Organization, Administration and Operation of Secondary School Units in the North Aegean Region | Chapter 4 | An Overview of Literature, Language and Education Research Vol. 9

School has a significant effect on the development and improvement of pupils and, aiming at its effectiveness, special emphasis is placed on interpersonal relationships and communication among the participants in the educational process. In order for educational organizations, or otherwise educational units, to accomplish their purpose, effective management is a prerequisite. The ultimate goal of this research is to examine the environment and operation of the school unit. More specifically it examines the problems of the school unit, the effectiveness of communication, the prevailing climate, the abilities of the principal and the existence of an evaluation method. This is a quantitative study and the respondents were chosen by using cluster sampling method. In this context, 312 questionnaires were sent to all 104 secondary schools of the North Aegean (Lesvos, Chios, Samos, Ikaria, Limnos, Fourni, Oinousses, Psara, Agios Efstratios). Out of the 312, 148 were returned completed. This means a 47.44% response rate. According to the findings of the study, the operation of the school unit is characterized by a good level of cooperation among its members, effective leadership, adequate guidance and encouragement from teachers, and effective communication. However, on the question of communication, respondents' answers show that communication between school unit members and parents as well as between the school unit and the local community is to a moderate or to a small extent effective. Regarding the issue of leadership, respondents' answers indicate that almost half of the teachers believe that the principal in the school unit they serve has the necessary skills and abilities to meet the requirements of this position. Another feature of the operation of the school units involved in the survey is the lack of school evaluation. The findings of this study highlighted the following key issues: a) inadequate facilities and resources in institution, coupled with reduced government funding and teachers' financial challenges; b) remote location of the institution, negatively affecting teacher morale, leading to staffing shortages, frequent changes, operational issues, and a decline in the quality of education and extracurricular activities; c) low intellectual engagement in the local community, resulting in apathy towards education, weak school-community connections, student disinterest, and cultural deficiencies in schools; and d) conflicts between local and foreign students, manifesting in antisocial behaviour and disinterest in learning. At this point, it is worth pointing out that the results of the research show that the problems faced by the majority of the school units involved in the survey are, according to the respondents' answers, due to the ineffective organization of the educational system. This includes the bureaucratic and centralized model, which does not provide flexibility for school units and teaching staff to take initiatives in order to enhance the educational process.

 

Author (s) Details

George F. Zarotis
Faculty of Human Sciences, University of the Aegean, Rhodes, Greece.

 

Ntalossis Dimitrios
Faculty of Human Sciences, University of the Aegean, Rhodes, Greece.

 

Please see the book here:- https://doi.org/10.9734/bpi/aoller/v9/3748