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Comparatively speaking, the
performance of Thai administrators in international studies
of Thailand's relatively weak human resource base has been
pinpointed as one of the underlying factors in the cause of
the economic and financial crisis that has hit the country
over recent years very poor. This research reports on a
study that investigated the role that Thai administrators’
interpersonal relationships with their teachers play in
enhancing the teachers’ teaching plan and students’
achievement in the subject and in forming or changing the
teachers’ attitudes to teaching arrangement. The
questionnaires were administered to a sample of 716 teachers
in 80 schools in Udon Thani Educational Service Area 1-4.
Administrator-teacher interactions were assessed with the
48-item Questionnaire on Administrator Interaction (QAI)
which was adapted version from the Questionnaire on Teacher
Interaction (QTI) (Wubbles and Levy, 1993). This
questionnaire has an Actual and Preferred Forms. Teachers’
attitudes were assessed with the Test of
Administrator-Related Attitudes (TOARA) which was based on
the Test of Science-Related Attitudes (TOSRA) (Fraser,
1981). Statistically significant differences were found
between the teachers’ perceptions of actual and preferred
administrator interpersonal behaviours. It was found that
administrator interpersonal behaviour was high on factors
such as Leadership, Helping/Friendly, Understanding and
Teacher Responsibility/Freedom behaviour, while factors such
as Uncertain, Dissatisfied, Admonishing and Strict
behaviours were far less prominent. Significant differences
were found between teachers’ perceptions of actual and
preferred administrator interpersonal behaviours, and a
typology comparison of teachers’ perceptions of Thai
administrators could be classified as Authoritative in both
the actual and preferred administrators’ interpersonal
behaviours. Associations between teachers’ perceptions of
their administrators’ interpersonal behaviour with their
attitudes to their school administration were found. The
multiple correlations were significant for the Actual Form
of the QAI and the TOARA, 39% of the variance in teacher’s
attitude to their schools was attributable to their
perceptions. Based on the findings, suggestions for.
Keywords:
Factors Influencing Factors, Teachers’ Perceptions, School
Administrators’ Interpersonal Behaviours, Primary School
Administrations, Thailand |
