| This study examined the role of the academic department chair in teacher colleges in Thailand as perceived by deans, faculty members, and chairs themselves. A 74-item questionnaire was developed and fully pilot-tested twice. The items were rated on both actual and preferred scales.; A total of 617 questionnaires were distributed to deans, faculty members, and chairs from Pranakorn, Suan Sunandha, Uttaradit, and Lampang Teacher Colleges. A response rate of 68.6% was received which included 15 deans, 88 chairs, and 320 faculty members. Interviews were conducted with four deans, 12 chairs, and four faculty members from the questionnaire respondents for a period of about one hour each.; Chairs, deans, and faculty members shared similar perceptions for actual and preferred involvement for the role of the chair. Chairs were actually involved in functions mostly dealing with departmental routines, and finance and resources. The three groups preferred chairs to be more involved with academic functional areas, especially with functions dealing with faculty matters and curriculum. Promoting excellence in teaching, professional development, research and publications of faculty, and departmental morale appeared in the top ranks. In simple terms, the chairs were expected to be centered on the hiring, evaluation and promotion of faculty, the supervision of academic programs, and the allocation of the budget.; Most chairs had been in the position for one year and had little motivation to be chairs. They had no extrinsic incentives for being chairs. Chairs were elected by their colleagues and the term of office was four years. Interpersonal skills were considered the most important qualification for chairs. No preparation or training was available for new chairs. Job descriptions, if they ever existed, needed revision.; The five major problems that chairs faced were lack of authority; insufficient budgets: a shortage of academic staff and support staff, and lack of staff cooperation; management style which was mainly top-down; and unclear role and no recognition for the position.; Respondents mentioned several suggestions for the improvement of the role of the chair. The overall impression was that to enhance the new status of the teacher colleges, an improvement in the status of department chair is essential. |
