Publication Date

2004

Document Type

Dissertation/Thesis

First Advisor

Johnson, Donald R., 1941-

Degree Name

Ed.D. (Doctor of Education)

Legacy Department

Department of Leadership, Educational Psychology and Foundations

LCSH

School violence--Illinois--Public opinion; Elementary school principals--Illinois--Attitudes

Abstract

The purpose of the study was to obtain current data regarding elementary school principals' perception of the scope of violence in public schools. This study was designed to provide current data regarding principals' perceptions regarding six areas of violence: level of incidents, location of incidents, student involvement, principal's personal experiences, perceptions of causes, and preventative methods. The geographic area studied was the North Cook Service Region in Illinois. The study also examined the relationship between the level of violent incidents and approaches to prevention. The research design for this study was quantitative, which provided numerical data that represented the current environment in the area of school violence. A descriptive survey was designed, and the data was collected electronically from all elementary and middle school principals who responded. Demographic information from respondents included gender, number of years of experience as a principal and in their current school, grade-level configurations, percent of low-income students and percent of English-as-a-second-language students. Each area of the survey had indicators that required responses based on a 5-point Likert scale. Significant findings among the variables were discussed. The difference of responses on each of the sections was analyzed. A display of the distribution was presented through a scattergram. There was a statistical investigation of the differences between the medians of individuals. Analysis of variance tests, t-tests, and Levene's Test for Equality of Variances provided data for particular variables such as: number of years in current position, gender, size of student population, perceptions, experiences, frequency of violent incidents, location of violence, causes of violence, and violence prevention methods. The study determined that there were significant findings in the areas of gender, number of years as principal in the current school, levels of violence, and low-income student population. Principals' responses showed a strong agreement in believing that their schools were safe and in the importance of their role in the safety of the school.

Comments

Includes bibliographical references (pages [105]-111).

Extent

viii, 123 pages

Language

eng

Publisher

Northern Illinois University

Rights Statement

In Copyright

Rights Statement 2

NIU theses are protected by copyright. They may be viewed from Huskie Commons for any purpose, but reproduction or distribution in any format is prohibited without the written permission of the authors.

Media Type

Text

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