The attitudes and opinions of Indiana school superintendents toward selected components of community education in the public schools

• Main Author: Calvert, John E.
• Other Authors: Ballou, Philip E.
• Format: Others
• Published: 2011
• Subjects: School superintendents > Indiana.; Community and school.
• Online Access: http://cardinalscholar.bsu.edu/handle/handle/175396; http://liblink.bsu.edu/uhtbin/catkey/414394

The purpose of the study was to determine attitudes and opinions of Indiana Public School superintendent:; toward selected components of Community Education in public schools.Review of literature traced development of t)-h philosophy of Community Education from a "one-room schoolhouse" to a multiplicity of components involving all aspects of community life.Studies related to attitudes and perceptions of educational leaders toward Community Education, especially those of superintendents were reported.A questionnaire was mailed to all 286 superintendents of Indiana school corporations. Two hundred forty-four (85.3 percent) superintendents responded and constituted the population of the study.The questionnaire was designed to determine the attitudes of superintendents toward: (1) programs and activities, (2) formal cooperative agreements with organizations and agencies, (3) selected Community Education concepts, (4) availability of school resources to the community, and (5) perceived inhibitors to the development/expansion of Community Education.A majority of superintendents strongly agreed or agreed that eighteen of twenty-one selected-programs or activities should be offered in their school systems.Superintendents strongly agreed or agreed to entering into formal cooperative agreements with twelve of thirteen selected organizations and agencies.Superintendents expressed a positive attitude toward six of seven Community Education concepts.A majority of respondents indicated a positive attitude toward making all school resources included inthe thirteen questionnaire items available to the community on a totally, partially, or no cost basis.Nearly 75 percent of the superintendents indicated lack of finance was an inhibitor to the development of Community Education in their school corporations.Approximately 30 percent of respondents cited lack of expressed community interest as an inhibitor to development of Community Education.Other leading inhibitors to development of Community Education were: lack of trained Community Education staff; lack of time by the superintendent or staff to conduct Community Education; lack of knowledge/understanding by the community; and lack of facilities.The following conclusions were made:1. Indiana superintendents favored the concept of Community Education, but have left leadership for Community Education to other organizations and agencies.2. Adequate financial resources were not available to Indiana school corporations for Community Education.3. Neither educational leaders nor the general public were sufficiently knowledgeable about Community Education.4. More trained Community Education personnel were needed to staff developing Indiana Community Education programs.5. In general, Indiana superintendents favored the use of school resources on a basis where cost sharing was directly related to maintenance costs of the resources.6. Indiana superintendents favored formal cooperative agreements with other public institutions or agencies more than they favored such agreements with private, fraternal, or religious groups.7. Indiana superintendents favored usual or traditional programs and activities more than atypical or experimental programs.8. Lack of financial resources was the most frequently cited inhibitor to Community Education development. Other noted inhibitors of Community Education varied widely from community to community.9. In general, expressed interest and support of the community for the Community Education concept was needed for implementation to occur.