The purpose of this study was to develop a profile of the male primary teacher in Arizona. It was hoped that such research would provide practical information for Arizona's teacher education programs for the purpose of attracting qualified males into teaching as well as for school districts who wish to attract and maintain qualified male primary teachers. The study population consisted of 112 primary teachers (K-3) in the public school systems of Arizona. Data for this study was obtained by the questionnaire method. The questionnaire designed for this study was based on a review of the literature. Data was gathered that pertained to three areas: Personal Attributes, Professional Attributes, and Perceived Contributions. The typical male primary teacher in Arizona is Anglo, 36, and married to a working wife. He is likely to be a first born, born out of Arizona, and not the first in the family to go to college. Most were born into a middle- or working-class family and were reared in a traditional family in that the mother's main occupation was that of a housewife. The typical male primary teacher in Arizona is likely to have a master's degree, and over half have an undergraduate degree in primary education. The majority received their degree from an Arizona institution. He is likely to be teaching in the third grade and has previously taught at the primary level. Well over half reported professional membership and have attended a professional conference within the past six months to a year. Most, however, do not belong to a professional support group. Low salaries was the most reported career impediment, and less than half see opportunities for advancement. A majority plan to continue teaching at the primary level, while some plan to teach at the intermediate level. The typical male primary teacher feels accepted by students, parents, and female colleagues. They see the public as having a more positive attitude towards men who teach grades K-3. Over half see themselves as helpful with discipline problems and effective when conferring with parents. They also see themselves as effective motivators and offering their students a different learning experience. A little over half agree that they are a father substitute and that children should have a male primary teacher. Well over half do not think boys benefit more than girls do from having a male primary teacher. Most think the elementary schools should be defeminized. Most think their school administration values their teaching at the primary level.

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No description available.

The purpose of this study was to determine the degree and type of participation of selected Navajo educators. A questionnaire was developed for this study to allow categorization of the participant's responses of frequencies of participation at specific administrative levels and institutional functions. Selected elementary and secondary schools were visited by appointment and thirty-two participants volunteered for this study. A diversity of Navajo educators was represented, according to background information obtained. Participants included both males and females, ages twenty-one to sixty, one to sixteen years of teaching experience, on-campus and on-site degree program graduates, public and B.I.A. school systems, six individual schools, and administrators and teachers. Overall, the greatest frequency of participation was as follows: For the Policy and Planning and Coordinating and Developing levels, student services (assessment and counselling) and curricular activities were highest, respectively. Daily teaching and administering duties were highest, as would be expected, at the Supervising and Implementing level with curriculum development and student counselling and assessment next highest, respectively. Considering background characteristics, a public school district, an individual public school, males, the thirty to thirty-nine age group, on-campus program graduates, those with six years of teaching experience total or within a school district each reported the highest frequency of participation when compared within categories, respectively. Based on the overall mean of frequencies reported, high or low values were assigned. When the chi square statistic was employed, three significant relationships were found within background groups: those with Master's degrees; those with six to sixteen years of teaching; those with five to twelve years in a school; and those from one university had significantly higher frequencies. This study was exploratory in nature; and it is not known to what degree the conclusions could be extended to the general population of Navajo educators. The Navajo educators studied did participate to some degree at all levels in all school functions. Certain groups reported more participation, and those with Bachelor's degrees, fewer than six years of teaching experience, and fewer than five years in a school reported significantly lower frequencies of participation.

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No description available.

No description available.

No description available.

This study focused on a 1978 teacher strike in the Verde Unified School District, Verde, Arizona, and was designed to investigate the impact the strike had on these teachers' attitudes, perceptions, and behaviors. These factors were examined in terms of: perceptions of the strike issues and causes; influences by significant others to strike or not to strike; personal relationships with significant others prior to, during, and after the strike; viewpoints or perceptions of the strike; personal attitudes concerning professionalism and what it meant to be a professional; and experienced feelings of stress. A questionnaire was developed and administered to forty junior high school teachers to investigate their attitudes, perceptions, and behaviors concerning the strike. The theoretical framework developed for this study, drawn from the literature of perceptual psychology, was used to examine and discuss the data regarding the teachers' attitudes, perceptions, and behaviors. The theoretical framework consisted of the following five categories: The Development and Maintenance of an Adequate Self, The Perceptual Field as a Determinant of Behavior, The Concept of Resistance to Attacks on the Self, The Concept of Economic Welfare as Related to Politics and Human Dignity and the Concept of Self-Maintenance of an Organization or System. Teacher respondents reported the following perceptions regarding the strike and their participation in it: (1)Issues and Causes of the Strike: The most significant perceived issue of the strike, as reported by the junior high school teacher respondents, was "The loss of the established negotiating policy" and a "Challenge to personal dignity." The respondents felt that the strike resulted because of "The way the Board and the District's central administration handled the issues." (2)Influences by Others to Strike or Not to Strike: The respondents reported that they were significantly influenced to strike or not to strike by the teachers' association and by teachers in their respective schools. The respondents indicated that they communicated with teachers in other schools when they were unable to talk to fellow teachers in their own schools. (3)Personal Relationships with Significant Others Prior to, During, and After the Strike: Personal relationships figured as a significant influence in each teacher's decision to strike or not to strike. At the building level, principals were perceived by the respondents as administrative representatives and as such were viewed as threatening and lacking empathy. The striking teacher respondents reported that a special feeling of camaraderie developed among the strikers on the picket lines. The strikers, furthermore, reported supportive relationships existing between themselves, the parents, and the students. (4)Viewpoints or Perceptions of the Strike: From the striking respondents' point of view, the strike was perceived as a phenomenon which they had hoped would never occur. From the non-strikers' point of view, though, the strike was perceived as a battle between two major forces, the National Education Association and the National School Board Association. (5)Personal Attitudes Concerning Professionalism and What it Meant to be a Professional: Professionalism, the teacher respondents reported, meant being involved with and having input into such issues as curriculum development, classroom management, class size, and discipline procedures. The respondents indicated that they had been denied the opportunity to participate in these matters. (6)Experiences of Stress: Stress played a significant role in the strike process from beginning to end. The data indicated many stressful and agonizing moments spent reaching the decision to strike or not to strike. Strained personal relationships developed and appeared to have evoked much stress. For non-strikers especially, the entire stike process was reported to have been stressful.

This study focused on a 1978 teacher strike in the Tucson Unified School District, Pima County, Arizona, and was designed to explore patterns of perceptions and behaviors reported by teachers concerning their involvement in the strike. Teacher perceptions and behaviors were examined in terms of: viewpoints concerning the issues and causes of the strike; attitudes toward the act of striking; choice to either strike or not to strike and the differeing factors which may have influenced the strike decison; feelings of stress occasioned before, during, and after the strike; post-strike relationships with significant others in the school system; and feelings regarding the outcomes of the strike. To implement the research study, a questionnaire was developed to explore teacher attitudes, viewpoints, and reported behaviors regarding various aspects of the strike. The questionnaire was distributed by the Tucson Education Association through the Tucson Unified School District mail distribution system to all 2,751 teachers of the school district. A total of 1,728 teachers participated in the study by completing and returning the questionnaire, which represents approximately 63 percent of the population. Data for the study were derived from the questionnaire responses. The demographic data and strike behavior data were crosstabulated and their significance reported in terms of chi-square statistics. The chi-square indicated a significant relationship between teacher strike behavior and the following demographic variables: teaching level, age, sex, teacher tenure, total years teaching, membership in a professional organization, and spouse being a teacher in the district. Data regarding teacher perceptions and behavior were analyzed and summarized on the basis of the perceptual framework constructed for this study, which was drawn from the literature in social and perceptual psychology. Briefly it included the following five categories: Empathy; Acceptance; Stress; Adequacy; and Perceptual Framework. The following perceptions were reported by teachers regarding: Issues and Causes of the Strike: The reported issues of the strike were salary, discipline, fringe benefits, class size, teacher professionalism, and dignity. The teachers reported that the factors generating the strike were not the issues themselves, but rather the way the issues were handled by the school board, superintendent, and central administration. Influences Upon Strike Behavior: The greatest influence reported by teachers regarding their strike decision was the teachers' association, followed by teachers in their own schools, family, teachers outside their schools, the media, and building principal, in that order. Strike Stresses: Ninety percent of all respondents reported experiencing stress during the strike. Stress was greater among elementary teachers, female teachers, and non-striking teachers. Post-Strike Relationships: Teachers reported more harmonious relationships with fellow teachers and students in their schools following the strike. Teachers reported less harmonious relationships with their supervisors. Strike Perceptions: Teachers reported that the strike produced a greater sense of personal dignity for teachers. The recommendations of the study included the following: A school system should develop and maintain a deep philosophical commitment to the worthiness and dignity of all persons. A continuous and effective communication process should be developed whereby school district administrator and teacher representatives can meet and interact in an atmosphere where every person is encouraged to express his viewpoints. Teachers and school district officials should have an adequate set of board-adopted policies providing orderly processes for dealing with disputes and difference between them. The policy that is adopted should result from the widest possible participation of all concerned groups throughout the community and the school district. The school district, including the school board, administrators, and teaching staff should carefully plan and effectively implement a program for continuous improvement of human relationships throughout the district.