The purpose of this study is to explore experiences of professional growth for mid-career community college faculty. The research question that guided the study is: How do community college faculty members experience professional growth at mid- career? The research design included an interpretive social science methodology and phenomenological method. Nine mid-career community college faculty, identified as being engaged and active in their professional role, participated through in-depth interviews. Profiles of the participants in their own words were presented to reflect on their early career experiences, and themes were presented as they emerged from the data as participants talked about their experiences of professional growth. Themes emerged in the areas of: (1) experiences of professional growth; (2) how faculty made meaning of these experiences; and (3) how faculty experienced support for their growth. Faculty interviewed for this study were active in campus leadership and governance and in pursuing professional development opportunities. They demonstrated a high degree of engagement in student learning and improving instruction. They were thoughtful about their experiences, reflecting on diversity as one of the strengths of their institution and engaging in a self-reflective post-tenure process. They also experienced a high level of support from administrators and colleagues. By voicing the professional growth experiences of highly engaged faculty at an important career stage, this study offers implications for practice for faculty, administrators, and policy makers concerned with faculty, instructional, and organizational development. / Graduation date: 2013

The purpose of this study was to analyze preservice teachers' talk about gender issues in education through a poststructural feminist theoretical framework. Eighteen Master of Arts in Teaching students volunteered to participate in a seminar. During the seminar the participants wrote about and discussed gender issues in teaching. Data collected from the seminar included transcripts of audio-taped conversations as well as response journals and autobiographical sketches written by the participants. Four themes, gender talk, teacher talk, confessional talk, and resistance talk, were explored in the data. The theme gender talk included the participants' observations of and discussions about the differences between females and males. Teacher talk included discussions of what it means to be a teacher and how gender, race, and class impact the teacher's role and the educational experience of children. The data illustrated the multiple and competing discourses these preservice teachers employed when discussing gender issues. The themes confessional talk and resistance talk focused on how the participants talked about gender. These themes raised questions about teacher education practices. They served to illustrate the power relationships inherent in teacher education and how these relations of power act to authorize some discourses and suppress others. Modifications of teacher education practices were recommended by the researcher. These recommendations included helping preservice teachers deconstruct the discourses of education and the role of the teacher as well as suggesting that preservice teachers could benefit from alternate and varied educational sites in which to explore issues of teaching. / Graduation date: 1998

The purpose of this study was to develop a valid and reliable, instrument for determining the mathematics subject matter knowledge of Thai preservice elementary teachers at eight (8) teachers' colleges in eight (8) provinces in northern Thailand. The focus of the content of interest was the operation of division of rational numbers in the context of an appropriate taxonomy of the cognitive domain categories suggested by Wilson (1971). The Delphi technique, item analysis, and "known group" techniques were utilized in the instrument development phases of the study. Hypotheses were tested to determine whether significant differences existed between colleges and between teachers with different backgrounds. The dependent variable was the mean test score for preservice teachers at eight Thai teachers' colleges. The study included the testing of significance for colleges, background, and whether there was significant interaction between colleges and teachers' backgrounds (liberal arts and science). The pilot instrument consisted of 52 items representing four cognitive levels (computation, comprehension, application, and analysis). Based on an analysis of pilot test data, 10 items were eliminated. The final draft instrument consisted of 42 items and was administered to 272 preservice elementary teachers. When field test data were analyzed and compared to "known group" data, 10 items were found to be outside of the acceptability range for difficulty. Item difficulty was used for selecting items for inclusion in the final instrument to measure the operation of division of rational numbers with Thai college preservice elementary teachers. This step in the research served to reduce the number of test items to 32, which constituted the content for the final instrument. The internal consistency reliability was .81 for the 42-item instrument. Content and construct validity were verified by various procedures. / Graduation date: 1994

This study examined the practice of student teaching and the effects of student teaching upon the development of three secondary Thai language student teachers from Chiangmai Teachers' College in Chiangmai, Thailand from July to September, 1992. The research questions were: What are the methods of teaching which are used during student teaching experience, and what developments or changes occur as a result of student teaching from the point of view of the student teachers? The research methodology was qualitative, utilizing the methodologies of open-ended interviewing of student teachers as the primary mode. Other sources such as observations of student teacher teaching and student teacher journals were used to add depth to the study and to triangulate the findings. Interviews were conducted in two phases. Observations were conducted as the student teachers taught five class sessions. The data were processed using the constant comparative method. A preliminary study of three secondary teachers was conducted to test the interview guides and add direction to the study. The analysis of data resulted in the generation of the following working hypotheses: 1. Formal college training plays a more influential role in student teachers' methods of teaching than the student teachers realize. 2. Student teaching experience affects student teachers' attitude toward teaching. 3. Student teaching experience has a powerful impact on the development of student teachers as teachers and as individuals. / Graduation date: 1994

The use of computers in the classroom could allow both educators and learners to achieve new capabilities. There are underlying factors, however, that are obstructing the adoption rate of computer use for instructional purposes in schools. The study focused on these problems with a view to determining which critical success factors promote a higher adoption rate of computer usage in education. This study derived its theoretical framework from various technology adoption and educational models Methodology: The nature of the study required a . Furthermore, it investigated ways in which computer technology could enhance learning. mixed methods approach to be employed, making use of both quantitative and qualitative data. Two questionnaires, one for the educators and one for the principals of the schools were hand-delivered to 60 secondary schools. Exploratory factor analysis and various internal consistency measures were used to assess and analyse the data.Conclusion: Educationists and policy-makers must include all principals and educators when technological innovations are introduced into schools. All these role-players need to be cognisant of the implications if innovations are not appropriately implemented. Including the use of computers in educator training programs is important so that pre-service educators can see the benefits of using the computer in their own teaching.

The purpose of this study was to develop a profile of Christian College physical education faculty members regarding their academic preparation, professional experience, and selected duties, as well as to identify important components of graduate preparation at the doctoral level for future faculty at these institutions. A survey instrument was selected from a review of previous research and adapted for use in this study. The revised instrument was divided into three parts; academic preparation, classroom teaching experience, and coaching and administrative duties. Institutions chosen for the study were selected from the Coalition of Christian Colleges and Universities. Seventy schools with physical education programs were identified. Department heads at these institutions identified 370 faculty members who met the criteria for participation in the study. Two hundred nineteen surveys were returned for a response rate of 58%. The presentation of the findings are presented in the following areas: the profile of faculty members in relation to their academic preparation, teaching experience and coaching and administrative duties; the perceptions of faculty in relation to teaching competence and value of graduate coursework; the faculty member's perceived competence in and importance of certain administrative skills in their current position; and the demographics of institutions represented in this study. Data indicated that faculty who taught in areas outside their graduate preparation perceived themselves as less competent than those with specific graduate coursework in that area. Approximately 28% of courses taught by faculty in this study were taught by faculty without graduate coursework in that area. A large percentage of faculty in the study who coached did so at the secondary level prior to coaching at the collegiate level. They also served as an assistant prior to becoming a college head coach. A majority of faculty (67%) served in some type of administrative capacity during their career. Faculty perceived themselves as more competent in specific administrative skills when they received graduate preparation in those areas. / Graduation date: 2006

School districts across the nation are engaged in an ongoing attempt to bring about change. Educational researchers strive to initiate change in the classroom with students as well as the teachers of these students. The evaluation of a change effort is a key element in any implementation model; as the actual training and development strategies used to induce change need to be consistently refined. The change effort studied was an effort to implement Madeline Hunter's Instructional Theory Into Practice (referred to as ITIP). The study evaluated the effectiveness of this change effort over time. The evaluation determined the extent to which intended behavioral outcomes of five dimensions (key elements in the 11113 model) were realized initially and four years after treatment. Because the behaviors of the treatment teachers and control group teachers were crucial to the study, the research design collected data by videotaping teaching episodes of the sample group pre- and post-treatment. These episodes were assessed for their pretreatment teaching behaviors and post-treatment teaching behaviors . In addition, the research design collected data by videotape and assessed the teaching behaviors four years after the initial training. In the same manner, the control group's teaching behaviors were assessed. An analysis of the study's treatment group concerns was done as they evolved through the change stages, as hypothesized by Dr. Frances F. Fuller (Fuller, 1969). This change analysis and behavioral assessment led to additional evidence for the evaluation of the effectiveness of the change effort in question. This study showed that, from the beginning, a change effort needs to be carefully and clearly defined so that everyone involved understands it well and everyone shares the same definition. The study found that the initial training did change teaching behaviors in four of the five areas in question. However, four years after the initial training, it was found that there was significant regression in the skills learned from the initial training sessions. Specifically, it was the areas that showed significant growth in the initial training that regressed four years later. These behaviors though, even after regressing after four years, were significantly displayed to a greater degree in each of the individual's teaching behaviors when compared to individuals who had no formal training at all. Therefore, it must be concluded that the formal training made a difference in the teaching behaviors of those who participated in the change effort design, but not to the degree that was necessary for the dimensions to become part of each individuals' teaching behavior over the long term. Change effort designs of the future must account for the time necessary for change to occur and promote follow up activities until a significant amount of time for this follow up has occurred. / Graduation date: 1991

The primary purpose of the study was to identify major causes and subsequent effects of curriculum lag in industrial-technical education. The subsidiary purpose of the study was to compare hierarchical rankings of major causes of curriculum lag in industrial-technical education as perceived by superintendents, secondary school principals, and industrial-technical education teachers in Indiana public school systems.Usable data collected by questionnaire from 406 out of 540 sample subjects were computed to generate respective rank hierarchies of selected twenty causes of curriculum lag in industrial-technical programs. Decisions about two Null Hypotheses were made at 0.05 level by use of multivariate, univariate, and chi-square analyses.Findings1. Superintendents, principals, and industrial-technical teachers were in agreement that three most severe causes of curriculum lag in Indiana secondary industrial-technical programs were inadequate funding, outdated laboratory equipment, and lack of in-service training for industrial-technical teachers.2. Ninety percent agreement occurred between the three respondent groups on ten most severe or ten least severe causes of curriculum lag in Indiana secondary industrial-technical programs.3. As perceived by teachers, inadequate funding and lack of in-service training opportunities affected school corporations with smaller enrollments than school corporations with larger figures.4. There were no significant differences between sizes of school corporations and causes of curriculum lag in industrial-technical programs as perceived by school administrators.5. Items involving structuring of courses, students' interest to study, and evaluation process were ranked as three least severe problem's in industrial-technical education. Sixty-seven percent agreement occurred between the respondent groups in ranking the last three severe problems.Conclusions1. Indiana public high schools are not funded for industrial-technical programs.2. Indiana industrial-technical education teachers are not offered opportunities to improve already acquired skills through in-service training programs.3. Industrial-technical programs are taught with outdated equipment in Indiana secondary schools.4. Lack of funds and in-service training for industrial-technical teachers affected smaller school corporations more than larger school corporations.Additional observations made during the study were presented.

The main problem under investigation was to determine whether or not statistically significant differences exist in the characteristics associated with stress-burnout tendencies and attrition rate of teachers prepared in a traditional elementary teacher education program and an experimental teacher education program.Secondly, the study examined the additional impact of an overseas experience in the experimental teacher education program. Results were analyzed to determine whether or not statistically significant differences existed between the experimental group and subgroup which went overseas.Population in the study consisted of the 1976 elementary education graduates of Ball State University, Muncie, Indiana. Two instruments were sent to the subjects in the study. One was an 18-item questionnaire developed specifically for use in this research, The Class of '76 Follow-up Questionnaire, designed to gather data related to stress, burnout, attrition, and degree of satisfaction with the teaching profession. The second instrument, The Tedium Measure, was developed by Pines and Aronson (1980) and has been used to measure burnout. Questionnaires were mailed to the population sample of 248, with 194 returned (78.2%).The program used for the calculation of group variances and the t-value was the SPSS-X, on the VAX computer. The t-test was employed to determine statistical significance between the responses of the various groups. The .05 level of significance was used as the criterion for significance.Findings Statistical significance of the difference between groups within the elementary education program at Ball State University was found in eight areas of The Class of '76 Follow-up Questionnaire.These findings support a conclusion that graduates who participated in the experimental elementary education (EXEL) program held more positive views of professional teacher education, teaching experiences, and future years in teaching.

Thesis (M. Phil.)--University of Hong Kong, 1979. / Part typewritten; part xerox copy of typescript.