1941 research outputs found
Sort by
The Developmental Effects of Microcounseling in a Programmed Counseling Series
Get PDFvi, 161 leaves. Advisor: Howard TraxlerThe problem. The problem was concerned with a need
to determine the extent to which microcounseling influenced the cognition and retention of selected life coping skills as presented in a class environment using a specially designed series that focused on the abilities called coping skills.
Procedure. In this study three groups of junior
high students were organized into an experimental project that operated under a counseling program format. The study divided the students into three groups, experimental, control one and control two. The program was constructed to study the influence that microcounseling would have on students who worked through a programmed series designed to
foster growth in the area of coping skills. The series was titled Self Incorporated and consisted of fifteen programs. To determine the results of this project the California Psychological Inventory was selected and administered on a pre and post test basis. The population of this study represented boys and girls from the grade levels
of seventh, eighth, and ninth grade.
Findings. There was no significant gain as represented by the California Psychological Inventory. The test results reflect that there is no difference in the mean values on each of the eighteen psychological characteristics between those who have had microcounseling and Self
Incorporated, those who have had Self Incorporated only, and those who have received no treatment at all.
Conclusions. Under this project design and using
the stated testing procedure, it was the conclusion of this study that better results could be obtained by constructing a different project combination
A Comprehensive Health Education Curriculum for Junior High School
Get PDF104 leaves. Advisor: Paul JoslinThe purpose. The purpose of this field report is to present a comprehensive health education curriculum for junior high school.
Procedure. The curriculum content identified and organized in the comprehensive health education curriculum was synthesized after reviewing varied types of references:
school curriculum guides
- health education textbooks works of recognized authorities in curriculum and instruction
- works of experts in the health education field
school education codes
Recommendations. A comprehensive approach to health education is recommended with teaching strategies presented to help students learn to make choices that will lead to rich, full lives.
Recommended teaching units to be developed are:
Personal Health
Nutrition and Food
Consumer Health
Mental Health
Substance Use and Misuse
Family Life and Sex Education
Disease Control and Prevention
Safety Education
Environmental Health
Health Career
Employee Absenteeism
Get PDFv, 29 leaves. Advisor: Margaret E. LloydThe problem. Most companies provide a certain number of paid sick leave days for their employees. If employees take paid sick leave days even when they aren't sick a high absenteeism results. This is costly both in terms of direct
sick leave payments and loss of productivity. Incentives for attendance might reduce absenteeism.
Procedure. Baseline absenteeism was determined. Next, a bonus of $20 was made available for perfect monthly attendance. Finally employees were offered a choice of incentives for attendance.
Findings. The percent of absences decreased with the introduction of both the bonus and the choice of incentives conditions.
Conclusion. Incentives for attendance significantly decreased absenteeism. Reduced costs for paid sick leave days also occurred.
Recommendations. Incentives for attendance should be implemented·in settings where employee absenteeism is high
A Comparison of Self-Concepts of Chemically Dependent Women Before and After Treatment in a Hospital Alcoholic Unit in Des Moines, Iowa
Get PDFv, [25] leaves. Advisor: Howard Traxler.The self-concept of fifty chemically dependent women as reported on the Tennessee Self-Concept Scale before and after treatment is compared. A null hypothesis which stated that there is no difference in the total positive self-concept score before and after treatment among chemically
dependent women in an alcoholic treatment unit in
Des Moines, Iowa, was rejected.
Descriptive data show that in each area of self concept, scores moved from a more deviant, negative self concept at the initial testing to a more normal self-concept at the second testing. The total positive score, representing a composite picture of the way one sees herself made a significant change. Statistical analysis on that
scale reveal that women leave with an improvement in self concept and are generally happier, more confident, and self-fulfilling as individuals than upon admission
Individual Feedback and Observing the Feedback of Others as a Behavior Modification Skill Training Technique
Get PDF43 leaves. Advisor: W. Scott WoodThe problem. Research in training paraprofessional
staff to perform behavior modification skills has shown practical training procedures to be most effective. Practical training usually consists of variations of modeling and role playing techniques accompanied by feedback. In such research, feedback appears to be a key component but its parameters and its effects independent of other training techniques have not been carefully analyzed. The purposes of this study are to isolate feedback as a classroom skill training technique, examine some of its parameters, evaluate its efficiency, and develop an efficient classroom training procedure.
Procedure. Practical training sessions occurred in
which 19 Mental Health Technician trainees were exposed to an audio-visual replay procedure. This replay was combined with one of four schedules of individual feedback and observation of others' feedback for each trainee. The effect of this training was observed by assessing trainee skill performance and training procedure efficiency.
Findings. Training effected an immediate improvement in skill performance. No differences were found between the four different schedules of individual feedback. Also, individual feedback was found to have no effect beyond the effect of observation of others' feedback. Efficiency
measures indicate that a skill improvement can be obtained by the application of this training procedure for a short period of time.
Conclusion. Viewing an audio-visual display of someone performing a skill, can quickly improve an individual's performance of that skill, when the display is supplemented with specific information that pinpoints correct and incorrect skill performances within the display. Observing
specific information about someone else's performance is as effective a training technique as receiving such information on one's own performance.
Recommendations. This study shows an efficient training technique in which many individuals can benefit from observing the individual feedback of a few. Future research, to develop this technique to its maximum efficiency, can investigate the importance of skill demonstration and specification as opposed to the importance of the audio-visua1 medium
James Joyce and His Influence : William Faulkner and Anthony Burgess
Get PDFThe problem. James Joyce's Ulysses provides a basis for examining and analyzing the influence of Joyce on selected works of William Faulkner and Anthony Burgess especially in regard to the major ideas and style, and pattern and motif. The works to be used, in addition to Ulysses, include Faulkner's "The Bear" in Go Down, Moses and Mosquitoes and Burgess' Nothing Like the Sun. For the purpose, then, of determining to what degree Joyce has influenced other writers, the ideas and techniques that explain his influence such as his linguistic innovations, his use of mythology, and his stream-of-consciousness technique are discussed.
Procedure. Research includes a careful study of each of the works to be used and an examination of various critics and their works for contributions to this influence study. The plan of analysis and presentation includes, then, a prefatory section of the dissertation which provides a general statement stating the thesis of this dissertation, some background material on Joyce and his Ulysses, and a summary of the material discussed in each chapter. Next are three chapters which explain Joyce's influence: an introduction to Joyce and Ulysses; Joyce and Faulkner; and Joyce and Burgess. Thus Chapter One, for the purpose of showing how Joyce influences other writers, discusses the ideas and techniques that explain his influences--such things as his linguistic innovations, his use of mythology, and his stream-of-consciousness method. Chapter Two traces the pattern of Joyce's influence on William Faulkner in Faulkner's "The Bear" and in his Mosquitoes. Among the techniques discussed for comparisons and parallels between the two authors are language, time and timelessness, the journey motif, and the stream-of-consciousness technique. Chapter Three examines the influence of Joyce on Anthony Burgess in Burgess' Nothing Like the Sun. The similarities between the library scene of Joyce's Ulysses, in
which Stephen Dedalus proposes a theory about the life and works of Shakespeare, and Burgess' novel (how closely Burgess follows Stephen's discussion of Shakespeare) are traced through biography, sexuality and women, and religion. And finally, a conclusion is included in the dissertation which summarizes the ways by which Joyce influences other writers, especially in regard to Burgess and Faulkner
Iowa Public Secondary School Principals' Perceptions of Importance and Expertise Required to Manage Identified Tasks
Get PDFxii, 138 leaves. Advisor: Charles D. RowleyThe Problem. This study was conducted to examine
Iowa secondary school principals' perceptions of administrative tasks as to the importance of the task and the expertise needed to manage the task.
Procedure. A questionnaire was sent to randomly
selected Iowa secondary school principals to obtain their perceptions. The data was placed in groups based on enrollment of the school and the number of years as an administrator. A two-factor analysis of variance was used to test for significance. When significance was found a multiple range test was employed.
Findings. Importance was significant among principals of differing years of experience in the following tasks: students' rights, informing the superintendent, and plant management. Expertise was significant among the principals in the task of plant management. Importance was significant among principals of schools of differing enrollment in the following tasks: delegation
of responsibility, faculty meetings, plant management, and distribution of funds. Expertise was signif£cant among the principals in the following tasks: evaluation, faculty meetings, and distribution of funds.
Conclusions. While some differences were found to
exist, the results of the study did not conclusively support the research hypotheses. The following conclusions can be drawn from this study: (l} differences in experience as
secondary schoOl principals had no major effect on perceptions of importance or expertise required to manage specific administrative tasks. (2) Secondary school enrollment had no major effect on secondary school principals' perceptions of importance or expertise required to manage specific administrative tasks.
Recommendations. Agencies and institutions responsible for conducting secondary school principal training programs or inservice programs should not consider years of experience as a principal or the enrollment of the school the principals administer as factors in the development of training programs. Agencies and institutions engaged in training or in service
programs for principals should examine their programs in regard to the tasks that principals perceived as being most important and requiring the most expertise
Preferences for Alternative Educational Programming in Rural Iowa K-12 Public School Districts
Get PDF129 leaves. Advisor: Dr. James HalvorsenIn 1977 the Iowa Legislature defeated a bill which
would have mandated school district reorganization in Iowa's K-12 public schools with enrollments under three hundred students. These districts would have been required to reorganize with other districts creating a new district of at least six hundred students. This would have affected
forty-seven of Iowa's four hundred forty-nine public K-12 school districts.
The problem. The purpose of this study was to
discern the preferences of students, teachers, parents, school board members, and administrators in school districts representative of the fifty smallest K-12 public school districts in Iowa, toward selected alternatives available
to rural school districts. The study was concerned
with determining (1) which of the selected alternatives (sharing administrators, sharing teachers, sharing programs, sharing facilities, voluntary reorganization, or increasing
local taxes) are most preferred to the groups studied, (2) which of the selected alternatives are most preferred when the four considerations of quality, efficiency, cost, and transportation are introduced, (3) the relationship of the five groups' rankings of the four considerations, and
(4) the relationship of the five groups' rankings of the six alternatives.
Procedure. A review of related literature provided
information concerning the concept and rationale for shared services as an alternative educational programming option for rural schools and information concerning Iowa rural school districts involved with alternative educational programming.
Eight of Iowa's fifty smallest school districts
were randomly selected for participation in the study. Analysis of Variance was used to compare the data derived from the five groups. When the Analysis of Variance was significant, dependent t-tests were used to assess the differences
between specific pairs of means. Pearson Product
Moment Correlation Coefficients were utilized to determine the relationship among the five groups' rankings of the six alternatives. A Spearman Rho Correlation Coefficient was used to determine the relationship of the five groups' rankings of the four considerations. The .05 level of probability
for rejection of the null hypotheses was used. Both the .05 and .01 levels were reported on the tables presented.
Findings. In relation to problem 1 stated above,
the general pattern from most preferred to least preferred was: sharing teachers, sharing administrators, sharing programs or facilities, increasing local taxes, and voluntary
reorganization. In relation to problem 2, sharing teachers remained the most preferred alternative. When considering cost and efficiency, voluntary reorganization and increasing local taxes were least preferred. However, when quality
was introduced, voluntary reorganization was preferred to increasing local taxes. When transportation was introduced, increasing local taxes was preferred to voluntary reorganization.
In relation to problem 3, all groups ranked the 4
considerations in the same priority order. From highest to lowest, the priority was quality, efficiency, cost, and transportation. In relation to problem 4, the relationship of the five groups' rankings of the six alternatives, with and without the four considerations was significantly positive
between all groups except teachers, who did not have any significant relationships with any of the other groups.
Conclusions. Based upon the findings of this study, school board members and administrators of Iowa's rural school districts should respond to the effects of declining enrollment, spiraling operational costs, legislatively controlled budgets, and minimum curriculum standards by
exploring the various alternative educational programming options available. The Iowa Department of Public Instruction should consider studying successful sharing programs, investigate
alternative funding for shared programming,
evaluate the current school reorganization law, and evaluate the role of the Area Education Agencies in providing more effective alternative educational services to rural school districts
The Effect of Career Awareness and Exploration Grants on Career Education Efforts in Iowa Schools
No full textvi, 148 leaves. Advisor: James R. Halvorsen.The Problem. The purpose of this study was to determine whether the "seed money" given to school districts for Career Awareness and Exploration (CA&E) grants had a lasting effect. The following objectives were established to study the problem: to determine the difference in the status of
career education in school districts which received funding and school districts which did not receive funding; to determine what differences exist in the perceptions of various educational role groups of the status of career education in school districts which did receive funding; to
determine what differences exist in the perceptions of various educational role groups of the status of career education in school districts which did not receive funding; to determine
what differences exist in the perceptions of educational role groups concerning the status of career education between those who were employed at the time funding occurred and those who have been employed since funding ceased.
Procedure. An original survey instrument was developed that included four questionnaire sections: Administration, Personnel, School and Community Relations, and Curriculum. Perceptions of superintendents, principals, counselors, and teachers on the current status of career
education were assessed. Thirty school districts were identified for the purpose of this study. Fifteen school districts comprised the first groups which participated in the CA&E grants from
1973-74 through 1975-76 inclusive. A second group of fifteen districts which had not been funded were matched with the fifteen funded districts. Within the funded districts, the personnel groups were defined as to time of employment, either
when funding occurred or after funding ceased.
For each individual a yes to no score ratio for each section of the questionnaire was tabulated. The mean ratios for each educational role group were used for the analysis. Four t tests (p<.OS, .01) for independent samples were calculated for each of the four sections of the instrument.
This sample procedure was utilized in the examination of the perceptions of the funded district personnel by time of employment. A one-way ANOVA (p<.05, p<:Ol) was utilized to
study the differences among the perceptions of the four role groups in funded and non-funded distrlcts.
Findings. Study findings indicate there was a difference in the status of career education in funded and nonfunded schools on the administrative and curricular indicators of career education program development, but not on the personnel, and school and community relations indicators. The funded districts showed greater compliance with administrative indicators and non-funded districts with curriculum indicators. Teachers in funded districts perceived level of compliance with indicators in the following order (high to
low): administrative, personnel, curriculum, and school and community relations. Principals in funded districts perceived level of compliance highest for administrative and personnel indicators and lowest for curriculum, and
school and community relations indicators. Superintendents and counselors in funded districts perceived no difference in compliance with the different indicators. Superintendents in non-funded districts perceived highest compliance with curriculum and personnel indicators and lowest compliance with administrative, and school and community relations indicators. Teachers in non-funded districts perceived level of compliance with indicators in the following order (high to low): administrative, curriculum, personnel, and school and community relations. No difference in perceptions of level of compliance with the different categories of indicators was found between personnel who were employed at the time funding occurred and those who have been employed since funding ceased.
Recommendations. The findings of this study have
limited implications for reinstituting the CA&E grants. Further research should investigate the lasting effects of "seed money" on career education
A Neuropsychological Investigation of Cerebral Dominance and Dyslexia
Get PDFiii, 61 leaves. Advisor: Howard TraxlerNumerous investigators have sought a connection between dyslexia, or difficulty in learning to read, and some identifiable abnormality of central nervous system structure or function. Building on evidence accumulated in previous studies, one experimenter, Wltelson (1974, 1976, 1977), developed an explanatory theory of dyslexla based
upon the concept of incomplete cerebral domlnance.
Briefly, Witelson's theory hypothesized that dyslexia occurs in those individuals whose braln functlons are not sufficiently laterally specialized in the usual manner, that is, with language or verbal processing specialized in the
left cerebral hemisphere, and spatial processing in the right. According to her theory, in dyslexics, spatial processing is bilateral, located in both hemispheres, which interferes with
the linguistic, sequential processing in the left hemisphere. The presence of this spatial processing activity and the lack of specialization which it implies can be experimentally
measured with procedures designed to deliver sensory inputs to only one side of the brain initially. Visually, stimuli can be presented tachistoscopically to either the right or left visual hemifields, and tactually, stimuli can
be presented to either the right or left hand. Since sensory inputs have been demonstrated to go directly from one hand or visual hemifield to the contralateral hemisphere, it can be determined which hemisphere is doing the processing.
Witelson employed this type of procedure with spatial stimuli to test her hypothesis that spatial processing is bilateral in dyslexics, using subjects referred from various clinics. Her results were confirmatory for tactual stimuli
but were less clear for stimuli presented visually. The present study attempted to replicate Witelson's results with a school population of elementary age males and employed her tactual task, a modified visual task, and a task that was
thought to be a purer measure of spatial processing. It was expected that on all three tasks non-dyslexic subjects would perform better when the stimuli were presented to the left
hand or visual fleld, and for the dyslexic subjects the difference between performance on right-sided and 1eft-sided tasks would not be significant.
Thirty-five dyslexic subjects and thirty-five
controls, reading at or above grade level, all aged 8-12, were selected from three area elementary schools. All subjects were administered the same three perfo~mance tasks. Task I was a visual-spatlal task employlng tachistoscopic
presentation of data to one hemifield at a time. Task II was a tactual-spatial task employing nonsense shapes presented to both hands out of view of the subject. Task III was a tactual map-reading task requiring each subject to orient himself in space using information presented to
only one hand.
For Task I, results were non-confirmatory, with both groups of subjects performing better when the left hemifield was stimulated. On Task II, both groups displayed superiority of right hand performance, again an unexpected result. Task III results were also non-confirmatory, as the trend
was in the expected direction, but not statistically significant.
The generally non-confirmatory findings may be
interpreted in several ways. Witelson's hypothesis of bilateral spatial processing in dyslexics may simply be in error, as some other investigators have also failed to replicate her results. Or the findings may be a function of problems in defining dyslexia, which is probably not a unitary syndrome, leadlng to problems in subject selection. An additional consideration is that of task validity; that is, the tasks used may need further refinement to ensure they are able to differentiate between right and left hemisphere
processing