| The number of Protestant elementary and secondary schools has increased dramatically over the past three decades. A majority of these new schools are controlled at the local level rather than being associated with a denomination or national governance. This shift to local control has resulted in individual churches or parent associations directing the functions of many of these schools. The largest affiliation of these schools is the Association of Christian Schools International (ACSI).; This study was directed to ACSI schools located in Northern California and was based on the assumption designed by Ralph Tyler that educational programs require regular appraisal of their effectiveness in meeting objectives. This comparative study placed particular emphasis upon determining the level of agreement between intended school educational goals as articulated by school administrators and alumni perceptions of the schools' programs in meeting those goals. The instrumentation, The Christian School Effectiveness Assessment, designed by the researcher, was used to collect opinions from administrators, faculty, and alumni from two ACSI schools located in the San Francisco Bay Area and the Central Valley of California.; The study revealed that there were differences between the measured groups. Significant differences (p {dollar}le{dollar}.05) were obvious in areas dealing with positive feelings by students about attendance, adequate classrooms and laboratories, sufficient library materials, satisfactory sports facilities, educators accepting students equally rather than favoring groups or individuals, and adequate instruction in foreign language. All groups considered that schools were successful in transmitting Christian values, but alumni felt that bringing these values to an individual level and promoting personal devotions were not addressed adequately. Neither school was perceived to offer sufficiently strong science, math, or foreign language programs to prepare students for post-secondary needs.; The results of this study also displayed faculty scores indicating lower evaluation of the school programs than those espoused by their administrators. |
