Date of Award

Spring 2003

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Education (EdD)

Department

Curriculum, Instruction, and Leadership

First Advisor

David Gullatt

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to explore the effects of block scheduling, as well as the effects of specific demographic factors, on teacher job satisfaction. All 25 of the 82 size AA schools in Arkansas which use block scheduling were asked to participate, and a systematic sampling of every third traditional schedule AA school yielded 27 schools with which to compare results. Of these 52 schools, teachers in 22 block scheduled schools and teachers in 18 traditional scheduled schools participated, yielding a total field of 601 respondents. The Minnesota Satisfaction Questionnaire was administered to teachers at each participating secondary school. In order to compare job satisfaction levels, questions were also asked concerning (a) gender, (b) age, (c) years of teaching experience, (d) educational background, (e) whether or not teachers were teaching in or outside of their field of certification, and (f) how many years teachers had taught under block scheduling.

Results of all seven hypotheses were analyzed by ANOVA. Results indicated that there were no significant differences in the levels of teacher job satisfaction between teachers in block schedule schools and traditional schedule schools. Among the twenty-one individual scales investigated for each demographic factor, three items showed significant differences in teacher job satisfaction levels. The paucity of significant differences suggests that administrators should look beyond school schedules for ways to attract and retain quality teachers.

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