This study was conceived as an attempt to determine .and analyze factors deterring participation in continuing professional education among social workers in environments where continuing education for relicensure is mandatory and voluntary. The specific research design implemented to complete this study was the ex-post facto descriptive design. The sample included 106 social workers randomly selected in the state of Texas where continuing education is mandatory and 94 social workers in the state of Louisiana where continuing education is voluntary. The instrument used was the Deterrent to Participation Scale developed by Scanlan (1983) and a demographic inventory. Scanlan (1983) earlier identified six factors deterring participation in continuing professional education: Disengagement, Lack of Quality, Family Constraints, Cost, Lack of Benefit, and Work Constraints. The study concluded that social workers in both states considered work constraint as a major factor deterring participation in continuing professional education. Also the factors of cost and lack of quality were also considered as crucial barriers in their efforts to participate in continuing professional education. The Wilks' multivariate test of significance of the means and univariate F tests at alpha level p < .05 revealed differences in the combined mean scores of social workers in both states when …

The purpose of this study was to identify childrearing attitudes of Mexican-American mothers with children ages three to five years of age. Specifically the first purpose of this study was to determine childrearing attitudes of Mexican-American mothers with ten years of education or fewer and Mexican-American mothers with eleven years of education or more as identified by the Parent As A Teacher Inventory (PAAT). The second purpose was to identify the relationship of the following demographic variables to childrearing attitudes: mother's age, mother's marital status, family income, sex of child, age of child, access to child, generational status, mother's language and mother's ethnicity. The PAAT and the Parent Information Questionnaire were administered to 112 Mexican-American mothers; 54 Mexican- American mothers with ten years of education or fewer and 58 Mexican-American mothers with eleven years of education or more. The population from which these subjects were drawn were mothers from Mexican-American communities in a North Texas county. Responses on the sample were analyzed using multivariate statistics. Based on the analysis of the data, the following conclusions seem tenable. 1. The Mexican-American mothers with eleven years of education or more have childrearing attitudes which are more positive than the Mexican-American mothers with …

This study is a survey of public community college speech programs in Texas. An investigation of the literature revealed that only three similar studies had been made concerning Texas junior colleges. Chapter Four concludes the study by reviewing the current status of public community college speech programs in Texas and making recommendations for the improvement of these speech programs.

The problem of this study was to determine legal, moral, and social responsibilities and practices of the Texas public school system in dealing with religion. The purposes of the study were (1) to determine the impact of state and federal judicial decisions on religious practices in schools, (2) to review the historical background for trends of religious practices in the public schools of Texas, (3) to determine the social and professional influence on religious practices in public schools, and (4) to survey current religious practices from a select sample of public schools in Texas to determine if schools were basically sectarian. The following conclusions are inferred: I. It is not the intention of the Supreme Court of the United States to deny the existence of a Supreme Being, but rather its intention is to assure each individual freedom from any form of an established religion. 2. School policies do not delineate the role of religion in public school, 3. Through careful planning, progress could be made in developing policies for a study of religion which will complement, not supplement, the religious teachings of the home and of the church. 4. There are many opportunities for public schools to provide religious …

This study analyzes the status and job functions of the 546 elementary school assistant principals in Texas during the 1985-1986 school year. It is concerned with the status of the position and the degree of responsibility assigned to the assistant principal for forty-eight specific job functions in the actual and ideal practice. A sample of 125 assistant principals, 125 supervising principals and a population of 135 superintendents whose districts employ assistant principals were included in the study. All three groups completed the role survey instrument. The results were analyzed by using the one-sample chi-square test to determine whether significant differences existed among the perceptions of the superintendents, principals, and assistant principals at the .01 level. The return rate was 60.8 percent for the assistant principals and principals and 84.6 percent for the superintendents.

The primary purposes of this study were to assess the understanding and attitudes of teachers, to determine the interaction effects of certain variables, and to determine if there is a correlation between understanding of economic concepts and attitude toward economic education. The problem of the study was an assessment of the attitudes toward and understanding of economic concepts held by secondary school teachers in Arkansas who taught economics or economics-related subjects.

The main purpose of this study was to determine the effect of Texas House Bill 72 on equalization of finances in the public school districts of Texas. House Bill 72 is a finance reform bill which was passed by the Texas Legislature during the Summer of 1984. This study involves basically three steps. First, current criteria for equity as defined by school finance "experts" and recent definitive court decisions were determined. Second, financial data from the Texas Education Agency were statistically analyzed for the 1984-1985 school year. Third, the statistical analysis was used to determine if the current Texas school finance plan meets the current criteria for equity. The population used in the study was 1,068 school districts. Based on the findings of this study the following conclusions were drawn. 1. The use of a per capita flat grant by the Texas Public School Finance System contributes to the unequalizing of financial resources available to school districts. 2. School districts with greater property index values are required to exercise very little effort toward the support of their public schools. 3. School districts with high property index values tend to have lower effective tax rates and high per-pupil expenditures. 4. School …

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.

The problem of this study was to determine competencies which are necessary for effective administration by secondary school principals. The sources of data included a review of the literature and supplemental materials. The survey technique, employing a jury-validated questionnaire, was used to collect the perceptions of superintendents, principals, teachers, and college professors in the State of Texas. A total of 316 educators responded to the questionnaire. The development and findings of this study are presented in five chapters. Chapter I presents an introduction to the study. In Chapter II, a survey of the literature is reported. Chapter III contains details of the procedures employed in collecting data for the study. Chapter IV presents the data gathered through the use of the questionnaire. Chapter V presents the summary, findings, conclusions, and recommendations resulting from the study. The study identified eight general areas of competency for secondary school principals. Those competency areas were (1) organization and administration, (2) curriculum design and improvement, (3) the instructional process, (4) business and financial management, (5) student management, (6) personnel management, (7) facilities, equipment, and supplies, and (8) communications. A total of ninety-five competencies was identified from the literature and from communications with college professors and …

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 …

The purposes of this study were to determine the perceptions selected school personnel had of public school teachers' fulfillment of the code of ethics for Texas educators, if these perceptions differed significantly, and if the code had any significant impact on teachers' behavior. The subjects consisted of board members, superintendents, principals and teachers within seven urban, fourteen suburban, and fifty rural Texas school districts. Subjects’ responses to an instrument derived from the Code of Ethics for Texas Educators provided the data for testing. The findings of this study included the following: 1. Board members perceived teachers as fulfilling the code to be slightly higher than did teachers and principals and significantly higher than did superintendents. 2. Superintendents perceived teachers as fulfilling the code to a lower degree than did the other subjects surveyed. 3. Subjects selected within urban and suburban school districts are in perceptual agreement concerning teachers' fulfillment of the code. 4. Rural board members perceived teachers as fulfilling the code to a slightly higher degree than did rural superintendents. 5. Urban teachers perceived teachers as fulfilling the code to a significantly higher degree than did suburban teachers. 6. The code of ethics was perceived as having low to …

This study examines the effect of class discussion as a pre-writing activity on actual writing performance. The experiment was conducted with all the Level 3 and Level 4 students enrolled in the Intensive English Language Institute of North Texas State University in the Spring, 1986 semester. Cochrans C test was performed to test significant differences between groups at the beginning of this test. Multivariate analysis of variance tests were used to determine the treatment effect between and within groups, and a matched t-test was also utilized to analyze the difference within tests. Pearson product moment correlation coefficient was calculated to determine the relationship between the discussion activity score and the actual writing score. Analysis of covariance tests were used to determine which variance of discussion activities had greater effect on the actual writing score.

The purpose of this study was to (1) collect and examine data from graduates relating to the present status and effectiveness of the program and (2) compare the requirements of the program to the requirements of other institutions in Texas with NCATE accreditation. Two questionnaires were developed to obtain data from the graduates concerning four categories of information: personal information, occupational information, analysis of the effectiveness of the curriculum, and evaluation of the adequacy of the program. The colleges and universities in Texas with NCATE accreditation were sources of the following types of information: area offering and having responsibility for the business education program, AACSB and its effect on the business education program, certification options available, methods courses offered, and grade requirements for admission into and for graduation and certification from the program.

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.

The purpose of this study was two-fold: to identify role functions and characteristics perceived as important to Advanced Nurse Practitioners (ANPs) in Texas, and to identify differences in perceived importance of role functions and characteristics of ANPs according to gender, educational preparation, practice setting, and whether the practitioner entered practice before or after the current rules and regulations for ANP practice were adopted. Two questionnaires and a demographic data form were mailed to 300 ANPs in primary health care in Texas, with 152 responding. Data from the questionnaire, "Characteristics of the Advanced Nurse Practitioner," were analyzed using independent group t-tests. The findings indicated that the characteristics "person-oriented," "perceptive," and "skilled in problem-solving" were the most valued by the practitioners, while aggressive" was the least valued. Independent group t-tests were used to analyze data from the instrument, "Advanced Nurse Practitioner Functions." The results of this analysis were not significant. The Chi square test was used to further examine data from this questionnaire to determine if the responses differed from chance. With the exception of four items, all of the responses differed significantly from chance. The responses "extremely important or important" were selected significantly more frequently that any of the other options. …

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 …

The purposes of this study were (1) to identify the major goals of independent senior colleges and universities in Texas, (2) to survey the opinions of persons in positions of leadership in independent senior colleges and universities in Texas with respect to existing and preferred goals, (2) to determine if there are significant differences of opinion among these persons, and (4) to develop projections of the probably priorities for goals of independent senior colleges and universities in Texas, based upon the expressed opinions of these persons in positions of leadership. According to the opinions of institutional leaders, the major goals pertain to quality faculty and academic freedom, to areas which are directly related to the personal, social, and intellectual development of students, and to the continuance of quality academic programs. Based on the opinions of these groups, plans and decisions in independent higher education in Texas over the next decade will be influenced more by financial matters than by any other factor. Other goals which will be important include continued development of strong academic programs, spiritual and moral growth of students, stabilization of enrollment, and development and retention of quality faculty.

This study has been undertaken to investigate the impact of group discussion upon sociometric status, selfactualization, and number of stated problems with respect to student nurses. The purposes of this study were (1) to determine whether group discussion will enhance sociometric status of student nurses, (2) to determine whether group discussion will positively affect self-actualization of student nurses, (3) to determine whether group discussion will lessen the number of stated problems of student nurses, and (4) to examine the group process and interaction of the group discussion sessions.

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.

This study is designed to determine the degree to which female principals and vice-principals in Texas derive job satisfaction from their work and to identify those factors, both negative and positive, which affect the job satisfaction of these principals and vice-principals. A single questionnaire was used to collect the data for this study. Usable questionnaires were returned by 331 vice-principals and 504 principals. These represented 336 school districts throughout the state. Respondents were compared as to their view of their overall job satisfaction, the importance assigned to intrinsic and extrinsic job facets, their satisfaction with intrinsic and extrinsic job facets, and the differences in facet satisfaction connected with various personal characteristics.

The purposes of this study were: 1. To determine the effect of levels of questioning used on secondary public school students in social studies, as measured by (a) their achievement scores, and (b) their critical thinking ability; 2. To determine the effect of feedback to student teachers on their patterns of asking convergent and divergent questions, as measured by coding frequencies of each type on an Observation Schedule and Record form? 3. To draw conclusions from the findings--and develop implications concerning levels of questioning used by teachers and the use of feedback from college supervisors to student teachers.

The purposes of this study were (1) to identify the uses of computers in non-public school administration and (2) to determine what factors affect the usage of computers in non-public school administration. An eight per cent (1525 schools) sampling of all nonpublic secondary and elementary in the United States was sent questionnaires. Eight hundred and seventy two (57 per cent) were returned. Some major findings of this study were that 36 per cent of all non-public schools use computers for administrative purposes. Non-public secondary schools use computers significantly more for administration than do non-public elementary schools. Independent schools, those not associated with any religious body, use computers significantly more for administration than do Parochial schools, those affiliated with some religious body. Within the Parochial classification, there is no significant difference in administrative computer usage between Catholic and Other Parochial schools. Schools with an enrollment larger than 500 students use administrative computers more frequently than do smaller schools. Administrators not using administrative computers perceived that the expense of computers and the lack of trained computer personnel were the major reasons they were not using computers. Administrators using computers for administrative functions listed word processing, general accounting, payroll, grading, attendance monitering and …

The purpose of this study was to analyze the differences in the criteria utilized and the criteria desired by various types of institutions for granting appointment, reappointment, merit salary increases, promotion in rank, and tenure, and to propose criteria based upon this analysis. This study reveals that institutions differ according to the criteria which they utilize and desire for appointment, reappointment, merit salary increases, promotion in rank, and tenure. For example, two-year and four-year private colleges and universities consider age, health, personal appearance, and religious activities while two-year and four-year public colleges and universities disregard religious activities and place little emphasis on age, health, and personal appearance. In addition, four-year public and private institutions stress more than two-year public and private colleges degrees from prestigious universities, research, publications, and the Ph.D. in English. Furthermore, four-year private schools give more attention than four-year public institutions to student evaluations, classroom visitations, curriculum development, academic advisement, and supervision of student activities The study also reveals that as four-year public institutions increase in size, their interest in research and publications increases proportionally.

This study investigates the influence of inner-city and suburban student teaching upon adjustment and effectiveness of first-year elementary teachers, with secondary attention to their personal and professional problems of adjustment to their initial teaching location. The fifty-five subjects of this study were first-year, inner-city and suburban teachers in the Dallas area. Except for two Black females and three Anglo males, all were Anglo females. The findings of this study support the following conclusions 1. Student-teaching locale should not be the determining factor in deciding the type of school for first-year teachers. 2. Effective inner-city student teachers may be expected to be highly effective teachers in both inner-city schools and those in other locales. 3. Successful student-teaching experiences, regardless of location, can be expected to produce well-adjusted, effective teachers. 4. It can be anticipated that inner-city teachers will experience a negative change in optimism, attitudes toward teaching, general adjustment and mental health during their initial year of teaching. 5. Both suburban and inner-city teachers who enjoyed successful student-teaching experiences can be expected to have good self-perception, empathy, a favorable view of children, confidence regarding classroom discipline, and effectiveness as a teacher.