A Survey of the Twentieth Century American Trends in Secondary Mathematics Education (open access)

A Survey of the Twentieth Century American Trends in Secondary Mathematics Education

This investigation of twentieth century trends in mathematics education includes the survey of existing literature and questionnaires conducted with retired and active Texas teachers. Historical events, trends in curriculum, instruction, learning theories, and contradictions of twenty-year periods are delineated. Questionnaire responses are tabulated along the same periods and vignettes of typical classrooms are drawn from the data. Results of the survey show the impact of societal forces on mathematics curricula, a continued downward expansion of content into lower grades and expanding knowledge of learning processes. A unified mathematics curriculum, classroom-related learning theory research, and further development of team-teaching are postulated as future trends. Recommendations include further examination of trends through isolation of other variables such as region and ethnicity.
Date: May 1980
Creator: Maloney, Letty Lynn
System: The UNT Digital Library
A Study of the Current Status of Employment of Therapeutic Recreation Personnel and Projected Manpower Needs of Selected Agencies in the State of Texas (open access)

A Study of the Current Status of Employment of Therapeutic Recreation Personnel and Projected Manpower Needs of Selected Agencies in the State of Texas

The study was conducted to determine the current status and employment needs for therapeutic recreation personnel in selected agencies in the state of Texas. The study provided the first definitive information on therapeutic recreation manpower needs on a state-wide basis. The study determined the status of therapeutic recreation personnel and assisted in identifying projected training needs in the state of Texas. A survey was mailed to 114 Texas Department of Mental Health and Mental Retardation and parks and recreation agencies. Information was requested concerning General Agency Information, Recreation Services, Current Employment, Current Therapeutic Recreation Personnel, Projected Employment and Bilingual Employees and Client information.
Date: December 1980
Creator: Buckles, Judith L.
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
The Utilization of Shorthand by Secretaries in Large Businesses in the Dallas-Fort Worth Area with Implications for Instruction in Business Education at the Collegiate Level (open access)

The Utilization of Shorthand by Secretaries in Large Businesses in the Dallas-Fort Worth Area with Implications for Instruction in Business Education at the Collegiate Level

The problem of the study was to determine the implications for the collegiate secretarial curriculum based on the need for and use of shorthand by secretaries employed by large businesses in the Dallas-Fort Worth area. The purposes of the study were to determine if colleges are justified in offering manual shorthand within their curriculum with the rapid growth of automation in the business world today. It was also the purpose of the study to determine if there was a demand for secretaries with the skill of manual shorthand in the Dallas-Fort Worth area. Shorthand was found to be important for recording telephone messages, notes, and instructions, as indicated by the majority of the secretaries.
Date: August 1980
Creator: Barnes, Cynthia C.
System: The UNT Digital Library
Factors Influencing Texas Industrial-Technical College or University Students When Selecting Their Major Area of Study (open access)

Factors Influencing Texas Industrial-Technical College or University Students When Selecting Their Major Area of Study

The purposes of this study were to identify the factors influencing industrial-technical students in the choice of major area of study, to determine if certain areas were more influential when these students elected a major, and to provide information for industrial arts teacher-preparation programs that would aid in determining the reasons for the current industrial arts teacher shortage. From the study of factors influencing the student's choice of major, one may conclude that there is a definite need in the state of Texas for students to major in industrial arts education. One may also conclude that at the high school level, the industrial arts class and the industrial arts teacher have positive influences on the student when the student selects a college or university major. Perhaps the most significant conclusion is that the existence of an industrial arts teacher shortage is, in part, due to the fact that teaching salaries are not competitive with salaries offered by industry.
Date: May 1980
Creator: Cecere, Joseph J.
System: The UNT Digital Library
A Study to Determine the Competencies Needed by Superintendents in the Area of Public Relations (open access)

A Study to Determine the Competencies Needed by Superintendents in the Area of Public Relations

The problem of this study was to determine specific competencies associated with the superintendent's role in public relations and to determine the relationship between school district size and public relations competencies needed by the superintendent. Conclusions of the study were Public relations competencies for superintendents can be identified in seven competency areas with specific competencies within each area. The seventy-seven specific public relations competencies identified in this study are all needed by practicing superintendents. There is a priority of importance among the seventy seven specific competencies with the competency area of "Relations With the Board of Education" receiving top priority and the competency area of "Personality Traits" receiving second priority. Superintendents from differing size school districts generally do not vary in their perceptions of the competency areas. Differences do exist between perceptions of superintendents of different size schools to specific competencies within competency areas.
Date: May 1980
Creator: Daves, Drennon
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
The Impact of Staff Development Programs on Public Community College Teachers in Texas (open access)

The Impact of Staff Development Programs on Public Community College Teachers in Texas

The purpose of this study is to describe the perceptions of faculty development programs by two groups of full-time community college faculty members—arts and sciences instructors and vocational-technical instructors. To guide the development of this study, the following research questions were formulated. 1. Do organized faculty development programs have the same impression on the arts and sciences faculty members as on the vocational-technical members? 2. What specific effects do these faculty members believe that faculty development programs have had on instructional strategies, related faculty activities and professional attitudes? 3. To what extent do these faculty members perceive that the faculty development program is related to the reward system? 4. To what degree do faculty members perceive that institutional or departmental innovations have resulted from faculty development programs. What types of innovations have occurred, and what types should occur?
Date: August 1980
Creator: McQueen, Ruth Marie Rush
System: The UNT Digital Library
Teaching Practices in the Clinical Nursing Laboratory (open access)

Teaching Practices in the Clinical Nursing Laboratory

The problem of this study was to ascertain (a) the teaching practices of medical-surgical nursing teachers in the clinical laboratory of baccalaureate nursing schools in the State of Texas, and (b) some variables possibly associated with these practices.
Date: August 1980
Creator: Hughes, Oneida Menefee
System: The UNT Digital Library
The Status of Preretirement Planning Programs in Dallas Corporations (open access)

The Status of Preretirement Planning Programs in Dallas Corporations

This investigation concerns the extent and nature of corporate preretirement planning programs in Dallas to ascertain employee access to retirement information and planning at the place of employment. Seven variables and their relationship to the existence of these programs are also studied. This study indicates that Dallas employees have limited access to retirement information through their employer. Existing programs often come too late for financial planning. Forty-nine of the 85 corporations have fewer than 1,000 employees, usually considered too few for a program. This study found that corporations with 5,000 or more employees may not have a program due to the nature of their business which necessitates dispersal of employees or requires younger employees with training in new technologies. The cost of a program was a deterrent for one corporation. Twelve respondents believe such programs are not the responsibility of business.
Date: May 1980
Creator: Berkeley, Betty Life
System: The UNT Digital Library
Texas Elementary Educators' Professional Reading Practices (open access)

Texas Elementary Educators' Professional Reading Practices

The purposes of this study were (1) to survey the amount of time spent by elementary educators in reading professional literature; (2) to survey elementary educators' purposes for reading professional literature; (3) to survey the availability of professional literature to elementary educators; (4) to survey the circumstances which encourage or discourage the reading of professional literature by elementary educators; (5) to survey the types of sources of professional literature used by elementary educators; (6) to compare the amount of time spent by elementary teachers, elementary administrators, and elementary teach educators in reading professional literature; (7) to compare elementary teachers', elementary administrators', and elementary teach educators' purposes for reading professional literature; (8) to compare the availability of professional literature to elementary teachers, elementary administrators, and elementary teacher educators; (9) to compare the circumstances which encourage or discourage professional reading among elementary teachers, elementary administrators, and elementary teacher educators; and (10) to compare the types of sources of professional literature used by elementary teachers, elementary administrators, and elementary teacher educators.
Date: August 1980
Creator: Jones, Carl B. (Carl Bruce)
System: The UNT Digital Library
A Study of School Attenders and Non-Attenders in the Ninth Grade in an Urban Inner-City School in North Central Texas (open access)

A Study of School Attenders and Non-Attenders in the Ninth Grade in an Urban Inner-City School in North Central Texas

The problem of this study was to determine the effect of academic self-concept, student aspiration, intellectual achievement responsibility, and certain other personal factors on the attendance patterns of selected ninth grade students, and to develop from data on all factors a typical profile of conditions likely to result in high absenteeism and make recommendations for initial steps in remediation. As a result of the statistical analysis and subsequent retention or rejection of the null hypotheses, the significant findings of this study may be summarized as follows. (1) Ninth grade attenders are significantly younger than non-attenders. (2) Attenders had more siblings than non-attenders. (3) Attenders are significantly more involved in school organizations than non-attenders. (4) There is a higher frequency in suspensions among non-attenders. Based on analysis of the findings of this study and within the limitations of the population described in the procedure section, the following conclusions were formulated. (1) Students who have been retained, started school later, or for some reason are older than their classmates, are more likely to attend school irregularly.(2) Educators cannot expect to find the major causes of student absenteeism to be academic self-concept, intellectual achievement responsibility, or student aspiration. (3) Family size may be …
Date: May 1980
Creator: Bailey, Madell
System: The UNT Digital Library
A Developmental Model for the Reduction of Undergraduate Attrition at State-Supported Senior Colleges and Universities of Texas (open access)

A Developmental Model for the Reduction of Undergraduate Attrition at State-Supported Senior Colleges and Universities of Texas

The problems with which this dissertation is concerned are undergraduate student attrition and ways to reduce it. This study describes the problem of undergraduate student attrition by presenting an overview of the extent of such attrition. As a result of this study, the following conclusions, among others, are advanced: 1) Approximately 50 per cent of those who undertake a baccalaureate degree program complete their programs within four years. 2) Attrition data provide a measure of efficiency of higher education. 3) Undergraduates who do not complete course or degree requirements in either attendance or academic performance contribute to and constitute a measure of waste in the economic sense of (a) the labor of teachers, (b) the use of classrooms, laboratories, and equipment, (c) the failure of colleges and universities to achieve educational objectives, and (d) the competent individuals who never enter college. 4) Attrition is a distinct, interactive process. 5) Institutions of higher learning are responsible for changing their characteristics and environments when such variables adversely affect congruence of otherwise qualified and competent students. 6) Texas' senior college presidents who were surveyed believe that an extremely important variable in reducing attrition is the establishment of a relationship between the student and …
Date: May 1980
Creator: McLaughlin, George E.
System: The UNT Digital Library
Classified Staff Decision Making in Policy Determination, Administrative Practices, and Working Conditions in Texas Public Junior/Community Colleges (open access)

Classified Staff Decision Making in Policy Determination, Administrative Practices, and Working Conditions in Texas Public Junior/Community Colleges

The problem of this study was the status of classified staff decision making participation in policy determination, administrative practices, and working conditions in Texas public junior/community colleges as reported by their presidents and those persons, chief personnel officers, on each campus who have responsibility for classified staff employees. The conclusions to the study, with respect to Texas public junior/community colleges, were (1) the classified staff employees may not be aware of the total college goals, (2) classified staff employees may have little motivation to perform their jobs effectively, (3) future turnover rates among classified staff employees could increase, (4) the classified staff employees' input appears to have a low priority in the area of decision making, (5) classified staff employees may be seeking jobs with open participation in decision making, and (6) the exclusion of classified staff employees from participation in decisions could lead to formal bargaining in the future.
Date: August 1980
Creator: Christian, Allen L. (Allen Leroy)
System: The UNT Digital Library
Selected Graduate Programs of Professional Education in the Spanish Southwest, with Curricular Emphases on Blacks, Indians, and Spanish Americans (open access)

Selected Graduate Programs of Professional Education in the Spanish Southwest, with Curricular Emphases on Blacks, Indians, and Spanish Americans

The purpose of this study was to describe graduate courses and programs of professional education at selected institutions which emphasized the preparation of educators to work with Blacks, Indians, and Spanish American (EISA). Information from a survey of college and university graduate catalogs and the review of literature was used to select three institutions for an in-depth study. The institutions selected for study were East Texas State University (ETSU) at Commerce, the University of Texas at Austin (UT/Austin), and the University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA). Although only three institutions were selected for in-depth study, there seems to be evidence to support the following conclusions: (1) there seem to be more courses and programs with emphases on preparing educators to work with BISAs when outside funding is available, (2) continuation of courses and programs to prepare educators to work with BISAs seems to be directly influenced by the interest and involvement of individual instructors, (3) the instructors who were the most interested in preparing educators to work with multicultural groups seem to have larger classes, (4) the ethnic background of the instructor also seems to influence the effectiveness of a course, (5) a nonthreatening learning atmosphere seems to influence …
Date: May 1980
Creator: Ray, Ruth Dunn
System: The UNT Digital Library
Burn-Out in Child Protective Services Social Workers (open access)

Burn-Out in Child Protective Services Social Workers

The problem of this study was the investigation of burn-out in child protective services social workers. The purposes of the study were to 1. Estimate certain causes and symptoms of burn-out; 2. Determine certain characteristics of the individual child protective services social workers; 3. Develop profiles of the burned-out and the burning-out workers; 4. Develop profiles for the items on the characteristics instruments which the computation of the data indicates might be important for selecting, training, and managing workers.
Date: August 1980
Creator: Kern, Homer D. (Homer Dale)
System: The UNT Digital Library
The Relationship of the Oral Communication Needs of Business and Industry to the Business and Professional Communication Courses in Texas Colleges and Universities (open access)

The Relationship of the Oral Communication Needs of Business and Industry to the Business and Professional Communication Courses in Texas Colleges and Universities

The purposes of this study were to examine the oral communication skills considered important to specific companies, identify the objectives emphasized in the business and professional communication courses in Texas colleges and universities, ascertain how much course time is spent in various areas, and determine the communication needs of business and industry and the degree to which the communication departments of Texas colleges and universities are meeting those needs.
Date: August 1980
Creator: McCallum, Karin Eriksson
System: The UNT Digital Library