| Abstract: | The purpose of this inquiry was to describe the response of Texas public school districts to the alternative education program mandates of House Bill 72. Accurate estimates were obtained for (a) the types and characteristics of alternative education programs implemented pursuant to these mandates and (b) administrative opinions pertaining to alternative program requirements and needed changes in the discipline legislation. Administrators from 57 public school districts, selected using standard probability sampling methods to represent all Texas school districts, responded during the summer of 1986 to a 26 item telephone survey questionnaire. Survey responses were submitted to quantitative and qualitative analyses which provided three data products: (a) numerical population estimates that described basic alternative program characteristics and policies, (b) descriptive classification systems that synthesized open-ended responses, and (c) qualitative composite profiles that identified specific features of current alternative education programs. The aggregate findings suggested that the "typical" Texas school district: (a) offers two types of alternative education programs, in-school suspension and home-based instruction; (b) does not plan to implement any new programs in the 1986-88 school years; (c) does not require specialized training for alternative staff; (d) provides support services for alternative students, but not their parents; and (e) monitors alternative students upon return to regular classes. Texas administrators typically grade the House Bill 72 alternative education mandates with good marks of B or higher. Findings grouped by district size suggest some important program differences. Larger Texas school districts are more likely to incorporate serving students' needs in their discipline philosophy, while smaller districts focus more on maintaining classroom discipline and punishing disruptive students. Regardless of district size, administrators strongly agree that the state should return control of discipline management methods to the local level. Conclusions from this research indicated that Texas school districts are following the discipline mandates of House Bill 72. Larger districts tend to offer more types of alternative programs which incorporate characteristics suggested in the literature to be helpful in improving student adjustment. The descriptive classifications provided in this study may be useful for instrument development in future survey research. |
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