Assignment:
Topic " E-mail as a method of communication with parents for children with autism of Saudi Arabia"
Purpose
The goal of this study is precisely such an investigation-to add knowledge regarding the contextual influences (social structures) on organizational learning (social agency). In the study, causal explanations emerge from an investigation into the underlying nature of the social structures that exist in one school. The findings from that investigation are described in depth. Explanations and Conclusions, the researcher uses those findings to develop and discuss causal explanations and conclusions.
Object of Study and Research Questions
Though the term case study is familiar to most people, there is little agreement on just what constitutes case study research. Cronback (1982). for example, says that "all social scientists are engaged in case studies" in the sense that observations, whether in an annual census or of an individual, "take meaning from their time and place, and from the conceptions held by those who pose the questions and decide how to tabulate" (p. 75). That is. all research should take account o f the context and also the relevant forces outside the unit being studied. (Merriam 1988. pp. 1-2)
Though this study will increase knowledge regarding organizational context and its structures that influence organizational learning, this object of study focuses on education, specifically a study of one school and the changes that occur there. This study is a case study of the contextual structures and the organization learning in one school.
Object of Study
Specifically, this study investigates a school's contextual structures that influence organizational change and learning, and the employees' understanding of that contextual support.
The object of study will be addressed by answering a set of research questions that are associated with the conceptual framework in Figure.
Research Questions
The research questions emerge from the conceptual framework and are directly related to the goal of the study. The overarching research question is: What is the nature of a school's context and its influence on organizational learning and change. The supporting research questions are associated with the labeled "bins" in the conceptual framework. The supporting questions are:
1. Leadership/Management Structure: How does the leadership/management structure influence the school's learning and change?
2. Information System Structure: How does the information system structure influence the school's learning and change?
3. Stakeholder Engagement Structure: How does the stakeholder engagement structure influence the school's learning and change?
4. Emergent (cross-cutting) Properties: What are the emergent properties that cut across the structures and influence the school's learning and change?