Date of Award

2002

Degree Name

Educational Leadership

College

College of Education

Type of Degree

Ed.D.

Document Type

Dissertation

First Advisor

Linda Spatig, Ed. D., Chair

Second Advisor

Jack Yeager, Ed. E.

Third Advisor

Bob Angel, Ph. D.

Fourth Advisor

Edwina Pendarvis, Ed. D.

Abstract

The purpose of this qualitative study was to examine how administrative practices were carried out in Mason County, West Virginia’s one-room schools from 1935-1950. These practices were examined using Gulick and Urwick’s (1936) seven functions of the administrator and school-community relations as the framework. Twelve persons were interviewed for this study over the span of three months. Eleven of these persons were former one-room school teachers in Mason County. Of these eleven former teachers, two became central office administrators overseeing one-room schools. The twelfth person was a community leader in Mason County who attended a one-room school. The results of this study support accessed literature that one-room school teachers did take on a day to day administrative role in the rural one-room school setting in Mason County. Some of Gulick and Urwick’s (1936) administrative functions were implemented at the central office and some were implemented at the school building level in Mason County. A key component of administrative practice undertaken at the one-room school site was the development and maintenance of positive school-community relations with the teacher playing a strong role in this practice. The implication of this study is that the development of positive school-community relations is important to gaining and assuring community support in the rural school setting.

Subject(s)

Education, Rural -- Mason County (W. Va.)

Rural schools.

School supervision, Rural.

Community and school.

Teaching, Freedom of.

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