The goal of the research project was to assess the effect of a written intervention on the state anxiety of new mathematics teachers. Twenty-eight beginning mathematics teachers in Washington, Oregon, and California were randomly assigned to treatment or control groups. Treatment was a survival guide, Green Broke, carefully designed to meet the needs of beginning mathematics teachers. A Delphi panel determined topics for the guide, beginning with suggestions from the literature. The panel included mathematics teachers in grades 7 to 12 from all three Pacific states, and both urban and rural areas. School administration and college mathematics education were also represented on the panel. A subset of the panel and a writer edited the guide. Trait anxiety of subjects was determined prior to the 1989-90 school year using the trait anxiety portion of Spielberger's State-Trait Anxiety Inventory. The state anxiety inventory was administered at that same time and again three times during the school year. All subjects also completed a teacher report twice during the year regarding their teaching experiences. In addition, the treatment group was asked to complete two questionnaires regarding the effectiveness of Green Broke. Subjects perceived that they were part of two studies, one involving the guide and one involving anxiety inventories. Analysis of covariance for repeated measures was used to assess differences between groups in state anxiety, using trait anxiety as covariate. Level of significance was set at .05. There was no significant main effect, but a significant interaction effect was found. The nearly linear relationship between state and trait anxiety found in the control group disappeared for the group having the guide. Mini case studies, using responses to the teacher reports, were done for seven subjects, including those with very high state anxiety. In addition, a subgroup of the treatment group, for which a linear relationship between state and trait anxiety did exist, was examined for common characteristics. Locus of control was hypothesized to be a variable that would differentiate this group. Other suggestions for further study include use of audio-visual forms of the survival guide, extension to other subject areas, and replication of the study. / Graduation date: 1991

Mentor teachers are currently seen as a solution to education's dilemma of how to orient beginners into the profession and provide educational advancement for its most capable, experienced teachers. One goal of Oregon's mentor program is to have mentors provide their proteges with instructional assistance through an observation process. The purpose of this study was to explore the quantity and types of observations being conducted by mentors and discover what factors most affect their ability to complete observations for instructional assistance. In order to determine the possible need for differentiation in training, comparisons were made between elementary and secondary level mentors for the quantity and types of observations conducted and for needs related to attitude, skills, and context. A literature survey provided an initial list of needs and attitudes previous researchers have found to be critical to mentors' success. This list was refined through the work of a Delphi Panel. The resulting survey gathered observation-related information from a random sample of two hundred and twenty-five Oregon mentors distributed throughout the state. Data was analyzed using Analysis of variance and Chi square tests at the .05 level to determine if there were significant differences between elementary and secondary level mentors and between twenty-four observation-related factors. A significant difference was found between observation-related factors, the most important being trust between the mentor and protege, availability of release time, the mentor's teaching in the same building as his/her protege, and the protege's willingness to be observed. No significant differences were found between elementary and secondary level mentors in either the quantity and types of observations conducted or in the perceived importance of various observation-related factors. / Graduation date: 1991

Thesis (M. Ed.)--Kutztown University of Pennsylvania, 2002. / Source: Masters Abstracts International, Volume: 45-06, page: 2733. Typescript. Abstract precedes thesis as, preliminary leaves i-ii. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 43-47).

Title from PDF of title page (University of Missouri--Columbia, viewed on Feb 17, 2010). The entire thesis text is included in the research.pdf file; the official abstract appears in the short.pdf file; a non-technical public abstract appears in the public.pdf file. Dissertation advisor: Dr. Jay Scribner. Vita. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Missouri-Columbia, 2002. / Typescript. Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 272-281). Also available on the Internet.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Missouri-Columbia, 2002. / Typescript. Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 272-281). Also available on the Internet.

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This interpretive case study is an investigation of three first-year teachers’ perceptions of student writing and writing instruction in second grade classrooms. The portrayals describe each teacher’s early experiences with literacy and their professional path that led them to the classroom. The case studies also present the knowledge and the resources these three teachers report drawing on during their first year as a professional. A description of the each classroom and an account of writing instruction further contextualizes the interpretation of the perceptions about student writing and writing instruction each teacher. Classroom observation and interview data were collected during the spring semester of these three teachers first year as a professional in the classroom. Data analysis was ongoing and inductive (Glaser & Strauss, 1967). Recurring themes and patterns across the cases were used to build representations that most exemplified each teacher’s perceptions. The findings in this study suggest that novice teachers draw from multiple sources of knowledge as they teach writing for the first time. The findings also suggest that the strongest influences on beginning teachers’ writing instruction are their own experiences as a writer, their assigned mentor, and their grade-level team members. From the classroom observations and debriefing interviews, the findings further suggest that beginning teachers assume writing ideas come from teachers and that there is a particular writing process that is to be followed systematically. The findings also suggest that beginning teachers believe public displays of student work should be perfect and therefore place great importance on the conventions and mechanics of writing. The implications for this study and suggestions for future research relate to the potential for first year teachers to draw from multiple sources in their teacher education programs, the potential for school-based mentoring programs where mentor teachers receive training to support their work with new teachers especially as it impacts their practice and develops their expertise as they teach writing, and the potential for first year teachers to take the initiative for their own professional development as they continue to improve their practice teaching writing. / text