The current study was designed to investigate the influence of guided imagery on written occupational narratives produced by university students. A sample of 75 undergraduate students (42 females and 33 males) who were self-declared occupationally undecided students participated in this study. / Students were randomly assigned to one of three conditions: audio-taped guided occupational imagery followed by the task of writing a narrative describing a typical day on the job in an occupational aspiration; audio-taped guided vacation imagery followed by the task of writing a narrative describing a typical day on the job in an occupational aspiration; or the task of writing a narrative describing a typical day on the job in an occupational aspiration preceded by no imagery. / Hypotheses postulated that guided occupational imagery would facilitate the written articulation of a significantly greater number of stimulus propositions and response propositions about a typical day on the job in an occupational aspiration than non-occupationally related guided imagery (vacation imagery) or the no imagery control. Further hypotheses postulated that subject task enjoyability ratings in the occupational imagery condition would be significantly greater than subject task enjoyability ratings in the non-occupationally related imagery (vacation imagery) condition or no imagery control condition. / Group comparisons were also analyzed concerning the usefulness of the experience, necessity of seeing a follow-up career counselor, and usefulness of peer sharing of the experience. / Using the Wilks' Test within the MANOVA analyses, it was found that F(14,132) = 1.14, p =.33, suggesting that there was no overall significant group difference. Therefore, at the p $<$.05 level of significance, the null hypotheses were not rejected. It was also found that 92% of the students in the occupational imagery condition, 76% of the students in the vacation imagery condition, and 64% of the students in the no imagery control condition were in agreement (Likert ratings of 5, 6, or 7 on a scale of 1-7) with the statement that they obtained additional insights while writing the narrative about their occupational aspiration. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 50-03, Section: A, page: 0675. / Major Professors: Robert C. Reardon; E. Jane Burkhead. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1989.

The purpose of this study was to determine the current state of the conditions and functions of curriculum materials centers in teacher education institutions accredited by the National Council for The Accreditation of Teacher Education. The subjects selected for the study were the professional staffs of the curriculum materials centers of NCATE accredited teacher education institutions located in the United States. / The data gathering instrument was a two-part questionnaire. Part 1 sought demographic information about the centers including the following: (1) name and location of the institution; (2) number of staff assigned to the center; (3) amount of the budget allocated to the center; (4) campus agency or agencies having administrative control of the center; (5) size of collection; (6) number of hours of service; (7) size of the center; (8) most important services performed by the center. Part 2 was an attitudinal survey consisting of fifty statements which sought information about the following six major areas of concern for the curriculum materials centers: (1) administration/policies; (2) funding; (3) staffing; (4) services; (5) resources; and (6) physical facilities. A Likert scale was used to measure the respondents' answers regarding the existing and desired conditions at the centers. / The collected demographic data were analyzed and a general profile of the curriculum materials centers participating in the study was compiled as well as individual profiles for the centers in teacher education institutions categorized as large, medium, and small. / The findings of the attitudinal survey indicated that the professional staffs supervising the centers considered most of the existing conditions satisfactory with the exception of certain facets of funding. Salaries, programs, and staffing were designated by the respondents as specific areas needing additional budgetary support. / This study was not meant to serve as a blueprint for designing uniform curriculum materials centers nor was it meant to formulate a set of rigid standards for the centers. However, the findings can be used to assist accreditation teams, college and university administrators, teacher educators, and education librarians to provide better resources and services for existing centers and in planning new ones. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 51-03, Section: A, page: 0760. / Major Professor: David Leslie. / Thesis (Ed.D.)--The Florida State University, 1990.

The SAT is a major milestone for many high school juniors and seniors. Scoring as high as possible is of utmost concern for college bound students because SAT scores often determine the college or university they may attend and the scholarships they may receive. As a result, those who can financially afford to take prep courses for the SAT do. / Over the past forty years research studies have found that SAT preparation increases test scores. These previous studies have been concerned only with increasing test scores. To date, no study has investigated if one method of preparation produces higher gains than another, nor has any study identified those students for whom preparation is most beneficial. A comparison of methods among existing studies is impossible because most reports do not include the methods or materials used. / The contents of most SAT preparatory books deal primarily with a review of the mathematical concepts involved. However, an inspection of several SAT items reveals that the SAT tests more than mere rote calculations and algebraic manipulations--it tests "understanding," "application," and "nonroutine" methods of problem solving. Therefore, the present study was proposed to examine and assess the effectiveness of two methods of student preparation for the SAT-M: the first method of preparation explored content review, solving each item in a rigid traditional manner, and the second method of preparation examines the use of flexible problem solving strategies to answer the items rather than using routine mathematical manipulations. / Sixty-two juniors and seniors participated in the study. The results of the study showed that the students taught test-taking strategies scored significantly better than the control group. However, this strategies group did not score significantly better than the group who was taught content. The content group did not score significantly better than the control group. This indicates that students could benefit from instruction in flexible, nonroutine methods of solving SAT-M items efficiently. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 54-01, Section: A, page: 0074. / Major Professor: Herbert Wills. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1992.

Four college instructors and the students (N = 329) in each of their two communication classes completed the Teacher Communicator Style (TCS) instrument at five different times during the same semester. The data were used to test two underlying assumptions of Norton's (1983) Communicator Style theory. Namely, that perceptions of a person's communication style become increasingly stable as a function of more association with that person, and that separate classes of students differ in their perceptions of the same teacher's communication style. Five related research questions were also explored. / Of the ten communicator style subconstructs measured, the "Relaxed" and "Friendly" subconstructs were consistently ranked highest while the "Dominant," "Dramatic," and "Contentious" subconstructs were consistently ranked lowest. The data revealed a trend of increasing stability of students' perceptions of their teacher's communication style. This trend seems to "peak" around mid-term. However, only some of the increases in stability are statistically significant. The data also revealed that two separate classes of students differ in their perceptions of several aspects of the same teacher's communication style. Question 1 revealed that as the semester progresses, students do not move toward consensus about their teacher's communication style. Question 2 indicated that there are differences in students' perceptions of many aspects of their teacher's style based on gender, year in school, major, grade point average, expected course grade, previous experience with course content, freedom to elect a course, satisfaction with the class, and satisfaction with the teacher. Question 3 identified "satisfaction with the teacher" as the single best attitudinal predictor of the teacher's overall communication image. Question 4 identified "Friendly" as the single best communication style subconstruct predictor of the teacher's overall communication image. Question 5 revealed that there are statistically significant differences between some of the teachers' self-reports and their classes' perception of their style. / The data yielded general trends and statistically significant findings which support the assumptions underlying Norton's theory. With this and future confirmations, the theory can continue to provide a strong framework for the study of communication style. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 50-12, Section: A, page: 3792. / Major Professor: C. Edward Wotring. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1989.

In this study the results are presented of a disciplined inquiry into the area of motivation to learn and systematic ways of influencing learners in this regard. Attention focuses on the clinical use of motivational messages, a strategy based on Keller's (1984, 1987a&b) ARCS model. Through this strategy learners are prompted, by means of, usually written, messages, normally delivered outside the classroom periods, to adjust their disposition to undertake learning tasks. Such messages are designed and used according to a systematic, replicable process. / It is defended that a naturalistic mode of inquiry is the most appropriate one for the particular research interest, and that, within that mode, a case study approach, within an embedded multiple-case perspective, is called for. Reference is made to the existing knowledge base in the area of motivational design, as well as to that of the chosen research paradigm and methodology. / Three basic research interests are addressed in the study, i.e. that of the validity of the strategy under consideration, the question as to how and why the messages work, and the issue of their optimality. Evidence is presented and discussed to substantiate the proposition that the motivational messages strategy worked similarly well in the case of two of its applications almost three years apart. Of a total of ten propositions regarding the interaction between the messages and the learners, the messages and the instructor, and the messages and the environment, nine are found substantiated and one insubstantiated in the light of the data collected. It is also argued that evidence supports the contention that the strategy adapts itself to the circumstances of its application. / As to the overall interpretation of the totality of phenomena discussed, the study concludes that motivational messages should not be looked upon in isolation, but as part of a more complex motivational system, in the context of which they enhance the effectiveness of the other components involved. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 51-02, Section: A, page: 0403. / Major Professor: John M. Keller. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1990.

This study examined the effects of simplification of a short story on the readability and comprehensibility of the text for EFL readers at varying L2 proficiencies, and on these readers' response to the story. The research was conducted with the assumption that simplification procedures which reduce semantic, syntactic, and content features of texts do not adequately reflect current reading theory and may render texts more "readable" but not necessarily more comprehensible or engaging. Familiarity with story discourse may provide readers schematic resources to overcome linguistic complexity. / The subjects were 256 French and Yugoslav university students. TOEFL scores, ranging from 320 to 630, served as the covariate in the statistical analyses of the comprehension measures. / Readability of the two text versions was addressed through application of readability formulas and analyses of propositional content, cohesion, and stylistic features. Comprehension was measured by means of cloze passages scored with exact and acceptable word criteria, a multiple-choice test, and written recall protocols eliciting variables of percentage of propositions recalled and total words written. Response was measured by readers' conclusions for the story, and their justifications of their conclusions. / Descriptive statistics for the readability measures show the original version has higher difficulty ratings, greater propositional density and number of metadiscourse features, and greater cohesion, particularly lexical cohesion. Inferential statistics for the comprehension measures uniformly demonstrate that the original version was more difficult to understand. Summary statistics for the response variables indicate, however, that readers of the original version wrote longer story conclusions, included more reader-based inferences in their justifications, and showed more awareness of story genre and stylistic characteristics. / Procedural and instrumental limitations are discussed, with instructional implications for the use of cohesive, coherent, simplified materials in L2 contexts where reading for information (as in ESP), or independent reading for pleasure (as with SSR), are the goals. The importance of the role of the teacher in preparing readers to interact with unsimplified texts is stressed. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 51-04, Section: A, page: 1144. / Major Professor: Frederick L. Jenks. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1990.

The process of determining whether a prospective international teaching assistant or professor has adequate oral language skills varies from university to university throughout the country. At The Florida State University oral language certification of a prospective candidate is done in either of two ways: (1) the candidate can take the Test of Spoken English (TSE) and receive a score of 220; or (2) the department chair can certify that the candidate would receive a score of 220 on the TSE if the individual took the test. This research study was undertaken to examine the validity of the policy. / Five international students who met the university's requirement to become graduate students and teaching assistants were given the SPEAK test (the institutional form of the TSE) and were also interviewed using typical interview type questions. The SPEAK tests were then scored by certified raters. The audio-taped interviews of the international students were given to 26 department chairs. The chairs were asked to state whether the individual students would receive a score of 220 on the standardized test. Also, the chairs were asked to predict the scores the students would receive on overall comprehension, pronunciation grammar and fluency after examining the TSE/SPEAK scoring guidelines. / The results of the SPEAK test showed that 3 out of the 5 students received scores of 120 or higher. The chairs were approximately 97% successful judging the students who had 220 or higher but were nearly 76% incorrect when judging the two students who did not receive the minimum score required. The range of scores given on the sub-sections indicate wide-spread disagreement or misunderstanding of the TSE scoring guidelines. The results indicate that the policy of having chairs judge oral proficiency is inconsistent and needs further examination. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 57-03, Section: A, page: 0996. / Major Professor: Frederick Jenks. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1996.

Twenty contemporary young adult romance series novels were examined in order to determine attitudes, values, and literary quality. This examination was done by content analysis. All 20 novels were selected from Waldenbooks and B. Dalton Bookseller's Bestsellers lists. The number of positive and negative attitudes toward Family, Peers, School, Love and Sex, Religion, Authority Figures, Neighborhood, Free-time Recreation, and Part-time Work was determined. The findings revealed that there were more positive attitudes (181) than there were negative attitudes (128). Free-time Recreation had more positive attitudes (68) than any other category, and Family and Peers had more negative attitudes (42). / Literary quality was determined by using a modification of Charlotte Huck's (1987) criteria for judging young adult literature. The main topics of the criteria were: plot, setting, theme, characterization, style, point of view, and format. The books were considered good literary choices if the answer was yes to 80% of the criteria. The findings revealed that 17 of the 20 novels studied met the criteria above 80%, and three books met 77.8% of the criteria. The novels rated high as literary choices, according to the criteria. It was concluded that romance series novels, with teachers guiding the reading of students, may be a part of the English curriculum. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 51-01, Section: A, page: 0068. / Major Professor: John S. Simmons. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1989.

It was argued (with support from literature on observational classroom research and literary criticism) that understanding data collected during classroom observations--transcripts, fieldnotes, etc.--requires one to interpret the language of teachers, students, and researchers, and that such a process might be well guided by a method of textual criticism. / To test the strength of this argument, the researcher studied a set of data, consisting of transcribed audiotaped interviews (conducted with two college composition teachers, both before and after instruction) and of transcribed instruction of those same teachers. The purpose of this research was to devise and attempt a critical analysis of the data modelled on literary theory. / A critical work, J. Hillis Miller's The Linguistic Moment, was selected as the model for interpreting the data described above. This model guides readers' interpretations by alerting them to "linguistic moments" in literature, points at which readers' theories about literature are contradicted by what the page presents, and which are reconciled by the language that readers bring to bear during interpretation. / So that linguistic moments in teaching could be studied, the teachers' preliminary references to teaching, learning, students, and writing were recorded and categorized. Those categories, termed "operational theories" of instruction, were compared with the actual processes of the classroom. / When perceived as textual, the data from each class portrayed many voices and contexts. The teachers occasionally responded to this multiplicity in a way which disregarded the voices (the assumptions, goals, needs) of students, in favor of the voices of their own preliminary plans or assumptions. At other times, however, the classroom language was co-authored by students and teacher; educational goals and assumptions were regularly and mutually expressed, monitored, and revised. / Conclusions emphasize the role of multiple contexts in the planning, practicing, or studying of classroom instruction. They also reiterate the demonstrated textuality of teaching and the value of critical theory as an educational research tool. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 50-12, Section: A, page: 3835. / Major Professor: James Hoetker. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1989.

The present study evaluated the instructional effectiveness of two methods for providing computer-assisted repeated reading training to reading disabled students. One repeated reading method, the Processing Power program (ICT, Inc., 1983), was designed to help disabled readers compensate for proposed dysfunctions in visual processes, while providing repeated reading practice (Fisher, 1979, 1980, 1981). Consequently, disabled readers in the processing power condition received repeated reading instruction that included isolated word practice to improve the efficiency of word decoding skills, widely spaced words to reduce the amount of competing textual information, and increasingly complex visual formats to reacquaint the reader with the left-to-right sequencing of text. The second method of repeated reading practice, the Reading Shell program (IDDEA Inc. and SIMPAC Educational products, Inc., 1986), provided disabled readers in the repetitive reading condition with standard text formats during all passage readings. / Forty seven reading disabled students, matched in groups of three based on intelligence, age, and word recognition ability were randomly assigned to either the processing power condition, repetitive reading condition, or no-treatment control group. Contrasts between the oral reading fluency rates of subjects in the two repeated reading programs indicates that disabled readers are able to process standard text without the visual interference hypothesized by Fisher's (1979, 1980, 1981) Complementary theory of reading. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 49-07, Section: A, page: 1746. / Major Professor: Joseph K. Torgesen. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1988.