Tel-Aviv University

Faculty of Humanities

School of Education

The Perception and the

Implemintation of School
Management Team Among Jewish
and Arab School Principals
by

Hakeem Haj-yahia

Thesis submitted for the M.A. degree at Tel Aviv

University. This work was carried out under the
supervision of Prof. Abraham Yogev.

March, 1999
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Abstract

In Israel as in many other countries all over the world,

there is a growing consensus that schools, as social
organizations, should affect educational quality through
work groups and school management team.

Many researchers emphasize the importance of the

principal who is responsible for both the organizational and
pedagogical aspects of the school. The principal’s
conception of his or her role emphasizes the importance of
educational leadership beyond the administrative authority.

Determinants this research, based on a causal model,

tries to find differences among three groups of principals :
Arab male principals, Jewish male principals and Jewish
female principals. It tries to detect the determinants of
perceptions of school team importance, and of the actual
existence of School team size and School team meetings
frequency.

The study deals with these issues in all three

populations of school principals. It is based on data
collected by questionnaires filled in during the last part of
the 1995 academic year by 568 school principals.
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Four sets of composite variables were measured. The

first set measured the perception of school team
importance; the second measured the school team size; the
third variable measured the school team existence; the
fourth variable measured the school team meeting
frequency. Two dimensions have been created, the first is
“Nomothetic Dimension – School Effects ” and the second
is “Idiographic Dimension – Personal Effects”.

There are six research questions. First, how does the

personal and school variables impact the team importance
perception? Second, how does the personal and school
variables influence school team existence, its size and the
team meetings frequency trough the school team
importance perception? Third, which dimension influence
more the team importance perception? Fourth, which
dimension affects more team existence? Fifth, which
dimension determine more team size? Finally, which
dimension influence more on team meetings frequency?
The only hypothesis is, that there will be differences among
the three groups of the sample : Arab male principals,
Jewish male principals and Jewish female principals with
respect to the above questions.
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Differences among the three groups of principals on

the four variables were examined by one way analysis of
variance. Subsequently, multiple regression and logistic
regression will utilize for a path analysis model.

The research findings indicate, on the one hand, that

personal and school variables explain small percentages of
the variance in the team importance perception and team
size variance. On the other hand, the same variables
explain larger percentages of the variance in team meeting
frequency and the team existence. In addition, school
variables explain larger percentages of variance than the
personal variables in the dependent variables. Specifically,
in the Arab principals group, the nomothetic dimension,
explains high percentages of variance of team existence
and team size. Jewish principals, male and female, have
higher percentages variance of team-meetings frequency
than Arab principals.

The findings also indicate differences among the

three principal groups in team existence. In addition,
differences have been found between Arab principals and
Jewish principals in team meeting frequency. Also, the
Jewish female principals differ from Jewish male principals
and Arab principals in team importance perception. Finally,
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there is difference between Jewish male principals and

Arab male principals in the team size.

Logistic regression shows that school level, school

size and team importance perception increase the
probability of team existence. Arab principals differ from
Jewish principals in team existence. For Jewish female
principals, the school level is the dominant determinant
team existence.

In summary, school size, school level, students level

and team importance perception influence team size.
Principals’ education, school level and school size
influence team meeting frequency. Interestingly, the path
analysis results show small influence of the independent
variables among the three groups of principals.