The research on cooperative learning has been conducted in terms of student achievement but little is known of how training in and use of cooperative learning affects teachers. The central purpose of this study was to examine the association between training in cooperative learning and teacher job satisfaction, with special attention to the subsets of collegiality and efficacy. A second purpose was to examine how levels of job satisfaction, efficacy, and collegiality vary as a function of the following training variables: (a) setting, (b) amount of use, (c) kind of training, (d) preparation for implementation, and (e) opportunity for skill maintenance. The research was conducted via questionnaire with 129 teachers responding, which was a response rate of 71%. The questionnaire gathered data about training variables and included a 30-item Job satisfaction Survey which had subscales: 10 questions on collegiality, 15 on efficacy, and 5 on overall job satisfaction. The validity of the Job satisfaction Survey was established by pilot testing, by expert review of the questions, and by the use of an established survey as a bench mark for comparison. The research analysis involved examination of mean scores on the Job satisfaction Survey and ANOVA technique to examine the significance of variables in training and levels of job satisfaction as well as the subsets of collegiality and efficacy. Although the research did not reveal a significant relationship between training in cooperative learning and teacher job satisfaction, a significant relationship was found between several training variables and levels of satisfaction as well as collegiality and efficacy. The training variables found to be significantly associated with teacher efficacy were these: (a) use of cooperative learning at the level of seven or more times a week, (b) small group sharing and problem solving sessions for participants during training, (c) discussion with colleagues to maintain skills, and (d) the use of principal observation and feedback. The training variables found to be associated with collegiality were as follows: (a) the use of five different opportunities to maintain skills as opposed to three or fewer and (b) the use of peer coaching and feedback. Training variables associated with overall job satisfaction were: (a) small group sharing and problem solving sessions during training, (b) the use of five skill maintenance opportunities as opposed to three or fewer, and ((c) the use of peer coaching and feedback. Given the results of this study, staff development specialists should structure training to include these significant variables as sources of collegiality and efficacy as well as overall job satisfaction of teachers.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:pdx.edu/oai:pdxscholar.library.pdx.edu:open_access_etds-2141 |
| Date | 01 January 1990 |
| Creators | Dutton, Margaret Maloy |
| Publisher | PDXScholar |
| Source Sets | Portland State University |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | text |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Source | Dissertations and Theses |
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