The problem was to determine whether significant relationships exist in the attitudes of eighth-grade teachers, their principals, and their superintendents toward minimum competency testing in Tennessee. Literature was reviewed in order to determine the problems associated with the implementation of a minimum competency testing program. Questionnaires were developed to obtain the attitudes of teachers, principals, and superintendents about the questions most often encountered in the literature. School systems to be surveyed were selected by stratified random sampling from defined pupil enrollment categories after the questionnaires were field tested. Superintendents from 36 public school systems were identified to receive questionnaires and they each selected three eighth-grade teachers and three principals to complete questionnaires as well. Respondents were to have direct knowledge of the administration of the 1979 eighth-grade diagnostic basic skills test (a minimum competency test). Questionnaires were designed to obtain demographic data about the systems or schools represented by the respondents, personal data about the respondents, and attitudinal data on 17 items with responses to be ranked in order of priority by the respondents. A total of 100 questionnaires were received by the cut-off date, and these represented a 40% return. Personal data and demographic data were reported in tables. Nonparametrlc statistics were utilized to analyze the degree of relationship among the ordinal level data obtained from Items A-Q on the questionnaires. Agreement was tested intra-groups by Kendall's coefficient of concordance, and agreement between groups was tested by the Spearman rank-order correlation. The .05 level of significance was applied in all cases using the two-tailed test. Results of the data analyses indicated that agreement was more often significant within groups than between groups. Within groups (eighth-grade teachers, principals, and superintendents), a significant relationship was obtained for all 17 attitudinal items on the questionnaires for teachers and for principals, and for all items except H for superintendents. In the between-group analyses for first, second, and third priority responses, teachers and principals displayed greater agreement of rankings on each item than did teachers and superintendents, or than principals and superintendents displayed. Teachers and principals agreed significantly on 88%. of the items for first priority responses, 71% of the items for second priority responses, and 47% of the items for third priority responses. Teachers and superintendents agreed significantly on 65%, 47%, and 29% of the items for first, second, and third priorities. Principals and superintendents indicated significant agreement on 59%, 41%, and 35% of the items for first, second, and third priorities. Very few differences were noted between groups in the responses most often reported for first, second, and third priorities. Frequently, the same three responses were chosen as first, second, or third priority for each item by the three groups, but in a slightly different order by the different groups. Analysis of rankings beyond third priority was not conducted due to the great number of tied rankings after the third priority. Analysis of the demographic data revealed that most respondents represented students other than urban, upper-class youngsters and schools without a large percentage of minority students. Answers to general questions about the administration procedures for the 1979 basic skills test indicated that most systems administered the test in a comparable manner. Most respondents were between the ages of 20 and 49, and 71% of them had attained a Master's degree or above. Teaching certification was held by 81% of the respondents, and administrative certification by 57%. Teaching experience of 1-15 years was reported by 76% of the respondents and administrative experience of 1-15 years by 47%. Supervisory certification and experience were negligible.

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The purpose of this research was to determine if there was a relationship between collective teacher efficacy and student achievement and if collective teacher efficacy made an independent contribution in explaining student achievement beyond socioeconomic status. The conceptual basis for this study was Bandura's theory of self-efficacy.;Relationships between collective teacher efficacy and student achievement on the Virginia grade 8 math, writing, and English Standards of Learning (SOL) tests were found to be significant. The relationship between collective teacher efficacy and student achievement on the grade 8 writing SOL test made an independent contribution when controlling for socioeconomic status. However, the relationship between collective teacher efficacy and student achievement on the grade 8 math and English test did not make an independent contribution when socioeconomic status was controlled. This study contributes to other research findings indicating a positive relationship between collective teacher efficacy and student achievement.

The purpose of this study was to examine the construct and predictive validity of the Learning and Study Strategies Inventory (LASSI). The LASSI is an instrument designed to assess utilization of learning and study strategies and methods for the purpose of measuring strategy use, diagnosing deficiencies, and prescribing intervention. The literature suggests that valid instruments of this type are sadly lacking. The LASSI User's Manual, however, presents no statistical evidence of instrument validity. The need for this verification became crucial with The College of William and Mary's selection of the inventory for administration to the 1990 freshman class. Using data obtained from this administration and a subsequent retest, statistical analyses were conducted to confirm instrument reliability and examine construct and predictive validity. Results indicated that while reliable, the ten LASSI scales possessed no construct validity, as measured by factor analysis, and low predictive validity when first semester college grade point average was the performance criterion. Until the completion of further research, the validity of the LASSI is at best suspect, and use of the instrument is not recommended.

The purpose of this study was to determine whether there was a difference in achievement scores and pass rates on Virginia's Literacy Passport Test between students who volunteered for and received additional instruction, students who volunteered for but did not receive the instruction, and students who neither volunteered for nor received interventional instruction in a program for rising sixth graders identified as potentially at-risk of initially failing the LPT.;It was hypothesized that (1) volunteers' scores of those who attended the summer program would show higher achievement and pass rates than either the scores of the volunteers without additional instruction and non-volunteers and (2) volunteer scores and pass rates of students who had not entered the five week program but expressed a desire to do so would show higher achievement than the non-volunteers.;Students' LPT scores were measured and analyzed. Those who received treatment did not produce mean scores nor pass rates significantly higher than those who did not receive treatment.;Further study is needed to determine whether summer intervention programs are effective for those students who have taken the LPT and have failed any portion of it.

The purpose of this mixed methods program evaluation study was to investigate the ways in which one public school district and its teachers implemented a Bring Your Own Technology (BYOT) initiative. This study also measured teachers' computer self-efficacy, as measured by Cassidy and Eachus' (2002) Computer User Self-Efficacy Scale, and investigated the relationship between the teachers' computer self-efficacy and use of BYOT. The study sought to discover the successes and challenges the teachers in the district faced with implementation in their schools and classrooms. Participants included teachers in the four high schools in the district. The study used the CIPP model of program evaluation to guide data collection on the context, input, process, and products of the BYOT program. Both quantitative and qualitative data was collected using teacher surveys, extant student surveys conducted by the district, teacher interviews, and classroom observations. The successes teachers had included student engagement, ease of classroom research, and productivity uses of student-owned technology. The challenges teachers faced included students' inappropriate use of technology, difficulty accessing the district's wireless network, and the task of monitoring students using BYOT. The teachers in the district had high computer self-efficacy, but its relationship to successful integration of technology was unclear. Recommendations for future research and continuous program improvement include providing appropriate bandwidth for successful BYOT programs, a process for managing students' use of BYOT, and appropriate professional development to support integration of BYOT into classroom instruction.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between the ability grouping of a student and his/her attitude toward teachers and the learning process. Three groups of students enrolled in the Logan County School System in the spring of 1988 were administered the Arlin-Hills Attitude Survey. These groups of students were those who had been identified as gifted/talented, special education (EMH or LD) and regular class students. The findings of this study indicated that the three groups did not differ significantly in attitudes toward teachers or attitudes toward the learning process.

A follow-up study of five Senior Classes of Oldham County High School (Kentucky) was conducted to determine students' initial status six months after graduation. Study findings based on survey responses from slightly aver 83 % of the 2,025 students listed as seniors in the spring semester for the years 1979-1983 included the following: It was found that 58% of the respondents entered educational activities, 36% entered the work force and 6% were unemployed. Eighty-five percent of all graduates entering college did so at an in-state, state supported institution. Results further indicated that 25% of all graduates attended either the University of Kentucky or the University of Louisville and that most students entered four year colleges in the educational category and retail sales in the employment categories. It is suggested that Oldham County High School could benefit from a reevaluation of the school's curricular program offerings and further study comparing the academic program followed in high school versus actual college and/or career pursuits. The study includes data tables showing a summary percentage of survey respondents by class year and sex, educational and occupational categories, by specific postsecondary schools attended and by academic programs indicated in high school. Appendices include more detailed information by class and sex.

The purpose of this study was to find out: the number and kinds of schools in which industrial arts is being taught; what industrial arts subjects are being taught in the approved high schools; the amount of teaching time given by each teacher to the subject; the number of teachers and scholastic preparation of each; the school from which each teacher got his training; his age and salary; the teaching experience of the teachers; and as far as possible, the progress of industrial arts.