Two investigations examined whether incentives increase the number of survey returns from former students and whether ideographic characteristics, incentives, and multiple mail-outs influence the perceptions of respondents. Survey responses of 125 (Study 1) and 67 (Study 2) baccalaureate graduates in education were used. The survey included 43…

This study illustrates the application of causal modeling techniques in testing a conceptual model of teaching using data collected in naturalistic, nonexperimental settings. (Author/GK)

Productivity in teacher education among colleges and universities in the last five years was measured by counting contributions to the annual meetings of three professional associations and by counting papers published in five education journals. Results are discussed. (MT)

A survey of former students from graduate programs in Educational Curriculum and Instruction and in Educational Psychology at Texas A & M University sought to determine graduates' employment patterns and professional profiles and their perceptions concerning the effectiveness of their programs. Fifty-two percent of the graduates responded to…

The technique of causal modeling as applied to theoretical constructs in teacher education is demonstrated. The abstract principles of causality are explained, and are applied to various educational research needs. An example is made using data collected from a sample of 44 secondary level students who participated in a one semester student…

This investigation was structured to determine if the acquisition of higher order intellectual processes is tenable for teaching candidates when the independent variables are unit pacing and different remediation strategies for mastery learning. Teaching candidates enrolled in a generic teaching methods course constituted the sample. Nearly half…

This document reports on a study of the feasibility of a procedure for evaluating an instructional program. The instructional units evaluated were professional education courses which were structured around performance objectives and utilized a model similar to the Personalized System of Instruction (PSI). Data were collected in four phases;…

A mail survey of 125 former teacher education students was conducted to examine subjects' perceptions of and responses to the survey. The effects of techniques thought to motivate mail survey participation on responses and potential respondent bias were examined. (TJH)

Two investigations were conducted to examine whether incentives increased survey returns from 297 and 100, respectively, former teacher education students; and idiographic characteristics, incentives, and multiple mailings influenced respondent perceptions. Establishing a communication network increased the number of responses; incentives and…

The feasibility of evaluating the performance of student teachers by observing the academic achievement of pupils was explored. The following questions were posed: Do expectancies of learners held by student teachers influence pupil achievement on a single instructional unit when prior achievement of pupils is held constant? Does the amount of…

This investigation explores the feasibility of constructing regression models for predicting teaching success and classroom behavior utilizing various measures of attitudes, personality, and psychological factors as predictors. The purpose of the study is to devise decision models that predict a candidate's success in student teaching as…

This project was undertaken to develop and validate a pupil response instrument for evaluating the instructional competence of aspiring teachers. Two school districts of moderate size and in close proximity to a university were selected for the project. The sample consisted of the pupils of 96 secondary area teacher candidates completing the…

A follow-up survey of secondary education graduates from three preparation programs was conducted. Information regarding program quality indicates that graduates from agricultural education ranked their preparation as adequate, while graduates from industrial education and curriculum and instruction ranked parts of their program in need of review…

Research studies on the academic ability of individuals recruited into teacher education have produced mixed findings; some studies have found that academically talented teachers tend to leave the classroom in greater numbers than less academically capable colleagues, while other findings have indicated that teaching attracts and retains those…

Causal modeling was applied to data collected in a naturalistic setting in an attempt to validate a conceptual model of teaching. These data included supervisory ratings of the variables: specifying performance objectives, diagnosing learners, selecting instructional strategies, and interacting with learners collected on 82 student teachers.…