ok this is the full case i need help answering the Discussio

ok this is the full case. i need help answering the Discussion questions please. Thanks

Mastering Teacher Leadership

>Abstract

This case is about a multistage, communication study of teachers by Wittenberg University’s Department of Education to determine the viability of starting a Master of Education program for Ohio-certified teachers working within school districts serving a five-county area. www.wittenberg.edu

>Background

Ohio legislators recently implemented new standards for those wishing to teach within Ohio’s public and private schools. Teachers certified to teach in Ohio in 2002 or later will need to complete a master’s degree before obtaining their second licensure renewal. New teachers, therefore, will have a five- to seven-year window to complete the master’s degree after their initial licensure to teach. Historically, teachers have looked to graduate level courses to fulfill their professional development requirements. According to the newly passed Ohio Department of Education Teacher Certification Standards, for the first time all professional development activities must be tied to professional development plans customized by local school district goals. All such plans will be approved and monitored by Local Professional Development Committees. These LPDCs will look favorably on courses that fit local goals, which are increasingly motivated by student performance variances on standardized tests. Wittenberg University is primarily a resident campus of 2,000 students affiliated with the Lutheran Church in America. Located in central Ohio, Wittenberg is a comprehensive liberal arts institution with professional programs in education, business management, pre-med, and pre-law. It has been training teachers for more than 150 years and has earned a reputation for producing exceptional teachers for K–12 programs. This high quality, as perceived by local teachers who supervise Wittenberg undergraduate field teaching experiences, is expected to be Wittenberg’s greatest asset in pursuing the development of a master’s program. Wittenberg, historically, has not offered a graduate degree in education, but it has offered graduate degrees in its nationally recognized music program and, until the mid-1980s, in its theology program. Wittenberg sees the change in Ohio Teacher Certification Standards as an opportunity for its Center for Professional Development (WittCPD), a program of professional development courses designed to fulfill the continuing education requirements of teachers in the area. Central Ohio is rich with high quality universities. Within a 30-minute drive of Wittenberg’s campus, undergraduate teacher education programs can be found at Wright State University (WSU), the University of Dayton (UD), Urbana College, Cedarville College, Wilberforce University, and Central State University. WSU and UD currently offer Master of Arts degrees in teaching. WSU offers continuing education programs that fulfill professional development programs. Increased turnover is also expected to be a motivating factor contributing to increased enrollment in university development programs. Ohio’s schoolteacher turnover is expected to increase due to the aging of the teacher population, incentive buyout programs designed to encourage aging teachers to retire, and the need to hire experienced teachers in the hard-to-fill math and science areas. With an average 15 years teaching experience, Clark County schools have more than 900 certified staff and hire 50–60 new teachers each year. Springfield City schools have more than 800 certified staff and hired 119 teachers in 1997, 99 in 1998, and 118 in 1999.

>Research

The faculty of the education department, in concert with university administrators, conducted a brainstorming session in early fall 1998 to identify university resources that might contribute to a master’s program in education. This was followed by a retreat with an Ohio Department of Education consultant, who reiterated the advantages of a liberal arts-based program in the ongoing preparation of K–12 teachers. To further explore the opportunity for offering a Master of Arts degree in Classroom Leadership, WittCPD conducted three focus groups: two with Springfield City district teachers and one with local school superintendents. Both groups were positive about the likelihood of a program customized to the needs of the various local school districts. Additionally, they provided direction for the desired content and orientation of an effective program. Such a program would need to: • Deal with the diverse cognitive and social needs of students. • Emphasize technological literacy for both teachers and students. • Emphasize both program and classroom assessment by providing a sound research foundation for both curriculum and instruction. • Address classroom management issues of student social skills, moral education, and discipline. • Provide a framework for teachers to learn to collaborate with other teachers and with community professionals. In the spring of 1999, Education faculty associated with the WittCPD drafted a market survey and mailed it to 2,000 practicing teachers in a four-county area. Each of the 1,600 teachers in Clark County, Wittenberg’s home county, received a questionnaire, with the remaining 400 surveys delivered to a systematic sample teaching in the outlying counties of Green, Montgomery, and Champaign. By September 1, 1999, 763 teachers had returned their surveys (31.8 percent response), of which 53.8 percent of respondents had completed or were enrolled in degree programs beyond the bachelor’s level.

>Initial Results

Out of 763 teachers, 21.2 percent said they definitely would enroll, with an additional 57.7 percent who might enroll, citing professional requirements, professional advancement, or keeping their certification as the three primary reasons for enrolling. Those who expressed a lack of interest in a Master of Arts program at Wittenberg claimed as three obstacles the anticipated high cost, their holding a current master’s degree, or family responsibilities. In order for the Wittenberg Board of Directors to approve offering of the new degree program, the program needs to continue the liberal arts tradition and strengthen the undergraduate teacher education program, as high quality undergraduate education is seen as part of Wittenberg’s primary mission. Additionally, new academic initiatives such as the one proposed are increasingly asked by the board to reach break-even within their first operating year.

>Discussion

1 Build the management-research question hierarchy for this opportunity.

2 Evaluate the appropriateness of the exploratory stage of the research design.

3 Evaluate the sampling strategy.

4 Evaluate the survey:

a In terms of structure, what is the quality of this instrument? What improvements would you make?

b In terms of measurement questions, are the chosen response strategies appropriate?

c Does this instrument meet the needs summarized in the investigative questions noted in your management-research question hierarchy (question 1 above)?

5 Prepare a preliminary analysis plan for this study. Which variables do you want frequencies on? Why? Which variables do you want to cross-tabulate? Why?

6 Analyze the data from this study on your CD (Excel 97 file format: Witt Masters CPD.xls). With respect to creating a Master of Arts in Classroom Leadership program, what recommendation is supported by your data analysis?

7 What role could GIS play in this analysis?

Solution

Build the management-research question hierarchy for this opportunity

Management research question hierarchy is a step process of solving a dilemma from management dilemma to

management decision.

Step 1: Management Dilemma

What\'s the problem from the management include the current issue they are facing?

Should Whittenberg College start a Masters of Arts in Education program based on the new requirements placed on teachers in the state of Ohio?

Step 2: Management Questions

How can management fully capitalize on a opportunity?

The requirements for Ohio teachers to carry a Master degree by their first recertification will increase the enrollment to upper level education. If this new requirement can be leveraged and Whittenberg can become the school of choice for teachers studying for their masters degree then student enrollment will increase.

Step 3: Research Questions

What Reasonable actions are available for take the advantage on the opportunity?

The teachers without a Master need to gain their degree to continue teaching. Whittenberg has historically

produced strong teachers for K-12 education.

Step 4: Investigation Questions

What\'s important for manager to know about to choose the best alternative from the available course of actions?

How many teachers need their Masters degree in OH?

How many teachers are currently working towards a Masters?

What are determining factors for teachers to choose

Whittenberg for their educational needs?

What course material is desired from the OH school districts to ensure the educational goals are being met?

Step 5: Measurement Question

What should be asked or observed to obtain the information the manager needsDo you currently have a Masters

Are you currently working towards a Masters?

What interest do you have to obtaining a Masters to retain your position with OH school districts?

Have you considered financing options to further you education?

        What factors are important for you when looking for a College to obtain your Masters?

Step 6: Management Decision

What is the recommended course of action from the given   research?

Given that the results of the survey had low participation and Greater that 50% of the responses were unlikely to

attend based on already having a Masters, financial cost, and family responsibility it would be unadvisable to

continue down the path of establishing a Master of Education based

2)Evaluate the appropriateness of the exploratory stage of the research design.

Firstly, Ohio implement new standards for those who wish to teach within Ohio’s,

Secondly, with an average15 years teaching experience clark county schools have more .

Thirdly, Springfield city schools have more than 800certified staff &

hired 119 teachers Fourthly, by September 1,1999,763 teachers had

returned their surveys(31.8 percent response) of which 53.8 percent of

respondents had completed their degree programs beyond the bachelor’s

level. & Lastly, out of 763 teachers , 21.2 percent said to definitely

enroll with an additional

Evaluate the sampling strategy

The non-probability survey is the sampling strategy that is portrayed in the case study that we reviewed entitled,

\"Mastering Teacher Leadership\". A non-probability survey does not include every member of the population\'s input

because they do not have the same chances of being selected for the survey. In this specific article, the survey was

conducted by mailing 2,000 surveys to four counties and only to teachers who were actively teaching. Teachers

were specifically asked because they are the only subjects that can give the researchers the answers to the

questions they are proposing. Because the researchers need to know the concerns and needs of teachers within

that area, they cannot send out surveys to those who do not teach, that would lead to inconclusive answers. In this

sampling strategy a specific population was targeted to a specific answer

Evaluate the survey:

A) In terms of structure, what is the quality of this instrument? What improvements would you make?

The survey that was mailed to each customer appeared to be an unstructured response questionnaire and of poor

quality.  Each participant would select if they would enroll in the degree program and then the participant would fill

in the reason why they made the selection.  The survey questionnaire could have been improved by increasing the

question content and increasing the audience they sent questionnaires.  Also, the survey could have increased

their responses by offering more information about the program and financial aid opportunities for interested

applicants.

B) In terms of measurement questions, are the chosen response strategies appropriate?

Based only on the response strategies and in terms of measurement questions I do believe the survey

was appropriate for the information needed. When determining measurement questions there can be pre-designed

or custom designed questions and for what the school needed at that moment, these questions used both designs

to establish an overall conclusion on the potential issues that could arise with mandating a higher education for

teachers. Understanding the response strategies on this survey will allow the school to determine an effective plan

for the teachers to meet the new requirements in Ohio to have their Master\'s Degree. It is after this that a type of

pilot testing can be done to determine the specific details and objectives to accomplish their goals.

C) Does this instrument meet the needs summarized in the investigative questions noted in your management-

research question hierarchy

Prepare a preliminary analysis plan for this study. Which variables do you want frequencies on? Why? Which variables do you want to cross-tabulate? Why?

The surveys have proven to give a direction to the needs of the investigative questions. Finding that most individuals

already have a masters degree has proven that the new regulations for a higher education has little affect on the

current teachers who already possess a master’s in education. Those that are currently enrolled in school, and are

working on a master’s degree will struggle more so due to the fact that they will need to redirect their whole

program to accommodate the new regulations. Surveys have shown that the students that do not have or are not

working on masters will probably not proceed with a master’s degree for education based on issues such as

financial cost or family responsibility.

The initial stage of the data correlation and analysis would be the proper coding of the data

And entry into an appropriate software database. For this case study the data was presented

As an excelfile. So the exploratory data analysis would include a complete descriptive statistical

Calculations and frequencies for applicable questions.

I would suggest questions that create normal or ordinal data are the most appropriate

For frequency tables and provide a clearer picture of the survey respondents. The data sets may be

utilized to confirm if the teacher sample is representative of the overall population. And cross

tabulations conducted to draw correlation between categories. I would suggest that representative of

data speciafically addressing respondents who require masters degree or those contemplating pursuing

higher education would be of particular interest as they represent the potential student make

researchers will also need to account for non response errors and missing data within the coding and

analysis staged program the program needs to continue the liberal arts tradition and strengthen the

under graduate teacher education program as high quality under graduation education is seen as a part of

writtenberg;s primary mission.