The purpose of this study was to design and validate an instructional module structured to assist associate (student) teachers in implementing the requirements of P.L. 94-142. A further purpose was to test the effectiveness of the module based upon the tenets of the Florida Teacher Certification requirements. This was facilitated by comparing the knowledges and perceptions about handicapped persons held by associate (student) teachers who completed the instructional module with those who did not. / A 3-hour workshop, based upon the state related competency requirements, was presented to the 29 member experimental group of associate (student) teachers placed in west central Florida. Their knowledge and perceptions were compared to the 24 members of the control group who received no treatment. Materials used included: a trainer's manual, an associate teacher packet, and an evaluative device. The latter had three sections: demographics, the Attitude Toward Disabled Persons (ATDP), a 30 item 6-point Likert-type device, and a 38 true-false item test (HKT) based upon the following subskills of Florida's 24th Competency: characteristics of exceptional children, resource availability, referral process knowledge, teacher role and responsibility, varying teaching strategies, development of reporting skill, and promotion of integration and social acceptance. With the exception of the ATDP (Yuker and Block, 1970), the materials were developed by the researcher. / The entry level knowledge of the sample was relatively high, therefore significant gains could not be expected. Both groups demonstrated increases in six of seven subskills. The knowledge gains for the experimental group were greater. In the affective domain, the treatment proved to be an effective means of improving attitudes toward the handicapped. The experimental group scores were significantly greater than those of the control group. Elementary education majors had the greatest increases in achieving a more positive attitude. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 43-07, Section: A, page: 2319. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1982.

The purpose of this study was to develop a set of guidelines to improve the preservice education of the urban elementary school teachers of Iran. The guidelines include criteria for: (1) Goals of preservice teacher education in Iran. (2) Admission requirements. (3) Organization of elementary teacher education. (4) Curriculum. (5) Student teaching program. (6) Evaluation. (7) Qualifications of teacher educators. / The data for this descriptive study were obtained from an analytical review of the literature which addressed: (1) Urban elementary preservice teacher education in Iran. (2) New programs and projects of teacher education in selected developing countries. (3) Successful innovative teacher education programs in the developed countries. (4) Consensus of educational experts in reference to the essential components of preservice teacher education. / The developing countries selected were nations with institutions and beliefs comparable to those of Iran. The developed countries selected were those which have made substantial contributions in the field of teacher education, and have been pioneers in implementing many innovative projects and models in their preservice teacher education programs. / The data were compiled by making summary tables of the seven basic components of teacher education for each of the developing and developed countries included in the study as well as a summary table indicating the experts' consensus of these components. The data contained in these summary tables were comparatively analyzed for the purpose of developing the guidelines for improving urban elementary preservice teacher education in Iran. The aim was to adapt, not adopt, these ideas to the Iranian way of life, taking into account the availability of resources, and other existing constraints. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 44-12, Section: A, page: 3662. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1984.

The government of Venezuela has mandated a restructuring of the educational system. The six years of compulsory schooling, under the Organic Law of Education (1980) now in effect, will become nine years of compulsory education--the Basic School level. Elementary school teachers, formerly required to have only a secondary level degree, must now obtain a higher education degree. / The Ministry of Education has determined the competencies defining the new teacher's profile. Thus, the study sought to answer: (1) What are teachers' perceived needs regarding the legislatively mandated Basic Education competencies? (2) What level of inservice education do teachers feel is required for these competencies? (3) What are teachers' preferences concerning the strategies to be used in inservice education? / Venezuelan elementary school teachers generally agreed that the professional competencies are highly necessary, and that considerable inservice education opportunities are needed to acquire them. Teachers' preference is for the traditional strategies of inservice education--formal education in higher education institutions, combined with workshops, seminars and study groups. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 44-11, Section: A, page: 3361. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1983.

This study focuses on an examination of (1) newly trained teachers in the context of the rural primary school, (2) the in-service teacher process, and (3) the implementation of the Community-Based In-Service Teacher Program (CBITP), an innovative program designed to improve teacher quality and thus contribute to educational development in rural Thailand. / In order to examine how CBITP worked in practice and what its effects were, qualitative data was gathered concerning the training process itself, teachers working in the rural setting, and the organizational/administrative support system; the CBITP cluster. / It was found that cultural and technological influences have dramatically transformed village life thus bringing into question a number of assumptions upon which CBITP is based. Most of the school teachers were found to view the opportunity to attend CBITP as primarily an opportunity to up-grade their credentials, thus qualifying them for promotion. Training content seemed to be inconsistent with the current professional needs of teachers. The effort by trainers to combine professional knowledge with the practical experiences of the trainees participating in CBITP was found to be not satisfactory. The standard curriculum of the CBITP overwhelmed the training process and local field condition input was largely ignored. / With regard to the aim of using the college cluster to improve and streamline teacher training for rural education development, it was found that, in the beginning, the cooperative agreement gained a high degree of recognition and acceptance that led to positive changes in such matters as curriculum flexibility. But later, the restructuring of primary education administration, the creation of a national distance learning university and the shut down of the extension centers had a negative impact on the operation of CBITP. / It is suggested, in this study, that rapid changes in the educational system and the modernization of village life have created conditions that render the CBITP approach problematic as an innovation that would enhance quality in the rural school. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 45-09, Section: A, page: 2844. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1984.

The purpose of this study was to examine the following two general questions: What is the relationship between interns' teacher education regarding planning and the planning strategies they actually use? What are the relationships among interns' extent of using systematic planning principles, their subject matter knowledge, and student learning outcomes? / Both qualitative and quantitative data were obtained. Qualitative data were collected from 12 student teaching interns regarding their training in planning, their knowledge, and attitudes toward systematic planning, subject matter knowledge, and their lesson plans. The topics--attitudes toward systematic planning, subject matter knowledge, and lesson plans--were also measured by predesigned scoring plans. Criterion-referenced posttests were used to measure the interns' students' skills and knowledge. Surveys were used to measure students' attitudes toward instruction. / Results indicated that: (a) No conclusions were reached on the relationship between interns' training and their systematic planning knowledge due to the homogeneity of the training; (b) No conclusions were made on the relationship between interns' training and their attitudes toward systematic planning because there was no variance in training; (c) Interns who used more systematic planning techniques in their planning showed that they had more knowledge about systematic planning principles, especially concerning the knowledge of "identifying goals;" (d) Interns who had more positive attitudes toward systematic planning increased their use of systematic planning principles; (e) Students who received instruction from an intern who practiced systematic planning did not produce higher performance scores than students taught by an intern who used less systematic planning; (f) Students who received instruction from an intern who used more systematic planning did not express greater evidence of positive learning attitudes than did students of interns who used less systematic planning; (g) Interns who had more subject matter knowledge did not have students with higher performance scores than those of other students in the study; and (h) Interns with higher levels of subject matter knowledge had students with more positive attitudes toward the instruction. Recommendations for teacher education are then described, followed by suggestions for further research. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 54-09, Section: A, page: 3404. / Major Professor: Walter Dick. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1993.

This study utilized a research and development strategy to develop a participative decision-making and problem-solving training program based on the Quality Circle concept for implementation in a school setting. The study was carried out in four phases. Phases One and Two included the design, development and formative evaluation of the training program. Phase Three included the selection of a school for the field test and the training workshop for teachers involved in the study, using the program developed in the earlier phases. After the training session, Phase Three concluded with the implementation at the selected school of the process learned in the training workshop. Phase Three included formative and summative evaluation. Phase Four consisted of the final product revision. / The training program was devised so that participants were taught how: (a) To understand the basic steps of problem solving, (b) to use a variety of analytical tools in order to apply the steps successfully, and (c) to present a well organized and documented case to management in order to get their ideas implemented. / A seven step problem-solving program was used. Problem-solving techniques which were used in the training program include Brainstorming, Cause and Effect diagrams, Data Collection, Pareto Analysis, Graphic Representation of Data and Management Presentation. / The training program resulting from this study emphasizes procedures to follow before, during and after the management presentation and includes the following aids: (a) Member Guidelines, a brief overview of the problem-solving process; (b) Leader Guidelines, containing suggested activities, self-evaluations and steps to follow in presenting the problem-solving techniques to other team members; Visual Aids, including a slide-tape presentation for use in presenting each of the problem-solving techniques used in the training program. / Data collected during the training workshop and the implementation of the Quality Circle at the research school support the position that the program which has been developed can be effectively used in a school setting. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 44-06, Section: A, page: 1763. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1983.

The purposes of this study were: (1) to assess the degree to which Leon County, Florida, Middle School Compensatory Education mathematics and communications teachers, used during classroom instruction the Key Elements included in a research-based inservice training program; (2) to assess the degree to which experimental teachers utilized the Key Elements with that of similar teachers who did not have such training; and (3) to compare the achievement of students taught by teachers who received training and that of students taught by teachers who did not receive training. / The five Key Elements included in the instructional training component were: Task Analysis, Tell/Show/Do, Questioning, Feedback and Monitoring. These Key Elements were drawn from research on effective teaching. The experimental group received training and was directed to utilize the five Key Elements in planning, and actual classroom instruction. / Classroom observations were conducted to collect data to determine the degree to which the teachers used the Key Elements. Pre- and posttest data collected from an achievement test were used for analyses of the data on the achievement of the students enrolled in both classes. / Analysis of variance, analysis of covariance, t tests, adjusted cell/marginal means, Duncan's Multiple Range Test, and descriptive techniques were used to analyze the data. / The results indicated that the teachers who participated in the training program, utilized the Key Elements to a degree higher than similar teaching who had no such training. A significant difference was found between the means obtained by students in communications. In mathematics, although the students in the experimental group performed better than the control group, the difference was not significant. Differences between the means of sixth and seventh, sixth and eighth, and seventh and eighth grades were significant. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 46-01, Section: A, page: 0127. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1984.

This descriptive study is an endeavor to bridge the gap between theory and practice by developing a plan for implementing an aesthetic education learning center in Charlotte, North Carolina. The proposed collaborative plan between The University of North Carolina at Charlotte and the Charlotte/Mecklenburg Schools will emphasize aesthetic education as a means for classroom teachers to become change agents in the improvement of the delivery of the arts in the schools. / Methodology for the plan was focused upon five component areas: theoretical bases, goals, needs assessment, objectives, and evaluation. Theoretical bases were drawn from the disciplines of aesthetics and sociology. / Aesthetics as a basis is discussed in terms of Kaelin's phenomenological aesthetics pertinent to teacher education (the development of learned perception, increased aesthetic perception and its abstractable significance, imagination, and emotional response), to which aspects of Broudy's theory of analysis of art forms are adapted. The arts disciplines form the bases for curriculum content. Discourse about the arts as a basis provides the means for talking and learning about the arts in terms of the Weitz's meta-theory and Phillip Smith's semiotic explications to develop talk about art forms and nature forms. / Sociological orientations are based in Kotler's five elements of social action theory and Bennis, Benne, and Chin's theory of planning and the application of knowledge to bring about changes in behavior. Guidelines are discussed in terms of aesthetic education and the CMAELC as they emerged from goals, needs assessment, objectives, and evaluation. / More research is needed which emphasizes collaborative, interactive programs for getting people to work together to solve problems; a means to effect changes in the delivery of the arts in the nation's schools. The CMAELC plan may be generalizable to other areas. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 47-05, Section: A, page: 1697. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1986.

The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of inservice training on teacher performance assessment scores subsequent to an initial nonmastery rating on a selected competence. Specifically, this study focused on teachers who did not master competency number seven, "Maintains a Positive Learning Environment", of the Georgia Teacher Performance Assessment Instruments. / The conceptual population of this study was all teachers in Georgia who had not mastered competency seven of the Teacher Performance Assessment Instruments after an initial assessment. Data was collected from two groups of teachers who were randomly selected from the State of Georgia. One group of 40 teachers from 8 school districts was given inservice training; the other group of 208 teachers from 33 school districts was not given the inservice training. The data used for analysis were drawn from the results of the Teacher Performance Assessment Instruments (TPAI) which served as the pre and posttest for each group. / An experimental design was used in this research study. Data collected from the pre and postmeasures were subjected to hypothesis tests of the difference between two population proportions and analysis of covariance. All statistical procedures and tests used .10 as the significance level. / A significantly larger proportion of teachers who attended the inservice workshop demonstrated mastery of competency seven than those who were not given the inservice training. In addition, none of the 40 teachers who attended the workshop showed a decrease in score while 10.1 percent of teachers not attending showed a decrease in score. Therefore, it may be concluded that the inservice training did differentially affect the performance of teachers. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 47-10, Section: A, page: 3735. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1986.

This study was conducted to investigate the effects that a teacher educator lecturing on and modeling two specific behaviors via separate videotapes had on three operationally defined teaching behaviors. A repeated measure multiple baseline design was used to measure changes in frequency of touching, gesturing, and praising behaviors of five teacher trainees. Three separate treatments were introduced to trainees including a videotape of a teacher educator lecturing on touching and gesturing behaviors, a videotape of a teacher educator modeling touching behaviors only, and a videotape of the same teacher educator modeling gesturing behaviors only. Each of five teacher trainees was individually exposed to one, two, or all three treatment conditions while continuous observation occurred. The order of treatment introduction and the number of treatment introductions varied across subjects to assess treatment order interaction. / Results indicated (a) a functional relationship between the frequency of occurrence of touching and gesturing behaviors and the separate treatment conditions involving the modeling of these behaviors, (b) no relationship between touching and gesturing behaviors and the videotaped treatment involving lecturing on these skills, and (c) no relationship between any treatment and the frequency of praising behavior. Further analysis of the data indicated that each treatment condition remained independent of the others in producing change in teacher trainee behaviors and each only affected the associated dependent variable. / Follow-up observations, two weeks after the conclusion of the experiment, indicated that the frequency of target behaviors remained fully constant with previously established levels. These findings imply that a teacher educator modeling specific behaviors can effectively change the same behaviors of teacher trainees. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 48-02, Section: A, page: 0368. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1987.