The purpose of the study was to identify and compare the perceived concerns of novice and experienced teachers in the middle-level teaching years. The population consisted of 200 public school teachers and 100 Catholic school teachers in grades six, seven, and eight in the state of Indiana.A forty-item questionnaire listing concerns in the areas of professional growth, classroom management and routines, instructional activities, and evaluation problems was utilized. Three null hypothesis were tested by using a multivariate of analysis of variance (MANOVA). Decisions with regard to the hypotheses were made at an alpha level of .05.Findings1. No statistically significant differences were found to exist between novice and experienced teachers.2. No statistically significant differences were found to exist between male and female teachers.3. No statistically significant differences were found to exist between public school and Catholic school teachers.4. Salary commensurate with demands for professional growth, motivating pupil interest and response, stimulating critical thinking and developing good work and study habits were identified as major professional concerns of teachers.Conclusions1. Level of experience does not account for major differences in the degree of concerns of teachers.2. Sex of the teacher does not account for major differences in the degree of concerns of teachers.3. Type of school--public or Catholic--does not account for major differences in the degree of concerns of teachers.4. The area of Instructional Activities causes the greatest concern followed by Classroom Management and Professional Growth. Evaluation Problems causes the least concern.5. Salary, motivating student interest and response, developing in students good work and study habits, and stimulating critical thinking are major concerns for teachers.6. Individual items causing concern for teachers have experienced modest changes during the past 14 years. / Department of Educational Administration and Supervision

The purpose of the study was to examine the relationship between age, teaching experience, and major degree preparation area of the last degree earned of senior high school women teachers in Indiana and their motivation to pursue administrative careers. A second purpose was to report the opinions of women teachers relative to perceived opportunity to actively seek a position in administration at the senior high. school and/or central office level.An opinionnaire was designed to solicit responses from female senior high school teachers in Indiana concerning age, years of teaching experience, major degree preparation area of the last degree earned and their motivation to pursue administrative careers. Women teachers were asked to respond to questions requiring personal opinions on mentoring, relocating to assume an administrative position, interview opportunities for administrative positions, and the perceived reasons administrative positions were denied the respondent. In addition, the teachers were asked to state perceived opinions regarding the opportunity for women to actively seek an administrative career at the senior high school and/or central office level.One thousand names of women teachers in Indiana senior high schools, grade 9 through grade 12, were drawn by the Bureau of Educational Research from computer lists at the Department of Public Instruction. Six hundred twenty-two teachers responded to the opinionnaire.The responses to all questions soliciting demographic information were reported by number and percentage in three categories:1. Total number of respondents,2. Women who indicated an interest in pursuing administrative careers, and3. Women who stated they were disinterested in administrative careers in education.Responses to open-ended questions were separated into the following two categories and reported by percentage and/or number:1. Women who indicated an interest in pursuing administrative careers, and2. Women who stated they were disinterested in administrative careers in education.The following major findings were derived from the analysis of data:1. Of the 622 respondents, 142 respondents or 22.8 percent indicated an interest in pursuing administrative careers in senior high schools or central administration offices.2. Sixty-eight and four-tenths of the women interested in administration as a career were younger than 40 years of age.3. The largest number of respondents in each group, women who indicated an interest in administrative careers and women who indicated a disinterest in administrative careers, had taught from 5 to 15 years.4. The largest number of respondents in each group, women who indicated an interest in administrative careers and women who indicated a disinterest in administrative careers, reported the English degree as the major preparation of the last degree earned.5. Sixty-six and three-tenths of the 622 respondents indicated a lack of encouragement from administrators in their home district in regard to pursuing administrative careers.6. Twenty-one percent of the respondents perceived the major reason women have not pursued administration careers was due to family responsibilities.7. Eleven and seven-tenths percent of the respondents perceived the socialization process imposed on the American female as reason women have not pursued careers in school administration.8. Of the respondents who indicated an interest in pursuing careers in school administration, none cited family responsibilities as a limiting factor in the pursuit of an administrative career.

The purposes of this study were to survey Indiana high school principals, teachers, and counselors (a) to determine their levels of level of knowledge in testing, interpretation of test scores, research on the impact of graduation examinations, and performance assessment; (b) to determine their levels of experience with minimal competency testing, graduation examination programs and performance assessment; and (c) to profile each group's and the entire group's views of the purposes, content, standards of achievement, and administrative procedures for a graduation examination. Additionally, the study sought to identify what these educators predicted would be the impacts of such examinations.The populations studied were randomly selected samples from three groups of educators: (a) principals (350); (b) teachers (753); and (c) guidance counselors (524) in Indiana public high schools. A survey concentrating on the issues central to the purpose, content, standards of achievement, administrative procedures, and impact of graduation examinations was developed and validated by the researcher.It was found that principals and counselors perceived themselves to be more knowledgeable about and experienced with testing than did teachers. Indiana educators preferred (a) a high school graduation examination with a combination of open-ended constructed responses, performance tasks, and multiple-choice questions whose content was determined by a state-level committee of educators and consisted of a broad spectrum of skills and content areas; (b) full inclusion of students with disabilities, if there were reasonable and appropriate accommodations and if these students' scores were not used to evaluate teachers or schools; and (c) awarding two high school diplomas. Indiana educators predicted that if high school graduation examinations were enacted, the following would increase: (a) legal challenges and lawsuits; (b) the public's evaluation of education based on test scores; (c) the public's perception of test scores as the major goal of schooling; (d) stress on teachers and administrators; (e) pressure on teachers to change; (f) time demands on educators; (g) measures to protect students and schools from harm caused by high-stakes tests; (h) drop out rates; (i) emphasis on tested content and skills; and (k) state control. / Department of Educational Leadership

The purpose of this exploratory study was to look at the perceptions of Indiana’s special and general education administrators and teachers regarding service delivery and instructional models used with secondary students with emotional disabilities (ED) and the transitional outcomes for this population of students. Study participants were provided an electronic survey using Ball State’s inQsit software program. Demographic data (i.e. age, gender, and ethnicity) were collected along with school size and educational roundtable location. Study participants were asked to report which service delivery (placement) and instructional (personnel) models were currently being used with their students with ED and also what transitional outcome (i.e. graduating with a diploma) best summarized their students with emotional disabilities. Respondents rated the effectiveness of current placements and personnel used with their students using a Likert-type scale. The study found that administrators and teachers regardless of specialty area perceived their students with ED being educated in the regular classroom or resource room. They also indicated this service delivery model was effective. In regards to personnel, the teacher with paraprofessional support was still reported as the dominant choice for instructional model and was perceived as being effective. Respondents also reported that their students with ED were leaving school with a diploma or certificate of completion. However, over 15% of respondents indicated their students with ED were dropping out of school. The study recommended follow up research to investigate current curriculums used to provide instruction to students with emotional disabilities. Survey participant size (n=245) was considered too small to make generalizations, but the study provides useful insight into potential future research. / Department of Special Education

Students with learning disabilities have been attending postsecondary education in increasing numbers since the early 1990’s. Improvements in secondary education services, legal rights to reasonable accommodations, and college services for these students have been credited with this increase (Browning, 1997; Flexer, Simmons, Luft, & Baer, 2005; Hallahan & Kauffman, 2006; PL 93-12, Wilkinson & Rund, 2000). Legal mandates have stressed that secondary service providers must create services that prepare these students for adult life and postsecondary education options (Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act, 2004). This study examined the perspective of secondary teachers/administrators and postsecondary service providers in Indiana to determine their awareness and perception of key skills related to postsecondary success for students with learning disabilities in institutions of higher education. Factors examined were related to academic, social, self-determination/advocacy, and emotional readiness. / Department of Special Education