION Inform ati on Regarding the Subjects The 182 returned surveys represented the groups and numbers as indicated in Table 2. The response from the total populatio n sample of 272 rep resented 100 per cent of the intermediate district directors of special education; 93 per cent of the local school directors of special education; and other response percentages ranging from 49 to 69 per cent. Males rep resented 89 per cent of the total respondents, with only 11 per cent females (see Table 3). The groups with the highest percentage of females were the local directors of special educati on mentary principals (20 per cent) and the e l e ­ (19 per cent). There were no female local superintendents in the study po pu lat ion and only one female intermediate superintendent. Since the female constituency of the total study population was so small, it was not considered advisable to make comparisons of any administrative groups by sex differences. 47 TABLE 2.— The number and percentage of returned survey forms from the six administrative groups. Group 5 Total Name of Group Number of Surveys Sent Number of Surveys Returned Per Cent Returned Intermediate District Directors of Special Education 26 26 100 Intermediate District Sup eri n­ tendents 26 18 69 Local School Directors of Special Education 55 51 93 Local School Superintendents 55 29 53 Local District Elementary Principals 55 27 56 Local District Secondary Principals 55 31 **9 272 182 Six Groups Average Sl% 49 TABLE 3.— De scr ip tio n of respondents by sex. Group Males Total Number No. Females % No. % Intermediate Directors of Special E d u ­ cation 26 23 88 3 12 Intermediate Superinten­ dents 18 17 94 1 6 Local Directors of Special Education 51 41 80 10 20 Local Superin­ tendents 29' 29 100 0 0 Elementary Principals 27 22 81 5 19 Secondary Principals 31 29 93 2 7 182 161 Total While most 8 9% 21 1135 (87 per cent) of the administrators were over thirty- six years of age and primarily in the thirty-; forty-five year age range, the highest percentage (31 per cent) of administrators under thirty-six years of age were intermediate directors of special education. In contrast, all but one of the intermediate superintendents were over fifty years of age (see Table 4). TABLE 4.— Description of respondents by age groups. Group Total Number No. % Intermediate Directors of Special Education 26 Intermediate Superintendents 18 0 0 Local Directors of Special Education 51 8 15 Local Superintendents 29 Elementary Principals 27 Secondary Principals 31 182 Total 116-50 36-115 Below 36 31 No. No. 13 Over 50 No. 50 3 11 6 0 0 17 94 25 119 9 18 9 18 3 7 2H 2 7 19 66 22 9 33 3 11 9 3n 0 0 1H 45 9 29 8 26 23 13 69 38 25 65 35 51 Only one administ rat or was under thirty years old. (an intermediate director) No intermediate sup eri n­ tendents or secondary principals checked the below thirtysix year age category. The largest percentage of admi ni s­ trators in this category were intermediate directors of special education principals (31 per cent), followed by elementary (22 per cent) and local directors of special education (15 pe r cent). The salary range for each of the groups studied was varied, with the exception of local superintendents. local superintendents received over $16,000. All The salary was over $13,000 for a ma jor ity of each of the other groups in the study po pul ation More intermediate (45 per cent) (see Table 5). (total of 54 per cent) and local directors of special education reported a salary range of $13,000 to $15,999 than any other range. The total salary range reported by local directors was more inclusive of the possible responses than that of the intermediate directors. No intermediate director checked the $5,000 to $9,999 salary range, while 4 per cent of the local directors checked this category. Only one other group in the study checked the $5,000 to $9,999 minimum salary range category, with one secondary p r in ci­ pal, representing 3 per cent. age (14 per cent) directors However, a higher p e r c e n t ­ of local directors than intermediate (11 per cent) salary over $ 1 6 ,0 0 0 . of special education reported a TABLE 5-— Descri ption of respondents by salary range Group Intermediate Directors of Special Education Total Number $10,000 to $12,999 $ 5,000 to $9,999 No. % No. 26 % 35 $13,000 to $15,999 No. % 14 5 1* Over $16,000 No. % No Response No. % 11 VJ1 ro Intermediate Superintendents 18 Local Directors of Special Education 51 Local S u per­ intendents 29 Elementary Principals 27 0 Secondary Principals 31 1 182 3 Total 17 19 0 3 1 37 50 27 23 45 7 14 29 100 12 44 14 52 4 13 15 50 10 32 1 2 47 24 71 38 59 35 2 2 53 Comparisons were made regarding the salary range of intermediate and local directors according to school districts with more or less than 15,000 pupils. Local and intermediate directors in smaller districts typically received less salary than the directors tricts in larger d i s ­ (see Table 6). A salary in the range of $10,000 to $12,999 was reported by 50 per cent of the local directors and 83 per cent of the intermediate directors of special e d u ­ cation in districts with less than 15,000 pupil m e m b e r ­ ship. A maj ority (65 per cent) of both groups of directors in districts with more than 15,000 pupil membership r e ­ ported a salary in the $13,000 to $15,999 range. The local directors (6 per cent) of special e d u ­ cation in districts with less than 15,000 pupil membership were the only directors who reported a salary in the $5,000 to $9,999 range. The academic backgrounds reviewed. of the six groups were Information was obtained regarding highest degrees held (with comparisons of directors in large and small districts), teaching certificates held, undergraduate and graduate majors, and the special education preparation of directors of special education (with comparisons directors in large and small districts) through 13). (see Tables of 7 TABLE 6.— Salary range variations of directors of special education according to size of district (more or less than 15,000 pupils). Districts Total Number $10,000 $5,000 to $9,999 to $12,999 No, No. $13,000 to $15,999 No Over $16,000 No. Local Under 15,000 34 2 6 17 50 12 35 3 9 Over 15,000 17 0 0 2 12 11 65 4 23 6 0 0 5 83 1 17 0 0 20 0 0 4 20 13 65 3 15 Intermediate Under 15,000 Over 15,000 55 The highest degree held by most administrators was at the m a s t e r ’s level. of doctorates The group with the largest number (4l per cent) was the local superintendents. All administrators had completed academic requirements beyond the baccalaur eat e level. The least variation in highest degree held was reported by intermediate s u pe ri n­ tendents and elementary principals, with almost all r e ­ spondents having the master's degree. The highest degrees held by local and intermediate directors were very similar. All directors held degrees higher than the baccalaureate level. Most directors (77 per cent intermediate and 78 pe r cent local) reported the master's degree as the highest degree held. However, 15 per cent of the intermediate and 16 per cent of the local directors held degrees at the doctorate level. In comparing the highest degrees held by local and intermediate directors according to the size of the dis­ trict (more or less than 15,000), local (33 per cent compared to 6 per cent) mediate directors it was found that more (20 per cent compared to 0 per cent) the larger districts have doctorate degrees A higher percentage of local intermediate and in t e r ­ (100 per cent) in (see Table 8). (85 per cent) and directors of special e d u ­ cation in districts with less than 15,000 pupil m e m b e r ­ ship reported the master's degree as the highest degree held, while the directors in larger districts held higher TABLE 7.— Description of respondents by highest degrees held. Highest Degree Held Group Total Number No. Education Specialist MA BA % No. % No. % Doctorate No. % Intermediate Directors of Special Education 26 20 77 Intermediate Superintendents 18 16 89 Local Directors of Special Education 51 0 0 40 78 8 16 Local Superintendents 29 0 0 16 55 12 41 Elementary Principals 27 0 0 26 96 Secondary Principals 31 0 0 26 84 4 13 1 3 182 0 0 144 80 11 6 27 14 Total 4 1 15 5.5 5.5 0 TABLE 8.— Variations in highest degree held by directors to size of district (more or less than 15,000 pupils). Group BA Number of special education according MA No. % No. ® d u c ft ^?n bpeciaiist % No. % Doctorate No. % Local Directors Under 15,000 33 0 0 28 85 3 9 2 6 Over 15,000 18 0 0 12 67 0 0 6 33 6 0 0 6 100 0 0 0 0 20 0 0 14 70 2 10 4 20 77 0 0 .60 78 5 7 12 15 Intermediate Directors Under 15,000 Over 15,000 Total 58 percentages directors of degrees beyond the m a s t e r ’s level 33 per cent compared to 15 per cent; mediate directors (local inter­ 30 per cent compared to 0 per cent). Only two groups contained any administrators who did not possess a tea ching certificate: per c e n t ) and two intermediate special education. (8 per cent) directors of for which a teaching certificate is not always required (63 per cent) (see Table 9). Not elementary principals held elementary teaching certificates and most cent) (4 This is probably because some were formerly school diagnosticians surprisingly, most two local (74 per secondary principals held secondary teaching certificates. Most (83 per cent) intermediate sup er in ­ tendents possessed a life teachin g certificate. More (58 per cent) of the intermediate directors of special education held secondary rather than elementary cent) certificates. More (43 per cent) (26 per of the local directors of special education held elementary rather than secondary (37 per cent) certificates. The range of certificates held by local directors of special education was greater than the range indicated by intermediate di r e c t o r s . Undergraduate majors in secondary education were more prevalent education for intermediate directors of special (40 per cent), intermediate superintendents (79 per cent), local superintendents (73 per cent) and TABLE 9.— Description of respondents by teaching certificates held. Group Total Number No Certificate Special or Life Elementary No. % No. % No. % Secondary No. % Intermediate Directors of Special Education 26 2 8 2 8 7 26 15 58 Intermediate Superintendents 18 0 0 15 83 0 0 3 17 Local Directors of Special Education 51 2 4 8 16 22 43 19 37 Local Superintendents 29 0 0 16 55 5 17 8 28 Elementary Principals 27 0 0 8 30 17 63 2 7 Secondary Principals 31 0 0 8 26 0 0 23 74 182 4 Total Average % 57 2 70 51 36 25 37 60 secondary principals (8l per cent), groups included in this study. or four of the six The greatest variation in unde rgraduate majors was indicated by local directors of special education. Most (6l per cent) elementary principals m a jo re d in elementary education at the u n d e r ­ graduate level as shown in Table 10. Three of the four intermediate directors of special education who rep orted undergraduate majors other than education majors specified the area of psychology, while the fourth rep orted an undergraduate major in marketing. This represented 12 per cent of the administrative group, while a total of 28 per cent of the local directors of special educati on reported undergraduate majors not in the college of education. However, this occurred where they reported more than one major, college of education. including one in the The other undergraduate major of local directors of special education was most typically in psychology or social studies. Ad minist rat ion was the graduate majo r for 51 per cent of the respondents, with the majority (from 68 per cent to 83 per cent) of all groups except directors of special education indicat ing this as their graduate major. (47 per cent) and intermediate Local (53 per cent) directors of special education tended to major in special education at the graduate level (see Table 11). TABLE 10 .— Description of respondents by their undergraduate majors. Undergraduate Majors Group ^ Total Number In Group Elementary Education Maj ors No. % Special Edu cation No. % cL Secondary Education No. % No. Intermediate Directors of Special Education 26 33 5 15 11 33 13 40 Intermediate Superintendents 18 19 3 16 1 5 15 79 . Local Directors of Special Education 51 60 10 17 17 28 16 Local Superintendents 29 34 6 18 0 0 Elementary Principals 27 28- 17 61 1 Secondary Principals 31 31 2 6 182 205 43 21 Total cL Some responses indicated more than one major. % 4 12 0 0 27 17 28 25 73 3 9 4 6 21 4 14 1 3 25 81 3 10 31 15 100 49 31 15 TABLE 11.— Description of respondents by their graduate majors. Total Number Elementary Education cL Special Ed uca tion Secondary Education Administration No. No. Q ., e Group In Group Majors No. % No. Intermediate Directors of Special Education 26 36 0 0 19 53 Intermediate Superintendents 18 18 0 0 0 0 Local Directors of Special Education 51 64 30 47 Local Superintendents 29 37 0 Elementary Principals 27 31 6 Secondary Principals 31 ■ 36 0 0 0 0 7 19 27 75 2 6 182 222 10 5 51 23 20 9 114 51 27 12 Total cl 2 5 % 8 22 11 15 83 7 18 13.5 19 Some responses indicated more than one major. % No. % 8 22 28 10 15 25 68 5 21 68 13.5 63 It is apparent that specialization in their a d mi ni s­ trative area began at the undergraduate level for all groups in this study except administrators of special education, who tended to emphasize special education at the graduate level. Undergraduate special education majors were held by 33 per cent of the intermediate directors of special education, but 53 per cent of this group held graduate special education majors (some had majored in special education at both undergraduate and graduate levels). directors This same pattern exists for local of special education, with 28 per cent r e port­ ing undergraduate special education majors, compared to 47 per cent indicating graduate special educati on m a j o r s . The relatively recent growth of special educati on may account for the later pre par at io n in the basic area of education to be administered. The "other" graduate majors reported by intermediate directors of special education were typically guidance and counseling, and for local directors of special education, the "other" majors were typically psychology. The literature 41 presents a need for directors of special education to be academically prepared in more than one special education area in addition to a d mi ni s­ tration. 4l Table 12 indicates the areas of special U. S. Office of Education, "Directors and S u p e r ­ visors of Special Educati on in Local School Systems," op. cit. 64 TABLE 12.— Areas of special ed ucat ion prepar ati on for which directors of special edu ca tion are eligible for state temporary ap pr o v a l . & Local Directors (Total-51) Special E duca ti on Area Intermediate Directors (Total-26) No % No. Blind 3 6 3 12 Deaf 4 8 3 12 Orthopedically Handicapped 6 12 2 8 Mentally Handicapped 26 51 13 50 Emotionally Disturbed 11 22 5 19 School Social Work 6 12 4 15 School Diagnostician (Psychology) 18 35 10 38 Speech Correction 11 22 5 19 aSome are pr epa red in more cation area. % than one special edu- education p rep ar at io n of directors of special education. The highest percentages of local mediate (51 per cent) and int er­ (50 per cent) directors were prepared in the area of the men tally handicapped, cian prepara tio n followed by school d i a g n o s t i ­ (35 per cent and 38 per cent respectively). 65 The lowest per cent (9 per cent) of directors of special education are those who were pre pared in the area of the blind. Local directors of special education were prepared in an average of 1.6 areas of special education, while intermediate directors were pre pared in an average of 1.7 areas of special education, neither group r e p r e ­ senting the amount of prep ar at io n rec ommended by the literature. Since many of the special educati on programs to be ad min istered are classr oom programs, the directors were asked to indicate the numb er of special ed uc ati on cla ss ­ room programs for which they would be eligible for state approval as teachers. The largest percentage (48 per cent) of both local and intermediate directors were eligible for approval in only one special educ ati on classroom program. A total of 10 per cent were not eligible for state approval for any special education classroom t e a c h ­ ing and 8 per cent were eligible for more than three special education areas of te aching (see Table 13). A total of 29 per cent of both groups of directors held academic majors in special educati on plus a d m i n i s ­ tration as indicated in Table 14. However, no int er ­ mediate directors in smaller districts (under 15,000) were dually prepared in special education and a d mi ni s­ tration. There were no other major differences found 66 TABLE 13.— Number of special education areas for which directors of special education are eligible for state approval as classro om teachers (special service areas not included). Number of Special Education Areas Local Directors Total No. % No. % Intermediate Directors No. % 8 10 6 12 2 8 One 37 48 24 47 13 50 Two 13 18 8 16 5 19 Three 12 16 8 16 4 15 7 8 5 9 2 8 None More Than Three Total Number 77 26 51 in this area of inquiry according to comparisons of large and small districts. Most (52 per cent) directors had academic pre pa rat io n only in special education, and not in the area of administration. The total average number of years of professional experiences in education for all groups ranged from 14.6 to 32 years (see Table 15). Both groups of superintendents had more average years of prof essional experience than the other four groups years). (intermediate, 32 years; local, 28.6 Both groups of directors of special education had the fewest average number of years previous p r o ­ fessional experience and also the smallest average TABLE 14.— Variations in academic preparation of directors of special education according to size of district (more or less than 15,000 pupils). Academic Major Preparation Group Number Special Education Major, No Administration No. % Administration Major, No Special Education No. % Special Education Plus Administration No. % Other (i.e., General Education) No. % Local Directors Under 15,000 33 17 51 4 12 10 31 2 6 Over 15,000 18 9 50 3 17 5 28 1 5 Under 15,000 6 4 66 1 17 0 0 1 17 Over 15,000 20 10 50 2 10 7 35 1 5 77 40 52 10 13 22 29 5 6 Intermediate Directors Total TABLE 15-— The professional experiences of the six admini s t r a t i v e groups. Intermediate Directors of FdPr a M o n Education Tot a l Years E m p l o y e d in E d u c a t i o n Range Av erage T , .. , 6 ^endentl Local Directors ° r, Spe?ial ten®ent; E lementary Secondary Principals Principals Educa t i o n 6-35 15 20— if3 32 3-33 14.6 11-43 28.6 6-42 20. 3 12-41 Total Years E mpl oye d in M i c h i g a n Range Aver age 6-30 1'! 6-43 31 2-30 14 6-43 24 6-42 20.3 1-41 18.5 Total Years E m p l o y e d Out of M i c h i g a n Range Av erage 0-10 1-14 0-16 0-25 4.7 0-2 1 0-18 1.7 1-17 4 1-21 9 1-17 6.5 1-20 4.6 Nu m b e r of Years Range Average in Present Nu m b e r of Years Ad min is t r a t o r Range Average as a Ge neral E d u c a t i o n 1 1 0 20 Po sition 1-15 4 Num ber of Years as a Special Edu ca t i o n Administrator Range Average Nu m b e r o f Years as an Ele me n t a r y Te a c h e r Range Aver age Nu m b e r of Years as a Seconda ry T ea c h e r Range Av erage Nu m b e r of Years as a Spe cia l E d u c a t i o n Tea c h e r Range Average Tota l Years E m p l o y e d in a Special Service Range Av erage 1-32 14 4-38 17 0-12 1.6 5-41 21 1-27 1-40 1-15 0-11 1-lE 0-28 4.6 0-6 .4 0-3 0-K 0-16 2 0-10 0-9 1.3 0-21 5 0-3 0-23 5 0-12 0-17 5 0-19 3 0-24 1 0-9 3 0-12 1/2 0-11 3 0-0 0-18 1.3 0-17 .6 0-13 3 0-0 0-30 2.3 0-0 0-0 0-17 0-9 i 9 0-7 0 2 1.7 0 0 0 0 0 on oo 69 number of years in their present po sit ion and as a general professional educati on administrator. The average number of years as a special education a d mi nis­ trator for both groups of directors was four years. While the total average number of years of professional employment for the four other groups ranged from 20 to 32, the average for intermediate directors was 15 years, and for local directors was 14.6 years, Local superintendents rep orted an average of *1.6 years as special education administrators, which may be accounted for by their role before a full-time dir ector of special education was employed in their school district. Selected pro fessional experiences were compared among directors of special educati on in larger and smaller districts (with more/less than 15,000) in Table 16. Intermediate directors in smaller districts had a lesser number of years in their present positions half years), in te aching in a special education class­ room (one year) years). (two and a and in total years of employment However, they had, in general, (eleven spent more years in a special service area than the others. Directors in larger local and intermediate districts reported a greater average number of years total p r o ­ fessional employment than directors (intermediate, in smaller districts sixteen years compared to eleven years; and local, nin eteen years compared to fourteen years). TABLE 16.— Selected professional experience variations between directors according to size of district (more or less than 15,000 pupils). Group Number Years Teaching Special Education Years in Present Position Total Years Employed Range Average Range Average Years in a Special Service Range Average Range Average 0-11 3 0-15 2 0-9 3 0-30 3 Local Directors Less than 15,000 18 5-33 1h 1-17 More than 15,000 33 8-3A 19 1-18 Less than 15,000 6 6-17 11 1-6 2 1/2 0-7 1 0-12 li More than 15,000 20 7-35 16 1-15 ^ 1/2 0-9 3 0-13 3 5 Intermediate Directors 71 The typical admin istr ato r in this male, with a master's degree, study is a over fourteen years p r o ­ fessional experience, with at least five years teaching experience, at least four years in his present position, with a salary over $13,000, and is over thirty- six years of age. The und ergraduate majors of all but two groups were in secondary education, wi th local directors having majored in special educat ion and elementary principals in elementary education. The graduate majors of all of the administrators except special educati on directors were in administration, wit h special ed ucat ion directors majorin g in special educ ation at the graduate level, more typically in the area of the men tally handicapped. The foregoing informa tio n has des cribed the study popul ati on in terms of sex, age, preparation and experience. salary, pr ofe ssional Other factors wil l now be reviewed which are descriptive of the school districts represented by the local and intermediate directors of special education. I nf ormati on Re gardin g the School Districts Data regarding the size of the school districts served by the directors of special educati on is presented in Table 17. This inf ormation is arranged in six groups according to total district pupil membership. Thirty- six per cent of the local directors were emp loyed in districts 72 TABLE 17.— Pupil me mbe rship size of school districts. Group Intermediate Directors Pupil Size Local Directors adnge No. % No. 1- 5,000 0 0 5 10 5,001 to 10,000 2 8 18 36 10,001 to 15,000 4 15 11 22 15,001 to 25,000 5 19 10 20 25,001 to 40,000 5 19 4 8 Over 40,000 10 39 2 4 Total Number 26 % 50a aOne respondent did not complete this item. serving from 5,001 to 10,000 pupils, while 54 per cent were employed in districts pupils, serving more than 10,000 including 4 per cent in districts over 40,000. The median school size served was in the 10,001 to 15,000 range. Intermediate directors generally tended to serve larger populat ion groups as would be expected inasmuch as intermediate districts are composed of several districts. local Although 39 per cent of the intermediate 73 directors indicated they were employed by districts of over 40,000 pupils, 53 per cent were serving districts with from 10,001 to 40,000 in school membership. The median school size served by intermediate directors was in the 15,001 to 25,000 pupil membership range. A maj ority of both local mediate (80 per cent) and inte r­ (61 per cent) districts indicated they had op e r ­ ated some type of special education program for over seven years (see Table 18). All local districts had operated a special educati on pro gram for over four y e a r s . No districts had operated a program for one year only. TABLE 18 .— Length of time district (A) operated a special education program; (B) employed a full-time special e d u ­ cation director. Program Operated Time Local Director Employed Intermediate Local % No. % 19.5 2 8 12 6 23 10 19.5 9 35 61 23 45 9 35 0 2 4 0 0 No. % No. % No. One year only 0 0 0 0 10 2-3 years 0 0 2 8 6 4-7 years 8 16 8 31 41 80 16 2 4 0 Over 7 years No Response Intermediate 74 The length of time the district had employed a director of special education repres ent ed a more recent development than the initiation of the special education program as presented in Table 18. A full-time director was employed in 19.5 per cent of the local districts one year only. Almost one-third (31 per cent) for of the intermediate districts had employed a director for less than four years, while over two-thirds (70 per cent) of these districts had employed a director for four years or more. A higher pe rcentage of local districts cent) than intermediate districts (45 per (35 per cent) had em ­ ployed a direct or for more than seven years. The seventy- sev en local and intermediate districts represented in this study employed a total of 2,966 special education profe ssi onal personnel, with 2,510 at the local district district level level and 456 at the intermediate (Table 19). Thus, the local districts employed five times as many professional personnel as the intermediate districts. In considering the programs served by the directors of special education, it is interesting to note the similarity bet we en the rank order by percentage of p r o ­ fessional personn el in each special ed uca tion area as found in the intermediate and local districts. In the local districts surveyed, of professionals was the largest group found to be in the area of mental TABLE 19.— Number, percent and frequency rank of professional personnel in each special education area. District Total Local Intermediate Area No. % Rank No. % Rank No. % Rank 97 3 7.5 84 3 •8 13 3 6 .5 Deaf 163 5 6 148 6 5.5 15 3 6.5 Orthopedic 218 7 5 191 8 4 27 6 5 1191 34 1 1077 43 1 114 25 2 Disturbed 117 3 7.5 109 4 7 8 2 8 Social Work 337 13 3 258 10 3 79 17 3 Diagnostic 215 11 4 142 6 5.5 73 16 4 Speech Correction 628 24 2 501 20 127 28 1 456 1005S Blind Retarded Total 29 66 1005S 2510 1005s 2 76 retardation (^3 per cent) with speech correction second (20 per cent). These areas are just revers ed in the intermediate district programs with speech correction first with 28 per cent of the personnel and ment al r e ­ tardation second with 25 per cent. School social workers ranked third in both groups (local, 10 per cent and intermediate 17 per cent). Diagnosticians ranked fourth in the intermediate districts the local districts (16 per cent) and 5.5 in (6 per cent). The re mai ning areas are all with in one rank for both types of districts with the exception of the area of the blind which was ranked 6.5 in the intermediate districts and eight in the local districts. It appears that the rank order of frequency of these various personnel types reveals more similarity in the configuration of pro fessional persons in these two types of settings than might have been expected. The number of special education supervisors employed was reviewed, and is presen ted in Tables 20 and 21. majority of the local per cent) percentage A (75 per cent) and intermediate districts emp loyed no supervisors. (65 A larger (3^ per cent compared to 20 per cent) of the supervisors were employed at the intermediate district level. No intermediate and only one local district em ­ ployed more than six supervisors. the local district rection programs Most (62 pe r cent) supervisors served the speech c o r ­ (3^ per cent), and programs for the of 77 TABLE 20.— Range of special ed ucat ion supervisors employed. Local Districts Total Intermediate Districts Number Range No. # No. # No. # Zero 55 71 38 75 17 65 One to Three 12 16 7 14 5 19 Four to Six 6 8 2 4 4 16 Seven to Ten 1 1 1 2 0 0 Over Ten 0 0 0 0 0 0 No Response 3 4 3 5 0 0 Total 77 100# 48 100# 26 10 0# TABLE 2 1 . — Number of programs served by supervisors in specific special education areas. Type of Program Local Districts Total No. # No # Intermediate Districts No. # Mentally Handicapped 14 27 8 28 6 27 Speech Correction 13 25 10 34 3 14 Physically Handicapped 10 20 5 17 5 23 Emotionally Disturbed 7 14 3 11 4 18 School Social Work 4 8 2 7 2 9 Psychological Services 3 6 1 3 2 9 Total 51 100# 29 100# 22 100# 78 me ntally ha ndi capped (28 per cent). The intermediate district supervisors served primarily the programs for the mentally handi cap ped cally handicapp ed (27 per cent) and the ph y s i ­ (23 per cent). Pew supervisors were employed for psychologica l services or school social worke r programs (6 per cent total) (8 per cent total). Ideal and Actual Time Ranking for Ma jo r Administr ative Areas In obtaining information re ga rdi ng the specific nature of the position of director of special education, two general approaches were utilized. The first was to determine the actual ranking of time consumed versus an ideal ranking by the directors as compared to the other administrative groups in each of ten maj o r areas cational administration. of e d u ­ The second approach was to determine which specific administrative activities with in the ten major areas were usually per formed by each of the groups of directors of special education. The administrators were asked to respond to the ten major administrative areas in terms of a rank order nine to zero, with nine equivalent to "most") (from of the ideal amount of their time which should be consumed in each area as opposed to the actual time est imated as being spent in each area. Table 22 represents the responses each of the six administrative groups. of This section was TABLE 22.— Ideal (I) versus actual (A) time spent by major administrative areas with rank difference (D) noted. Average Rank M a j o r Area l Int ermediate S u p er int end ent Local Director Local Sup eri n t e n d e n t Eleme nta ry Principal Secondary Principal i erenctr A D I A D I A D I A D I A D I A D 5 4 9 5 4 9 3 1 9 7 2 9 9 0 9 9 0 0 Personnel A d m i n i s t r a t i o n 1.3 8 8 0 3 7 1 8 9 1 5 8 3 8 6 2 8 7 1 Finance 2.0 3 7 4 3 6 3 2 4 2 4 4 0 0 2 2 0 1 1 Bu siness Managem ent 1.2 2 4 2 5 3 2 1 2 1 2 3 1 2 1 1 2 2 0 School 0.7 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 2 1 3 4 1 3 4 1 Au xiliary Services CO o I CO u± Int erm edi ate Director 1 2 1 2 2 0 5 6 1 0 1 1 4 3 1 4 3 1 Pu pil -P e r s o n n e l Gui dance 1.3 4 1 3 1 1 0 6 5 1 3 0 3 6 7 1 6 6 0 Community Relat ion s 1.0 5 6 1 7 4 3 4 3 1 7 6 1 5 5 0 5 5 0 Staff Relations 1.5 7 9 2 4 8 4 7 7 0 8 9 1 7 8 1 7 3 1 School Boa rd Relations 2.0 6 3 3 6 9 3 3 0 3 6 5 1 1 0 1 1 0 1 C ur ri c u l u m and I n str uct ion Plant Average Rank D iff ere nce Note: 9 equals "most," and 0 "least." 2 2 -d 1.2 1.4 1 .6 VO 80 pl ac ed after the listing of specific administrative act iv i­ ties in the survey form to facilitate an und erstanding of the specific content of the ma jo r area on the part of the respondents. With the exception of both groups of principals, range of responses great of ideal and actual rank order was (often from 0-9) groups. the The responses among the respondents within the of elementary and secondary p r i n c i ­ pals indicated general role interpretation agreement. All groups agreed that ideally most of their time should be spent in the major area of Curric ulum and Instruction. However, only two groups (elementary and secondary p r i n c i ­ pals) were actually spending most of their time sented by a "9 ” ranking) Two groups only (repre­ in Curriculum and Instruction. (intermediate directors and superintendents) were spending the least amount of actual time in the ideal area of least time, for both, the area of School Plant. The least difference between ideal and actual time rankings was expressed by secondary principals and the greatest average difference intermediate directors (.6 average), (2.0) was reported by of special education and inter­ mediate superintendents. The intermediate directors and intermediate super ­ intendents ideally would like to spend much more time in Curriculum and Ins truction (4 rank difference). superintendents would like to spend less time Local (3 rank 81 difference) in the major adm inistrative area of Personnel Administration. Intermediate directors and intermediate superintendents would like to spend less time in Finance (4 and 3 point rank difference respectively). Inter ­ mediate directors and local superintendents would ideally spend more time in the area of Pupil-Pe rsonnel Guidance (3 rank difference each). Intermediate superintendents would ideally spend more time in Community Relations rank difference) difference). and less time in Staff Relations (3 (4 rank Intermediate and local directors would both ideally spend more time in the area of School Board R e ­ lations, while intermediate superintendents wou l d ideally spend less time in this area (3 point rank difference for all) . Three and four point rank differences betw een ideal and actual were indicated by intermediate superintendents in five areas, and by intermediate directors in four areas, representing the highest vari ati on between ideal and actual time spent in each of the majo r administrative areas of all of the groups. The ideal and actual time rankings of local directors were compared with those of intermediate directors. greatest The "ideal" ranking variation occurred in the area of Auxiliary Services, wit h the local directors ranking it higher by 4 ranks. The greatest variation in "actual" time rankings of intermediate and local directors occurred 82 in the areas of Auxiliary Services and Pup il-Personnel Guidance, with local directors ranking both higher (4 ranks e a c h ) . There were no "ideal" time ranking variations b e ­ tween local and intermediate directors in the areas of Curriculum and Instruction, Personnel Ad ministrat ion and Staff Relations; while in "actual" time rankings, one point rank variations occurred in Personnel A d m i n i s ­ tration and School Plant. The "ideal" time ranking responses of intermediate directors were more like those of local superintendents (with a 10 point rank difference) mentary and secondary principals difference for each) and least like el e­ (with a 16 point rank (see Table 23). The "actual" time rankings of intermediate directors were more like int er­ mediate and local superintendents ence with each) (12 point rank d i f f e r ­ and least like elementary difference) and secondary principals difference) (see Table 24). Moreover, (30 point rank (28 point rank the "ideal" time ranking responses of local directors were more like elementary and secondary principals (10 point rank difference for each) like intermediate and local superintendents point rank difference for each in Table 25). time ranking responses and least (note 22 The "actual" for local directors were most like secondary principals (16 point rank difference) and 83 Total Intermediate Superintendents Local Directors Local Superintendents Elementary Principals Secondary Principals TABLE 23.— Rank difference between the ideal time ranking of intermediate directors and other groups. Curriculum and Instruction 0 0 0 0 0 0 Personnel Administration 3 0 0 3 0 0 Finance 8 0 1 1 3 3 Business Management H 3 1 0 0 0 School Plant 7 0 0 1 3 3 Auxiliary Services 12 1 4 1 3 3 Pupil-Personnel Guidance 10 3 2 1 2 2 5 2 1 2 0 0 3 0 1 0 0 Area Community Relations Staff Relations School Board Relations 13 _0 _3 _0 _5 _5 Total 66 12 12 10 16 16 84 Local Superintendents Elementary Principals 0 3 2 4 4 5 1 1 0 2 1 18 1 3 3 5 6 Business Management 9 1 2 1 3 2 School Plant 11 0 1 2 4 4 7 0 4 1 1 1 16 0 4 1 ' 6 5 Community Relations 7 2 3 0 1 1 Staff Relations 5 1 2 0 1 1 11 _6 _3 _2 _3 _3 108 12 26 12 30 28 Curriculum and Instruction Personnel Administ rat ion Finance Auxiliary Services Pupil-Personnel Guidance School Board Relations Total Secondary Principals Intermediate Superintendents 13 Area Local Directors Total TABLE 24.— Rank difference between the actual time ranking of intermediate directors and other g r o u p s . 85 TABLE 25.— Rank difference between the ideal time ranking of local directors and other groups. ra -P G •P G 0) -P d) •P cd •H nd CD e cd •H to Area n G CD O Curriculum and Instruction 0) T3 0) Td G Cl) -P >1 m G a> ■p G G cn G iH >i r—1 cd cd G cd cd a Td >H -p a G -H 0) 0 6 G 1 —1 S -p G O cd 0) O -P 0 Eh -P G G -H H Q 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 0 0 2 2 1 1 Personnel Administration 3 Finance 8 •H -h u g rH G CD CD -p a cd CD 0 a G G H CO 1 1 O C 0 O G 0 *H CD G co a CD -H G 1— 1 G t-3 CO w a 2 Business Management 8 1 4 1 School Plant 7 0 0 1 Auxiliary Services 14 4 3 5 1 1 Pupil-Personnel Guidance 10 2 5 3 0 0 Community Relations 9 3 1 Staff Relations 1 3 3 3 0 1 4 0 3 1 0 School Board Relations 13 _3 _3 _3 _2 _2 Total 76 12 22 22 10 10 86 least like intermediate directors (26 point rank d i f f e r ­ ence) and intermediate superintendents difference, see Table 26). (28 point rank The actual time ran kin g for the adm inistrative activities of local directors differed more than did the intermediate directors ranking from other administr ative roles and dramatizes the difference between the actual role of the intermediate and local director of special education. The ideal and actual rank order of time which the directors consumed in the ten major areas was reviewed according to the size of the school district less than 15>000 pupils) (more or and the length of time the district had employed a full-time director of special education (more or less than four years). Greater di ff e r ­ ences in the rankings occurred among intermediate directors in large and small districts than among their counterparts in the local district (Table 27). The largest rank difference (22 rank points) be­ tween ideal and actual time consumed in the major a d mini s­ trative areas was reported by directors intermediate districts, followed by directors in the larger intermediate districts The least variation in the smaller (10 point difference). (*J rank points) bet we en ideal and actual time ranking was indicated by local directors of special education in districts with less than 15,000 pupil membership, indicating the least frustration betwe en ideal 87 TABLE 2 6 .— Rank difference between the actual time ranking of local directors and other groups. a> -p aJ •H •d G *H Q Area Eh Curri cul um and Instruction 9 9 Finance 10 3 5 2 1 CA c d 3 1 1 1 2 1 2 2 1 1 3 0 Auxiliary Services 19 4 4 Pupil-Personnel Guidance 16 4 4 5 '2 1 Community Relations 11 3 1 3 2 2 Staff Relations 7 2 Total 112 26 1 U 9 _3 1 O £ O *H » rH G cd cd TJ *H >s CO Sh rH ccJ a) p *H CD O e 0) *H rH G w a School Plant School Board Relations 1 H CO p c 000 to $15,999 range, with a secondary teachi ng cer ti ­ ficate, a master's degree, a secondary 112 113 education und ergraduate major, a special e d u ­ cation graduate maj or in the area of the mentally handicapped, no major in administration, with four years experience in his present position, five years tea ching experience and with a total of fifteen years professional employment. He was a memb er of the youngest adm inistrative group repres ent ed in the study. 2. The typical intermediate superintendent of schools in the study popula tion may be d e ­ scribed as a male, over 50 years of age, receiving a salary over $ 1 6 ,0 0 0 , with a master's degree, a life teachin g certificate, cation undergraduat e major, a secondary e d u ­ a graduate major in administration, wit h fourteen years in his pre­ sent position, seven and one-hal f years teaching experience and with a total of thirty-two years professional experience. 3. The typical local director of special education was a male, b e tw ee n 36-45 years of age, receiving a salary be tw een $13,000 and $ 1 5 ,9 9 9 , with a master's degree, an elementary teaching certifi­ cate, with both und ergraduate and graduate majors in special ed uca tion (the area of the mentally handicapped), with no major in administration, with four years experience in his present 114 position, six and one -half years tea ching experience, and with a total of fourteen and one-half years profe ssional employment. 4. The typical local school district s u p er in ­ tendent in this study may be des crib ed as a male, over fifty years of age, rec eiv ing over $ 16,000 in salary, wit h a m aster' s degree, life teaching certificate, a a secondary e d u ­ cation undergradua te major, a graduate majo r in administration, with nine years sent position, in his p r e ­ 6.3 years tea chin g experience and with a total of twenty-eight and on e-half years pro fessional employment. 5. The typical elementary principal in this study was a male, over fifty years of age, receiving a salary be tw ee n $13,000 and $15,999, wit h a master's degree, an elementary teaching c e rt if i­ cate, an elementary education under graduate major, a graduate major in administration, with 6.5 years in his present position, 9.3 years teaching experience and 20.3 years of p r o ­ fessional experience. 6. The typical secondary principal in this study was a male, between thirty-six and forty-five years of age, rec eiving a salary bet ween $13,000 and $15,999, with a mas ter's degree, a secondary 115 teaching certificate, an und ergraduate major in secondary education, a graduate major in administration, wit h four and one -half years in his present position, eight and one-half years tea chi ng experience and twenty years of professional experience. The Schools and Programs Represented 1. The medi an school district size served by intermediate directors of special education in Mich ig an was in the 15,001 to 25*000 pupil membership range. 2. The med ian school district size served by local directors of special education in Mi c h i g a n was in the 10,001 to 15,000 pupil mem be rs hip range. 3. Seventy-five per cent of the local school di s­ tricts did not employ any special education super­ visors, while 65 per cent of the intermediate districts employed none. 4. The intermediate district supervisors served primarily the programs capped, for the mental ly ha n d i ­ followed by services to programs for the physically handicapped; while local district supervisors served primarily speech correction programs, followed by services to programs the mentally handicapped. for 116 5. Five times as many special ed ucat ion personnel p r ovi di ng direct services to students were empl oye d at the local school district level than at the intermediate district level. 6. More teachers of the me ntally han dicapped (43 per cent) were employed in local schools than any other type of special education p e r ­ sonnel, followed by speech correction personnel. The order of most frequently employed personnel was simply rev er sed at the intermediate district level. 7. Most districts (80 per cent at the local district level and 6l per cent at the intermediate district level) had ope rated a special education program for more than seven years. 8. Most districts (64.5 per cent of the local districts and 70 per cent of the intermediate districts) had emp lo ye d a director of special education for over four y e a r s . Ideal Versus Actual Time Rankings Inf ormation was obtained regard ing the ideal and actual amounts of time spent by each of the six a d m i n i s ­ trative groups in the ten major adm inistrative areas under which the 113 specific adm inistrative activities were classified. 117 1. All groups agreed they should ideally spend most of their time pe rformi ng the activities in the majo r administrative area of Cu rri culum and Instruction. 2. The ideal time ranking responses of int er­ mediate directors were more like those of local superintendents and least like those of e l e ­ me ntary and secondary p r i n c i p a l s . 3. The ideal time ranking responses of local directors of special education were more like elementary and secondary principals, and least like intermediate and local superintendents. k. Intermediate directors in smaller districts showed much more variation between ideal and actual roles than did the other directors. 5. Intermediate directors who had been in their present position for less than four years showed much more difference between ideal and actual role rankings than did the other directors. 6. Local directors showed less difference betw ee n ideal and actual roles than did intermediate directors. 7. All groups considered the least variation between actual and ideal time spent was in the major area of School P l a n t . 118 8. All groups considered the most var iation b e ­ tween actual and Ideal time spent was in the major areas of Finance and School Board R e ­ lations . 9. The actual time ranking responses of int er­ mediate directors were more like those of intermediate and local superintendents and least like those of elementary and secondary principals. 10. The actual time ranking responses of local directors of special education were more like those of secondary principals and least like those of intermediate directors of special education and intermediate superintendents. The Special Education Administrative Role The following administrative activities were p e r ­ formed by 50 per cent or more of the special education administrators and are therefore considered to be a part of the special education administrative role: Maj or Area: 1. Curricu lum and Instruction Devel opi ng curric ulu m for total school or specialized area. 2. Improving and changing curriculum. 3. Selecting textbooks and instructional material. 119 4. Providing for instructional supervision and consultation. 5. Providing leadership at staff meetings. 6. Consulting with classroom teachers. 7. Evaluat ing the instructional program. 8. Evalua ting individual teaching. 9. Develo ping an inservice education pro gr am for teachers. 10. Pr omoting the use of community resources in the instructional program. 11. Initiating new programs. 12. Keeping aware of state school laws. Major Area: Personnel Administr ati on 13. Preparing criteria for personnel selection. 14. Conducting personnel interviews. 15. Selecting personn el for employment.. 16. Orienting personnel. 17. Develo pi ng schedules and work loads for p r o ­ fessional personnel. 18. Developing schedules and work loads for nonpro fessional personnel. 19. Ev alu ating teaching personnel. 20. Ev alu ating no n-t eaching personnel. 21. Suspendin g or dis mi ss ing employees. 22. Assigning personnel to a specific 23. Recommending tenure appointments. facility. 120 M aj o r Area: Finance 24. Preparing a budget. 25. Administerin g a budget. 26. Preparing financial statements for the board. 27. Preparing financial data for citizens advisory groups. 28. Formul at ing and eva lu atin g salary schedules. 29. Preparing and completing state reports. 30. Computing per pupil costs and other statistical data. 31. Requesting and admini st ering federal funds. Major Area: Business Management and Practices 32. Or gan izing and coor dinating purchase practices. 33. Studying equipment and supply needs. 34. Analyzing school district expenditures. 35. Arranging to serve non-resident pupils. . Major Area: 36. School Plant Planning for buildings and equipment with the architect. 37. Planning for buildings and equipment with the staff. 38. Det ermining re modeling needs of school facilities. 39. Determ ining physical location of classes. 121 Major Area: Auxiliary Services 40. Evaluat ing tran sporta tio n needs. 41. Developing tran sporta tio n plans. 42. Sup ervising or coo rdinating school diagnosti cia n program. 43. Supervising or coordinating school social worker program. 44. Supervising or coordinating speech correction program. Ma jo r Area: Pupil-Per son nel Guidance 45. Developin g procedures for 46. Counseling of students and parents. Major Area: 47. reporting to parents. Community Relations Organizi ng lay and profes sion al groups for part ici pation in educational planni ng and other educational activities. 48. Interpreting and present ing school policies to the c o m m u n i t y . 49. Develop ing and administering a community relations program. 50. Preparing news releases. 51. Conducting and utilizing research concerning educational problems of the school and community. 52. Using community resources in the school program. 122 53. Parti cipati ng in parent school organizations. 54. Mak in g speeches at state and national c o n ­ ferences . 55. Conducting individual parent conferences. 5 6 . Arranging student teaching and internship experiences with universities. 57. Mee tin g wit h legislators reg ard ing school issues. 5 8 . Developing cooperative agreements bet we en school districts for programs. Major Area: Staff Relations 59. Arranging for and/or conducting staff meetings. 60. Enc ou ragi ng staff part ic ipat io n in pr ofession al organizations. 61. E nc ou ra ging staff partic ip ation in community activities. 62. Re com me ndi ng sick leave provisions and other fringe benefits for staff. 6 3 . Defining the duties and responsi bili tie s of the staff. 64. Dev el op ing and utilizing a staff newsletter. 6 5 . Interpreting specialized educational programs to other educators. Major Area: 66. School Board Relations Recomm en ding items for the school board agenda. 123 67. Preparing wri tt en and oral reports for the board of education. 68. R ec ommendin g policy to the board of education. 69. A dm ini ster ing board policy. 70. Aiding the board to distinguish be tw een policy and executive function. 71. Dev el op ing and p rov iding opportunities for the board to meet and work with the staff. 72. Devel opi ng and pr ovi ding opportunities for the board to appear before the public. The following items were marked negatively by 50 per cent or more of both local and intermediate directors of special education, and are, therefore, definitely not considered a part of the special education administrative role: Major Area; Finance 1. Investiga tin g insurance rates and coverage. 2. Prepari ng a payroll. 3. Des ign at in g a system of financial accounting. Major Area: 4. Business Management and Practices Preparing specifications for bids and for purchasing. 5. Processing of bids. Maj or Area; School Plant 6. Selecting a school architect. 7. Eva lu atin g existing sites and facilities. 124 8. Planning for buildings and equipment with the students. 9. Pla nning for buildings and equipment with the community. 10. Evalua ti ng building and site plans. 11. Consulting during construction. 12. Superv isi ng building maintenance program. 13. 14. Reco mme nding the amount of insurance coverage. D et er mi ning plant utilization for noneducational purposes. Major Area: Auxiliary Services 15. Employi ng tran sportati on personnel. 16. Ope rat ing and m ai nt ai ning school buses. 17. Dev el opin g regulations governing school bus operation. 18. 19. 20. Preparing bids for pur cha sing of school buses. Adm ini st er ing cafeteria program. Supervisi ng or coordinating school nurse program. Major Area: 21. Pupil-Personnel Guidance Planning and evaluat ing a guidance and testing program. 22. Admini st erin g a guidance and testing program. 23. Dete rm in in g the content of pupil cumulative records . 125 Ma j o r Area: 24. Providing for an adult educati on program. Major Area; 25. Community Relations Staff Relations Re pr esenting school board in professional negotiations with teachers. Major Area: 26. School Board Relations De vel opin g and providi ng opportunities for the board to appear before the public. Special Ed ucatio n Depth Role Using the role depth criterion, which refers to those administrative activities perform ed by 75 per cent or more of the administrators, the following list of activities from Table 29 show high involvement by both intermediate and local directors of special education. Major Area; Cu rriculum and Instruction 1. Providing leadership at staff meetings. 2. Developing an inservice education progr am teachers. 3. Initiating new programs. 4. Keeping aware of state school laws. Major Area: Personnel Administr ati on 5. Preparing criteria for personnel selection. 6. Conducting personnel interviews. for 126 7. Selecting personnel for employment. 8. Orienti ng personnel. 9. Dev el op ing schedules and work loads for profes si on al personnel. 10. Ev al ua ting teaching personnel. 11. Assigning personnel to a specific 12. Rec omme nd in g tenure appointments. Maj o r Area: Finance 13. Preparing a budget. 14. Admi ni ster in g a budget. 15. Prepari ng and completing state reports. Major Area: 16. Business Manageme nt and Practices Stu dying equipment and supply needs. Major Area; 17. facility. Auxiliary Services Superv isin g or coo rdinating school diagnosticia n program. 18. Superv isi ng or co ord in ati ng school social worker program. Major Area; 19. Community Relations Inte rpr eting and pre se ntin g school policies to the community. 20. Partici pat ing in parent school organizations. 21. Dev el op ing cooperative agreements between school districts for programs. 127 Major Area: Staff Relations 22. Arr anging for and/or conducting staff meetings. 23. Enc our ag in g staff participatio n in pr ofe ssional organizations > 24. Encour ag ing staff pa rt icipatio n in community activities. 25. Def ini ng the duties and respon sibilities of the staff. 26. Interpreting specialized educational programs to other educators. Major Area: 27. School Board Relations Preparing w r itte n and oral reports for the board of education. 28. Ad mi nisterin g board policy. 29. Develo pi ng and pr ovi ding opportunities for the board to meet and work with the staff. In addition to the pre ceding list, the following items show role depth involvement by the local directors only: Majo r Area: 1. Cur ri cu lu m and Instruction Developin g curri cul um for total school or specialized area. 2. Improving and changing curriculum. 3. Providing for instructional supervision and consultation. 128 4. Consulting with classroom, t e a c h e r s . 5. Ev aluati ng the instructional program. 6. Evaluat ing individual teaching. 7. Promoting the use of community resources in the instructional program. Major Area: Auxiliary Services 8. Ev al uat ing tra ns po rt at ion needs. 9. Supervising or coordinating speech correction program. Major Area: 10. Community Relations Conducting individual parent conferences. In addition to the combined list for both groups of directors, the following items show role depth involvement by intermediate directors only: Major Area: Personnel Administ rat ion 1. Ev aluating nontea ching personnel. 2. Suspending or dismissing employees Major Area: 3. Formulating and evaluating salary schedules Major Area: 4. Finance Business Management Arranging to serve non-resident pupils. 129 Maj or Area: 5. Community Relations Organ izi ng lay and profes sio nal groups for par tic ip at ion in educational pla nn in g and other education al activities. 6. Preparing news releases. 7. Arrangi ng student te aching and internship experiences with universities. 8. Meet in g with legislators regarding school issues. Major Area: 9. Staff Relations R ec ommendin g sick leave provisions and other fringe benefits for staff. Major Area: School Board Relations 10. Recommending items for the school board agenda. 11. Re commending policy to the board of education. Two items at the depth role level Auxiliary Services) (major area of for both intermediate and local directors of special education were performed by less than 50 per cent of all other groups in the study. 1. They were: Supervising or coo rdinating school dia gn ostician programs. 2. Superv isin g or coordinating school social worker p r o g r a m s . 130 Five Items at the depth role level for both Inter ­ mediate and local directors of special education were performed by less than 50 per cent of both intermediate and local superintendents. 1. They were: Dev elo ping an inservice edu cation pro gram for teachers. 2. Orie nti ng personnel. 3. Developing schedules and work loads for n o n ­ professional personnel. 4. Ev al uat ing teaching personnel. 5. Studying equipment and supply needs. The following two items at the depth role level for the directors were perform ed by less than 50 per cent of the elementary and secondary principals: 1. Preparing and completing state reports. 2. Developin g cooperative agreements betw ee n school districts for programs. Recommendations For School Districts 1. Since larger districts appear to be able to hire better qualified directors of special education, this may have some implications whic h would encourage the conso lid ation of school districts. 131 2. If the director of special ed ucation is not prepared in special education classroom areas, an app ropriately prepared supervisor should be employed to coordinate curriculum development. More supervisors, whose primary function is curriculum coordination and enrichment, should be employed at the local district level since the larger number of special educati on class­ rooms are operated locally. 3. Since the bui l di ng principals were not highly involved in interpreting specialized educational programs to other educators, an inservice e d u ­ cation progra m for principals is recommended. The purpose of the inservice education program would be to familiarize principals with special education so they might pa rticipate more fully in the int erpretation process. 4. The inservice education of local school directors of special education should stress greater skills in the activities in the major administrative area of Community Relations. 5. Since there are more male administrators than females, the selection may be partly based on society's image of the male in the dominant role. It is recommended that recruitment p r o ­ cedures for administrative positions be reviewed in terms of seeking the most highly qualified personnel for the role, regardless of sex. 132 For State Departments of Ed uc ati on 1. State approved special educati on administrators at both the local and intermediate district levels should be prepared in general p r o f e s ­ sional educ ation admi nist rat ion and in more than one area of special education. administ rat ive activities Since the cover both classr oom programs and itinerant special service programs, the special prepar at ion should include at least one classroom area and one special service area, in add ition to administration. 2. An ad mi nistration internship supervised exper ­ ience is particularly important for intermediate directors of special education, due to the high level of fru stration betw ee n their actual and ideal ranking of time spent in the major a d m i n i s ­ trative areas. 3. The pos ition of assistant director of special education should be developed on an experimental basis with intensive role analysis at both local and intermediate district levels. This may help to alleviate the frustration of directors r e ­ garding actual and ideal amounts of time spent in major administ rat ive areas. 133 For Universities 1. Prepara tio n programs for special educati on administr ato rs should emphasize the development of skills related to the per formance of those activities includ ed in the special edu cation administ rat ive role. Intensive pre paration should occur in those areas included in the depth role. 2. An appropriate supervised internship should be re qui red for special education administrators. Persons prepari ng to be intermediate directors of special education should intern wi th ou tstandin g intermediate directors special education. of Potential local directors should intern wit h outsta nding local directors of special education. Included in the special education int er n­ ship placement should be contact with su p e r i n ­ tendents for intermediate directors and with principals and su per intendents for local directors. It is suggested that a related university seminar be prov id ed during the internship experience. 3. An introductory special ed uc ati on course should be required for all t e a c h e r s . assist all educators This would in an u nd er st andin g of special education and lead to earlier sp eciali­ zation for some in a special educ at ion area. 134 This could then result In more special education directors maj or in g at the graduate level In administration, If their special education p re parati on were completed at the undergradu ate level. 4. Special education pr eparatio n programs should include more than one special education area. Special education administrators should also be required to complete a majo r in pro fessional educational administration. For Further Research Any maj or investigat ion usually discovers additional areas which might require further research, no exception. this one being There are three major areas for additional research and one minor area. 1. A study of the pos it io n of special education supervisor is needed to explore: (a) the number of classes which should have the services of full-time supervisor, a (b) the role of the supervisor at the intermediate district and local district levels, and also at the e l e ­ men tar y and secondary levels. 2. A study of the possible role of an assistant director of special education, since there was considerable variation bet ween actual and ideal 135 amounts of time spent by the directors in the major administrative areas. 3. A study of the reasons for the d i s p r op or ti on­ ately large amount of actual and ideal time spent by the intermediate superintendents in the area of School Board Relations is needed. H. A mi no r area which would require further i n ­ v es tigati on is the reason why only 10 per cent of the secondary principals are pro vid ing for an adult education program, and why this group is not highly involved in the pr omo tion of community resources in the instructional program. Summary This study has presented inf ormation which will assist school districts, universities and state, d e p a r t ­ ments of education in a concerted effort to achieve better directors of special education. BIB LIOGRAPHY BIBLIOGRAPHY American Associat ion of School Administrators. Edu­ cational Adm inis tr at io n in a Changing C o m m u n i t y . Washington, D. C.: American A s s o c ia ti on of School Administrators, 1958. Blessing, Kenneth. "Preparation for State Leadership Roles." Prese nta tion at America n Ass oci at io n on Ment al Deficiency Conference, St. Louis, Missouri, 1967. Connor, Leo. Ad mi ni st ra tion of Special Edu ca tio n P r o g r a m s . New York! Teachers College, 1 9 6 1 . Connor, Leo E. "Preliminaries to a Theory of A d min is ­ tration for Special Education." Except ional C h i l d r e n , Vol. XXIX, No. 9 (May, l ^ y ! Council for Excep tio nal Children. Professional Standards for Personnel in the Edu ca ti on of Except ional C h i l d r e n ! Washington, D. C.: Council for fexceptional Children, 1 9 6 6 . Department of Education. "State-Aid for Special E d u ­ cation Directors and Supervisors." Lansing, Michigan: M i ch igan Board of Education, 1967. Early, W i l l i a m J. "An Ev alu ation and Analysis of the Extern Pro gram in Educational A d m i ni stra ti on at Mic hig an State University." Unp ub li sh ed Ph.D. Dissertation, M ichig an State University, 1963Fogle, Dean. "Preparation of Administrators and S u p e r ­ visors in Special E d u c a t i o n — the Vi ew from School A d m i n i s t r a t i o n ." Pre se ntation at Council for Except ion al Children Conference, St. Louis, Missouri, 1967. Grieder, Calvin; Pierce, Truman; and R o s e n s t e n g e l , William. Public School A d m i n i s t r a t i o n . 2nd Ed. New York: The Ronald Press Co., 1961. 137 138 Howe, Clifford E. "Roles of the Local Special Education Director." Urbana, Illinois: University of Illinois, I960. Kirk, Samuel A. Ed ucatin g Exc eptional Children. Houghton M i f f l i n CoT, 1 9 6 2 . Boston: Kirk, Samuel A. "The National Advisory Committee on Handicap pe d Children." A Richer Future for H a n d i ­ capped C h i l d r e n . Washington, D. C.: Council for Exceptional Children, March, 19 6 8 . Kothera, Richard J. "A Criterion and Set of Reality Based Problems for Simulation in Special Educati on Ad ministration." Unpubl ish ed Ph.D. Dissertation, Univer sit y of Kansas, 1967. Lauber, Ellyn G. "Special Edu ca ti on Adminis tr at io n and Supervisory Personnel in Selected States." Unpub­ lished Ph.D. Dissertation, Ohio State University, 1962. Mackie, Romaine P. "Special Education Reaches Nearly Two M i ll io n Children." School L i f e , XLVII (December, 196*0. Mackie, Romaine P.; Williams, Haro ld M.; and Robbins, Patricia M. "Special Educ at ion Enrollments in Local School Systems: A Directory." U. S. Office of Education, Bul letin OE-35027, Washington, D. C., 1966. Martens, Elise H. "Statistics of Special Schools and Classes for Exceptional Children, 1947-48." Biennial Survey of Edu c at io n in the U. S., 19464 8 . Washington, D. CT: Government Printing Office, 1950. Michigan Department of Education. "Annual R e p o r t — Programs for the Mentally H a n d i c a p p e d — 1965-66 School Year." Lansing, Michigan, 1966. Michigan Department of Mental Health. Mental Retarda tio n in Michigan." Lansing, Michigan, 1 9 6 6 . "Plan to Combat Progress R e p o r t . Michigan State Board of Education. M i ch ig an General School Laws. Lansing, Michigan, 1966. 139 Mic h i g a n State Senate. "Report on Special Educati on in Michigan." Lansing, Michigan, 1966. Milazzo, Tony C.; and Blessing, Ken neth R. "The Tr ain ing of Directors of Special Edu cat io n Programs." Exceptional Children, Vol. XXXI, No. 3 (1964), 129-141. Miller, Van. The Public Adm in istratio n of American School Systems. New York: The MacMill an Co., Morphet, Edgar L.; Johns, Roe L.; and Reller, Theodore L. Educational A d m i n i s t r a t i o n . Englewo od Cliffs, New Jersey: Prentice-Hall, Inc., 1959. Southworth, William. "The Superintendency: A Position in Flux." School Board Journal (1967)• State Board of Education. "Organizing Educational Programs for Children with Handicaps." Circular No. 48, Revised. Lansing, Michigan, 1966. Thomas, J. Alan. "School Finance and Edu cational Op p o r ­ tunity in Michigan." Mich ig an School Finance S t u d y . Lansing, Michigan: Mic h ig an Department of Education, 1968. Tompkins, James R. "Program Development Concept." A Rich er Future for Handicapped C h i l d r e n . Washington, D. C.: Council for Except io nal Children, 1968. U. S. Department of Health, Edu ca tion and Welfare. Special Ed uc ati on for Handic appe d C h i l d r e n . First Annual Report of the National Advisory Committee on H a n d i ­ capped Children, Washington, D. C., 1968. U. S. Office of Education. "Appropriations for the Bureau of Edu ca tio n for the Ha ndicapped." Washington, D. C., 1968. U. S. Office of Education. "Directors and Supervisors of Special Ed uca tion in Local School Systems." Washington, D. C.: Government Printing Office, 1955. Wisland, Mi lt o n V.; and Vaughan, Tony D. "A dm inis ­ trative Problems in Special Education." Exceptional C h i l d r e n , Vol. XXXI, No. 2 (1964), 87 - 8 9 . APPENDI X APP END IX A June 20, 1967 Dear Administrator, Your assistance is requested in a careful review of the administrative activities of directors of special education. In order to determine which admini­ strative activities are performed by special education directors, the enclosed survey is being sent to selected administrators in local and intermediate school systems where special education directors are employed. The results will be utilized in my doctoral dissertation and generally shared wherever possible with professional groups, while still maintaining confidentiality of individual information. The Michigan Department of Education has indicated an interest in this study. I personally hope you will complete the survey and return it to me at the Michigan Department of Education within ten days if at all possible. It is imperative for the study that you respond regarding your own role in the school system. Thank you for your cooperation and help. Sincerely, Miss Gail A. Harris GAH/sdo Enclosure Survey Form Respondent // __________ (1-3) (Do not fill in) Please return within ten days to: Miss Gail A. Harris, Special Education Consultant Michigan Department of Education, Lansing Name of Person Completing Form ____________________________________________________________ Official Title ______ _______________ ____________ . ___________________________________________ School District _____________________________________________________________________________ Please check your full-time position: 4. (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) (6) Intermediate School District Superintendent Intermediate District Director of Special Education Local School District Superintendent Local School Director of Special Education Elementary Principal Secondary Principal Please check: Sex: 5. (1) Male (2) Female Age: 6. (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) (6) Under 30-35 36-40 41-45 46-50 over 30 years years years years years 50 years PLEASE INDICATE THE NUMBER OF COMPLETED SCHOOL YEARS IN EACH SECTION BELOW. COUNT THE 1966-67 SCHOOL YEAR AS ONE COMPLETED YEAR. INDICATE FULL-TIME ROLES ONLY. IF A ONE DIGIT ANSWER IS GIVEN, PRECEDE BY "0" IN THIS SECTION. PLACE ONE DIGIT ONLY IN EACH SPACE. 7- 8 9-10 11-12 13-14 15-16 / / / / / 17-18 19-20 21-22 23-24 25-26 / / / / / / V / / / / / / / / / / / / / a. b. c. d. / / / / / f. a. gh. i. j- in present position in administration of general education in administration of special education in teaching regular elementary grades in teaching a special education class (Please indicate areas of handicapped taught, i.e. mentally handicappedin teaching secondary level regular classes. in a special education service area, i.e. diagnostic services total years employed in education in Michigan total years employed in education out of Michigan total years employment in professional education, both in-state and out-of-state. Page two Please check only highest degree held: 27 (1) (2) (3) (4) BA MA ED.S. ED.D. or PH.D. Please check teaching certificate presently held: 28 (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) (6) (7) Special Life Elementary Provisional Secondary Provisional Elementary Permanent Secondary Permanent None Please check your undergraduate majors: 29 30. 31 32 (1) (2) (3) (4) Elementary Education Special Education or Special Services - Major Area: Secondary Education - Subject Area: _________________ Other, please indicate _________ -_____________________ Please check your graduate majors: 33 34 35 36 37 (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) Elementary Education Special Education or Special Services - Major Area: Secondary Education - Subject Area:_________________ Administration Other - Please indicate Please check your salary range: 38 ___ (1)' (2)~ (3) (4) $5,000 to $9,999 $10,000 to $12,999 $13,000 to $15,999 Over $16,000 INTERMEDIATE AND LOCAL DIRECTORS OF SPECIAL EDUCATION ONLY ARE TO RESPOND TO THIS NEXT ITEM. (#’s 39-46). ALL OTHERS PROCEED TO ITEM #47. Please check all special education or special service area(s) for which you would be eligible for temporary or full approval from the Michigan Department of Education: 3'J 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 (1) (2) (3) W <5) (6) (7) (8) Blind and Partially Sighted Deaf and Hard of Hearing Orthopedically Handicapped Mentally Handicapped Emotionally Disturbed School Social Worker School Diagnostician for the Mentally Handicapped Speech Correctionist Page three ALL PERSONS SHOULD COMPLETE THE FOLLOWING ITEMS: THE FOLLOWING ITEMS ARE ADMINISTRATIVE ACTIVITIES WITHIN MAJOR AREAS. THE ONE APPROPRIATE BEST ANSWER AS FOLLOWS: PLEASE CHECK "1" = If you have responsibility for the activity. Responsibility would refer to an activity in which you are actually directly involved, even if it is a shared responsibility. "2" - If you have delegated this activity to a Consultant or Supervisor and are not directly involved. "3" - If you have no responsibility for this activity. CURRICULUM AND INSTRUCTION * (MAJOR ADMINISTRATIVE AREA) Check (/) if you have responsibility for doing each: I do: I delegate: I have no responsibility for: (3) 47 (1) 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 (1) (1) (1) (1) (1) (1) (1) (1) (1) (1) .. (2). _ J 2 ) ... .. ..(2J. . (2) (3) (3) (3) (3) (3) (3) (3) (3) (3) (3) 58 59 60 61 (1) (1) (1) (1) (2) (2) ...... (2). (2) (3) (3) (3) (3) ill (2) . m . (2) (2) _ (2) ...(21 Developing curriculum for total school or specialized area. Improving and changing curriculum Selecting textbooks and instructional material Providing for instructional supervision or consultation Providing leadership at staff meetings Consulting with classroom teachers Evaluating the instructional program Evaluating individual teaching Developing an inservice education program for teachers Develpping an effective class scheduling plan Promoting the use of community resources in the instructional program. writing articles for professional journals Iniating new programs Keeping aware of state school laws Other please indicate PERSONNEL ADMINISTRATION (Major Administrative Area) I do: I lave no responsibility for: I delegate: 62 63 64 65 66 (1) (1) (1) (21 i2 l .......(21 .12). _. ..121 67 (1) _._121 (3) 68 69 70 71 72 73 (1) (1) (1) (1) (1? ...... (2). ..,(2.1 (2) (2) .. _(il (1) ... (3) (3) (3) (3) (3) (3) U) _ (1) m. _ . . (3) (3) (3) (3) (3) Preparing criteria for personnel selection Conducting personnel interviews Selecting personnel for employment Orienting Personnel Developing schedules and work loads for professional personnel Developing schedules and work loads for non-professional personnel Evaluating teaching personnel Evaluating non-teaching personnel Suspending or dismissing employees Assigning personnel to a specific facility Recommending tenure appointments. Other please indicate Page four FINANCE (Major Administrative Area) I do: /4 75 76 77 78 80 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 I delegate: I have no responsibility for: (1) (2) (3) (1) (2) (3) (1) (2) (3) (1) (2) (3) (1) (2) (3) (Card One Complete) (1) (2) (3) (1) (2) (3) (1) (2) (3) (1) (2) (3) (1) (2) (3) (1) (2) (3) (1) (2) (3) Preparing a budget Administering a budget Preparing financial statements for the board Preparing financial data for citizens advisory groups. Investigating insurance rates and coverage Formulating and evaluating salary schedules Preparing and completing state reports Computing per pupil costs and other statistical data Preparing a payroll Designating a system of financial accounting. Requesting & administering federal funds Other please indicate ______________________________ ______ BUSINESS MANAGEMENT AND PRACTICES I do: 11 12 18 14 15 15 7 0 c 7 '' I delegate: I have no responsibilities for: (1) (1) (2) (2) (3) (3) (1) (1) (1) (2) (2) (2) (3) (3) (3) (1) (1) (1) (1) (1) (Major Administrative Area) (2) (3) (2) ___ (3) (2) (3) (2) (3) (2) (3) Developing a systematic control of records and funds Developing a system of inventory of fixed assets and appraisal Organizing and coordinating purchase practices Studying equipment and supply needs Storing, receiving, distributing & inventorying of supplies. Preparing specifications for bids and for purchasing processing of bids Analyzing school district expenditures Arranging to serve non-resident pupils Other please Indicate __________________________________ :'CH00L PLANT ( Major Administrative Area) I do: 1 12 I delegate: 31 32 (1) (1)_ (1)_ (1) (1) (1) (1) (1) (1) (1). (1) (1) (2) (2) (2) (2) (2) (2) (2) (2) (2) (2) (2) (2) 33 34 35 (1) (1) (1) (2) (2) (2) 23 24 25 26 ^7 28 29 J0 I have no responsibilities for: (3) Selecting a school architect Evaluating existing sites and facilities (3) Determining the specifications of the new bldg. (3) Planning for buildings and equipment with the architect ( 3 > Planning for buildings and equipment with the staff (3) Planning for buildings and equipment with the students (3.< Planning for buildings and equipment with the community. (3) Evaluating building ard site plans (3) Consulting during construction (3) Supervising building maintenance program (3) Recommending the amount of insurance coverage (3) Determining plant utilization for non-educational purposes (3) Determining remodeling needs of school facilities (3) Determining physical location of classes (3) Other please indicate _____________________________________ fZ') Page five AUXILIARY SERVICES I do: 36 37 38 39 (1) (1) (1) (1) 40 u> 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 (1) (1) (1) (1' (1) (1) (1) (Major Administrative Area) I delegate : .. m <2>. _(21 . .,(21 ..(21 (2). .Ill (2). ,.(2.1 . (21 (2) .... (2) I have no responsibility for: (3) ....(3) (3) (3) (3) (3) ,(3? (3) (3) (3) (3) (3) PUPIL * PERSONNEL GUIDANCE I do: 48 49 50 51 52 53 <1> (1) (1) (1) <1> (1) I delegate: . ..(22 ..(22 _(21 .. (21 . (2). (2) COMMUNITY DELATIONS I do: I delegate: (3) (3) (3) (3) (3? (3) I have no responsibility for: ..... (2.1 (3) 55 (1) . (3) 56 (1) ... (2) (3) 57 58 <1> (1) (2) 121 (3) (3) 59 60 61 62 63 64 (1) (2) _ (22 ....(?2 ... (2) ... (2.1 122 (3) (3) (3) (3) (3) (3) (1) (1) (1) (1) Planning & evaluating a guidance & testing program Administering a guidance and testing program Determining the content of pupil cumulative records Developing procedures for reporting to parents Counseling of students A parents Other Please indicate (Major Administrative Area) (1) (1) (Major Administrative Area) I have no responsibility for: 54 (.21 Evaluating transportation needs Developing transportation plans Employing transportation personnel Operating and maintaining school buses Developing regulations governing school bus operation Preparing bids for purchasing of school buses Administering cafeteria program Supervising or coordinating school diagnostician program Supervising or coordinating school nurse program Supervising or coordinating school social worker program Supervising or coordinating speech correction program Other please indicate 65 66 U) (1) 122 .. (21 (3) (3) 67 (1) (22 (3) Organizing lay and professional groups for parti­ cipation in educational planning and other educational activities Interpreting and presenting school policies to the community Developing and administering a community relations program Preparing news releases Conducting and utilizing research concerning educational problems of the school and community Providing for an adult education program Using community resources in the school program Participating in parent school organizations Making speeches at state and national conferences Conducting individual parent conferences Arranging student teaching and internship experiences with universities Meeting with legislators regarding school issues Developing cooperative agreements between school districts for programs Other please indicate Page six STAFF RELATIONS (Major Administrative Area) i delegate: I do: I have no responsibility for: 68 69 (1) (1) . (2) . (3) (3? 70 (1) ,J 2 1 .. (3) 71 (i) . (2) 72 73 74 (1) (1) ..121 ....(2), (2) . (3) (3) (3) . (3) .. (3) *.— 1 2 1 w 75 .....121. 76 (3) ,1 2 ) (i) SCHOOL BOARD RELATIONS i I do: o CO 77 78 5 , ., (Major Administrative Area) I have no . i. responsibility for: (3) (3) Ill ____ (21 (2) .. .1 1 1 Recommending items for the school board agenda Preparing written and oral reports for the board of education (Card Two Complete) . .,..(11 ._J3)... (3) (3) 11.).. __ (2). 6 7 delegate: Arranging for and/or conducting staff meetings Encouraging staff participation in professional organizations Encouraging staff participation in community activities Recommending sick leave provisions and other fringe benefits for staff Defining the duties and responsibilities of the staff Developing and utilizing a staff newsletter Representing school board in professional negotiations with teachets Interpreting specialized ediicatiottal programs to other educators Other please indicate ... (i) 8 . 11). 9 . CD (3) Ol ..l.i). .. .1 2 ) ... (3) .Ill _... (3) ..... (3) ______(2). Recommending policy to the board of education Administering board policy Aiding the board to distinguish between policy and executive function Developing and providing opportunities for the board to meet and work with the staff Developing and providing opportunities for the board to appear before the public Other please indicate PLEASE RANK FROM ZERO TO NINE THE FOLLOWING ADMINISTRATIVE ACTIVITIES IN IDEAL ORDER OF TIME THEY SHOULD CONSUME. "9" IS THE ACTIVITY WHICH SHOULD CONSUME THE MOST TIME, AND "0" IS THE ACTIVITY WHICH SHOULD CONSUME THE LEAST OF YOUR TIME. 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 a. b. c. d. e. f. ... Rh. i. _. ,. ,i• Curriculum and Instruction Personnel Administration Finance Business Management and Practices School Plant Auxiliary services Pupil-Personnel Guidance Community Relations Staff relations School board relations Page seven PLEASE RANK FROM ZERO TO NINE THE FOLLOWING ADMINISTRATIVE ACTIVITIES IN ORDER OF THE TIME THEY ACTUALLY CONSUME. WITH "9" BEING THE ACTIVITY WHICH CONSUMES THE MOST TIME. AND "0" ACTUALLY CONStJMlNG THE LEAST OF YOUR TIME. 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 cl * b. c. d. e. f. fi­ ll. i. .1- Curriculum and Instruction Personnel Administration Finance Business Management and Practices School Plant Auxiliary Services Pupil-Personncl Guidance Community Relations Staff relations School board relations THE REMAINING PORTIONS OF THIS FORM ARE TO BE COMPLETED ONLY BY THE SPECIAL EDUCATION. Please check the size of your school district, regarding public school membership: 30 (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) (6) 1 to 5,000 school membership 5,001 to 10,000 10,001 to 15,000 15,001 to 25,000 25,001 to 40,000 40,001 and up Indicate the number of professional personnel directly employed by your school system during the 1966-67 school year in the following areas. Fill in blanks to left of your response with "0", and put one digit only in each space. 31-33 34-36 37-39 40-42 43-45 46-48 49-51 52-54 / / / / / / / / L i / / / / / / / / / / / / / / Blind and Partially Sighted Deaf and Hard of Hearing Orthopedically Handicapped Mentally Handicapped Emotionally disturbed School Social Worker School Diagnostician for the Mentally Handicapped Speech Correctionist Please check regarding supervisors who are employed by you 55 (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) Zero One to three four to six seven to ten more than ten Please list special education areas they supervise: ____________________ _______________________________________ _______________________ ________________ chuck the number of years state approved special education and special services have been operated by your school district. 56 (1) (2) (3) (4) One year two to three years four to seven years more than seven years Page eight Check the number of years a director of special education has been employed full-time by your school system: 57 58 (1) (2) (3) (4) One year two to three years four to seven years more than seven years Card Three Complete Thank you for completing this form. APPENDIX B 152 TABLE 32.— Survey form administrative activity responses. Items From Survey Intermediate Directors Intermediate Superintendents 1 2 3 18 5 3 2 12 3 45 4 1 6 23 0 21 2 3 27 3 0 48 1 2 3 18 7 1 3 15 0 45 3 2 10 19 0 25 1 1 27 1 1 49 1 2 3 12 9 5 2 12 3 32 13 3 5 23 1 18 6 3 13 15 1 1 2 3 16 10 0 6 11 0 44 5 0 9 20 1 24 2 1 27 1 2 18 Response Local Directors Local Superintendents Elementary Principals Secondary Principals Card 1 Item: 47 50 1 2 3 26 0 0 10 8 0 47 2 1 11 0 27 0 ■0 30 0 0 52 1 2 3 16 7 3 4 13 1 43 6 1 4 25 0 27 0 0 29 1 0 53 1 2 3 18 5 11 2 44 4 2 16 26 5 3 13 0 1 0 29 1 0 1 2 3 14 4 8 2 12 4 38 8 3 2 26 1 27 0 0 27 1 2 1 2 3 20 6 0 6 11 0 44 6 0 7 22 0 21 1 4 18 56 1 2 3 4 8 12 3 8 5 23 20 5 0 26 3 24 2 1 22 7 1 57 1 2 3 18 4 11 3 39 6 2 13 7 1 23 3 1 15 13 2 1 2 3 10 1 13 6 3 6 22 3 19 18 4 4 8 1 17 9 2 1 2 3 26 0 0 12 6 0 49 1 0 23 5 0 23 1 3 26 1 2 3 26 0 0 17 1 0 49 0 0 26 3 0 18 3 6 26 1 3 6l 1 2 3 4 0 2 1 0 0 3 0 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 62 1 2 3 26 0 0 11' 6 T 46 1 1 20 9 0 11 1 14 22 3 5 1 2 3 26 0 0 12 6 0 49 0 0 13 16 0 18 1 6 26 1 3 51 5^ 55 58 59 60 63 16 0 5 7 16 3 1 153 TABLE 32.— Continued. Items From Survey Response Intermediate Directors Intermediate Superlntendents Local Directors Local Superintendents Elementary Principals Secondary Principals 1 o 3 2A 1 1 13 5 0 A7 2 1 15 12 1 17 2 6 26 0 A 2 1 2b 2 3 0 6 12 0 AA 5 0 1A 15 0 26 0 0 26 3 1 1 0 21 5 0 5 13 0 A3 7 0 9 19 0 2A 0 2 23 5 2 8 10 0 28 3 17 6 3 12 9 3 25 1 17 A 5 12 9 9 68 1 2 3 23 1 n 7 11 0 A5 2 •3 A 2A 1 26 •0 0 28 1 1 69 1 2 3 20 3 3 8 9 0 31 7 11 1 26 1 18 2 21 6 3 1 15 30 2 26 1 1 13 2 11 18 . 1 3 21 0 A 71 1 2 3 23 2 1 9 8 0 A7 1 1 13 15 1 13 3 9 17 2 10 72 1 2 3 23 0 3 12 5 0 A2 1 5 20 8 1 25 0 0 28 73 1 2 3 2 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 7b 1 2 3 23 0 3 15 3 0 A5 2 3 19 8 2 12 0 1A 17 A 9 75 1 2 3 23 1 2 1A A 0 A6 1 3 18 9 2 16 0 10 21 2 7 1 2 3 17 A 5 7 11 0 20 1 28 9 19 1 2 2 22 A 5 20 77 1 2 3 19 2 5 11 7 0 1A 2 32 11 17 1 1 2 23 3 5 22 78 1 2 3 9 A 13 9 8 1 2 2 A5 2 25 2 1 1 2A 0 1 29 Card 1 Item: 6A 65 66 3 67 70 76 1 n 2 0 17 6 2 10 0 2 154 TABLE 32.— Continued. Items From Survey Response Intermediate Directors Intermediate Superintendents Local Directors '1 1 2 3 21 1 9 16 2 0 19 2 5 1 2 3 22 3 1 10 8 0 1 2 3 13 9 Local Superintendents Elementary Principals Secondary Principals Card 2 Item: 6 9 31 23 9 2 3 1 22 9 1 25 95 9 0 8 20 1 6 9 16 19 9 7 6 12 0 22 5 19 6 20 2 1 0 25 1 2 27 3 2 25 1 2 3 13 13 5 12 1 7 3 38 1 25 3 6 9 16 1 2 3 1 12 13 15 2 1 5 0 92 6 . . 20 3 1 1 29 1 2 3 15 2 9 6 9 2 17 0 30 11 18 0 3 0 23 5 2 23 10 1 2 3 2 0 2 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 0 2 11 1 2 3 9 7 10 9 8 ' 1 16 l 32 9 23 2 9 0 22 8 2 20 12 1 2 3 10 8 7 9 7 1 10 1 38 2 25 2 3 1 22 1 2 27 13 1 2 3 13 6 7 9 8 1 17 2 3 1 22 2 2 28 3 29 2 1 2 3 22 3 1 '1 13 1 39 9 6 9 23 2 19 1 6 18 15 1 2 3 9 13 i| 1 16 1 19 15 15 1 26 2 19 5 2 8 15 6 16 1 2 3 9 i| 13 7 V 3 9 1 39 3 29 2 1 2 22 1 5 29 17 1 2 3 8 3 15 8 6 3 1 0 97 3 22 2 0 0 29 1 2 26 18 1 2 3 17 2 7 19 9 0 5 0 93 19 8 2 2 0 29 0 1 29 19 1 2 3 20 ll 2 7 9 2 36 2 11 5 19 3 9 0 5 2 23 7 8 9 1*1 0 ■ 22 . 0 1 29 26 6 5 155 TABLE 32.--Continued. Items From Survey Response Intermediate Directors Intermediate Superintendents Local Directors Local Superintendents Elementary Principals Secondary Principals Card 2 Item: 20 21 22 23 2D 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 2 0 0 0 3 0 0 1 1 0 19 5 U 0 0 26 0 1 2A 10 1 It 13 1 3 20 7 3 0 3 10 1 13 1 2 3 11 2 12 9 3 It 1 16 16 2 8 J 21 2 1 5 8 1 2 3 1 2 3 1 p 3 25 26 1 2 3 1 2 3 27 1 0 1 1 0 8 10 0 7 U 1 21 10 0 3 5 3 3 10 8 1 2 3 14 3 5 1 2 3 10 1 111 1 2 3 8 '17 18 30 2 23 7 0 23 20 13 1 ID 2 D 0 22 ID 2 ID 26 13 0 12 ■ 0 ID 17 1 12 29 1 18 16 23 11 0 26 18 7 it 36 12 0 0 10 16 18 11 15 ID 15 7 ID 19 16 9 10 3 3 17 19 Q 2 9 lit 16 5 1 2 3 7 3 1C it 7 6 1 2 3 5 0 21 11 1 5 1 2 3 7 0 33 31 0 7 15 1 ID 0 0 0 10 11 5 36 28 29 9 0 0 0 0 0 7 16 ■ 3D 12 ID 2 19 1 13 2 2 DU U 22 3 ID 0 12 9 11 0 7 17 U 0 0 0 1 D7 26 30 18 8 3 5 2 1 UU 10 15 3 ID 1 11 9 6 15 1 2 3 13 2 11 9 2 5 25 2 22 12 ID 3 18 0 8 22 2 5 34 1 2 3 11) 0 12 H H 7 27 3 17 7 19 3 21 0 5 23 D 3 35 1 2 3 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 2 2 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 29 30 31 32 2 2 0 0 10 0 156 t Items From Survey Response Intermediate Directors Intermediate Superintendents Local Directors Local Superintendents Elementary Principals Secondary Principals Card 2 Item: 36 37 38 39 1 2 16 6 4 3 6 7 4 1 2 12 41 43 44 45 49 50 51 52 2 4 25 12 2 1 21 0 2 28 3 8 0 1 1 0 0 24 30 1 1 0 0 24 30 4 1 0 3 19 3 1 3 1 22 3 1 11 43 1 26 2 2 21 3 4 9 10 0 '3 23 37 2 3 2 o 2 1 11 44 o 2 0 1 Oc 3 1 2 3 1 22 1 2 1 2 3 23 1 40 1 12 46 20 1 44 15 0 3 4 o 1 5 1 2 2 0 0 19 9 2 3 23 8 27 1 2 20 1 40 3 3 14 0 10 P 1 2 1 2 3 48 29 7 6 6 3 47 3 9 5 6 1 3 46 8 1 20 1 2 3 42 5 3 3 40 9 18 n 5 9 1 2 2 3 0 2 14 44 4 2 2 0 0 ■0 10 0 1 1 6 10 20 1 6 10 13 29 1 19 4 3 ' 1 2 2 3 21 1 2 1 3 21 1 2 4 5 2 7 3 16 8 1 2 14 2 8 5 3 3 10 1 2 8 12 2 8 3 5 7 3 3 2 0 28 39 2 25 o 0 21 29 0 1 0 0 25 30 8 2 16 7 24 4 1 28 0 2 2 24 3 1 6 17 19 2 6 22 7 6 5 0 28 1 2 3 17 21 1 28 0 8 2 16 7 3 1 28 0 7 1 4 0 20 2 5 4 17 21 2 1 2 0 0 1 5 24 11 19 4 0 10 11 1 1 26 1 15 4 21 5 3 25 22 1 18 1 7 21 10 0 32 4 14 10 18 0 22 1 23 7 3 1 30 3 25 24 19 1 1 11 1 4 25 6 12 8 0 6 9 21 1 157 » TABLE 32.— Continued. Items From Survey Response Intermediate Directors Intermediate Superintendents Local Directors Local Superintendents Elementary Principals Secondary Principals Card 2 Item: 53 1 ■ ; 1 0 p 1 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 1 0 0 12 4 2 28 2 17 27 2 0 16 2 8 21 2 8 . . 0 0 0 3 24 1 1 ,, 1 2 3 24 0 2 17 1 0 42 0 7 28 1 0 26 0 0 27 2 2 56 1 2 3 19 2 5 15 2 1 26 1 22 20 6 2 16 1 8 12 7 11 57 1 2 3 24 1 1 16 2 0 21 5 23 18 10 1 15 2 9 17 8 6 58 1 2 3 18 5 3 9 6 1 25 2 20 16 12 0 15 3 8 15 8 8 59 1 2 3 3 2 20 2 5 9 4 1 41 5 23 1 3 1 21 3 9 19 60 1 2 3 17 6 3 2 7 6 32 6 11 9 20 0 21 4 1 15 13 3 61 1 2 3 20 2 3 9 4 4 41 4 4 19 10 0 26 0 0 21 4 5 62 1 2 3 16 0 7 8 5 4 33 0 14 25 0 3 9 0 17 13 0 16 63 1 2 3 13 8 5 2 6 9 42 6 2 9 19 1 23 3 0 25 5 1 64 1 2 3 23 1 2 4 10 3 34 2 11 12 13 3 20 0 6 20 6 5 65 1 2 3 22 0 4 17 1 0 21 0 26 27 1 1 5 0 21 6 0 24 66 1 2 3 25 0 1 16 2 0 40 0 10 22 4 1 3 0 23 8 3 20 67 1 2 3 1 0 1 1 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 68 1 2 3 24 2 0 11 7 0 49 0 1 21 6 2 26 0 0 29 1 1 1: 1 n 158 TABLE 32.— Continued. Local Directors Response Intermediate Directors Intermediate Superin­ tendents 69 1 2 3 26 0 0 14 2 1 47 0 3 18 7 4 20 2 4 23 1 7 70 1 2 3 25 0 1 12 3 1 46 1 2 21 4 3 23 1 2 27 2 2 71 1 2 3 23 0 3 16 2 0 19 0 30 18 8 2 6 1 19 9 3 19 72 1 2 3 26 0 0 13 5 0 48 0 1 22 4 1 26 0 0 28 1 2 73 1 9 3 17 3 5 7 7 2 11 5 30 8 17 2 16 2 3 14 2 15 7 *4 1 2 3 9 0 17 8 2 6 7 0 .41 20 7 1 4 0 22 12 1 18 75 1 p 3 26 0 0 14 4 0 49 0 D 23 6 0 12 1 13 17 3 11 76 1 2 3 0 0 1 0 0 n 1 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 77 1 o 3 25 0 1 17 0 0 32 0 16 28 0 1 5 1 19 17 0 14 78 1 2 3 26 0 0 17 1 0 45 0 5 28 1 0 14 1 11 22 0 9 4 1 2 3 25 0 1 18 0 0 31 1 17 27 1 1 8 1 16 15 0 16 5 1 2 3 26 0 0 17 1 0 40 0 8 28 1 0 24 0 2 24 1 6 6 1 2 3 17 0 8 18 0 0 12 1 35 28 0 1 3 1 22 10 0 21 7 1 2 3 21 0 5 16 l 0 20 1 27 25 3 1 5 2 19 14 0 17 8 1 2 3 13 0 13 14 1 1 5 0 43 25 3 1 10 2 14 6 25 1 2 3 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 3 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 Items From Survey Local Superintendents Elementary Principals Secondary Principals Card 2 It e m : . Card 3 Item: 9 a (l'"I Do," 2 = "I Delegate," 3= "I Have No Responsibility For.") 0