Faculty Use of the World Wide Web: Modeling Information Seeking Behavior in a Digital Environment (open access)

Faculty Use of the World Wide Web: Modeling Information Seeking Behavior in a Digital Environment

There has been a long history of studying library users and their information seeking behaviors and activities. Researchers developed models to better understand these information seeking behaviors and activities of users. Most of these models were developed before the onset of the Internet. This research project studied faculty members' use of and their information seeking behaviors and activities on the Internet at Angelo State University, a Master's I institution. Using both a quantitative and qualitative methodology, differences were found between tenured and tenure-track faculty members on the perceived value of the Internet to meet their research and classroom information needs. Similar differences were also found among faculty members in the broad discipline areas of the humanities, social sciences, and sciences. Tenure-track faculty members reported a higher average Internet use per week than tenured faculty members. Based on in-depth, semi-structured interviews with seven tenured and seven tenure-track faculty members, an Internet Information Seeking Activities Model was developed to describe the information seeking activities on the Internet by faculty members at Angelo State University. The model consisted of four basic stages of activities: "Gathering," "Validating," "Linking" with a sub-stage of "Re-validating," and "Monitoring." There were two parallel stages included in the model. …
Date: December 2000
Creator: Fortin, Maurice G.
System: The UNT Digital Library
The Role of Higher Education in Africa: a Study of the Attitude of African Educators Toward the Tananarive Recommendations (open access)

The Role of Higher Education in Africa: a Study of the Attitude of African Educators Toward the Tananarive Recommendations

This study concerns the perceptions of African educators concerning the role of higher education in Africa. The study investigates African educators' awareness, understanding, opinions, and reactions to the role of higher education as defined by the Tananarive Conference on the development of higher education in Africa. The data were collected through personal interviews with 80 educators affiliated with the universities of the English—speaking countries in Middle Africa. The findings of the study reveal that (a) the Tananarive recommendations are still realistic and relevant to the African situation; (b) African educators agree that universities in Africa must contribute to the definition and development of African economic, social, and cultural goals; (c) African universities are judged mainly by how successfully their objectives and achievements improve society; (d) the critical problems confronting the African universities are finance, colonial origin, attachment to metropolitan models and standards, training of staff in overseas institutions, brain drain, and government interference; and (e) mutual trust and understanding of role-expectation between African governments and universities is required for universities to fulfill their developmental role in African societies.
Date: December 1989
Creator: Laryea, Evans A.
System: The UNT Digital Library
An Analysis of Enrollment Patterns in Required General Education Courses by Technical-Occupational Students in an Urban Community College (open access)

An Analysis of Enrollment Patterns in Required General Education Courses by Technical-Occupational Students in an Urban Community College

This study was concerned with the enrollment patterns in required general education courses by technicaloccupational students in an urban community college. The purposes of this study were to (1) examine the general education course enrollment patterns of technical occupational students in specific programs; (2) determine if completion of an English course yields a higher GPA; (3) profile the characteristics of the students who do and do not enroll in general education courses; (4) determine if students enrolled in certain technical-occupational programs are more likely to enroll in general education than students enrolled in similar programs; and (5) determine if completion of general education courses has a positive effect on overall GPA of students.
Date: December 1985
Creator: Stegall, Linda Coffey
System: The UNT Digital Library
A Comparison of the Problem Solving Ability of Physics and Engineering Students in a Two Year College (open access)

A Comparison of the Problem Solving Ability of Physics and Engineering Students in a Two Year College

The problem with which this study was concerned is a comparison of the problem solving ability of physics and engineering students in a two year college. The purpose of this study was to compare the problem solving ability of physics and engineering students in a two year college and determine whether a difference exists. Data was collected from an instrument administered to twenty-six engineering students and twenty-three physics students as a major examination in their regular courses. The instrument was validated by being taken from representative texts, by approval of the instructors using the examination, and by approval of a physics professor at a university. The instructors and professor were considered a panel of experts. Comparison of test scores of students who were registered in both physics and engineering and who took the exam twice, established concurrent validity of the instrument. A questionnaire was also administered to both groups of students to determine their personal problem solving strategies, if any, and to collect other demographic data. Additional demographic data, as available, was 2 obtained from the registrar. Instructor profiles were determined from interviews with each of the four instructors involved. Analysis of the data indicated there is a significant difference …
Date: December 1986
Creator: Martin, John R. (John Robert), 1951-
System: The UNT Digital Library
Performance on Selected Mathematics and Reading Assessment Tests as Predictors of Achievement in Remedial Mathematics (open access)

Performance on Selected Mathematics and Reading Assessment Tests as Predictors of Achievement in Remedial Mathematics

The problem of this study was performance on selected mathematics and reading assessment tests as predictors of achievement in remedial mathematics. The purpose of the study was twofold. The first was to determine the internal consistency of a locally developed remedial mathematics placement test and the mathematics section of the Pre-TASP Test. The second was to determine the predictive validity of performance on (a) the local remedial mathematics placement test, (b) the mathematics section of the Pre-TASP Test, and (c) the Descriptive Tests of Language Skills, Reading Comprehension Test in combination with demographic variables for mid-semester achievement, end-of-semester achievement, and course success in three levels of remedial mathematics at Richland College, Dallas, Texas.
Date: December 1990
Creator: Branum, Barbara K. (Barbara Kay)
System: The UNT Digital Library
Problems of International Students as Perceived by International Students and Faculty in a Public University (open access)

Problems of International Students as Perceived by International Students and Faculty in a Public University

This study focuses on the problems of international students as perceived by both international students and faculty in a public university. The major purposes of the study are to determine if there are significant differences in perceptions of the problems of international students between international students and faculty members, between groups of international students, and between groups of faculty members. A modification of an international student problem inventory instrument was used to collect data from 371 international students and 316 faculty members. Thirteen hypotheses were tested using frequency and percentages, analysis of variance, multivariate analysis of variance, and univariate analysis of variance, as required according to the data collected and the hypothesis being tested.
Date: December 1985
Creator: Omar, Ali A. (Ali Abdullah)
System: The UNT Digital Library
Perceptions of Student Participants Toward Small Business Institute Programs at Selected Institutions of Higher Education in Texas (open access)

Perceptions of Student Participants Toward Small Business Institute Programs at Selected Institutions of Higher Education in Texas

This investigation examines the perceptions of students enrolled in Small Business Institute (SBI) courses at six collegiate schools of business toward various aspects of the SBI experience. A questionnaire, adapted from an earlier study, was assessed for content validity by appropriate authorities in the areas of the SBI, entrepreneurship, and business communications. Two administrations of the questionnaire were given at an approximate three-month interval. The initial administration preceded all contacts between student consultants and clients. The second administration was given some three months later to essentially the same body of students following extensive contacts with clients. More than 75 per cent of the pre-test respondents also took the post test, thereby augmenting the validity of the Kolmogorov-Smirnov and Chi-square statistics employed in the study. Results of the study indicate the existence of significant inter-school differences among student perceptions toward the SBI experience, both prior and subsequent to the initiation of contacts with clients. On the other hand, there were no significant differences in pre- and post-administration response patterns within the schools.
Date: December 1984
Creator: Aston, William S.
System: The UNT Digital Library
Job Performance Expectations of Recent Journalism Graduates and the Importance of Journalism Education (open access)

Job Performance Expectations of Recent Journalism Graduates and the Importance of Journalism Education

The purpose of this study was to identify and compare the job performance expectations of recent journalism graduates as perceived by selected managing editors and journalism educators in Standard Federal Region Six (the states of Arkansas, Louisiana, New Mexico, Oklahoma, and Texas). The survey instrument consisted primarily of statements dealing with the topics of five research questions on the value of journalism education to success on newspapers, the value of newspaper experience to teaching journalism, the language skills of recent graduates, the value of academic research to the improvement of newspapers, and the "gap" between journalism education and journalism practice.
Date: December 1980
Creator: Flynn, George A.
System: The UNT Digital Library
Forecasting Future Events Affecting One Institution of Higher Education in the State of Texas: A Delphi Application (open access)

Forecasting Future Events Affecting One Institution of Higher Education in the State of Texas: A Delphi Application

The purpose of this study was to investigate the possible events in the external environment between 1987 and 1997 that may affect the future of North Texas State University. Two groups of experts participated in the study, a group of individuals from outside North Texas State University and a group of experts from the university.
Date: December 1987
Creator: Bollinger, Julie R., 1952-
System: The UNT Digital Library
An Institutional Analysis of Freshman and Sophomore Nursing Student Attrition (open access)

An Institutional Analysis of Freshman and Sophomore Nursing Student Attrition

The problem with which this study is concerned is the attrition of freshman and sophomore students who enroll in a baccalaureate nursing program. The purpose of this study is to identify and describe factors that may contribute to the nursing student attrition problem at a state-supported university.
Date: December 1983
Creator: Smith, Virginia Williams
System: The UNT Digital Library
A Study of Motivation to Work and Job Satisfaction of Student Activities Advisors at Srinakharinwirot University in Thailand (open access)

A Study of Motivation to Work and Job Satisfaction of Student Activities Advisors at Srinakharinwirot University in Thailand

The problem with which this study is concerned is the motivation to work and the job satisfaction of faculty members who work both as full-time instructors and student activities advisors at eight campuses of Srinakharinwirot University in Thailand. In relationship to the respondent student activities advisors, the purposes of this study were (a) to study the perceived relationship between motivation to work and job satisfaction, (b) to compare perceptions of motivation to work and job satisfaction according to selected demographic variables, and (c) to determine whether or not these variables significantly contribute to the prediction of motivation to work and job satisfaction for the sample population. Two published survey instruments were used to collect the data. Both instruments were administered to 206 student activities advisors of Srinakharinwirot University; usable, completed questionnaires were returned by 191 (92,7%) respondents. The statistical treatments applied to the collected data for seven research hypotheses include the Kentall Tau correlation coefficient, one-way analysis of variance, and multiple regression analysis. The numerous data findings from this study appear to support several conclusions. Among these are that although the respondent faculty members who were also student activities advisors were modestly motivated to accept the additional advisory responsibilities, feelings …
Date: December 1984
Creator: Chatsupakul, Khompet
System: The UNT Digital Library
The Personal, Social, and Academic Adjustment Problems of Arab Students at Selected Texas Institutions of Higher Education (open access)

The Personal, Social, and Academic Adjustment Problems of Arab Students at Selected Texas Institutions of Higher Education

The problem of this study was to determine the personal, social, and academic adjustment problems of Arab students at selected Texas institutions of higher education. The students in this study were 315 undergraduate and graduate Arab students attending four Texas institutions of higher education who were enrolled in the spring semester of 1979. The purpose of this study was twofold: (1) to identify the personal, social, and academic adjustment problems perceived by Arab students; and (2) to analyze and to interpret the data in relation to the adjustment problems of full-time Arab students included in this study. Results indicated that the Arab students were in general agreement concerning the questionnaires; no significant differences were found at the .05 level between male and female Arab students, married and single Arab students, and undergraduate and graduate Arab students. Recommendations were included which suggested that faculty and administrators who interact with Arab students be acquainted with the findings of the study. Orientation programs should be provided for Arab students, and the possibility of developing and enhancing the students' academic and non-academic experiences by identifying those individuals who have the ability and interest necessary for working with Arab students should be examined. Better communication …
Date: December 1979
Creator: Saleh, Mahmoud A.
System: The UNT Digital Library
A Study of Faculty Participation In and Approval of Professional Growth and Renewal Activities in the Dallas County Community College District (open access)

A Study of Faculty Participation In and Approval of Professional Growth and Renewal Activities in the Dallas County Community College District

The purpose of this study was to determine faculty participation in and approval of professional growth and renewal activities in the Dallas County Community College District. The population consisted of 526 full-time faculty employed by the district. The DCCCD Survey instrument, which was used in the study, included activities grouped into seven categories: career development, leaves, international activities, instructional renewal, grants, reward, and a miscellaneous category. Faculty members identified participation in activities; they also identified their approval or disapproval of all activities on a five point Likert-type scale. The population was grouped by teaching field, age, years-of-experience and campus for statistical analyses. A Chi-square test of goodness of fit was conducted to determine if significant differences existed between expected and observed participation among groups in each of the seven categories. An analysis of variance was completed to determine significant differences of opinion. The findings of the study indicated significant differences between expected and observed participation in the following categories: international and instructional activities when faculty were grouped by teaching fields; reward activities among years-of-experience groups. Significant differences of opinion were reported in all but the miscellaneous category when faculty were grouped by teaching field. Other significant differences were reported in …
Date: December 1986
Creator: Osentowski, Mary Jean
System: The UNT Digital Library
A Comparison of the Perceptions of Faculty and Students of Present and Ideal Institutional Goals in a Private University in Korea (open access)

A Comparison of the Perceptions of Faculty and Students of Present and Ideal Institutional Goals in a Private University in Korea

This study is an investigation of the importance of institutional goals as perceived by the faculty and students in Chung-ang University in Seoul, Korea. The purposes of this study are (1) to determine if significant differences exist between the perceptions of faculty and students as to the present and ideal institutional goals of the university, (2) to determine if significant differences exist between the perceptions of faculty and students of different colleges as to the present and ideal institutional goals of the university, and (3) to determine if significant differences exist between the present and ideal institutional goals as perceived by the faculty and students within each of the colleges of the university.
Date: December 1980
Creator: Ahn, Oksu
System: The UNT Digital Library
A Comparative Study of Opinions Concerning Faculty Teaching Behaviors Among Faculty Members and Senior Teacher Training Students in Six Teachers Colleges in Bangkok Thailand (open access)

A Comparative Study of Opinions Concerning Faculty Teaching Behaviors Among Faculty Members and Senior Teacher Training Students in Six Teachers Colleges in Bangkok Thailand

The purpose of this study is to compare the opinions concerning faculty teaching behaviors among groups of faculty members and senior teacher training students in six teachers colleges in Bangkok, Thailand. Five research hypotheses guided the data analysis for this study; the variables used were sex, age, teaching experience, and college of employment. A published, validated survey instrument, which lists sixty-one behavioral items and incorporates a Likert-type response scale, was used to collect the data. Random sampling of the population corresponded to existing male-female ratios for each group at each schools, with the exception of one school that has only female students. From the sample of 480, the total response was 85.6 percent. In order to test for significant differences of opinion among the variables and between the groups at the .05 level, t and F tests were applied. The data indicate that 70.5 percent of the 190 responding faculty are females who have taught for more than ten years; females also constitute 72.4 percent of the 221 senior teacher training students. In regard to opinions of appropriate faculty teaching behaviors, significant differences were found between faculty and students (faculty members had higher mean scores) and between male and female …
Date: December 1984
Creator: Bhulapatna, Prakit
System: The UNT Digital Library
A Coding-System Model for the Physically Handicapped for Use with the System of Interactive Guidance and Information (SIGI) (open access)

A Coding-System Model for the Physically Handicapped for Use with the System of Interactive Guidance and Information (SIGI)

The problem with which this study is concerned is to determine if the System of Interactive Guidance and Information (SIGI), which is a computer-based career guidance system that is employed with non-handicapped individuals, can be adapted to serve the needs of physically handicapped individuals. One hundred forty eight career and guidance professionals responded to a survey instrument, which was designed by the investigator, indicating their perceptions of the limiting effects of twelve specified handicapping conditions on the SIGI-programmed occupations. These respondents also listed their specific occupations, average time spent in career counseling with each handicapped individual, resources used in career counseling, incidence of use of SIGI, and opinions of needed changes to SIGI to make it a viable instrument in counseling the handicapped.
Date: December 1981
Creator: Bell, Caroline Spears
System: The UNT Digital Library
A Study of the Emphasis that Junior College Counselors, Academic Faculty and Occupational Faculty Believe that Counselors Should Place on Specific Counseling Activities (open access)

A Study of the Emphasis that Junior College Counselors, Academic Faculty and Occupational Faculty Believe that Counselors Should Place on Specific Counseling Activities

The purpose of this study was to determine whether differences exist among counselors, academic faculty, and occupational faculty, on two campuses of a junior college district, with respect to the emphasis they believe that counselors should place on specific counseling activities.
Date: December 1980
Creator: Mogor, Albert G.
System: The UNT Digital Library
Career Patterns of the Graduates of the Baccalaureate-Level Medical Technology Program of the University of Texas Health Science Center, Dallas Texas (open access)

Career Patterns of the Graduates of the Baccalaureate-Level Medical Technology Program of the University of Texas Health Science Center, Dallas Texas

This study is concerned with the differences in career patterns and characteristics between the medical technology program graduates who remain in practice and those who leave the profession. The subjects of the study are the 155 graduates of the program for the period from 1970 through 1978. This study has three purposes. The first is to determine the retention rate of the graduates. The second is to assess the factors related to attrition of these professionals. The third is to describe a programming methodology that would enhance career retention.
Date: December 1981
Creator: Castleberry, Barbara M.
System: The UNT Digital Library
Factors Associated with Quality of Academic Programs and Types of Jobs Secured by Graduates of Handcrafted Textile Design Programs of Universities and Polytechnics in Nigeria (open access)

Factors Associated with Quality of Academic Programs and Types of Jobs Secured by Graduates of Handcrafted Textile Design Programs of Universities and Polytechnics in Nigeria

The problem with which this study is concerned is that of determining the possible differential effects of the alternative training patterns of handcrafted textile design students in universities and polytechnics in Nigeria on the scores in courses for their final-year training as well as the type of first employment that students secure after graduation.
Date: December 1983
Creator: Adetoro, Sheriffdeen Abayomi
System: The UNT Digital Library
Improving Planning and Programming for Student Development in Higher Education Through the Use of a Needs Survey (open access)

Improving Planning and Programming for Student Development in Higher Education Through the Use of a Needs Survey

The problem with which this study is concerned is an investigation of the feasibility of using a questionnaire for determining perceived needs of students to improve the planning and programming process in student development in higher education. The study was designed to accomplish two purposes: to examine the feasibility of such an approach and to present an example of how such a study can be accomplished. The study concludes: a perceived needs survey can be accomplished with minimal difficulty and is effective in improving planning; documented student need should provide the bias for determining service philosophy and for planning student development programs for all students and for student subgroups; documented student need and preference should provide the basis for determining times of service offerings and staff utilization and deciding on methods of publicizing programs; the use of the perceived needs survey should reduce planning time.
Date: December 1978
Creator: Gault, Frank M.
System: The UNT Digital Library
A Study of Perceived Leadership Styles of Administrators Within Selected Colleges and Universities in Texas (open access)

A Study of Perceived Leadership Styles of Administrators Within Selected Colleges and Universities in Texas

The primary problem with which this investigation is concerned was the assessment of the perceptions of lower-level administrators as to leadership styles they see to be in effect in their respective colleges and universities in Texas. The purposes of this investigation were to 1) identify the administrative leadership styles in effect, 2) determine the prevailing leadership styles among presidents and lower-level officers, 3) test the assumption that lower-level officers select leadership styles similar to those styles perceived to be descriptive of chief officers and other administrators, 4) determine if the type of institution (public/ private) is a factor in the choice of leadership styles, 5) determine if institutional size is a factor in the choice of leadership styles, 6) ascertain if age is a factor in the choice of leadership styles, 7) determine if educational level is a factor in the choice of leadership styles, 8) determine if institutional level is a factor in the choice of leadership styles, 9) ascertain if tenure in an administrative position is a factor in the choice of leadership styles, 10) determine if administrative position is a factor in the choice of leadership styles. Analysis of the findings revealed the most popular styles of …
Date: December 1977
Creator: Paschall, Morris J.
System: The UNT Digital Library
Admissions Committee Ratings as Predictors of Persistence in Master's-level Theological Education (open access)

Admissions Committee Ratings as Predictors of Persistence in Master's-level Theological Education

This research attempted to ascertain whether the ratings of applicants in the admissions-evaluation process of Dallas Theological Seminary (Admission Committee Rating, or ACR) were related to persistence in seminary study sufficiently to allow reasonable prediction of completion based on the strength of the ratings. Five ACRs were examined - the total ACR and its four components, strength of previous academics, personal references, potential and promise for ministry, and previous ministry experience. Other non-admissions factors were also examined to see what relationship they had to persistence. Those factors were years of matriculation, age at matriculation, gender, marital status, ethnicity, nationality, types of previous higher education, whether or not financial aid was received (if known), and the total amount of financial aid received (if known). Persistence in the study was defined as graduation from the seminary's major four-year master's degree program (Th.M.) within the time limits published for the degree. Analysis results indicated that only two of the five ACRs were statistically significant, ministry potential and ministry experience, but the relationship with completion was weak. The conclusion reached was that the relationship between the strength of the admission evaluation and persistence was practically insignificant and contributed little to the ability to predict …
Date: December 1997
Creator: Thames, James H.
System: The UNT Digital Library
Comparison of Guidelines Scores to Opinions and Use of Learning Resources Services Among Clientele Groups in Selected Metropolitan Community Colleges (open access)

Comparison of Guidelines Scores to Opinions and Use of Learning Resources Services Among Clientele Groups in Selected Metropolitan Community Colleges

The problem with which this investigation was concerned was an evaluation of community college learning resources programs as reflected by client opinion and use of services and conformity to the published guidelines. The purposes of the study were to ascertain the extent to which learning resources programs of selected metropolitan community colleges conformed to the recommendations published in "Guidelines for Two-Year College Learning Resources Programs," and to compare the guidelines scores rendered with faculty and student opinion and use of learning resources services on the campuses. No significant differences were noted in comparisons of opinion and utilization of learning resources services among either students or faculty on the campuses with the highest guidelines scores and the same groups on the campuses with the lowest guidelines scores. Based on the findings, the following conclusions were formulated: 1) the instruments utilized were not sensitive enough to distinguish subtle differences, if any, between the learning resources programs on the various campuses, 2) the learning resources programs included in the study were similar in nature, and 3) more differences exist between groups based on demographic variables than exist between the learning resources programs.
Date: December 1977
Creator: Wilson, Larry M.
System: The UNT Digital Library
The Programming of Religious Education in Southern Baptist Institutions of Higher Education, 1977-1978 (open access)

The Programming of Religious Education in Southern Baptist Institutions of Higher Education, 1977-1978

The purpose of this study is to examine the programming of religious education in Southern Baptist institutions of higher education, including a comparison of current religious education programs, the articulation between college and seminary religious education programs, and the identification of future trends that these programs may follow. From these findings, the following conclusions were drawn: Religious education is apparently considered important enough to be included in the curriculum of Southern Baptist colleges. The evaluation of the role of the institution in training students for careers in religious education has been a vital factor in changes that have been made in the programs. Programs designed to grant credit for work done prior to seminary enrollment are being favorably, although not unanimously, received. Additional undergraduate religious education programs appear to be likely, should programs granting credit for previous work develop. Exploration into the development of other means for the granting of credit would bring improvement in the cooperative relationships between the colleges and the seminaries. From these conclusions, the following implications were derived: Southern Baptist schools will continue to train persons for church-related vocations. Attitudinal changes must occur, both among the college and the seminary leaders, before major changes will be …
Date: December 1978
Creator: Basden, Edward Jeter
System: The UNT Digital Library