Contentious exploitation? : the abolition of indentured labour migration from India to Fiji, 1910-1920
Date
1994
Authors
Alexander, Emma Catherine
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Abstract
This study examined the concept of Instructional Flexibility, as measured on the Instructional Flexibility Scale (IF Seal), and teacher attitudes toward the school system, as measured on the System Flexibility Scale (SF Scale), in relation to school size.
Every district teacher completed a questionnaire consisting of both the IF Scale and the SF Scale. School IF scores were determined and ranked on a continuum with the upper and lower quartiles being designated the "more flexible" and "less flexible" schools, respectively. Ambivalent or negative teacher re spons es to SF Scale items were determined for each school.
It was hypothesized that a significant negative correlation would exist between:
(1) Instructional Flexibility and school size.
(2) Teacher attitudes and school size.
The Spearman Rank Order Correlation technique resulted in both hypotheses being rejected, indicating that any apparent relationships between school size and flexibility or between school size and teacher attitudes toward the system are trivial.
A number of propositions were explored concerning relationships between flexibility and school location, school type , and principal and teacher attitudes. Chi square analyses and t tests indicated that no significant relationships were evident, although there was a significant mean difference between the attitudes of principals in more flexible and in less flexible schools.
Information concerning the background of principals was also obtained which permitted observations concerning flexibility and various qualities of training and experience of a principal. A significant relations hip was found to exist between flexibility and the number of years a principal had spent in his present position.
While not clearly identified in this study, the possibility of a relationship between instructional flexibility and principal performance was suggested by the findings.