Caught in the uncivil war: How equipped are school leaders to navigate custodial rights in the educational setting?

Abstract

The purpose of this quantitative, correlational study was to examine the relationship between knowledge of protocol and familiarity with the application of custodial situations in the educational setting. This study assessed both the self-reported knowledge of school leaders with current school and/or system protocols regarding custodial rights and the school leaders' familiarity regarding the application of established school protocols for custodial situations in the educational setting. The significance of any possible relationship between knowledge and familiarity regarding the application of custodial rights might shed light on any gaps between these two constructs. The data collection process included a voluntary survey and follow-up interviews. The study found that most school leaders were knowledgeable of protocol, were familiar with the application of established school protocols for custodial situations in educational settings, and were able to appropriately respond to custodial situations given hypothetical, custodial arrangements. Statistically significant correlations were found to show that as knowledge of protocol increased, application decreased, and as years of experience increased, application also increased. No statistically significant correlation was found between knowledge and experience, grade levels served, or school type studied. In addition, no statistically significant correlation was found between application and grade levels served or school type studied. Moreover, no statistically significant correlation was found between years of experience and ability to appropriately respond to custodial situations given hypothetical, custodial arrangements.