Abstract
This institutional research has 4 objectives: (1) to find out the guidelines for developing and improving the tertiary educational administration system relating to the educational reform concept, particularly the co-operative education concept; (2) to compare the semester and trimester systems by their problems and limitations including the solution guidelines with particular relation to the co-operative education; (3) to propose guidelines for system adjustment and impacts that may derive from such system change or adjustment; and (4) to propose the appropriate guidelines for educational administration improvement with relation to the educational reform guidelines of the national education act B.E. 2542.
The researchers applied the cluster random sampling technique to identify the sample groups by geographical areas and types of the tertiary educational institutes. Suranaree University of Technology was determined as the core sample of trimester, while the other samples, representing semester system samples, consisted of Kasetsart University, King Mongkut’s Insitiute of Techology Ladkrabang, Chiang Mai University, Mae Faluang University, Nareseun University, Khon Kaen University, Prince of Songkla’s University in Had Yai and Pattani campuses, Walailak University. Three case studies consisting of Rangsit University, Lamphun Technical College, and Chiang Rai Kanjanapisek Technical College were also identified.
This research covered 12 groups of key informants. Those were students, instructors, administrators, the officers responsible for finance and accounting, buildings, library, student affairs, registration, information technology, job supervisors form both the institutes and entrepreneurs in the co-operative education program.
The quantitative instruments were 12 sets of questionnaires and 3 sets of instructed interviewing formats, a part from 2 additional sets of qualitative instruments. Those were a set of focus group discussion items and in-depth interviewing items. The collected data were, then,