The purpose of this study was to trace the historical development of the American University of Beirut and its educational contributions in Lebanon and the Middle East from 1920 to 1967. Through their activities in the Levant in the early nineteenth century, the American missionaries virtually laid the foundations of the Syrian Protestant College, later known as the American University of Beirut. Though religion was the cornerstone in the founding of the University, under the pressure of the local environment, its secular character was to be substituted for the religious one. The establishment of the University in 1866 marked the beginning of the system of higher education in the Arab world. As the first established institution of higher learning, the University played a significant role in raising the level of literacy throughout the region. Despite the difficult times that the University faced throughout its history, it survived and continued its dedicated mission to serve the people of Lebanon and the entire area. For the University, the first 50 years under Ottoman rule was a period of surviving and maintaining its existence. With the freedom it came to enjoy during the French Mandate and later during independence, the University moved into …

The purpose of this study was to investigate the perceptions of the physics instructors, major-physics students, and nonmajor-physics students regarding actual teaching performance and effective teaching performance. The sample consisted of a total of 56 physics instructors, 120 major-physics students, and 120 nonmajor-physics students at eight public universities in Thailand. A total of 53 physics instructors or 94.64 percent, 101 major-physics students or 84.17 percent, and 107 nonmajor-physics students or 89.17 percent responded in this study. Multivariate analysis of variance, univariate analysis, one-way analysis of variance, and multiple regression were used in the follow-up assessment, with the .05 level of significance. The physics instructors, major-physics students, and nonmajor-physics students perceived actual teaching performance in class to be significantly different from effective teaching performance. The three groups rated actual teaching performance on every factor to be less than sffective teaching. There was a significant difference between the physics instructors' perceptions and the major-physics students' perceptions regarding actual teaching performance, and also there was a significant difference between the physics instructors' perceptions and the nonmajor-physics students' perceptions regarding actual teaching performance. However, there was no significant difference between major-and nonmajor-physics students' perceptions regarding actual teaching performance. There was no significant difference among …

The purposes of the study were: to determine the relationship between class size and academic achievement among university students in first-semester calculus classes, and to compare opinions about the instructor, course, and classroom learning environment of university students in small first-semester calculus classes with those in large classes. The sample consisted of 225 university students distributed among two large and two small sections of first-semester calculus classes taught at the University of Texas at Arlington during the fall of 1987. Each of two tenured faculty members taught a large and small section of approximately 85 and 27 students, respectively. During the first week of the semester, scores from the Calculus Readiness Test (CR) were obtained from the sample and used as the covariate in each analysis of covariance of four periodic tests, a comprehensive final examination, and final grade average. The CR scores were also used in a logistic regression analysis of attrition rates between each pair of large and small sections of first-semester calculus. Three semantic differentials were used to test the hypotheses relating to student opinion of the instructor, course, and classroom learning environment. It was found that for both pairs of large and small first-semester calculus classes …

The purposes of this study were (a) to develop, implement, and evaluate a computer-oriented instructional program for introductory calculus students, and (b) to explore the association between a computer-oriented calculus instructional program, a non-computer-oriented calculus instructional program, student achievement on three selected calculus topics, and student attitude toward mathematics. An experimental study was conducted with two groups of introductory calculus students during the Spring Semester, 1989. The computer-oriented group consisted of 32 students who were taught using microcomputer calculus software for in-class presentations and homework assignments. The noncomputer-oriented group consisted of 40 students who were taught in a traditional setting with no microcomputer intervention. Each of three experimenter-developed achievement examinations was administered in a pretest/posttest format with the pretest scores being used both as a covariate and in determining the two levels of student prior knowledge of the topic. For attitude toward mathematics, the Aiken-Dreger Revised Math Attitude Scale was administered in a pretest/ posttest format with the pretest scores being used as a covariate. Students were also administered the MAA Calculus Readiness Test to determine two levels of calculus prerequisite skill mastery. An ANCOVA for achievement and attitude toward mathematics was performed by treatment, level, and interaction of treatment …

The problem with which this study is concerned is the association between systematic exposure to information about computers and attitude changes to computers among students who are non-computer majors. The experimental design includes a semester length course in introduction to computers at a small community college in Texas. The study has a twofold purpose. The first is to determine the pre-instruction direction and valence of attitudes of non-computer majors towards computers. The second is to determine the post-instruction direction and valence of attitudes of non-computer majors towards computers. A questionnaire was used to measure attitudes of students towards computers as a pre-test and post-test. The test results were encoded for computer statistical analysis. To determine the valence of changes in attitudes, chi-square tests were applied for each statement of the questionnaire with combinations between pre-test and post-test and each of the variables: gender, age, student performance, and instructor. To determine changes of direction in attitudes, a phi coefficient was applied for each statement of the questionnaire. The following conclusions may be drawn from the data collected for this study. 1. Based upon gender, age, student performance, and the variable of instructor, there was a significant difference in the valence of …

This study was to compare the attitudes in terms of sex and current position, and to investigate the attitudes of faculty members in Open Universities in Thailand toward media technologies in terms of age, education, and teaching experience. A 25-statement questionnaire, with a reliability of 0.91 for measuring attitudes, was used to gather the data. The total stratified random sampling population was 300 faculty members in the Open Universities, 272 from Ramkhamhaeng University (RU) and 28 from Sukhothai Thammathirat Open University (STOU). The returned rate of the questionnaire was 244 (81.33%), 219 (80.51%) from RU and 25 (89.28%) from STOU. The t test was used to test significant differences between males and females, and administrators and faculties. The one-way analysis of variance was used to test significant differences among the levels of age, education, and teaching experience. The results of this study indicated that the attitudes of faculty members in Open Universities in Thailand toward media technologies were not significantly different in terms of sex, age, education, teaching experience, and current position. The faculty members considered the use of (1) closed circuit television as the form of media which enhanced teaching quality and student learning in virtually all instructional contents, …

The attitudes toward the integration of faith and discipline of full-time faculty members at five selected Southern Baptist colleges and universities which are members of the Christian College Coalition were explored for this study. The integration of faith and discipline is a concept unique to Southern Baptist higher education. Arthur Walker, Jr., of the Education Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention defines the concept as referring to the mission of the institution, the personal faith of faculty members, and the professional involvement and interaction of faculty members with their students, regardless of disciplines. Since little information exists on faculty attitudes toward this concept, data were collected through a survey instrument on three dimensions of integration: professorial integration in the classroom, professorial integration in and out of the classroom, and institutional integration of faith and discipline.

The research was designed to test the hypothesis that significant differences exist between Hispanic and non-Hispanic students respecting background characteristics and reasons for enrollment in selected two-year colleges. The findings led to firm conclusions regarding the need for educational institutions to provide remedial and tutorial services, liberal financial aid, culturally sensitive institutional ambience, diversity in faculty, counselors, and staff, and instructional and student development programs responsive to the cultural diversity of all students.

In cerebral palsied adults, the cardiovascular responses to different types of exercise have not previously been ascertained. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to determine the blood pressure and heart rate responses of adults with cerebral palsy to static muscular contractions and to dynamic muscular contractions. Fifteen adults with cerebral palsy and 15 able-bodied adults (average age for each group = 30 years) performed a static exercise protocol and a dynamic resistance exercise protocol using each limb (or the limbs capable of meeting the requirements of the exercise protocol). Heart rate and blood pressure were assessed before, during, and after each exercise bout with each limb. During the static exercise protocol, each subject performed static contractions at 40% of maximal voluntary contraction to fatigue. The dynamic exercise protocol for each limb consisted of three 20-second bouts of hydraulic resistance exercise each of which was followed by 20 seconds of rest. No differences were found between the two groups of subjects in heart rate and blood pressure during static exercise. In dynamic exercise, however, the trend in heart rate from bout to bout differed between the groups. In addition, the cerebral palsied group's diastolic pressure was higher than that of …

This study concerns the characteristics of fund development directors employed in selected homes for the aged. The first purpose of this study is to develop a profile of job functions, through task analysis, among development directors in charitable homes for the aged. The second purpose of this study is to develop a profile of personal characteristics of development directors of charitable homes for the aged based on the following characteristics: age, sex, educational background, experience outside development, membership in community organizations and amount of specific training in fund development. One instrument was used to gather data for the study. It was distributed to a population of 29 development directors in charitable homes for the aged in Arkansas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, New Mexico, and Texas. This population was predetermined by an initial survey form sent to 193 chief executive officers in the five states mentioned above. Twenty-nine reported formalized programs employing a full-time person with at least a part-time involvement in fund development activities. Of the twenty-nine development directors surveyed, fifteen usable instruments were received (52 percent). A program was used for the survey that included crosstabulation of social characteristics, success in fund raising, length of time in position and educational preparation. …

This study was designed to determine (a) the most important knowledge and skills for functional literacy teachers; (b) the most important competencies to be covered in in-service training; (c) whether there were any differences between the perceptions of functional literacy teachers, supervisors, and administrators in terms of needed competencies or areas of training; and (d) whether there were any differences in the perceptions of teachers, supervisors and administrators regarding the need for competencies and for training of functional literacy teachers based upon these variables: age, years of experience in formal and nonformal education, and training in the functional literacy program. It was found that teachers, supervisors, and administrators agreed that most competencies listed in the instrument were important. No significant difference was found in their perceptions of the importance of the competencies. A significant difference was found in the perceptions of the needs for training among these three groups.

The problem of this study was the needed administrative competencies of administrators in teacher training colleges in Kenya as perceived by administrators and faculty. A questionnaire (Inventory of Administrative Competencies) was mailed to principals, vice-principals, and four faculty members selected at random from sixteen teacher training colleges in Kenya. Ninety-six questionnaires were returned, yielding a return rate of 100 percent. Responses were analyzed using t-tests and one-way analyses of variance utilizing the F-test of the statistical test. A series of post hoc comparisons was made using Duncan's New Multiple Range Test to locate significant differences. Based on the analysis of data, it was concluded that both administrators and faculty considered the desired status of the competency very high. The administrators were performing below the desired status. Size of college was the major factor for the differences in perceptions of the respondents. Years of experience and educational background had little or no effect on the respondents' responses to the questionnaire. The following recommendations were made: A future study should investigate the perceived desired status and present performance ratings assigned to a validated set of competency statements of those levels of administrative activities not included in this study. Such a study would …

The purpose of this study was to investigate and analyze computer literacy and general attitudes toward computers of students at Thai public unversities. The comparative study of computer literacy levels and attitudes toward computers among Thai students with various demographic classification was performed followed by the study of relationships between the two variables among the samples. A fifty-eight-item questionnaire was adapted from the computer literacy questionnaire developed by the researchers at the Minnesota Educational Computing Consortium. The items were designed to assess knowledge and attitudes relative to computers. The questionnaire was administered to a random sample of 492 students who took at least one computer course from thirteen public universities in Thailand. Statistical tests used to analyze the data included t-test, one-way analysis of variance, and Pearson product moment correlations. Based on the research findings, the following conclusions were drawn: (1) Thai university students exhibited a moderate computer literacy level. (2) While a higher proportion of female students enrolled in computer classes, male and female students reported similar computer literacy levels. (3) Graduate students had higher computer literacy levels than did other students from different educational levels. (4) Academic majors and academic performance (GPAs) were also factors affecting computer literacy …

This study explored the importance attached to and the degree of satisfaction with 53 job aspects in the work environment of cooperative research center directors. A survey instrument was mailed to the 105 individuals identified as directors of research units that are (a) committed to multidisciplinary or engineering research, (b) organized as integral units of a university, and (c) supported and funded by industry and other sources. Responses were categorized into two groups: directors involved in NSF (National Science Foundation) Industry/University Cooperative Research Centers (I/UCRC), and directors involved in other types of cooperative research endeavors. A 69% response rate was obtained. One purpose of this study was to measure: (a) factors that influence job satisfaction; (b) factors likely to influence center performance; and (c) success factors in industry/university cooperative research. This study was also designed to: (a) compare job attitudes between the two groups of directors; (c) determine the relationship between measures of importance and satisfaction for each group; and (d) develop predictive models of centers' performance using collected data; Directors assign a high degree of importance and a low degree of satisfaction to the majority of the job aspects; and they tend to be somewhat dissatisfied with those factors …

This study was designed to explore the different perceptions of college students' counseling service needs as well as the perceptions of counseling services by the student, faculty, and student affairs staff groups and subgroups of each group. The research approach of this investigation was a case study of one national university in the Republic of China. This study tested seven hypotheses and the major findings are as follows: there were significant differences among students, faculty, and student affairs staff members' perceptions of counseling services in terms of importance and success. Although all three groups agreed that the achievement of the counseling goals were important, the students showed a significantly stronger expectation than did faculty members. Findings related to the success of counseling services in the institution indicated that student affairs staff members showed higher mean scores than did the faculty and students. All three groups perceived a significant discrepancy between the importance of counseling services and the success of counseling services. Moreover, all subgroups of students, as divided by demographic variables, perceived a significant discrepancy between the importance and success of counseling services. All subgroups of faculty and student affairs staff members, except the members of military instructors and members …

The purpose of this study is to identify which characteristics of student-athletes are most helpful in making administrative decisions about intercollegiate athletic programs, and then to develop a descriptive profile of a group of student-athletes at a particular university. Additional purposes include comparing these descriptive data with other group data and with perceptions of the same group of student-athletes by faculty administrators at the same university. Data were collected in four phases. First, a jury of three experts developed a list of student-athlete characteristics they believed to be helpful in making administrative decisions regarding those athletes. Next, information was gathered to develop a descriptive profile of a selected group of eighteen student-athletes based on the identified characteristics. Next, statistical comparisons were made with available data from other groups of students and from the eight Athletic Council members' perceptions of the study group. Major findings include the identification of useful characteristics, inconsistencies between student-athlete high school ranks in class and SAT scores, high scores in hostility, and accurate perceptions of student-athletes by Athletic Council members.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the evolution and development of the field of public administration in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Factors which brought about programs of public administration and which have been influential in the development of these programs were analyzed. Although the historical roots of Saudi public administration are traced to the recapture of Riyadh by the late King Abdulaziz Al-Saud in 1902, modern public administration in the Kingdom actually began in 1953 with a royal decree which established the Council of Ministers. Factors that led to the establishment of the Institute of Public Administration and the birth of public administration programs at major Saudi universities include the country's rapid socioeconomic growth, rapid administrative expansion, and policies of administrative reform, higher education development, and the ambitious Five-Year Plans. Despite the fact that attention to the field of public administration in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia dates back to the establishment of the College of Commerce at King Saud University in 1959, the real start of teaching public administration in Saudi universities is considered recent. The field of public administration is paralleled with the establishment of the Departments of Public Administration in King Abdulaziz University in …

The purpose of this study was to describe the development of Thailand's oldest private university, the University of the Thai Chamber of Commerce, Bangkok, Thailand, from 1963 to 1987. This historical research used records and documents which are primary sources from the University of the Thai Chamber of Commerce and the Association of Private Higher Education Institutions of Thailand together with interviews with the chairman of the Thai Chamber of Commerce, president, faculty and staff of the University of the Thai Chamber of Commerce. Secondary sources were reports and publications from the Ministry of University Affairs and libraries in Thailand. The areas of emphasis in the study were government policies on private higher education, legislation that initiated the founding of the University, the founder, the university's goals, the university's organizational structure, financial sources, admission policies, physical plants, programs, faculty and students. It was found that the Thai government encourages the establishment of private higher education institutions. The Private Higher Educational Institution Act of 1979 was enacted to allow Private universities to be equal to government universities. The university of the Thai Chamber of Commerce was founded by the Thai Chamber of Commerce with the purpose of training Thai students for …

Use of time-compressed speech stimuli has been found to be clinically effective in differential diagnosis of lesions of the temporal lobe. However, notably absent from the literature is information concerning performance of adults on time-compressed closed-set speech discrimination tasks. The goal of this study mas to compare performance of 12 males and 12 females between age 50 and age 70 on a time-compressed closed-set speech discrimination test against the performance of 12 males and 12 females between age 10 and age 28 on the same task. The Word Intelligibility by Picture Identification test (WPI) was presented in both non-compressed and time-compressed conditions to all subjects. Previous research suggests that a difference in performance between age groups and between males and females in the older age group should be expected. Average results indicated negligible differences between age or gender groups under any of the conditions tested. Additionally, the test yielded perfect or near perfect scores for all subjects in the non-compressed condition. Lack of differentiation of results suggests that the Word Intelligibility by Picture Identification CUIPI) may be insensitive to the discrimination disorders expected in older adults, that the subjects included in the study were atypical of older adults in general …

Each vocational nursing program in Texas was surveyed to determine the faculty and media costs per student classroom instructional hour. Data were obtained from 131 schools, or 99 per cent of the population. These schools taught a total of 4,718 students. The average faculty cost was $1.72 per hour. Faculty cost ranged from $0.17 to $7.75. The average media cost was $0.12 per student hour with a range from no media expenditure to $7.55. The reliability of these costs was not demonstrated. Each program director was asked to identify a principal textbook representing the content taught for each content area in their program. A total of 75 textbooks were identified by two or more programs. A cross tabulation analysis procedure yielded 1,582 combinations of 2 or more textbooks from 2 or more schools. Twenty-five per cent of the schools used the most frequently identified combination of two textbooks. Computer hardware and operating expenses were subtracted from the combined faculty and media cost per student classroom instructional hour. The amount remaining for software purchase was identified as $1.61 with a range of from $0.03 to $7.85 per hour for teaching the required 600 hours. The twenty textbook combinations with the greatest …

Dr. W. A. Criswell is the well known pastor of the twenty-seven thousand member historic First Baptist Church in downtown Dallas, Texas. He has held the position for the past forty-three years. Until now no one has attempted an in-depth study of Criswell's educational contributions to the First Baptist Church (which have also been adopted into the Southern Baptist denomination, America's largest Protestant religious organization). Although Criswell has been the Senior Pastor of the First Baptist Church of Dallas for many years, this was by no means his introduction to the pastorate. In 1928 he was ordained as a seventeen year old minister of the gospel in Amarillo, Texas. He has been a pastor for over sixty years. Criswell has made a lasting impact on the church staff, school staff (Criswell College and First Baptist Academy), students in those schools, the Southern Baptist denomination and also the city of Dallas. He has been one of the key figures in evangelical national movements. Presidents, Vice-Presidents, Senators, and Governors are no strangers to a Sunday morning service held in the large sanctuary in downtown Dallas. Much of the research for this project originated from the Oral Memoirs of W. A. Criswell. a …

A survey instrument was mailed to a random sampling of wives of graduates of Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, Fort Worth, Texas, from 1982 to 1986. The purpose of the survey was to determine if wives of seminary graduates have ministry-related educational needs during the first five years of professional ministry that can be met by an educational program. Furthermore, demographic and attitudinal variables were investigated as potential contributing factors. Finally, suggestions were sought from the wives themselves for the implementation of an education program. For each wife, a total educational need score was calculated from her responses. Of the 240 respondents who completed the entire survey document, almost 42% of the respondents indicated a high educational need score with 5% producing a very high need score. Of the top twenty educational needs, only one was from the Theological/Christian Education category; the top three were all from Self Needs regarding stress management, dealing with criticism, and conflict resolution. The Chi Square Test for Independence was used to identify contributing factors, both demographic and attitudinal. The following were validated at the .05 level (unless indicated otherwise) as having a relationship to the wives' scores: Year of Husband's Graduation, Husband's Degree, Size of …

This study sought to determine the ways in which Texas public school districts differ in their calculation of Grade Point Average/Rank in Class (GPA/RIC), how district size affects weighting practices, and the effect of non-uniform calculation of GPA/RIC on admissions to college. Descriptive and non-parametric analysis techniques were used.

The purpose of this study was to determine the effect on student learning from the sequence in which microeconomics and macroeconomics courses are taken. The sample for this study consisted of all students enrolled in 23 sections of Economics 1100 (Principles of Microeconomics) and 10 sections of Economics 1110 (Principles of Macroeconomics) during the fall semester, 1987, at the University of North Texas. The sample also consisted of all students enrolled in 14 sections of Economics 1100 and 12 sections of Economics 1110 during the spring semester, 1988, at the University of North Texas. The instruments chosen for use in measuring cognitive gains were two versions, each with 14 items, selected from the Joint council on Economic Educations's Revised Test of Understanding College Economics. Data were analyzed using hierarchical regression on five models. Each model used a different dependent variable to measure cognitive gain. The dependent variables were additive grade points, additive absolute improvement posttest scores, gap-closing posttest scores, microeconomic gap-closing scores and macroeconomic gap-closing posttest scores. The general hypothesis that students who complete microeconomics instruction followed by macroeconomics instruction have significantly higher cognitive gains than students who complete macroeconomics instruction followed by microeconomics instruction was not verified by the …