Organising for change : an A.C.T. schools authority task force : review of provision for children with special needs

Abstract

This field study addresses the question of how one organisation organised for the purposes of policy review and development. It does so through a case study of the A.C.T. Schools Authority Review of Provision for Children with Special Needs. This review, which took place during 1981, was conducted by an intra-organisational Task Force formed specifically for that purpose. In line with the principles established as a basis for the A.C.T. government school system, the review was organised in a way which encouraged wide participation by educationalists and the community at large. The field study comprises three main chapters, the first of which traces the history and development of the A.C.T. school system. Here the emphasis is upon the methods adopted to develop policy from the earliest days of the organisation to the time of the review. The second chapter provides an account of the establishment and conduct of the review stressing the vital importance of matters related to leadership and resources. In the third chapter various aspects of the review are analysed in relation to selected literature on organisations. It analyses the organisational context and structure or the review, and in the light of this, considers questions of the styles of leadership actually adopted. Throughout the study the aim is to understand the organisational processes involved with an emphasis upon the appropriateness of the means employed to meet the demands for policy review.

Date of Award	1983
Original language	English