Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Identifier

2702

Date

2016

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Education

Major

Instr and Curr Leadership

Concentration

Instruction and Curriculum

Committee Chair

Lee Allen

Committee Member

Jeffery Byford

Committee Member

Louis Franceschini

Committee Member

Renee Murley

Abstract

In 2014, the City of Bartlett, Tennessee created a municipal school system to serve the educational needs of the community. To maintain the school system and further the education of its students, as well as establish meaningful relationships in the community, business-education partnerships should be developed. The purpose of these partnerships would be to promote academic growth while also fostering civic responsibility. A quantitative study was conducted using a survey tool to ascertain the key attributes (goals, characteristics, challenges and activities) associated with the formation of partnerships between Bartlett City Schools and businesses located within the city limits of Bartlett, Tennessee. Based upon the results of the survey and analysis using the Friedman test, the nonparametric equivalent of the Repeated Measures Analysis of Variance (R-ANOVA), coupled with systematic use of the Wilcoxon Signed Rank procedure, the analog to dependent t-test, to identify differences, several findings became clear.Both business and education participants identified “workforce preparedness” as the primary goal for such a partnership. They also identified that the primary characteristics for a business-education partnership to develop were “a clear vision of what the partnership wants/plans to achieve” along with “good communication” and “specific, achievable goals.” The study further found that the primary challenges impacting business-education partnerships were insufficient “human resources” and “financial resources.” Noteworthy were the differences in commitment level observed between the business and education sectors for the following activities, “financial incentives” and “workplace tours.” Building upon the positions of the business and education sectors in Bartlett, Tennessee, the researcher further believed this study indicated a shift in the focus of business-education partnerships. The demand for workforce preparedness, coupled with mentoring, and internship based learning and experiences signaled a resurgence of the vocational movement that has had a cyclical impact on education since the early 1900s.

Comments

Data is provided by the student.

Library Comment

Dissertation or thesis originally submitted to the local University of Memphis Electronic Theses & dissertation (ETD) Repository.

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