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"The purpose of this study is to compile useful information regarding the merits of a specific kind of multi-level reading program. Another purpose in this study is to ascertain, insofar as is possible, the reaction of both educators and students to such a program. The scope of the study encompasses two major areas: (1) an historical approach, consisting of a review of the literature in the entire field of multi-level reading materials, (2) an evaluation, through the use of an opinionnaire, which was sent to Florida educators who have used the materials"--Introduction. / Typescript. / "June, 1961." / "Submitted to the Graduate Council of Florida State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science." / Advisor: Mildred Swearingen, Professor Directing Study. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 51-53).

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The purpose of this survey was to identify and compare the specific factors relating to merit pay that teachers, principals, and superintendents in Central Florida would accept in the development and implementation of a merit pay plan. A questionnaire, based on an instrument that was used in a previous study on merit pay factors in 1970, was developed that consisted of 38 factors. A five-point ordinal scale was used to measure the educators' degree of acceptance for each factor. There were 14 Central Florida school districts that participated in the survey including 433 teachers, 211 principals, and 12 superintendents. The response rate was 62.6 percent. The chi square test was the primary test used for the statistical analysis. The test was utilized to compare group responses on a factor-by-factor basis. Some conclusions made based upon the analysis of data were: 1. Agreement existed by the educators in Central Florida on a majority of 38 factors. 2. Teachers and principals rejected the following factors: a. Set a quota on the number of teachers eligible for merit pay each year. b. Teacher evaluation should include summer work experiences which relate to teacher's field. c. Teacher evaluation should include as a criteria an advanced degree or certificate. d. Teacher evaluation should include college/university training beyond a degree or certificate. e. Teacher evaluation should include conference and convention participation. f. Teacher evaluation should include scores achieved on standardized tests. 3. Teachers rejected having the principal-be the primary evaluator, whereas principals and superintendents were in general agreement with this factor. 4. Teachers showed a difference on more factors when divided on the basis of experiential level (1 to 10 years versus 11 years and over). In summary, although there were statistically significant differences identified, the comparisons were more alike than different with the majority being differences in degree only.

Study done on 15 teachers in 2 counties in North Florida--P. xvi. / Kimberly R. Burgess. / Typescript. / Thesis (Ph. D.)--Florida State University, 2003. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 328-339).

This study was designed to discover which merit pay evaluation and implementation factors were considered important by members of the Florida Teaching Profession - National Education Association (FTP-NEA). Comparisons were made of opinions within various subgroups (district size, position within organization, sex, race, age, years teaching, highest degree earned, assignment, secondary assignment). The sample included the State Board of Directors, the Board of Directors of the United Faculty of Florida CUFF-university personnel), and FTP-NEA members in two-thirds of the local affiliates. All districts with support personnel groups were included. The questionnaire was comprised of merit pay factors which were cited most often in the literature, and factors being considered for Florida's State Master Teacher Program. The instrument included 15 evaluation and 25 implementation factors. Questionnaires were distributed by local affiliate presidents. The UFF board and state FTP-NEA board members were surveyed by mail. The results of 662 surveys were analyzed, using a Chi-square test for each factor for each subgroup within the sample. Respondents felt most strongly that "teaching experience/number of years teaching" and "administrator observations/evaluations" should be used as evaluation criteria in a merit pay plan. They were most opposed to "standardized teacher test scores" and "standardized student test scores," both "by school" and "by teacher." They agreed strongly with several of the implementation factors, including "each teacher should ahve access to his/her own records" and "an evaluation instrument should stress performance on the job in the assigned area." They were strongly against the use of a quota, extra pay for tecahers in shortage or alternative areas, and the involvement of business persons and legislators in planning a merit pay system. There were several Chi-square tests which produced valid, significant differences among various subgroups. Significant differences were evidenct in 26 cases for evaluation factors, and 14 cases for implementation factors. The largest numbers of significantly different opinions were in the categories of "sex" (10 factors) and "assignment" (8 factors). There were no significant differences among respondents with various seconday assignments and one significant difference between black and white responses.

Public officials at the state level currently are called upon to create, evaluate, and implement policies that assess the effectiveness of teacher performance and hold teachers accountable for student achievement. Therefore, understanding the social construction of the teaching profession among those public officials is crucial to understanding the impact of the policy agenda on the work of teachers as well as being essential to exercising influence on the policy process itself. This study was an analysis of legislation regarding teacher accountability in an effort to provide insight into how the Florida State Legislature socially constructs the teaching profession. This study used a qualitative methodology to place teachers, as a group, in Schneider and Ingram’s (1993) typology of target populations and made use of historical analysis to trace the changes that have occurred in the social construction of teachers during the period from 1984-2015. In doing so, it found teachers are negatively constructed with a positive power component, correspondingly labeled contenders, on Schneider and Ingram’s typology. Ultimately, the effect of the pressures placed upon teachers has been to create projections of ongoing teacher shortages and to discourage potential candidates from pursuing the profession. / Includes bibliography. / Dissertation (Ph.D.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2017. / FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection

This study examined the action research reports written by teachers in one Florida school district after they had received professional development on differentiated instruction and the action research process in the 2009-2010 school year. The 69 reports that were completed by the teachers were assessed using the Action Research Rubric that was developed for this study. This rubric evaluated whether the reports contained the elements of action research along with the characteristics that the district emphasized as part of the professional development such as differentiation, student subgroups, and collaboration. The Action Research Rubric contained seven subscales: Purpose of the Study, Plan, Professional Collaboration and Resources, Data and Evidence, Results, Instructional Decisions and Professional Reflection, and Sharing Results. Descriptive statistics were found for the aggregate group of reports as well as subgroups depending upon the school level (elementary, middle, or high school), the types of teachers within the elementary category, or the FCAT subject area of focus for the report. Overall, the action research reports met the district‟s standard as measured by the Action Research Rubric. As an aggregate group, the reports also met the standard on the Purpose of the Study, Professional Collaboration and Resource, and Data and Evidence Subscales. They did not perform as well on the Plan and Sharing Results Subscales.

The focus of this research was to investigate and clarify the work lives of middle school literacy coaches in central Florida by studying their backgrounds and experiences before assuming the role of literacy coach. Additionally, the beliefs of literacy coaches on what factors influence reading achievement were examined. The responses of 44 participating middle school literacy coaches were used to investigate (a) the academic and professional experiences of each coach, (b) the percentage of time spent in 13 literacy coaching activities, and (c) the working factors related to student reading achievement as evidenced on the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test. Data from a web-based survey and personal interviews were used to collect pertinent data to create an awareness and understanding of the work lives of middle school literacy coaches. Descriptive statistics were used to present demographic information regarding the coaches. Exploratory regression analyses were performed using time devoted to coaching activities and school performance data to determine existing relationships. Qualitative analyses were used to determine emergent literacy coach themes from survey responses. All data were triangulated to develop case studies for a group of 10 literacy coaches. Narrative descriptions of all coaching and individual school data were presented in the context of schools‘ percentage of student subgroups that attained Adequate Yearly Progress in 2010. The results of the study indicated that, although literacy coaches believed that modeling lessons was the most influential activity in positively affecting reading proficiency, very little of their time was spent in that activity. Recommendations iv included professional development for administrators on the use of a literacy coach and for literacy coaches on their usage of time.

In this research, data collected by the Florida Department of Education (FLDOE) for 2006-2007 and 2007-2008 program completers of the following three Florida teacher preparation programs were compared: the Initial Teacher Preparation Programs (ITP) of approved colleges and universities, District Alternative Certification Programs (DACP), the Educator Preparatory Institutes (EPI). A factor analysis was performed to identify factors perceived by program completers as important to their preparedness to teach. The factors that most closely supported completers’ perceptions of Florida teacher preparation programs regarding successful preparation for the classroom were: Planning and Instruction; Assessment, Communication and Research; Professional Responsibility and Ethical Conduct; and Use of Technology. Differences perceived by program types indicated that completers of the traditional program, initial teacher preparation (ITP),were significantly more satisfied with their preparedness to face the challenges of the classroom than were completers of school district programs (DACP) and community college programs (EPI. Although the teachers in all groups believed that their preparation ranged between effective and highly effective, the scores of the ITP group reflected significantly higher mean scores and ratings closer to highly effective than the DACP and the EPI groups. Conclusions, implications for policy and practice, and recommendations for future research were offered.