Education Commons^™

An Investigation Of Elementary Teachers' Self-Perception Of Burnout While Participating In A Professional Development Change Process, Lana L. Callihan

Dissertations

Teachers are experiencing pressures from the demands of educational change required in their profession. The quality of education is reflected by the competency of the teacher. The research suggests that efforts should be directed toward identifying a process for change that will reduce the feelings of burnout which block the energy and enthusiasm needed for change.

This study investigated the question, "Does involvement in a professional development process modify a teacher's perceived feelings of burnout?" The professional development models studied were the Collaborative Curriculum and Professional Development Process (CCPDP), Instructional Theory Into Practice (ITIP), and the Michigan School Improvement Process …

Perceptions And Evaluations Of University Principal Preparation Programs By Michigan Public School Principals, Linda Berk Voit

Dissertations

In this study, Michigan public school principals reported their evaluative perceptions regarding: (a) the degree to which 9 of the 12 generic skills were developed in their university administrator programs, (b) the frequency and effectiveness of the instructional modes used to develop these generic skills, and (c) the ideal instructional modes which are most effective for developing these skills.

Both this replicated study with revisions and the completed Texas A&M University project (Witters-Churchill, 1988) were based upon recommendations made by the National Association of Secondary School Principals' Performance-Based Consortium.

The population of this study, 3,202 principals from Michigan public schools, …

An Alternative Model For School District Organization In Michigan, William M. Johanns

Dissertations

School districts should be organized in an efficient manner while also being equitable to all. Reorganization of school districts could help meet these criteria. At present Michigan has 529 school districts varying in size from 75 to 200,000 students. Due to the large variation in number of students in districts, it is very difficult to achieve equity. During the period 1940 to 1964, progress toward equity occurred when school district reorganizations dropped the number of districts from 6,239 to 545. But since that time few reorganizations have taken place; consequently, Michigan residents continue to bear a high cost in efficiency …

Comparisons Of Learnings From Structured And Nonstructured Visits To A Science Exhibit, Rosario Canizales De Andrade

Dissertations

The primary purpose of this study was to determine whether the use of an activity worksheet during a museum visit to a science exhibit might help students achieve the objectives proposed for the visit. Two types of museum visits were identified: structured and nonstructured. During the structured visit students used the activity worksheet that focused their attention on concepts, displays, and activities presented in the exhibit. During the nonstructured visit, students did not use any attention-focusing device; instead, they interacted with the exhibit according to their own interests and preferences.

Secondary goals of the study were to determine if gender-related …

Comparison Of Five Role Groups Of Michigan Participants In Nassp Assessment Centers, Janice I. Blanck I. Blanck

Dissertations

The purposes of this study were (a) to describe the relationship of job assignment and assessment center performance; (b) to extend the research on the content validity of the NASSP Assessment Center Project (Schmitt et al., 1982); and (c) to determine if there were statistically significant differences among five role groups of Michigan educators for each of the 12 NASSP Assessment Center skill dimensions and the overall ratings. A one-way parametric analysis of variance was used to determine the significant differences among mean scores for the five role groups of elementary, middle, and high school teachers; assistant principals; and quasi-administrators. …

Nurses' Perceptions Of Self-Esteem And Job Satisfaction, Dolores Davis Wickett

Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to determine whether or not there was a positive and significant relationship between nurses' perceptions of self-esteem and job satisfaction. The review of related literature led to the development of a primary research hypothesis: There is a positive and significant relationship between self-esteem and job satisfaction of nurses. Two additional secondary hypotheses were developed to look at the relationship of self-esteem and job satisfaction with selected demographic characteristics.

The sample consisted of 48 full-time registered nurses employed as public health nurses by a health department. The health centers are located in a southeastern Michigan …

A Follow-Up Study Of A Dropout Intervention Program Utilizing Experimental Counseling Strategies, Cynthia Sue Ferguson

Graduate Theses

The purpose of this study was to determine the long range effects of a seven week summer dropout intervention program. The program featured academic remediation, job skills training and random assignment to one of three counseling models: Multidimensional, group or individual. Twenty-four male and 24 female economically and academically disadvantaged students averaging 15.5 years of age were tested in a pre-test, post-test, follow-up format on measures of dropout potential, locus of control and academic achievement. The Demos Dropout Scale revealed no change in attitude over the nine month period. Results obtained from Rotter's Internal/External Scale revealed a general movement to …

The Needs And Resources Of Foreign Students At Morehead State University, Bee Lan Ong

Morehead State Theses and Dissertations

Applied project presented to the faculty of the School of Education at Morehead State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Education Specialist by Bee Lan Ong on August 28, 1989.

Performance Motivation: Tests Of An Integrated Model, Jerry Kopf

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Different individuals, with the same ability and faced with the same environmental constraints, exert varying amounts of effort, and, to the extent that performance is a function of effort, achieve different levels of performance. This study proposes and tests a theory of motivation which is an integration of what have previously been considered separate, and often conflicting, theories of motivation. The study hypothesizes that motivational differences in effort or performance may be due to either differences in goal level or differences in goal commitment and tests the integrated model against a model which uses assigned goals to predict effort (goal …

A Study Of The Relationship Of Class Size And Student Achievement On The Michigan Educational Assessment Program Fourth Grade Test, Ralph Burde

Dissertations

In this study the relationship and differences in student achievement and class size were investigated. The population of the study was the 111,199 students who completed the fall 1988 Michigan Educational Assessment Program (MEAP, Michigan State Board of Education, 1988) fourth grade test. The MEAP is a criterion referenced test and is the state of Michigan's only achievement test.

The independent variable of the study was class size. The dependent variables of the study were student achievement as measured by the students' fall 1988 MEAP reading, mathematics, and combined reading and mathematics test scores. The hypothesis of the study, supported …

The Relationship Of Supplemental Instruction And Final Grades Of Students Enrolled In High-Risk Courses, Sally A. Pryor

Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to determine if there was a significant relationship between attendance at Supplemental Instruction (SI) and final course grades. This study focused on a program where only undergraduate students led SI sessions. The subjects were 268 students enrolled in three high-risk science courses at a public university in the Midwest during fall semester 1988.

Three research hypotheses were investigated: (1) There is a significant relationship between level of attendance at SI and final course grades. (2) Students who attend SI earn significantly higher final course grades than students who do not attend SI. (3) There …

Promoting Children's Writing For Publication, Minnie Mary Mckay Merrill

All Master's Theses

The main emphasis of this project was a description of a writing program "Promoting Children's Writing for Publication" as it evolved at Grass Lake Elementary School, Kent School District, Kent, Washington.

A Comparison Of The Academic Achievement Of Urban Second-Grade Pupils With Different Forms Of Public Preschool Experience, Elva Williams Hunt

Theses and Dissertations in Urban Services - Urban Education

Assessment of the potential value of the preschool experience has prompted urban educators to consider the advantages of preschool service delivery by the public schools. Urban policy makers ponder whether or not advocacy for preschool education should include advocacy of the provider. This study addressed the provision of preschool service for students from urban low-income families.

The grade placement of students born in three consecutive years was observed to determine their progress during the first three years of public schooling. Students were categorized with regard to their participation in preschool: some had attended a public school system preschool, First Step; …

An Analysis Of The Content And Methods Of Instruction At Michigan Institutions That Prepare Principals, Thomas E. Engel

Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to analyze the content and the methods of instruction of programs that prepare principals in Michigan. The study sought to answer three specific questions: (1) To what extent do the programs develop the generic skills required of principals? (2) To what extent do the programs develop the specific skills required of principals? (3) What are the dominant methods of instruction used in the programs?

The study was conducted using the rating exercises recommended in the NASSP's 1985 monograph Performance-Based Preparation of Principals. At each of five Michigan universities, a team of raters were asked …

Characteristics And Human Skills Of Women Who Manage Women: A Community College Case Study, Susan Young Duley

Dissertations

A case study has been used to examine women administrators managing subordinate women managers in an educational organization. This study focused on four women administrators in a community college, including the president, vice-president, two deans, and subordinate women managers who report to the four women administrators.

Participant observations, interviews, and document analysis were supplemented by use of the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) to investigate the research question: How do individual characteristics relate to management relationships of four women administrators working with subordinate women managers? Interviews, informal observations, and document analysis were also used to investigate the second research question: How …

Relationships Of Mbti Types And Hbdi Preferences In A Population Of Student Program Managers, Ruth Elizabeth Dewald

Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to explore relationships between two recognized personality assessment instruments, the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) and the Herrmann Brain Dominance Instrument (HBDI), both developed for normal, healthy adults. The extent and direction of the MBTI-HBDI relationships were determined through analyses of data from administration of both instruments to the same population, 800 student program managers attending the Defense Systems Management College (DSMC), Fort Belvoir, Virginia, during 1986-1987.

The research hypothesis, formulated from psychological theory, brain dominance research, and empirical literature sources, postulated specific relationships among the 16 MBTI types and HBDI quadrants. In addition, six …

The Effects Of School Size And Leadership Style On Teacher Job Satisfaction, Jon C. Haezebrouck

Dissertations

This study investigated the effects of school size and the principal's leadership style on teacher job satisfaction. Also studied was the relationship between leadership style and school size. Three standard control variables-sex, age, and ethnicity-were investigated to see if the sample showed any significant differences in satisfaction levels. A random sample was taken from 525 Michigan public high schools and their principals. The objectives of this study were to provide schools or school districts with criteria that could be used to make changes that maximize the achievement of both organizational and individual goals and to provide principals with information about …

Competencies Needed By The Chief Executive Officer Of A Local Affiliate Of The National Urban League, Inc., Walter Melvyn Brame

Dissertations

This study, using a modified Delphi method, generated and measured the perception of importance for twenty-three competencies needed for the effective leadership of a local affiliate of the National Urban League. Second, the study sought to determine which of the competencies were performed, shared, delegated or not performed at the respective affiliates. Third, the study sought to determine the extent to which selected demographic factors were related to the perception of importance. Last, the study sought to build a consensus as to the importance of the competencies.

The perceptions of the importance of the twenty-three competencies on a four point …

Industrial Applicability Of The Joint Committee's Personnel Evaluation Standards, Michael Jay Orris

Dissertations

The purpose of the study was to determine the degree to which The Personnel Evaluation Standards developed by the Joint Committee on Standards for Educational Evaluation (1988) were applicable and could be applied in a specific industrial setting. Strengths and weaknesses of a specific corporate evaluation process were examined by using the Standards and guidelines within the Standards as a benchmark. The Standards were also used to recommend possible improvements in the design and development of the system.

The method used to apply the standards was patterned from the five steps outlined in "A General Approach to Applying the Standards" …

A Content Comparison Of Nontechnical Curricula For Engineers, Bryan Lynn Lundgren

Dissertations

The purpose of the study was to compare and critique the nontechnical curricula content of three Bachelor of Science in Engineering (BSE) degree program model curricula. Curricula content areas that are similar were critiqued by employers of engineers. Model curricula importance and first year BSE nontechnical skill performance were rated by engineering supervisors. The main postulate is that differences among actual, model, and employer-desired nontechnical curricula are factors that may influence curricula change in engineering education. A secondary purpose was to investigate whether the proportion of nontechnical courses to total required courses in BSE college degree programs changed between 1975 …

A Staff Development Program For Paraprofessionals, Marjorie Brickley

Graduate Student Independent Studies

A description of the process of designing a staff development program for paraprofessionals working with children birth - 3 years of age. The thesis highlights special issues that infant/toddler programs face. The staff development process includes an assessment of the caregiver's skills, setting goals for the improvement of the program, a description of the 2 day training that was held, and an evaluation of the changes that resulted from the staff development experience.

The Identification Of Gifted Children At The Kindergarten And First-Grade Level In An Urban And Rural Population, Flora Carter Roberts

Theses and Dissertations in Urban Services - Urban Education

This study examined the nomination procedures and assessment instruments employed in the gifted programs in ten urban and four rural southeastern Virginia school divisions. The procedures and instruments were examined in relation to the proportionate number of black and white children nominated for and determined eligible for the gifted program at kindergarten and grade one. The odds-ratio, a measure of association, was the primary data analysis technique employed.

In urban divisions in which K-1 membership was reported as white, black, other, white children were four times as likely to be a member of the gifted program at the end of …

Study Skills For School Success, Terry Mills Tanneberg

All Graduate Projects

"Study Skills for School Success" is a project study focusing on the skills characterized by effective study. The specific nature of study skills and the influence of the home environment are also examined. A major product of this project study is a handbook entitled "Study Skills for School Success." Focusing on the parents of elementary children, the step-by-step handbook is designed to serve as a resource guide for the effective implementation of a home study skills program.

A Study Of Enrollment Trends In Accredited Vocational Programs In Small Schools In North Central Washington, Lyle D. Blackburn

All Graduate Projects

Vocational enrollment trends of small school districts in North Central Washington were studied. Seven school districts located in Okanogan, Douglas and Chelan counties were charted. The data provided by the Office of the State Superintendent of Public Instruction show individual program enrollment as well as total vocational enrollment compared to total high school enrollment. The results support the hypothesis that small schools' vocational enrollment remains constant with regard to high school enrollment. Recommendations were made for further studies, to include a more in-depth study of large schools as well as the smaller schools.

A Handbook For Orientation Of First Year Teachers In The Walla Walla School District, Robert C. Maib

All Graduate Projects

The transition from student teacher to becoming a professional teacher can be a very trying experience. Research, interviews and studies were done to point out problems beginning teachers have in their first year of employment. Due to these problems, beginning teachers need to know where to go for help. Administrators, secretarial services and custodial services can be very beneficial to aid the beginning teacher in the first year of employment. The aim of this project is to create a handbook for beginning teachers in the Walla Walla School District with the research discussed.

The Relationship Between School Principals' Self-Perceived Brain Hemispheric Processing Modes And Their Self-Perceived Leadership Styles, Barbara Mcswain Kean

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

This study was designed to examine the relationship between the self-perceived preferred brain hemispheric processing of West Virginia public school principals and their self-perceived leadership styles. Seventy-five respondents completed the Herrmann Brain Dominance Profile, the Leader Behavior Description Questionnaire, and a demographics sheet. Data were analyzed using the General Linear Model of the Statistical Analysis Systems (SAS). Chi Square analyses at the 0.05 alpha level were used to test two directional hypotheses that guided this study. Both hypotheses were confirmed.

Public school principals in West Virginia who perceived themselves as preferring mental processes that are predominantly left train hemispheric perceived …

Assessing The Impact Of Illinois Revised Statutes 122, Article 24a On The Identification And Remediation Of Unsatisfactory Performers, Teresa Lane

Masters Theses

Article 24A of the Illinois School Code was enacted in order to improve instruction in the State of Illinois. One of the underlying beliefs of the legislators who designed and passed the School Improvement Act of 1985, which contained Article 24A was that one way to improve instruction is to eliminate the unsatisfactory performers in the classroom. Since the implementation of Article 24A no data based studies have been conducted on the effects of this legislation on those teachers evaluated as unsatisfactory. This study is intended to gather data on the number of unsatisfactory performers as well as the characteristics …

A Study Of The Identification And Referral Components Of Substance Abuse Intervention Programs In Washington State's Public High Schools, Todd C. Herberg

Dissertations and Theses

This multiple-case study investigated the characteristics of successful high school substance abuse intervention programs.

The unit of analysis for this multiple-case study is the public high school substance abuse intervention program of twelve selected Washington State high schools. Sub-units of analysis within the multiple-case study include the various components and attributes of a substance abuse intervention program. Examples of these sub-units include: formal drug education policies; staff training on substance abuse issues and intervention skills; formal curriculum and student instruction; central office administration and building administration support for the program; community support for the program, staff time to administer the …

A Performance Appraisal Model For Postsecondary Education, Peggy Connolly

Dissertations and Theses

Purpose. Although performance appraisal is an important factor in the successful operation of organizations, it is often a difficult and threatening task. Traditional approaches to evaluation have proved to be neither effective nor in legal compliance. This problem affects postsecondary institutions, where customary subjective appraisal contributes to undesirable employment discrimination.

This study provides postsecondary administrators with an effective and legally defensible model of performance appraisal. Research addressed these questions: (1) What does statutory law mandate in appraisal? (2) What issues, patterns, and decisions concerning appraisal have been identified through the judicial process, and what degree of consistency has been shown …

The Origins And Development Of Virginia's Student Assessment Policy: A Case Study, Serbrenia J. Sims

Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects

The purpose of this study was to review the historical origins and chronology of the student assessment movement in the United States and to describe and analyze the development of Virginia's higher education student assessment policy within that movement. "Student assessment," the process of determining whether or not students have met educational goals set by their programs of study, institutions of higher education, or the state is a relatively new event in Virginia. Major participants involved in the passage and implementation of Virginia's policy were identified from historical documents and interviewed based on their specific areas of knowledge.;From the interviews …