Loyola University Chicago Loyola eCommons Dissertations Theses and Dissertations 1990 The Role of the Dean in Improving Teaching in the Colleges Madonna Marie Murphy Loyola University Chicago Follow this and additional works at: https://ecommons.luc.edu/luc_diss Part of the Education Commons Recommended Citation Murphy, Madonna Marie, "The Role of the Dean in Improving Teaching in the Colleges" (1990). Dissertations. 2737. https://ecommons.luc.edu/luc_diss/2737 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Theses and Dissertations at Loyola eCommons. It has been accepted for inclusion in Dissertations by an authorized administrator of Loyola eCommons. For more information, please contact [email protected]. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 License. Copyright © 1990 Madonna Marie Murphy THE ROLE OF THE DEAN IN IMPROVING TEACHING IN THE COLLEGES by Madonna Marie Murphy A Dissertation Submitted to the Faculty of the Graduate School of Loyola University of Chicago in Partial Fullfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy April· 1990 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS The author of this dissertation would like to acknowledge the professional support and guidance rendered by Dr. Melvin Heller, director of this dissertation, and by Dr. Jack Kavanaugh and Dr. L. Arthur Safer, dissertation Committee members. The author wishes to thank her fellow graduate students, Elaine Lee and M. Sophia Aquirre for their assistance and encouragement. She would also like to thank the Loyola staff; Jan and Marion, in the School of Education; Vanessa, in the library; and Brad, in the computer center, for their help in completing the dissertation research. The author wishes to acknowledge Dr. Biruta Meirans, who first inspired the author to pursue a doctoral degree in order to fullfill the dreams of her father. The author wishes to thank The Metro Achievement Center for the generous loan of their office computer, without which this dissertation could not have been produced. Finally, the author wishes to acknowledge the support, encouragement and assistance of her family, her sisters, brothers and friends who cheered her on to the finish line. ii DEDICATION This dissertation is dedicated the author's father, the late William J. Murphy, who always encouraged her to do her best; and to her mother, Dorothy A. Murphy, who showed the author by her perservering example that you can eat an elephant if you do it part by part. iii VITA The author, Madonna Marie Murphy, is the daughter of Dorothy Ann (Smith) Murphy and the late William J. Murphy. she was born on July 3, 1954 in Evergreen Park, Illinois. She graduated from St. Barnabas Elementary School in 1968 and completed her high school education at the Academy of Our Lady, graduating in 1972. Ms. Murphy received her B.A. degree from the University of Chicago in 1976, majoring in Philosophy with minors in Spanish and Education. In the Fall, 1980 she entered the M. Ed. program in Educational Administration at Loyola University of Chicago and received her degree in May, 1983. She entered the doctoral program in September, 1984 and completed her course work while working full-time. Ms. Murphy has worked as a Spanish teacher at the Willows Academy and for the Chicago Public Schools, teaching Spanish at both the elementary and high school levels. In 1981, Ms. Murphy joined the staff of Lexington Institute of Hospitality Careers were she has been the Director of Admissions, the Director of Curriculum and the Dean of the Institute. In 1984, she founded Concord Residence, a residence for students who attended Lexington Institute. She took a sabbatical leave from her position as Dean in the 1989-90 academic year in order to do her doctoral research and write this dissertation. iv TABLE OF CONTENTS Page 1\.C~()~LED<;1'1:E~T~. • . • . • . • . 11 DEDICATION . ............................................. 111 VITA. iv LIST OF TABLES ....•..................................... vii LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. • . ix CONTENTS OF APPENDICES ..............•................... x CHAPTER I. OVERVIEW OF THE STUDY/RESEARCH METHODOLOGY ....... 1 Statement of the Problem ........•............. 1 Conceptual Framework .......................... 4 Research Methodology .......................... 11 II. REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE ..................... 24 The Administration of Higher Education as a Field of Study. 2 4 The Role of the College Dean .................. 31 The Role of the Dean in Improving Teaching in the Colleges .................................. 41 The Role of the Departmental Chairperson ...... 54 Teaching in the Two Year Colleges ............. 62 Faculty Development ...........•.•.•........... 71 III. PRESENTATION AND ANALYSIS OF DATA ...•.•....•..... 91 General Review of Methodology .•.....•......... 91 The Leadership Activities of the Dean and Department Chair .............................. 100 The Supervisory Activities of the Dean ........ 146 v III. PRESENTATION AND ANALYSIS OF DATA (CONT) Faculty Development in the Colleges ........... 167 IV. SUMMARY, CONCLUSIONS, RECOMMENDATIONS AND SUGGESTIONS FOR FURTHER STUDY ..•..•.•............ 195 Summary . ...................................... 19 5 Conclusions . .................................. 198 Recommendations from this Study •.............. 207 Suggestions for Further Study ....•.•.......... 210 BIBLIOGRAPHY . .........................•.•......•........ 212 APPENDICES . .............•............•.••...•........... 2 21 vi LIST OF TABLES TABLE I. CRITICAL FUNCTIONS OF ADMINISTRATORS ACROSS SETTING. 2 9 II. QUESTIONNAIRE RESPONSE RATE ...................... 92 III. RESPONDENTS CHARACTERISTICS ...................... 101 IV. CROSSTABULATION OF TYPE OF COLLEGE BY TITLE DEGREE AND FIELD .•.....•...........•............. 10 3 V. CHI SQUARE FOR TYPE OF COLLEGE BY DEGREE AND FIELD . ....................................... 10 5 VI. CHARACTERISTICS OF INTERVIEWED DEANS ....•........ 108 VII. DOES THE DEAN TEACH? ............................. 112 VIII. JOB RESPONSIBILITIES OF DEANS .................... 114 IX. THE DEAN'S RESPONSIBILITIES BY TYPE OF COLLEGE ... 117 x. THE DEAN'S RESPONSIBILITIES BY SIZE OF INSTITUTE.121 XI. PREPARATION FOR THE DEANSHIP ..................... 122 XII. PREPARATION FOR DEANSHIP BY TYPE OF COLLEGE ...... 124 XIII. PREPARATION FOR DEANSHIP BY SIZE OF INSTITUTE .... 128 XIV. ANALYSIS OF VARIANCE: DEAN'S PREPARATION BY DEGREE, FIELD AND TYPE OF COLLEGE ................ 133 xv. ROLE OF THE DEAN AND DEPARTMENT CHAIR ............ 135 XVI. TYPE OF COLLEGE BY FACULTY RELATED TASKS ......... 138 XVII. SIZE OF COLLEGE BY FACULTY RELATED TASKS ......... 141 vii XVIII. SUPERVISORY TECHNIQUES EMPLOYED .................. 147 XIX. TYPE OF COLLEGE BY SUPERVISORY ACTIVITIES OF DEAN . •••••.•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••.•..... 15 0 XX. ANALYSIS OF VARIANCE: SUPERVISORY TECHNIQUES BY TYPE AND SIZE OF COLLEGE ...................... 152 XXI. MOST IMPORTANT CHANGE TO IMPROVE THE QUALITY OF INSTRUCTION . ......•.•...••••••..•................ 154 XXII. DOES INSTITUTION HAVE A FORMALIZED PROGRAM OF FACULTY DEVELOPMENT( ..........•......•........... 169 XXIII. THE GOAL OF FACULTY DEVELOPMENT AT YOUR INSTITUTION . ..................................... 173 xxiv. INSTITUTIONAL GOALS FOR FACULTY DEVELOPMENT ...... 174 xxv. THE ROLE OF THE OFFICE OF THE DEAN IN FACULTY DEVELOPMENT ••.•••..................... 178 XXVI. IS FACULTY DEVELOPMENT FUNDED FROM THE DEAN'S OFFICE? . ......................................... 179 XXVII. RELATIONSHIP OF DEAN'S OFFICE TO FACULTY DEVELOPMENT IN DIFFERENT SIZES OF INSTITUTIONS ... 180 XXVIII. FACULTY DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM ELEMENTS ....•........ 182 XXIX. FACULTY DEVELOPMENT COMPONENTS BY TYPE OF COLLEGE ••••••..•.••••••••••.••••••.•.•••.•.•..... 183 XXX. FACULTY DEVELOPMENT COMPONENTS BY SIZE OF INSTITUTION . ..................................... 18 6 XXXI. ANALYSIS OF VARIANCE: FACULTY DEVELOPMENT BY TYPE AND SIZE OF COLLEGE •......•....•.•....... 188 XXXII. HOW MUCH IS BUDGETED FOR FACULTY DEVELOPMENT? .... 190 viii LIST OF FIGURES Figure I. The Getzel's-Guba Model for Social Behavior .......... 7 II. The Bergquist Model for Faculty Development ......... 10 ix CONTENTS OF APPENDIX 1. Cover letter .............................. 222 2. Mailed Questionnaire ...................... 223 3. Follow - up letter ....................... 225 4. Semi-structured interview questions ....... 226 x CHAPTER 1: OVERVIEW OF THE STUDY/RESEARCH METHODOLOGY STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM In 1983, the National Commission on Excellence in Education published their report "A Nation at Risk" which precipitated a national re-evaluation of American education with a call to reform the system. Inadequate teaching was at the root of the problems in education at the elementary and secondary levels. In 1984, the Study Group on the Conditions on Excellence in American Higher Education published their report,"Involvement in Learning." The report states that the system of higher education in the United States is "by far the largest, most complex, and most advanced in the world" 1 However, it currently is "under-educating" Americans in relation to their true potential. The report contains a series of recommendations addressed to college administrators and faculty members calling for an improvement in college teaching. Among these recommendations is one which challenges deans, department chairs, academic vice-presidents ... "to institutionalize an incentive system for quality teaching and 1 Study