college of education and professional studies eastern...

C o l l e g e o f E d u c a t i o n a n d P r o f e s s i o n a l S t u d i e sE a s t e r n I l l i n o i s U n i v e r s i t y

C h a r l e s t o n , I l l i n o i s

V o l u m e 3 5 N u m b e r 1 S p r i n g 2 0 0 6

E A S T E R N E D U C A T I O N J O U R N A LC o l l e g e o f E d u c a t i o n a n d P r o f e s s i o n a l S t u d i e s

E a s t e r n I l l i n o i s U n i v e r s i t y

Lou Hencken, President

Blair Lord, Provost and Vice Presidentfor Academic Affairs

Veronica P. Stephen, Editor

EDITORIAL BOARD

Charles A. Rohn, DeanKathlene Shank, Special Education

Beverly Findley, Educational AdministrationJohn Weber, Recreation AdministrationGloria Leitschuh, Counseling & Student

DevelopmentJoseph Williams, Psychology

Mahyar Izadi, TechnologyBill Fischer, Student Teaching

Richard NeSmith, Early Childhood,Elementary, and Middle Level Education

Published annually by theCollege of Education and Professional Studies

Eastern Illinois University

The Eastern Education Journal publishes articlesreflecting contemporary issues in education,

encourages original points of view, andwelcomes strong position papers. Views

expressed are not necessarily endorsed by theEastern Education Journal and/or the

College of Education and Professional Studies.

Address all inquiries to:

Veronica P. Stephen, EditorEastern Education Journal

Eastern Illinois University600 Lincoln Ave

Charleston IL 61920-3099


CONTENTS

From the Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 In This Issue . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

SPECIAL FEATURE

School-Based Cohort ImmersionProgram: An Overview andAreas of Planned Inquiry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

David CareyJudith A. Barford

GUEST EDITORIAL

Middle School Recommendations:Improving Middle School StudentSuccess Is Vital . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

Richard A. NeSmith

RESEARCH

Harnessing the Call to Teach and Lead:What Future Teachers and AdministratorsAre Telling Us . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

Janis B. FineJeffrey S. Winter

Authentic Leadership:A New Approach . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26

Kristina A. Alexander


E A S T E R N E D U C A T I O N J O U R N A LC o l l e g e o f E d u c a t i o n a n d P r o f e s s i o n a l S t u d i e s

E a s t e r n I l l i n o i s U n i v e r s i t y

RESEARCH cont.The Challenges of Full SecondaryEducation Professional DevelopmentSchool Programs: One Alternative . . . . . 31

Paul D. BandSteve Neill

Addressing Contemporary IssuesThrough Collaborative Methods . . . . . . . . 35

Nancy I. GaylenBrenda BoudreauTami EgglestonNancy BraggPatti PowellVictoria Groves Scott

Academic and Non-Academic Predictorsof College Student Retention . . . . . . . . . . 42

Samantha J. WhiteElizabeth F.B. KirbyMara S. Arugete

External Assets and the DevelopmentOf Resiliency Among Urban AmericanHigh School Students . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45

Teresa S. WasongaPhillip Messner

Students’ Perceptions of Faculty’s Teaching Ability Based on Their Ethnicity,Accent, and Academic Discipline . . . . . 50

Lea LeeLouis H. Janda

Student Teaching and Stress . . . . . . . . . . . 55 Solomon AbebeJoan Kitterman

FEATURES

Why Critical Thinking? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61Kiran Padmaramu

Don’t Turn the Other Cheek: Power andControl of Domestic Violence Education 65

Jill Rennels

Portable vs. Permanent Classrooms:A Quasi-Experimental Study ofFifth Graders’ Attitude andMathematics Achievement . . . . . . . . . . . 69

Tak Cheung Chan

Twenty-First Century “Catch 22”Instructor Comments in AsynchronousWeb-Based Courses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75

Scott FredricksonKen NelsonRobert J. WaldenPatricia Hoehner

Additional Copies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79

Manuscript Guidelines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80

From the Editor ...

During the past few years, "Mother Nature"wreaked havoc in all parts of the world. With twenty-four-hour television coverage, non-stop radio broad-casting, and streaming video, the media brought uscloser to the scene of disasters than ever before. Wesaw a tsunami obliterate villages and people in itspath; we watched raging wildfires devastate palatialforests; and we witnessed unforgiving floods destroypolitical, historical, and cultural life. Live footagegave us a "coliseum view" of devastating destruction,inconceivable suffering, and unbelievable heroism.

Although we are stunned to see such images,most of the time, we simply see them as terriblethings that happen in relatively isolated regions orother parts of the world – all somewhat removedfrom our safe havens. But as a nation, we were trulyshocked by what we saw when the waters churnedand moved, creeping, slowly but surely, into ournation’s historic southern provinces. New Orleans andits boroughs, along with countless towns and villagesin Mississippi, succumbed to the ruthless force ofwater, and even the seemingly impenetrable SuperDome fell victim to its power. While we watched thelevees break, some of us may have been bewilderedthat so many people chose to remain where theywere. Then, some of us soon learned an appallingfact about our southern provinces – poverty is notonly alive and well, but also thriving. It is both sadand deplorable that such a condition continues toexist in the richest country in the world. Nonetheless, itclearly explains why people elected to stay – somehad no cars, others had nowhere to go, some had tochoose between fuel and food, others had tochoose between the place called "home" and nohome at all. Those who stayed behind were the poor– they had no money and they had no resources.

Months have gone by since the waters receded.Rubble still fills the streets and alleys, electrical power

is still out in neighborhoods, consumer services are stillunavailable, and homes are still uninhabitable. Forthousands and thousands of people, there no longeris a place to call "home." Some have been fortunateto rest their weary bones in trailers provided by theassistance effort, while others have moved intocrowded quarters with relatives. Some have createdtemporary housing from sheets of aluminum, card-board, and plywood scraps, while others have relo-cated to other states, pledging never to come back.However, here and there, pockets of individual indus-try are beginning to bubble, as residents, tired ofwaiting for external help, have doggedly begun towork on gutting their own homes, rebuilding with theirown funds. Here and there, meager as it may be,hope is on the rise.

Millions of Americans donated money to therelief effort and the federal government promisedassistance – where have all the flowers (funds) gone?In the months to come, we hope to see a concertedeffort on the part of the government (state, local,and federal) to restore New Orleans to its majesticbeauty and charm, to rejuvenate its cultural vitality,and to enhance living standards for its diverse citi-zens. We hope to see this concerted effort alsoextended to the neighboring Mississippi regions thatbore the scars of this catastrophe. The poor suffer,regardless as to location. And, if we are not ourbrothers’ keepers, who is?

It is the poor that suffered the most lethal blowdealt by Katrina, the "Storm of the Century." It is thepoor that need our help – immediately – not severalyears from now. If we wait that long, it is doubtful thatNew Orleans and its historic parishes will ever berebuilt. But most importantly, it is the children of thepoor that will not stand a chance of success if assis-tance is not provided as soon as possible. Theirpoverty-stricken lives as babies and infants will affecttheir growth and development as adolescents. Thisdeprivation will, no doubt, also affect their progressas they mature into adulthood. If their schools arenever rebuilt, how and where will they learn? If theirhomes are never rebuilt, where will they study andhow will they attain familial support? If the play-grounds and parks are never rebuilt, where and howwill they learn cooperation and teamwork? If cultur-al, political, and historic centers are not rebuilt, whereand how will they learn about themselves, their her-itage, their nation, and the world? This issue of East-ern Education Journal is dedicated to the people,places, accomplishments, ideas, and the children –all forever changed by the force and destruction ofHurricane Katrina.

In This Issue ...

The Spring 2006 issue of Eastern Education Jour-nal is packed with new ideas, new approaches, andnew perspectives that deal with educational issues.First, the Special Feature, co-authored by DavidCarey and Judith Barford, describes an innovativeschool-university partnership in which beginningteacher education students are paired with teachersin a professional development school for a four-yearperiod. Second, the Guest Editorial by RichardNeSmith explores the world of the middle school andoffers suggestions for improving student success, bothinside and outside the classroom.

The Research section begins with "Harnessing theCall to Teach and Lead in Schools: What FutureTeachers and Administrators are Telling Us" by JanisFine and Jeffrey Winter. The article examines factorsthat compel people to become schoolteachers andleaders and proposes ways that faculty can supportand enhance the personal journeys of teacher andleader candidates. The following article by KristinaAlexander investigates the topic of school leadershippreparation and presents an alternative to traditionalprograms in "Authentic Leadership: A NewApproach."

The question of creating a large scale profession-al development school program or to expand asmall existing PDS program is addressed by PaulBland and Steve Neill in "The Challenges of Full Sec-ondary Education Professional Development SchoolPrograms: One Alternative." The authors provide anoverview of a field-based approach that maintains atrue PDS philosophy. The next article by NancyGaylen, Brenda Boudreau, Tami Eggleston, NancyBragg, Patti Powell, and Victoria Groves Scott pre-sents results of five different service learning researchprojects. "Addressing Contemporary Issues ThroughCollaborative Methods" details a project involvingschool, organization, and community partnershipsdesigned to promote faculty development by inte-grating traditional roles of teaching, scholarship, andservice.

Next, "Academic and Non-academic Predictorsof College Student Retention" by Samantha White,Elizabeth Kirby, and Mara Arugete utilizes collecteddata such as high school grade point average, stan-dardized test scores, socio-economic status and

number of low-risk college courses completed toascertain predictors of retention. The following article– "External Assets and the Development of ResiliencyAmong Urban American High School Students" -- byTeresa Wasonga and Phillip Messner evaluates mea-sures of external assets and the subsequent develop-ment of resiliency and offers implications for policy.

"College Students’ Perceptions of Faculty’sTeaching Ability Based on Their Ethnicity, Accent, andAcademic Discipline" by Lea Lee and Louis Jandadiscusses college students’ perceptions of professors’teaching competence and effectiveness based onthe professors’ ethnicity (European-American,African-American, and Asian-American), the pres-ence of an accent during lectures, and academicdiscipline. Solomon Abebe and Joan Kitterman inves-tigate specific teaching events which student teach-ers in urban, suburban and rural areas found stressfuland present recommendations to reduce stress instudent teaching in "Student Teaching and Stress."

The Features section includes a selection ofresearch on special interest topics. It begins with"Why Critical Thinking?" by Kiran Padmaraju. Theauthor probes the issue of critical thinking and arguesfor the need to promote critical thinking activitiesfrom kindergarten classrooms through college anduniversity settings. Jill Rennels next looks at ways thateducation impacts domestic violence in "Don’t Turnthe Other Cheek: Power and Control of DomesticViolence Education." The article examines feministand ecological perspectives and offers suggestionsfor domestic violence in-service education.

The following article – "Portable vs. PermanentClassrooms: A Quasi-experimental Study of FifthGraders’ Attitude and Mathematics Achievement" –explores the dynamics of portable versus permanentclassrooms of an elementary school in terms of stu-dent attitude and mathematics achievement.

Next, Scott Fredrickson, Ken Nelson, RobertWalden, and Patricia Hoehner in "Twenty-First Century‘Catch 22’ – Instructor Comments in AsynchronousWeb-Based Courses" investigate web-based classenvironments to determine the correlation betweeninstructor postings in discussion forums and studentpostings in those forums.

Read and enjoy. As always, we look forward toreceiving your research-based manuscripts, com-mentaries, book reviews, program descriptions, andoriginal points of view.

What sculpture is to a block of marble, education is to a human soul.– Joseph Addison

School-based Cohort Immersion Program:An overview and areas of planned inquiry

David Carey and Judith A. Barford

David Carey is the principal of Carl Sandburg Elementary Schoolin Charleston, IL. Carl Sandburg is a primary center serving 550 firstthrough third grade students. He is completing his 33rd year in edu-cation.

Judith A. Barford is an Assistant Professor in the Department ofEarly Childhood, Elementary, and Middle Level Education at East-ern Illinois University. She teaches courses in educational technolo-gy and social studies methodology. She taught all elementarygrades K-5 before joining the EIU faculty in 1993. Her practice isinformed by commitment to professional development schoolideals and to the thesis that teachers and children in schools areprimary partners in teacher education.

AbstractSchool-based Cohort Immersion Program:Rationale and outline for inquiry in progress

As professional development schools become essen-tial environments for best practice in teacher educa-tion and partnership opportunities offer multiple ben-efits for multiple stakeholders, we in the Departmentof Early Childhood, Elementary, and Middle LevelEducation at Eastern Illinois University and Communi-ty Unit School District #1, Charleston, IL, wished torevise and renew traditional university/school roles inteacher education for our local setting. The ratio-nale, context, and outline for the School-basedCohort Immersion Program, SCIP, a pilot partnershipproject, 2002-2006, follows.

Introduction: State of the ProfessionAs the context of teaching has changed signifi-

cantly over the last twenty years, the ability level ofthe teaching force has become a topic of interest tothe nation. The new school demographics, includingan increase in the number of students with physical,social and academic challenges, and a more linguis-tically and ethnically diverse population, have devel-oped the need for a teaching cadre able to accom-modate a broader range of individual differencesand able to insure a successful learning experiencefor all students. The raised expectations andaccountability requirements of No Child Left Behindhave put the entire education world on notice. Inaddition the nation is facing a teacher shortage ofcrippling proportions – 2 million new teachers will beneeded during the current decade. There is a grow-ing demand to upgrade the quality of the teachereducation programs in the nation as a means toimprove student achievement (American Council onEducation ACE, 1999). Researchers believe thatsound teaching requires exemplary preparation(Clarke et al., 1997) and that teacher preparation is

an inseparable part of school reform (National Com-mission on Teaching and America's Future, 1996).Teachers must now be prepared to take a moreactive role in the development and implementationof educational policies (Holmes Group, 1995), asleaders, researchers, writers and developers of cur-riculum (Carusso, 1993). A new trend in teacherpreparation is focused on the importance of teach-ers working and learning together within a learningcommunity. Application of these challenges, con-cepts and strategies, becomes the mandate ofteacher education programs. The purpose of thispaper is to report a local response to these issues,trends and mandates.

A major purpose of Eastern Illinois Universitytoday, and one of the reasons for its founding in1899, is the preparation of teachers for the state ofIllinois. As stated in an article written for the centenni-al of the university,

The one-hundredth anniversary of OldMain’s completion and the beginning ofclasses at the Eastern Illinois Normal School,were marked in September of 1999. Normalschools prepared students intellectually andsocially for teaching in township schools andcity school districts. They embraced a coreset of values regarding useful and practicallearning, and promoted a democratic cul-ture and a populist vision of teacher training(Localites/Localities, 2000).

Eastern graduates about 600 certified teacherseach year. Approximately one third of the enrollmentof 12,000 students are teacher certification candi-dates, preK-12.

Though colleges of education are sending newteachers into the field, attrition rates in the ranks ofbeginning teachers are alarming. The AmericanFederation of Teachers reports that 1/3 of new teach-ers leave the profession after only three years on thejob and 1⁄2 of new teachers have left after five years.In order to retain qualified teachers in the profession,28 states have mandated induction programs, whichemphasize the use of veteran teachers to enhancethe skills of the novice. In order to assist pre-serviceteachers in becoming a part of a learning communi-ty and provide them with an immersion experience,the School-based Cohort Immersion Program hasbeen developed.

SCIP: Design for a local response

The School-based Cohort Immersion Program orSCIP, is a partnership project between EIU and Com-

munity Unit School District #1. A cohort group ofteacher education majors, public school teachersand administrators, and university education facultyhas been established with the ultimate aim of provid-ing a cohesive and supportive professional commu-nity throughout the four years of the undergraduatedegree and certification program. Essential goals ofthe program are:

1. to increase elementary classroom time prior tothe final student teaching semester, from 120 to300 plus hours;

2. to create new modes of communication;3. to share and apply growing technology

resources;4. to build community and familiarity within the

cohort group to enable purposeful placementsof students for clinical experiences.

The problem of teacher attrition begins longbefore the first year of teaching. The teacher prepa-ration program must assume some responsibility forthe success of the beginning teacher. SCIP is amodel teacher education program for those who willmeet the challenges of America’s classrooms andthe needs of diverse children. The School-basedCohort Immersion Program places teacher educa-tion majors in articulated semester-long experiencesalongside diverse veteran teachers who, daily,model multiple strategies for success.

As the name implies the program is based uponthe assumption that in training a pre-service teachermust be immersed in actual elementary classroomsunder the careful supervision of quality mentoringteachers and university supervisors in order to gainthe critical knowledge, skills and dispositions of pro-fessional competence. The design of the SCIP pro-gram reflects its purpose: to develop skills and deep-en the ideals of teacher education candidates fromentrance to the university through graduation withina community of professionals dedicated to their suc-cess as teachers.

Program personnel for SCIP come from EasternIllinois University, the College of Education and Pro-fessional Studies, and three local attendance cen-ters, all within a one mile radius of EIU. All schoolsserve the total population of children at these gradelevels: Mark Twain School, a kindergarten atten-dance center; Carl Sandburg School, a primary cen-ter serving first through third grade students, and Jef-ferson Elementary School, serving fourth through sixthgraders.

SCIP students invited to participate in the pro-gram were incoming freshman who were designatedby the university as Education Scholars. According tothe university definition Education Scholars areincoming freshman who have demonstrated excel-lent scholarship and have declared interest inbecoming teachers, have high motivation androbust personal achievements.

Classroom teachers were invited to participate inthe program based on having had recognized pro-fessional success, past experience with EIU clinical

participants, and an interest and enthusiasm for theSCIP model. University instructors were encouragedto participate based on their past experience super-vising clinical experiences, their interest and enthusi-asm for the SCIP model and their willingness to trans-form university coursework to school-based experi-ences.

Cohort classrooms, teachers, and universityinstructors were open to working with the cohort pre-service teachers throughout the four years of theirundergraduate program and especially during thefive intensive semesters outlined below. During thesesemesters, the pre-service teachers team with a dif-ferent teacher at a different grade level with differ-ent subject area emphasis, experiencing multiplestrategies for success. Regular meetings of thecohort enable continuing reflection and creativeplanning. Technology tools for communication, doc-umentation, reflection, and presentation, and sup-port of classroom curriculum are incorporatedthroughout the SCIP program.

The Freshman Year: Joining Classroom Communities

During the first semester, seminars and school vis-its were designed as an introduction to the program.Each of the schools invited the SCIP students to thebuilding. The principal conducted a tour and a shortvideo welcome by the teachers was presented. Dur-ing the second semester and first spring semester, theSCIP students were paired with a mentoring teacherand were (required to spend – delete) spent twohours per week in the classroom for 15 weeks. Thefirst year the students spent a total of 30 hours in theclassroom and earned approximately 32 hours ofacademic credit.

The Sophomore Year:Transition from Student to Teacher

The second year of the program was a transitionyear for the SCIP students as they transitioned fromstudent to teacher. The fall semester of year twoinvolved academic coursework, while the springsemester involved enrollment in ELE 2000, a blockcourse, which was team taught in the elementarybuildings, and included 30 hours of classroom partici-pation and 10 hours of technology participation. Thetotal school-based participation hours in year twoamounted to 50 hours and included approximately32 hours of academic credit.

The Junior Year:Understanding Professional Practice

During the first semester of year three, 2004-2005,the SCIP students pursued academic courseworkand spent 10+ hours of volunteer work in the schools.During the second semester, the students wereenrolled in the ELE3000 block consisting of 3 courses,which were partially taught in the elementary build-ings and included two full days per week of partici-pation in the classroom. The total school-based par-

ticipation during year three was approximately 150hours and included 32 hours of academic work.

Year Four:Advanced Professional Practice

During the fall semester of year four the studentswere enrolled in the ELE 4000 block, consisting of 4courses, which were partially taught in the elemen-tary buildings and included two full days per week ofclassroom participation. During the second semesterof year four the SCIP students will have the opportu-nity to student teach in a SCIP classroom. Total par-ticipation hours during year four will be 150 hours andinclude 33 hours of academic work. The SCIP pro-gram can total 390 hours with approximately 130hours of academic credit. This fulfills all state require-ments for beginning certification and all universityrequirements for the liberal arts core, the area ofconcentration, and the education major field.

Establishing Program Efficacy

In order to determine the efficacy of the pro-gram and to establish, through data, the perspectiveof the stakeholders involved in the program, an eval-uation of the program needs to be established. Pro-viding substantive evidence that a more focusedand responsive approach to pre-service teachereducation, like the SCIP program, would provideschools with new elementary teachers who are morelikely to succeed in the classroom than their tradition-ally prepared counterparts, is critical if teacher edu-cation programs are to become more viable. Beforebeginning an evaluation of the SCIP program thepolitical context and history of the relationship of thestakeholders needs to be considered.

The partnership between the school district andthe university has fluctuated often during the pastdecade. Before 1995 practicum placements of pre-service teachers in community classrooms weremade with very little guidance from the administra-tion. Public school classroom teachers were con-tacted directly by university instructors bypassing thebuilding principals. Placements were made solely onconvenience and, occasionally, with a pressingdeadline squarely in the rearview mirror. Littlethought was given to the quality of the teacher pro-viding mentoring nor the quality of the experiencethe prospective teacher was receiving. The buildingprincipals were unconcerned and looked at thispractice as routine and without need of oversight orany form of guidance. Occasionally classroomteachers would bring complaints to the administra-tion and these complaints were handled on a case-by-case basis. In 1995 the Dean of the College ofEducation, the head of the department and severalfaculty members brought a proposal to the localschool district and, specifically, to the council ofadministrators. A professional development schoolpartnership was proposed based on the HolmesGroup guidelines (HolmesGroup, 1995). These guide-lines included establishing a contractual relationshipbetween the university and each school hosting

practicum students. Also included in the guidelineswere standards for selecting teachers to host stu-dents and procedures for assigning students to thehost teachers. The administrative staff supportedthese guidelines and was asked to share them witheach prospective school building. The teacherswere asked to vote to accept or reject the guide-lines and contractual nature of the partnership.Some schools were reluctant to enter in to a con-tract with the university and others were eager forthe improved professionalism that the guidelineswould bring to the partnership (Carey, 2003).

Providing leadership in a school whose facultychose to participate in the partnership and movetowards becoming a professional developmentschool provided many challenges and eventuallyled to the development of the SCIP program. Field-based experiences, the critical component ofteacher education programs, are often viewed bypreservice teachers as the most important part oftheir preparation (Houston, 1990). The importance ofthe practicum experience is in the opportunity it pro-vides for the prospective teacher to create a mentalbridge between the theory that is learned in classand the experience of refining and defining teach-ing skills. Experiences, which should be included inthe field placement, include excellent supervisionand the opportunity to engage in reflection aboutteaching and student learning. (Holmes Group,1986). An effective traditional training experience ishindered by the limited amount of time the student isactually in an elementary classroom before studentteaching; inadequate time for effective communi-cation between the university faculty and the publicschool cooperating teachers; poor access to andinadequate training in the use of the technologywith which the public schools are equipped; and theperception of not belonging to the learning commu-nity due to haphazard and untimely placementswithin the public school setting (McAllister & Neubert,1998). As a result of these issues, alternatives to thetraditional practicum experience are needed inorder to find ways to improve the teacher trainingprocess. The School-based Cohort Immersion Pro-gram is one alternative to the traditional process oftraining teachers.

As the program continues the effects of imple-menting a school-based, cohort immersion programwith a group of pre-service teachers will be evaluat-ed. Since 2002, data has been collected in the fol-lowing categories: student classroom logs, video-taped cohort meetings, individual interviews, partici-pant surveys, student reflections, and end-of-termprogram surveys The effectiveness of the process,factors to consider, and problems that are encoun-tered and how the process could be betterdesigned will also be reviewed. Initial data review isfertile indeed. In the words of one of the programparticipants, "…a big part of why I really enjoy the(SCIP) program (is) because you can get to knowpeople and you get really close and work togetherand I think it’s a really cool thing. I think that the

more you do that the more that you’re going toenjoy the course work and (the process of) becom-ing a teacher. The more you’re going to want tolearn about special education, and about methodsand about all the other courses that we take and themore you’re going to want to work together andstudy it and know what you’re doing when you getout there."

ReferencesACE. (1999). To touch the future: Transforming the

way teachers are taught. Washington, D.C.:American Council on Education.

Carey, D. (2003). Historical perspective on the Profes-sional Development School process in the publicelementary schools in Charleston, I l l inois.Charleston, IL.

Carusso, J. J. (1993). Keeping professional company:Individual, group and collaborative supervision ina student teaching practicum. A preliminarystudy., Atlanta, GA.

Clarke, J., Dwyer, M., Glesne, C., Kostin, M., Leo, K.,Meyers, H., et al. (1997). Adapting teacherpreparation courses to support high schoolreform. Journal of Teacher Education, 48(5), 358-366.

HolmesGroup. (1986). Tomorrow's teachers: A reportof the Holmes Group. East Lansing, MI.

HolmesGroup. (1995). Tomorrow's schools of educa-tion. A report of the Holmes Group. East Lansing,MI.

Houston, W. R. (Ed.). (1990). Student teaching andschool experiences. New York: Macmillan.

Localites/Localities. (2000). History of Eastern IllinoisUniversity's Old Main. Retrieved December 21,2004, from http://www.eiu.edu/~localite/

McAllister, E. A., & Neubert, G. A. (1998). New teach-ers helping new teachers: Preservice peercoaching. Bloomington, IN: EDINFO Press.

National Commissionon Teaching and America'sFuture. (1996). What matters most: Teaching forAmerica's future. New York.

Elizabeth Fueschl, SCIP student teacher, works with two students in Mr. Taylor’s class at Carl Sandburg Elementary School during spring semester, 2006.

Middle School Recommendations:Improving Middle School Student Success Is Vital in 2006

Richard A. NeSmith

Richard A. NeSmith is an Assis-tant Professor in the Department ofEarly Childhood, Elementary, andMiddle Level Education at EasternIllinois University. He teaches cours-es in science methods, education-al technology, and middle levelphilosophy and procedures forcertification. He can be reachedat [email protected].

Recently an article came across my desk thatshared how the State of Utah recently constructed alist of proposals they believe to be needed in order toimprove the level of education provided to studentsattending middle schools, namely adolescents fromtwelve to sixteen years of age. In this report by Erick-son (2004), these school leaders met to discuss mid-dle level education and the need for improvement.This was a commendable and courageous act. Itcould also act as an impetus for more reflection anddiscussion. The need for such improvement wasnoted in another report, one by The Center for PublicEducation (2004), which recently reported a polladministered by the Educational Testing Services inwhich fewer than fifty percent of Americans say theyhave much confidence in the nation’s schools today.Fifty-eight percent of those polled had some, little, orno confidence in the present system of public edu-cation.

It would seem that the public system of educa-tion is, and has been, in serious need of change.According to a recent poll (The Center for PublicEducation, 2004), the public system of education inour country that serves the general public, hasreceived a borderline no confidence vote. Changeis needed because the educational system inheritedfrom the era of the American Industrial Revolutioncan no longer successfully support the needs of theaverage student in the present Age of Information.As I read the article by Erickson (2004), thoughtsbegan to rush through my mind comparing the rec-ommendations made by these experienced districteducators with the twelve months of intensive read-ing that I have done on the topic of improving schoolachievement. I applaud these Utah educators fortaking the initiative to seek change and to be willingto break with the status quo. The intention of this edi-torial is not to discredit the recommendations of

these educators, but to encourage the considerationof "what could be" rather than "what is." Innovations,for the sake of being innovative, are useless; whenneeded, however, innovations should be encour-aged by educators, school districts, and individualsschools, alike, and teachers need to practice think-ing "outside the box." If education is to continue toimprove in our country we must challenge the statusquo. I have used these recommendations (Erickson,2004) to frame my own thoughts, concerns, and edu-cational energies as I consider what "could be" in thearea of middle school education instead of simple"what is."

✥ Implement teacher, team and departmentcollaboration and provide 90 minutes ofplanning each school day.

The team approach is one of the major funda-mental principles of the middle school movement. Itwas believed that placing students on teams withseveral teachers being shared by a group of 80-120students would provide a friendlier and more person-al touch thus helping students moving up from theelementary school to adjust to the changes of mid-dle school. Teaming, however, requires shared plan-ning times. To some educators this means money.More time planning means less students being taughtby that teacher or group of teachers. This, however, isnot "free time" nor is it nonproductive time. It is essen-tial time when teachers of a team meet together tosort out plans and strategies, interact with parents,and brainstorm solutions to problems they are experi-encing with the students on the team. Teachers neednot only a shared planning time together with team-mates, but a separate individual planning time, aswell. Teachers are very dedicated. Some take workhome every night and return it every day. A lightweekend for many is not having to grade papers onSunday afternoon.

Reading, planning, and grading are never end-ing jobs. The misconception that teachers have noth-ing to do after hours is absurd and only a non-teacher would make such a statement. It is onlyproper to give teachers ample time to prepare. Iassure you effective teachers put in far more than 40hours per week. This is one reason why between one-third and nearly one-half of teachers tend to leavethe profession within seven years, with the majority ofthese being new teachers (National Commission,2003, p. 26; Skandera & Sousa, 2003, pp. 86-87). TheNational Commission on Teaching and America’sFuture reported in No dream denied: A pledge toAmerica’s Children of the alarming rate in which newteachers are leaving, with many "leavers" beginning

to outnumber the "movers" (2003, p. 21). Since 1987this trend has increased from 150,000 teachers peryear leaving the profession to more than 270,000(Ingresoll, 2000). Teachers see no end, and were itnot for the satisfaction of witnessing the occasionalstudent "ah ha," there would be no fulfillment at all.Apart from America not truly recognizing the impor-tance of education (in practice, if not in theory),there is the issue of the importance of teachers…whodedicate themselves to a thankless job. We need torecognize that American teachers make up some ofthe most educated professionals in the entire world. Ifwe truly want well-qualified teachers then we needto train them, nurture them, retain them, and demon-strate our respect for them, especially those who areeffective in what they do. Teaming is very useful. It isprobably the most important aspect of middle levelphilosophy. It is one of the most important compo-nents that clearly separate the middle school fromthe junior high school. Teachers with little time to planare like doctors with little time to keep up with newtreatments and medications. They might stayemployed but eventually become incompetent,impotent, or both. In high poverty schools the situa-tion is far worse with nearly fifty percent attrition rateswithin five years of entering the profession (Skandera& Sousa, 2003). These teachers are not quittingbecause they are not dedicated. They are quittingbecause they have been used up. If we want teach-ers to be professionals then we must treat them asprofessionals. If we do not, then we should stop com-plaining about the quality, or lack thereof, that ourstudents receive. It is the desire of this citizen that ourbest people become our best teachers.

✥ Have no more than 25 students in a core class.The time has come to accept what research has

been suggesting for years…smaller classes providemore personalized attention, more opportunities tolearn, greater academic achievement, and providesa lesser assembly line "factory-model" paradigm (Dar-ling-Hammond, 2002). ALL children can learn butNOT using the same mode of learning or beingexposed to the same teaching strategy. One sizedoes not fit all…but a more personal approach isneeded to be implemented to educate "one kid at atime" (Levine, 2002). No Child Left Behind (NCLB)seeks to redefine "average," progressively. Therefore,putting fewer students into a classroom might pro-vide the ability to design a greater educational "fit"for those students, raising expectation (beyond aim-ing for the average), and providing each studentwith a greater sense of esprit de corps (team-familyrelationship, so vitally important and needed by thisage group). All students have the potential to excel,if they are challenged, motivated, and have thecomponents in place that will meet their social anddevelopmental needs (Littky, 2004; Trimble, 2004;Levine, 2002). That does NOT mean coddling, asmany critics accuse, but it does mean recognizingand accommodating when and where necessary inorder to get the most productivity and scholastic

achievement from the student (Russo, 2005;Dphrepaulezz, 2001). For example, Manzo (2000)reported in Education Week that, "Experts say middleschools create curricula that is shallow, fragmented,and unchallenging." In my opinion...twenty-five is fartoo large of a classroom enrollment for a singleteacher to be expected to develop a nurturing andemotionally supportive classroom atmosphere, inwhich each and every student feels that theybelong. We are presently not making big improve-ments on the "big picture." We must realize that this isnot a matter of academics vs. developmentalappropriateness, it is about doing BOTH! Rigor andaccommodation are not options, they are standardrequirements. We cannot, and should not, waterdown the academics, nor should we, or can we,ignore the stage of development to adulthood thatthese students are experiencing. It is time that wetruly began thinking "outside of the box" and stop"boxing" pedagogy in by ridiculing those who arebrave enough to try new and innovative means ofeducating our youth (Ackerman, 2003; Lawrence,2004).

As our nation becomes more and more a pluralis-tic "salad-bowl" we must learn as educators that ALLchildren can learn, but ALL children do NOT learnbest in the same manner, fashion, time frame, style,mode, or at the same rate or asymptote of learning(Stitt-Gohdes, 2001; Sternberg, 1999). Preferred learn-ing styles do play a part in effective teaching andthis requires a closely examination (Brown, 2003;Miller, 2001). It is time that we take the research sug-gesting we work from a student’s natural strengths toimproving their areas of weakness (Becker & Maun-saiyat, 2004; Treagust, Duit, & Fraser, B. J., 1996;Piaget, 1929; Vygotsky, 1962). If middle level adoles-cents do not experience academic achievementand success before they leave the middle or juniorhigh school, then they probably will not ever experi-ence it. As one middle school student stated, "Every-one in the school knows what I can't do, absolutelyno one knows what I can do!" (as quoted in Baum,Cooper & Neu, 2001, p. 488). Only those whobecome "enlightened" because of some goal or pas-sion are ever going to pull themselves up by the"bootstraps," so to speak. I would aim to limit all class-es to 20 students per teacher (though I am NOT say-ing this is a magic number). Surpassing that figurerequires the teacher be given a teaching assistant inorder to improve the number of close relationshipopportunities that a student could encounter withanother adult.

✥ Have a minimum of two full computer labs with 40computer stations — classroom labs or wireless lap-tops — in addition to labs used in regular curriculum.

This is a positive gesture to increase the numberof opportunities to utilize technology; however, it fallsshort of implementing and integrating technology inthe classroom. I recall as a classroom teacher tryingto schedule lab times for my classes. Most teacherswill agree that when one needs the computer lab it

cannot be utilized for scheduling problems…or thatsome teachers use the lab far more than others.What we truly need is not more labs. Labs either sitdormant at times or are overbooked. They do notprovide those opportunities when questions and"teaching moments" occur in the classroom whenhaving access to the Information Highway wouldprove not only to be a valuable resource, but onethat would motivate students and provide an appli-cation for the concepts which they are learning atthe moment. With the proposed 20 students perclassroom…there should be adequate terminals,desktops, laptops, or notebook computers availableat least for every two students. That is ten computersper classroom. That would be a minimum to ade-quately permit the "natural" interaction and integra-tion of classroom lessons and students’ questions.Such an arrangement would at least enable ateacher to put one-half of their students at work onthe computers for various projects and activitieswhile engaging the other half in further learningopportunities.

The computer industry, which has the most togain from integration of technology in classrooms,needs to provide us with more competitive pricingfor equipment. They provide "discounts," but the truthis they could be much more accommodating withtheir profit margins from educators. Regardless, wemust "think outside the box" and provide studentswith the newest technological training so as not toleave them behind. This, of course, almost meansthat we are going to have to do more in the way ofprofessional development to equip our teachers withthe raw and the integrative skills to utilize technologyin the classroom. The day may come when we mayneed to hire some of our own savvy-tech students toteach their peers or their teachers how to use thetechnology.

✥ Have a maximum school size of 900 students andinclude space for teaming and collaboration.

According to Lawrence, Bingler, Diamond, et al.,(2002) noted that, "Since 1940 the size of the averageU.S. school district has risen from 217 to 2,627 [stu-dents], and the size of the average school has risenfrom 127 to 653" (p. 3). Approximately 70 percent ofstudents attend schools enrolling 1,500 students ormore; nearly 50 percent attend schools where enroll-ment is greater than 1,500 students (Skandera &Sousa, 2003, p. 24). It, however, in my humble opinionis nothing close to adequate. Our factory-modelschools were inherited from the industrial revolution.They served us well in the early days of such growth;however, they too had their short-comings. Today,we live in a new era. In our quick-fix "microwave"society, it has been reported that information is nowdoubling every year and a half (The Problem, n.d.),whereas the Internet’s capacity to carry informationis doubling every 90 days (Giles, 2002). Giles alsonoted that early into 2002 the number of documentson-line that could be indexed exceeded one billion.With such an information explosion and our 200 year

American tradition of providing every child with a"free" education (K-12), our system of education isstretched as never before experienced.

The larger the school the less personal that schoolbecomes. Granted, there are schools that combatthis with programs that promote "schools-within-schools," but for the most part the average studentfeels very isolated and unknown in a school of 2000pupils, or even 1000. Teachers have many of thesame feelings in such a situation. Nine hundredattendees in a school might be an improvement; it isnot, however, ideal for making the changes we trulyneed in our country to improve the quality of educa-tion on a larger scale. School size, according to theNational Center for Educational Statistics (2003), hasa positive relationship with such factors as: percent-age of teachers reporting apathy, tardiness, absen-teeism, dropping out, and drug use among studentsin their schools (p. 60). Schools tend to be larger dueto two simple reasons. The first should be questioned,whereas, the second is commendable though prob-ably not nearly as utilized as some critics mightargue. The main reason that schools are so large isthat we think we are saving money by consolidating(Lawrence, Bingler, Diamond, et al., 2002). Lawrence,Bingler, Diamond, et al. (2002) propose that whencalculated on a cost per graduate, small schools areless expensive than medium-sized or large highschools. Others educational researchers have indi-cated that the cost factors differences between larg-er and smaller schools were too small to be the mostimportant variable (Gregory, 2000). Still further studiesconsider larger schools costing more but being worththe difference (Bailey, 2000). Consolidating soundsvery promising…until one consolidates; then it cre-ates a completely new set of problems. The muchquoted Violence and Discipline Problems in U.S. Pub-lic Schools: 1996-97 (1998) revealed that when com-paring small schools (less than 300) and big schools(1,000 or more), big schools have:

• 825 percent more violent crime• 270 percent more vandalism• 378 percent more theft and larceny• 394 percent more physical fights or attacks• 3,200 percent more robberies• 1,000 percent more weapons incidents

Those who have consolidated their debts maynow find that they are not better off for they havecontinued their spending habits and as a result theyhave even more debt and more problems. The Unit-ed Kingdom reported in 2001 that the larger a schoolbecomes the less money that is actually saved (LocalGovernment, p. 75). Consolidating schools seems tobe a common sense strategy for raising the numberof students served but for a smaller dollar figure(fewer buildings, fewer teachers, fewer administra-tors, fewer support people, fewer uti l itybills…fewer…fewer…oh, and less "personal touch)."Futurists have pointed out the effects of increasedtechnology on society with the concept of "hightech/high touch" (Nesbitt, Nesbitt, & Philips, 1999).

Without arguing this contrast it suffices to say that insummation the more high tech we become the lesshigh touch results (indicating the personable aspectsof humanity). As we increase in "high tech" we mustseek to improve and increase our strategy toimprove "high touch." This lacking of "high touch," inmy opinion, is the downfall of our consolidating strat-egy of US schools resulting in the creation of mega-schools. The second argument, and a commendableone, is that of increasing the number of courses andvarious programs that could be administered in alarger student body. These additional benefits are uti-lized by a very small percentage of students in anygiven mega-school. In some sense, the upper elitewill benefit the most. Many of those "extra" coursesthat are provided due to having a larger studentbody are courses in not offered to "average" or"below average" students.

There is no secret number for the "ideal" size of astudent body; however, nine hundred students in aschool is still an industrial assembly line factory-modelpractice and one that I believe is very inefficient andineffective for educating the general multiculturalstudent population in our country. Lawrence, Bingler,Diamond, et al. (2002) have suggested that mega-schools are not as economically expedient as wemight be led to believe. Bigger just might not be bet-ter, and it might not be "cheaper," either. If, for exam-ple, a mega-school of 1500 has serious problems withthe dropout rate or diminishing numbers of studentsshowing progress on standardized tests, then oneshould question whether there are causative or cor-relational effects that are unique to mega-schools.Sizer (1984) recommends schools of 400 are the mostfavorable when once considers the ability to changeand adapt, especially regarding matters of curricu-lum. Skandera and Sousa (2003, p. 60, #27) consider"small" schools to be that of 300-400 students in theelementary level and 400-800 in the secondary level.Gregory (2000) and Cotton (1996), respectively,reported that student achievement was best servedby elementary school enrollments of 300-400 studentsand that 400-800 students is appropriate for a sec-ondary school (7-8).

From experience in schools of various sizes, I sug-gest that a school of 500 or 600 would be able tomeet the academic needs of their students and pro-vide a rigorous AND developmentally appropriateprogram for students during the adolescent years, aswell as being financially feasible. The original impetusfor the middle school movement was the concept ofdevelopmental appropriateness, seeking to becomemore personable, and finally to provide a rigorousacademic program (Kinney, 2003; Manzo, 2000).

A smaller school, like the proverbial smaller pond,allows the average student to feel more a part of theeducational family and team. Skandera and Sousa(2003, p. 22) noted that "small schools are superior tolarge schools on most measures and equal to themon the rest. Small schools provide teachers withgreater influence, more personal time, and moreopportunities to positively interact with each of their

students…granted the class sizes are adequatelysized, as previous discussed (What Are Small Schools,n.d.). Smaller classes and smaller schools could bejust as economically vibrant as the mega-schools, ifthey are able to meet the scholastic and the sup-portive needs of their students…and would be moreproductive if they better prepared students for highschool and beyond. In other words, we may find thatthe old adage to be true, "You get what you pay for,"when comparing the mega-school to the smaller;namely, a more personable school. Wing (2003) sug-gests that there is evidence that smaller schools pro-vide twelve worthwhile benefits over large schools.These include:

1) Graduate more students2) Cost less per graduate3) Save on management4) Provide more funding for classrooms5) Save on facilities maintenance, security and

vandalism abatement6) Recover funds through higher attendance

and lower dropout rates7) Reducing teacher absenteeism and turnover 8) Facilities cost less to build 9) Provide cost-effective operation

10) More flexible use of facilities 11) Can recapture a greater "market share"

of students and revenues12) Saving taxpayer dollars and strengthening

the economy

The dilemma faced in the United States is themulticultural changes in our country’s demographics,accompanied by the rapid changes in and causedby technology, are ushering America into the Infor-mation Age at breakneck speeds causing the systemto buckle under a very different America than that ofthe era of the American Industrialization. We will notsucceed in excellence if we continue to put our stu-dents through the assembly line programs of theaverage American factory-model school. We mustlearn to be more flexible, to think outside the box,and to think of what "might be," and not just "what is."We must recognize that ALL students do not learnbest in the same manner or at the same pace. Wetruly need to be more individualized in our approachand recognize that education is not just important, itis vital (Littky, 2004; Levine, 2002). This obviously can-not be accomplished in large mega-schools. If wefail to provide our youth with the needed skills andtraining, our nation will erode in its influence, itspower, and its stability. We must recognize differ-ences of the various cultures within our borders, andprovide a rigorous and (semi-) personalize approachto help ALL students to reach their maximum poten-tial. A variety of schools are needed to meet thisneed. The mega-school may work for some stu-dents…it will not work for all. Variety is not just thespice of life…it may be the key to success in educat-ing a nation’s population. We need all types ofschools to accommodate all types of students. Small-er schools can meet more of the demands, respondmore quickly to the changes, and can help students

to "fit in" by providing personal, dynamic and sup-portive strategies. The rewards will benefit all Ameri-cans…not just the upper society.

✥ Provide ways for students to have meaningfulconnections with adults.

Many students do not see the relevance of edu-cation and they do not sense they that those in thesystem care very much for them. They have becomea non-personal number. There are pockets of educa-tors out in the field making a difference in the lives oftheir students. They are bridge-builders. They seek toprovide the students with positive interaction. Theymodel how one can act and contribute andbecome excited over learning. They seek to reachout to the families, not something that traditionaleducation has done very successfully. There aremany plans and many strategies being tried by thoseon the cutting edge.

The key is that programs are established in orderto meet the needs of a particular school or district.There is no silver bullet and there is not quick fix. Whatworks in Pagoda might not work in Osceola. Educa-tors need to evaluate their own situations and designresearch-based decisions to alleviate the problemareas. Building bridges is going to have to be anacceptable responsibility of all teachers. One’s rela-tionship, especially with adolescence, will prove tobe vital in facilitating student learning and achieve-ment. If I think you care about me I will want to workhard and will want to please you. Like any other per-son, students want others to recognize them and tobe proud of their accomplishments. This leads us fullcircle back to the reason which most consolidationmeasures only increase or exaggerate the problemsof student alienation and disenfranchisement. Foryears educators have said that every student needsat least one person (teacher) whom they feel knowsthem well. We have said it but we have done little inthe way of seeing it come to pass. We need toreconsider how we are working, or overworking, ourteachers in areas of less importance. We need tofree up more time for the personal interaction andbridge building if we truly believe that mentoring andcaring are vital components to helping studentbecome well rounded and life-long learners. Thisconcept is not different in principle than what we saywhen regarding the importance of the home, home-life, and support from the home. Time spent is timeinvested. Our generation of latchkey children needsour time and attention and if they do not get thisfrom school, they might not get it at all. They arebecoming more violent, islands of isolation, or disen-franchised? That is a question we need to examine. Ifstudents disconnect from the values and goals ofwhich previous generations thrived how will theyconnect with the society in which they live? Schoolsneed to include measures to carry out plans to pro-vide meaningful connections with teachers, thecommunity, and a means of linking theory to prac-tice. Service-learning and community-based educa-tion will become more and more vital in providing

students with meaningful connections with adultsand life (Furco, 1996; Kahne, & Westheimer, 1996).

❖ Provide academic, exploratory and extracurricularenrichment programs that are fully funded.

Exploration and extracurricular classes are part ofthe middle school concept. I, however, am seeingstudents being set up for future failure by not beingenabled to read and compute simple mathematicsequations. I think we must prepare students to learn. Ibelieve we tend to see "black" or "white" on this issueand it really should be "grey." The coin has two sides.Education requires a student to be able to masterreading and comprehension and the longer it takesthem to do so, the less likely they will…and the morelikely they will never graduate at all. Many of ourclassroom discipline problems occur, not becausestudents are becoming worse in their behavior, butbecause their behavior is becoming worse in orderto hide (smoke screen) their lack of abilities in theclassroom. Students who cannot read and compre-hend will tend to act up in ways to take the spotlightoff of their inabilities by placing the spotlight on theirmisbehavior. In essence, misbehavior becomes aform of "save-face" and protects the students fromfeeling "dumb and dumber." In truth, it has little to dowith intelligence and everything to do with instruc-tion and the mastery of basic skills. We need to con-sider a program that provides students who have notmastered basic reading and computation with anintegrated type of exploratory and extracurricularenrichment in order to help them reach mastery ofthese skills.

For students who are not up to grade level inbasic skills need more than the traditional middleschool exploratory courses. Under such circum-stances, the typical exploratory course would be"icing on the cake" for struggling students. We doneed to realize that "cake" is cake whether it has theicing on it or not. It is the ingredients that make it acake not the icing. The cake sti l l taste l ikecake…though the icing is, hmm, good. Most of ourstudents would be very happy just to have a pieceof the educational cake. They need help in founda-tional skills like reading, writing, basic grammar, basicmathematics, thinking skills, and opportunities toapply what they learn to real life situations. Whycould exploratory or extracurricular activities not beintegrated and centered on making real life applica-tions to the concepts they learn? I would argue thatwe sometimes seek to give our students icing withoutthe cake. Not very nourishing and certainly not verybalanced in approach. Sure, we should provideextracurricular activities, but let us implement suchprograms that will assure that each student mastersthe basic piece of the educational cake beforereceiving the large spoonfuls of icing.

❖ Utilize data driven program evaluation processes.Data collection has become more important in

the last five years than ever before in the history ofAmerican education. The argument of teaching

being both an art and a science is slowly giving wayto the science of teaching. It is time that methods,strategies, and procedures be examined andassessed in an orderly and rigorous manner. To do sois to provide educators with a better "fit" with expect-ed results. Monitoring, assessing, and analyzing datawill more likely give us useful and "generalizable"data that can be used with specific populations ofstudents. Teaching, though not an exact science,can be improved upon and the most reliable way isto systematically assess, collect, analyze and to gen-eralize the data. I do not suggest or promote theconcept that one single government "approved"and operated data base for data-driven practices,which could prove to be misused and actually stifle[police] educational research rather than promote it.Collecting data for data’s sake is time-consumingand expensive and if not properly analyzed justbecomes another added duty to an already extend-ed teacher or administrator. Utilize data, but do notrestrict thinking and testing strategies that might beconsidered "outside the box."

❖ Provide ongoing professional development inmiddle-level philosophy and appropriate age-level teaching strategies within the contract day.

There is a need for teachers to understand theage/grade level of students whom they teach.Whether considering kindergarten, primary, middlelevel, or high school, teachers need to know theirclientele’s developmental, cognitive, and emotionaldynamics. Teaching requires one know and under-stand their students? Knowing "why" and "how" aretwo important factors in facilitating learning andachievement. Many middle level teachers are inter-ested and desire to learn more about their studentsin order to improve their pedagogy. We owe it to stu-dents and teachers to provide the proper trainingand professional development that allows teachersto keep up on the current research, as well as pro-vides a means of improving their own teaching skills.The interaction and the comparing and contrastingof shared experiences among seasoned educators insuch a course can provide for excellent discussions,brainstorming, and application to the general class-room. We need to practice more of this at the build-ing level. It is a fulfilling experience when I see teach-ers walk away with a positive attitude and an excite-ment that they understand more clearly why theirown students act and think as they do and how theycan improve student achievement. Providing on-going quality professional development is one key togetting teachers to respond and utilize the informa-tion to help their students become better learners.

❖ Ensure that teachers teach no more than twodifferent class subjects.

There is plenty of evidence that indicates that"out of field" teachers think and teach very differentlythan those well versed in the discipline. Novices lookat the pieces of a course or topic, whereas the spe-cialists look at the entire picture that includes the

pieces of the course. The expert sees how the factsmake up the concepts and how the concepts makeup the principles. A great teacher is one who hasmastered the principles of teaching for learning. Outof field teachers have not mastered these specifics,either content or processes. Placing teachers incourses in which they are not prepared to teach in isnot only poor pedagogy it is taking the chance thatstudents will fall behind their peers. We have a dilem-ma in this country; the best teachers tend to teachthe "best" students. Overextended teachers are notgoing to be the most productive and effectiveteachers. With the attrition rate for teachers beingfifty percent in the first seven years of teaching(National Commission, 2003; Skandera & Sousa, 2003)should cause us to want to consider the reasons oftraining great teachers and keeping them in the pro-fession. It is not fair to students, or to teachers, whenassigned too many preparations, and it should notbe allowed to assign them preps for which they arenot trained to teach. Hire the best teachers, thenworking on keeping them. Gordon (2003) reportedthat the expense of losing a first year teacher willcost a district approximately $12,000. The cost of los-ing a third year teacher could even reach $50,000(Gordon, 2003, p. 35). Preparation time is not a fringebenefit, it is a necessary and vital time of planning,grading, and creating…and some teachers neverever get "caught up." No wonder new teachersleave us and go into other professions. Our inductionprograms should help guard their time and requireless "busy" requirements than that of the seasonedveterans.

We truly have come a long way since the Ameri-can Industrial Revolution. On average, however, ourtraditional public system of education and schoolsare still reflection of the factory-model of educationwhere the product is stamped out on an assemblyline based almost exclusively on past homogeneity. Itis a "one size fits all" practice. The demographics andthe era of our nation, however, are very differentnow. Yesterday’s schools cannot meet the needs oftoday’s students. Today’s schools not those of yourparents, or even yours. Change is inevitable. As thelyrics of one song stated, the only thing that remainsthe same is change. The times have changed. As weare well into the Information Age we must adaptand adopt by incorporating a large number ofstrategies and a large repertoire in types of schoolsand programs so as to reach the largest number ofdiverse students within our borders. I drill my preser-vice teachers that they must realize that "any strate-gy overused loses its effectiveness." I would recom-mend that middle level teachers, administrators andeducators help us to think outside of the box and toprovide as many types of schools using many typesof strategies in order to reach many types of stu-dents, so that ALL students can learn.

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Harnessing the Call to Teach and Lead:What Future Teachers and Administrators

Are Telling UsJanis B. Fine and Jeffrey S. Winter

Jeffrey S. Winter, Ph.D., is an Asso-ciate Professor of Education atNational-Louis University inEvanston, IL. He teaches courses inteacher education and founda-tions of education and has pub-lished in the areas of mentorship,supervision, multicultural educa-tion, and leadership issues. He iscurrently working with the Associa-tion of Teacher Educators (ATE)online portfol io standards forteacher educators and a grantedresearch project on teacher deci-sion making.

Janis B. Fine is an Associate Professor in the program of SchoolAdministration and Supervision at Loyola University Chicago. Herareas of research center on the issues of social, commutative, anddistributive justice as they impact decision-making in school leader-ship. Serving as Director of Loyola’s School of Education Rome Pro-gram, she teaches courses in Rome, Italy, using the historic sites asthe "classroom" to discover the cultural components of WesternCivilization and through them, interpret fundamental issues at stakein current educational controversies.

AbstractThe decision work in schools often begins with a

call to do something that has a transcending pur-pose. This is what Palmer (1998) called an “inner jour-ney” which emerges from one’s deepest self. Ourpaper explores how one’s initial “call” to teach andlead, is embedded in many aspects of one’s visionfor their future vocation. We propose ways facultycan support the call and how it may help teachersand administrators gain and deepen satisfaction intheir work.

IntroductionWhen one decides to begin a career as a

teacher or school administrator, that individualapplies to, and then enters a formal program leadingto certification or endorsement in the area sought.The college or university program offers courses andprofessional experiences designed to help candi-dates acquire the knowledge, skills, and dispositionsnecessary to begin and succeed in their chosenvocation. The future professional is called, and theuniversity provides the landscape necessary to findand express the voice of what Palmer (1998) called"the teacher within" or what might be termed the"leader within".

Unfortunately, while candidates may begin theirprofessional sequences with the best of intentionsand enjoy high quality courses, the working worldthat awaits them is for many a reality jolt that drivesthem from their chosen career. Today’s statistics showthat many who enter the world of education rapidlyleave the field in which they anticipated spendingmany productive years. The attrition rate for teachersfor example, is about 15% in the first year, another15% in their second year, and an additional 10% intheir third year (Croasmun, Hampton, & Hermann,

1999). The picture for principals across the nation isalso cause for concern. In Illinois for example, over60% of elementary principals surveyed in 1998planned to retire at the earliest age allowed by thestate system. The attrition rate for Illinois administratorswith less than one year’s experience was 23% in 2001(Illinois Consortium for Education Leadership;2003).

While reasons for attrition are complex, many ofthe reasons are related to frustrations and difficultiesin dealing with unexpected or changing realities anddemands of today’s schools. Our goal in this paper isto explore how one’s initial motivation to work in edu-cation or what some term the "call" to teach andlead, is embedded in many aspects of a person’shopes and vision for their future vocation. We thenpropose ways faculty can support the call to teachand lead in order to help teachers and administra-tors deepen their satisfaction and remain committedto their work.

As professors who work with preservice teachersand administrators, our experience with studentsalong with a great deal of literature supports theidea that the decision to teach or lead in schoolsbegins for many with a call to do something that hasa transcending purpose. This road begins with whatPalmer (1998) calls an "inner journey" which emergesfrom one’s deepest self. Teaching and leading inschools are careers which are in many ways uniquein their power to touch the lives, thoughts, dreams,and the futures of others. Education has been knownsince ancient times to be central in its ability toshape the thoughts of individuals and to affect the

The authors wish to thank Dr. Jan Perney of National-Louis University for his generous help in preparing the

data charts for this article.

lives of untold numbers. We concur with Palmer thatthe rush to reform schools will be ineffective if it doesnot begin with understanding, cherishing, and chal-lenging the human heart. The intellectual, emotional,and spiritual landscape all provide anchors to thework of those who toil in schools. Understanding, sup-porting, and embracing the call to teach and tolead can be the force which supports educators dur-ing times of stress, and ultimately work to help practi-tioners heal, strengthen and continue to embracethe vision that will continue to guide them along theirchosen path.

Goals:Our goals in this paper are to:1. Present an overview and background regard-

ing personal factors which compel people tobecome school teachers and leaders.

2. Present a summary of what was learned fromcandidates in preservice programs for teach-ers and administrators regarding their call towork in education.

3. Propose ways faculty can enhance programsby supporting the personal or inner journey ofcandidates.

4. Offer examples of classroom based activitieswhich support the understanding andstrengthening of one’s call to teach and leadin schools.

BackgroundPreservice programs for school administrators

and teachers typically focus on issues of content,pedagogy, methodology, and practice, but fewdevote time to exploring ways to maintain and nur-ture the inner voice which called many to work inschools. In fact, for many the opposite may be true.People enter education with idealism, but as attritionrates cited earlier indicate, they often become disillu-sioned and leave the field. Current literature hasincluded the often ignored areas of calling, spirituali-ty, and deeper aspects of personal growth which formany are at the foundation of why they enter anddecide whether or not to stay in education.

The search for personal satisfaction through workwas the focus of a recent issue of "The School Admin-istrator" (Kessler,2002). Authors explored the issue ofpersonal fulfillment and spirituality among educators,calling it the "third dimension beyond thinking anddoing". Deepak Chopra and Michael Fullan discussspiritual ideas which drive school leaders. They andothers recommend ways for principals to find a senseof purpose, calm, caring, and gratitude during timesof turbulence and difficulty. Kessler describes gate-ways to the soul in education, including the explo-ration of silence, finding deep meaning, purpose, joy,creativity, transcendence, and deep connection.This framework explores ways in which "respectfulpractices can be integrated into classrooms to honorthese gateways to the soul of students" (p.22). A companion text to "The Courage to Teach (Palmer,1998) titled Stories of The Courage to Teach (2002)

states in the forward:"Teaching is a calling, a vocation that requires

constant renewal of the mind, heart, and spirit.Teachers come to the profession inspired by a pas-sion to help others learn. They are drawn to educa-tion by an ethic of service and a mission to make adifference in the world. Good teachers care, andthey keep finding ways to connect with students.Despite working in a system that often leaves themfeeling exhausted, depleted, and vulnerable, theydo not check their hearts at the door".

DataTeaching and administrating schools involve pro-

fessional and personal dimensions. Palmer (1998) dis-cusses the vulnerability of teaching because it takesplace at the "dangerous intersection of personal andpublic life" (p.17). This causes a distancing of teacherfrom student (and perhaps principal from teacher)that minimizes the danger, but causes a self protec-tive split. He suggests that remembering the identityand integrity of the wholeness of our lives is a criticalstep in rediscovering the place in our heart whichcompels our vision.

In order to better understand the ideas andthoughts of preservice candidates on the issue ofcalling and related issues, we prepared and adminis-tered a questionnaire. Our survey was designed tohelp understand how candidates consider their call-ing and allow us to explore how this affects personaldimensions of their vocations.

Responses were coded, summarized, and ana-lyzed for alignment with three larger themes thatemerged from the literature. Each area is defined,discussed and explained by using responses by pre-service teachers and administrators, and questions.Questions such as the ones we used as well as othersupporting activit ies can begin a process toenhance and support the calling and commitmentto teach and to lead. This kind of reflective engage-ment on issues of calling can become beginningsteps for transforming preservice preparation intoplaces to discover (or rediscover) the inner voiceand life experiences which fueled the desire toteach and lead in schools.

Questionnaires were given to undergraduateteacher candidates as they began their senior yearpracticum sequence. Administrator/school leadercandidates were in their final course work for gradu-ate degrees leading to state principal and superin-tendent endorsement.

Following are questions along with thematic cat-egories which emerged, response percentages fromthose categories, a set of sample responses and sug-gestions for further reflective questions.

Themes of CallingPeople choose to teach for "reasons of the

heart," according to Palmer (1998). We begin with anoverview of three themes identified by current litera-ture that address issues of calling and personal com-mitment. These themes are:

• Individual/Personal• Community• Mentorship

Personal/IndividualThe decision to teach begins with the individual

and has often been described as deciding notmerely to do a "job" but rather as a "calling" (Serow,1994). According to Serow, a calling:

"…signifies a high degree of commitment to aspecific position, to which the incumbent sees herselfor himself specifically drawn. Those who are called,therefore, would not merely discover a field thatwould be an appropriate match for their talents;rather, they would be convinced that their line ofwork uniquely lends meaning or wholeness to theirlives (p.65)."

The language of calling originated with religiousovertones in medieval Christianity; however the sec-ularization of much language and culture has loos-ened the religious underpinnings and retained thespecial linkage between the teacher’s work and hisor her innermost self (Serow, 1994). Both quantitativeand qualitative results indicated in Serow’s study that"the sense of being called to teach exercises a far-reaching influence on the formation of preprofes-sional self identity."

The idea that individuals are called to teach isshared by many future teachers. A study of preser-vice teachers by Whitbeck (2000) showed a majorityof candidates viewing teaching as a calling, andindicated that this affected their impressions, beliefsand other areas they felt they needed to learn inorder to be successful teachers.

John Neafsey (2003) suggests how one may usea variety of dimensions associated with key themesfor deepening a person’s understanding about one’scalling in life. According to Neafsey:

"It is assumed that a genuine sense of personal call-ing can be experienced by anyone, regardless of hisor her religious background or current religious prac-tice. It could be said that each and every humanperson has a vocation, and that all of us, whether ornot we are aware of it or respond to it, have thepotential to hear and follow a personal calling in ourown lives (italics in original).

The call to teach is described by Palmer (1998)as the voice within that speaks to identity and integri-ty. The call helps one understand what fits, whatgives a person life and reminds a person of their innertruth. He explains the importance of listening to thatvoice:

"We need to find every possible way to listen to thatvoice and take its counsel seriously, not only for thesake of our work but for the sake of our own healthas well. If someone in the outer world is trying to tellus something important and we ignore his or herpresence, the person either gives up and stopsspeaking or becomes more and more violent inattempting to get our attention" (p.32)

In discussing ways in which school settings cannourish the spirit and soul within, Miller (2000) explains:"Love and work are essential to our well-being andour souls. We need to approach both with attention,presence, and a sense of mystery.…Bringing soulback to our love and work can allow us to approachboth of these essential elements in a manner thatcan bring wonder, joy, and deeper feeling into ourlives" (p.45).

Why do teachers continue to teach? With somany reasons to leave the profession, what do weknow about those who keep working at it? A studyby Nieto (2003) explores several factors. Inquirygroups often used the word "love" to describe howthey felt about their students and the subject matterthey teach. Love of teaching is perhaps the mostfundamental element in sustaining a call to teach. Itis seen in how teachers trust and admire students,their expectations for achievement, and affirmingtheir students’ identities (p. 16).

Roland Barth (2001) extends this discussion to therole that the school leader plays in fostering an envi-ronment in which the re-discovery of the spiritualoccurs. Implying that an important part of the workas school principals is to facilitate dreams, he states:

School can become quite arid, unimaginative,and routinized organizations that provide youngstersand grown-ups alike an uninspired and uninspiringdiet. Each of us entered the work with a magical,even spiritual sense of wonder-wonder about the uni-verse, about ourselves, about those around us. Wewere blessed with the poetry of life. Somehow, overthe years, that precious sense of wonder is neglect-ed, abused, devalued, or extinguished within thefamily, the neighborhood, the school, or the work-place. Fortunately, for all of us the embers of wondercontinue to burn beneath the surface. Just as asense of wonder can provoke learning, so too canlearning fan these coals and restore our sense ofwonder (p.156).

In speaking to the principal about the need forthe school leader to engage in personal reflection,Barth (2001) likens the school to a ballroom floorwhere the principal dances in the midst of it all. Hecalls for the crucial need to find moments to ascendto the balcony and observe and reflect on what ishappening below. He explains that by ascending tothe balcony, talking with one another in conversa-tion, by telling stories, by walking, by allowing them-selves to be consumed by a sense of wonder, princi-pals reflect on their practice and allow themselves tobe consumed by a sense of wonder.

The reflective practitioner, according to Barth, isabove all, a learning practitioner. Yet, he finds thatmost programs for principal learning are targeted forprofessional development—development of skills ofevaluation, budget, and curriculum. He laments thatunfortunately ruled out is support, encouragement,and acknowledgement of the principal’s personaldevelopment which might include capacities toexpress feelings, to be vulnerable, to take risks, andto trust. In describing how learning is holistic, Barthstates:

"As learners, we are not bifurcated into two neathemispheres, one called professional, one calledpersonal. To the contrary, learning is holistic. Each ofus comes in one package. I believe that until weacknowledge and honor a large element of person-al growth in our learning activities there won’t bemuch professional growth." (p.160)

Parker Palmer, in The Heart of Learning affirmsthat today’s schools foster a "systematic disconnec-tion of self from the world, self from others." (1999p.19). In discussing what is needed to transformschools, he explains that in the midst of all the currenttrappings of education today—the competition,facts, obsession with credentials, that we should seeka way of working illumined by spirit and infused withthe soul. According to Palmer, "Attention to the innerlife is not romanticism. It involves the real work, and itis what is desperately needed in so many sectors ofAmerican education" (p.16). Palmer asks that wereclaim the sacred which is at the heart of knowing,teaching, and learning.

Through connecting with our inner selves as ameans to personal growth, perhaps all school per-sonnel can find their "inner voice." John Neafsey(2003) refers to this as someone or something thatspeaks to our hearts in a compelling way that callsfor us to listen and follow. By so doing, we connectwith the earliest meanings of the word vocation, theexperience of hearing and following a call or voice.How do we connect with our inner voice? He sug-gests posing the following questions:

• Have you ever had a life experience thatseemed to "speak" to you about your lifedirection?

• What do you believe was the message?

Accordingly, activities which encourage reflec-tion on personal voices are experienced in complexand individual ways. For instance, one’s vocationmay be a means of dedicating one’s professionalefforts toward fulfilling a worthy dream for repairingproblems of the world, or transforming the world to abetter reality. Neafsey calls this "The quest for a wor-thy dream". Through intuitive understanding and per-haps spiritual inspiration, one may educate in orderto bring values, ideals, and aspirations to others.

Topics Nefsey suggests exploring include:

• The role of schools in one’s dream of an idealworld.

• What values are most important in one’s life.• How working in schools can be a means to

realize personal dreams.• How to nurture a collaborative learning envi-

ronment which supports one’s talents.• How to remember that each challenge is part

of a calling. • What personal activities are sources of person-

al renewal and how they can be part of aperson’s routine.

• Discovering which people support a sense ofrenewal and calling.

• How one’s authentic self can be brought forthin one’s work.

Findings from Future Teachers and School LeadersSurvey questions were presented to groups of futureteachers and administrators. Following includes datacharts, sample responses, and discussion. For eacharea the N=21 for T (Teachers) and N=21 for L (Lead-ers). Questions 1 and 2 are related to the themes ofIndividual/Personal aspects of calling.

Question 1: When did you first have the call to be ateacher/leader?

Several significant similarities and differencesemerged from future teachers and leaders. In thearea of discovering one’s identity in youth and roleplaying as a school teacher is very strong for thefuture teachers and not for the administrators. Like-wise with the sense of personal fulfillment which ismuch more prevalent for teachers. There is no signifi-cant difference for self efficacy and discovery of thedesire to teach and lead as an adult. Here the futureteachers and administrators share similar reactions. Sample comments:Discovered identity in youth – role played "school".T (33%): I knew that I wanted to be a teacher since I

was a child. I loved helping others who needed helpwhen they were struggling.

Self efficacy – could make a difference and bringforth changeT (29%): When I was in high school, I had to struggle alot with my language barrier, and my teachers werevery helpful. I became inspired by them to follow intheir steps and change positively a student’s life.L(48%): When I noticed things were wrong/outdated/inappropriate and the current leaders were afraidto tackle the issues.

Discovered as an adult while parenting or in the actof "informal teaching/leadingT (29%) I have always done well on supplementingmy son’s instructions from school and teach himareas of interest. I also volunteer as a room parent.My son told me"mom, you’re good at what you’redoing, why not go back to school and get paid forit?". It took my son for me to realize I’m a goodteacher.

Teachers LeadersThemes ________ ________ Chi-square

N % N % Value p-level

Chart 1: First Call to be a Teacher . . .

Discovered identity in youth,role-played “school” 7 33 0 0 7.00 .008

Self-efficacy –could make a difference andbring forth change 6 29 10 48 1.00 .317

Discovered while an adultwhile parenting and in the actof “informal” teaching/leading 6 29 8 38 .28 .593

Knew it would give a senseof personal fulfullment 5 23 0 0 5.00 .025

L (38%): In my current position, I have found that inmany ways some of my responsibilities gave me tobe a leader of the special education team. There-fore, why not get the certificate so that I can be atrue school leader.

Knew that it would give a sense of personal fulfill-ment.T (23%): When I came back from South Americabeing a missionary for my church. I found out thatwhile I was teaching my beliefs, the people wouldreact in a way that made me happy and fulfilled.

CommentsClearly, important early and later life experiencesaffected career decisions. Candidates recalledchildhood events as well as adult encounters particu-larly as a parent, which drove them to embark on acareer where they could use their talents. Amongschool leaders, the desire to make a difference in thelives of others is an important driving force. Topics forreflection and activities might include:

• How is working in schools a means for you torealize your personal dreams?

• What kinds of personal activities are sources ofpersonal renewal and how can they be partof my routine?

• How is your authentic self brought forth in yourwork?

Question 2: For teacher candidates: What uniquequalities of your "inner self" (who you are) will you/doyou bring to a school? For future administrators: Is it important to bring your"inner self" to your role as a teacher/leader? Why orwhy not?

There appeared to be no significant differencesbetween teachers and leaders in this area with bothgroups showing much agreement. In the area of car-ing, understanding, patience, and sensitivity, therewere identical responses indicating shared under-standing of the priorities to be placed in this area.

Sample comments:Have an ability to make a difference – make thingsbetterT (38%): I am a very positive and outgoing personwho likes encouraging my students to overcomechallenges in life and providing them with tools whatwill last for life.

L (23%): My passion for bringing the best solution forthe most people to bear on any problem.

Caring, understanding, patience, sensitivityT (48%): Patience, excitement to learn from othersand succeed.L (48%): Caring, compassionate, team approach,passionate, fair.

Cultural IdentityT (9.5%): Being Mexican and proud of it. The culturaldifferences I’ve experienced growing up, the diversi-ty of a school is what would get me there.

Knowledge and experience:L (14%): I bring a wealth of knowledge from differentdistricts. I bring a sense of sensitivity to matters thatneed sensitive care.

Dedication:L (14%): Dedication, perseverance, intensity.

Comments: Future teachers and administrators seethemselves as caring and compassionate towardothers. They want to bring their personal qualities totheir schools and use these qualities to improveschools and society. This motivation apparentlycomes from within and can be a powerful factor inentering the profession. Faculty may want to consid-er the following questions for reflection and activities:

• Have you ever had a life experience thatseemed to "speak" to you about your life direc-tion? What do you believe was the message?

• What is the role of schools in your dream of anideal world?

• What values are most important to your life?

CommunityGrowth, commitment and change occur within

communities. Communities of students, colleagues,neighborhoods, and school communities can be are-nas of support and can sustain commitment to edu-cation. The earlier quoted study by Whitbeck (2000)found that teaching candidates who felt a sense ofcalling often display an elevated sense of self and oftheir value to society. Nurturing this value may be anavenue for teachers to emphasize the importance ofsocial justice and equity in their curriculum and class-room activities.

In Nieto’s (2003) discussion on why some teacherscontinue in the classroom and what sustains them,the area of how they care about social justice is apowerful motivator. Teachers explain how their per-sonal identity is threaded throughout their teachingthrough their involvement with movements outsideeducation for social justice (civi l r ights, anti-apartheid) and inside education (bilingual educa-tion, multicultural education). These commitmentshelped drive teachers to maintain their dedicationand commitment.

Palmer (1991), in his essay, The Grace of GreatThings: Reclaiming the Sacred in Knowing, Teachingand Learning, refers to education as a life-givingpower. He claims that education is about healingand wholeness, and that in its ability to empower, lib-



Chart 2: Unique Qualities You Bring to a School . . .

Have an ability to make adifference – make things better 8 38 5 23 .69 .405

Caring, understanding,patience, sensitivity 10 48 10 48 0.00 1.000

Cultural identity 2 10 0 0 2.00 .157

Knowledge and experience 0 0 3 14 3.00 .083

Dedication 0 0 3 14 3.00 .083

erate and transcend, it, in fact, renews the vitality oflife. He further posits that as we use education to findand claim ourselves and our place in the world, that,in fact, we reclaim the sacred at the heart of know-ing. In so doing, according to Palmer (1991), wereclaim education from a mode of knowing thathonors only data, logic, and analysis, and an unfortu-nate disconnect of self from the world, self from oth-ers. To recover our sense of the sacred in knowing,teaching and learning, would be the key to recover-ing our sense of the otherness of the world—the pre-cious otherness of the things of the world. Palmerconcludes that in this recovery of the sacred we thenrecover our sense of community with each other–our sense of connective capacity to connect withstudents, and to the subjects being covered.

Palmer (1991) extends this discussion with thenotion that when individuals who feel very isolated inthe midst of their culture can become "in touch" withthis life-giving power, they become catalysts for pow-erful movements. He cites Rosa Parks and NelsonMandela as among those who uncovered theirsacredness to discover their inner truths, and then ledcommunities of other like-minded individuals. Thecommunity would be built among those who wouldmake the fundamental decision to act and speak onthe outside in ways consonant with the truth weknow on the inside.

Neafsey (2003) believes that perhaps the highestcalling is to become an ever-more compassionateand just human being in an unjust, often heartlessworld. Parks and Mandela demonstrated whatNeafsey refers to as the capacity to feel pained byinjustice in the world and particularly the capacity todo something about it –as the "awakening from thesleep of inhumanity." This sense of community, ignitedby the compassion which sensitizes us to the plight ofothers, and moving us out of indifference, thenmakes us conscious of unjust systems, ideologies, andforces that produce injustices in the first place.

Question 3: Is it important to bring your "inner self" toyour role as a teacher/leader? Why or why not?

Questions 3 and 4 relate to the area of commu-nity. Responses to the question about whether it isimportant to bring qualities of one’s inner self brought21 "yes" responses from both groups showing full

agreement regarding the importance of this area.There was significant difference in this area as teach-ers ssee themselves as harnessing their inner selves asa source of passion and enjoyment in their class-rooms at a higher rate than administrators. Sample responses:

Allows you to bring various personal qualities that willallow you to be more effectiveT: (52%) Yes, because you can be more successfulwith children if you use your own qualities.L: (52%) Yes –people connect and follow the innerself of a person. Fundamentally, if people can relateto the core values of their leader- they will be able todo more and will feel fulfilled.

You will teach/lead "who you are" and be authenticT: (28%) I think it is important to bring my inner self tomy role as a teacher. This is who I am and what andwho I am is very important and no one can changethat. This is what makes every teacher very unique.The good person that I am on the inside shines aswell as on the outside.

Serves as source of self-inspirationT: (14%) Yes, if you don’t bring your "inner self" to yourrole as a teacher, you’ll get bummed out easily, lackof motivation will creep in, resentment follows untilyou won’t be an effective teacher anymore, orworse, hate yourself for it.

Bringing your inner self ignites passion, enjoyment,comfort in the class/school.T: (28%) Yes, I feel it is very important for a teacher tobring his/her "inner self" into the classroom becausethat’s what the teacher is passionate about.

Sustains meL: (14%) It’s crucial; you can’t hide who you are in arole that is as stressful as it is. Yet sometimes you haveto take the other perspective into consideration butyou must remain true to your inner self or burn out.

Question 4: What should school leaders/colleaguesdo to allow you to bring your "inner self" to a learningcommunity?

A significant difference here between teachersand administrators is the desire for teachers to wantautonomy in the classroom while leaders empha-sized the need for an open, non-judgmental environ-ment.



Chart 3: Importance of “Inner-Self” . . .

Allow you to bring variouspersonal qualities that will allowyou to be more effective 11 52 11 52 0.00 1.000

You will teach/lead “who youare” and be authentic 6 28 9 42 .60 .439

Serves as source ofself-inspiration 3 0 0 0 3.00 .080

Bringing your inner-self ignitespassion, enjoyment, comfortin the class/school 6 28 0 0 6.00 .014

Sustains me 0 0 3 0 3.00 .080



Chart 4: What Should School Leaders/CollaguesDo to Allow You . . .

Allow for autonomy in theclassroom expressed throughcurriculum, methods, decor,and style 12 57 0 0 12.00 .0005

Provide a school culture whichis open, non-judgmental,trusting, and honors differentviewpoints 5 23 16 76 5.76 .016

Sample responses:Allow for autonomy in the classroom expressedthrough curriculum, methods, décor, and style.T: (57%) Be open to creativity and allow not only mebut also other teachers the abil ity to use theirstrongest qualities into their work.

Provide a school culture which is open, non-judge-mental, trusting and honors different viewpoints.T: 23%) Just be accepting of each other and alloweach other to be themselves and not to judge any-one.L: (76%) Openness for collaboration and communica-tion.

Comments: Future teachers and administratorswant to bring qualities of their inner self to their voca-tion. They agree that it would increase their effective-ness and help connect with others. It is the relation-ship between their passion to succeed and who theyare that motivates and inspires. Teachers were con-cerned with being able to work in an environmentwhich was open and non-judgmental. They want tocollaborate with others and be accepted as theystrive for success.

Implications for the preservice classroom: Guid-ing questions for reflection and activities:

• As schools are agents of social change, whenwas the last time you were moved by theneeds of another person/group of people?

• Have you ever experienced a "wake-up call" topain/injustice in the school setting? If so, whatfeelings were stirred in you, and what did youdo about them?

• How can personal and collegial interactionbecome safe places for exploration andgrowth.

Neafsey (2003) discusses the call of service wheregenuine callings are characterized by a sense ofsocial responsibility and generosity (p.10). He sug-gests discussion of the following:

• How can personal and collegial interactioncan become safe places for exploration andgrowth?

• What will you do to sustain a learning commu-nity which supports your calling?

• How can your talents and gifts be put to use tomake the world a better place?

• Do you naturally identify or sympathize with thesufferings or aspirations of any particular kindsof people? Is there any group you are drawnto help?

• Where do your "deep gladness" and the"world’s deep hunger" meet?

MentorshipMuch has been written about the need for

greater attention to mentoring of teachers andadministrators. Attributes that have been used todescribe mentors include trusted guide, counselor,teacher, confidant, role model, sponsor, change-facilitator, coach, protector, and leader (Gold; 1996,

p.572). Mentoring is viewed as a powerful means toimprove quality and retention of new teachers (Dar-ling-Hammond & McLaughlin, 1996).

Through field experiences, preservice teachershave an early opportunity to develop amentor/mentee relationship, and explore ways tolook to mentors as an important support componentin the call to teach and lead. This area has beenexplored in professional literature in a variety of ways.Some suggest the cooperating teacher providesmentoring which may be the most important factorin impacting preservice teaching candidates(Tabachnik & Zeichner; 1984, Enz & Cook; 1991). Aproject described by Moir and Bloom (1996) assistsmentors through training, coaching, and observa-tion. Training allows high degrees of effectiveness inworking to help classroom teachers work in whatthey perceive as a supportive school culture. Moirand Bloom (1996) state: "We have found that men-toring offers veteran teachers professional replenish-ment, contributes to the retention of the region’sbest teachers, and produces teacher leaders withthe skills and passion to make lifelong teacher devel-opment central to school culture" (p.58).

The importance of mentors in sustaining the callto teach has been cited in other studies as well.Nieto (2003) discovered that teachers who remainedcommitted to teach found themselves sustained byothers including "colleagues to whom they couldturn for support".

Candidates will have opportunities to discoverand act on needs to mentor and be supported bymentors. Questions of the relationship of mentors andthe role of mentorship as response to the needs ofothers will be considered. Students will explore theroles of trust, perspective, comfort, and fear in theprocess of growth.

There is a need to bring what Barth (2001) callsthe "wisdom of experience." to the field of leader-ship. He explains that while new educators bringenergy, hope, and new ideas to the profession, it isthe veterans who carry an abundance of craftknowledge. Mentorship, in this sense, calls for veteranteachers and leaders to share what is typically lost:

"Next June, in almost every school in the nation,teachers and administrators will retire, leave the pro-fession forever. And when they walk out the school-house door for the final time, they will carry withthem an enormous collection of experiences, andlearnings from those experiences. They will beloaded to the gunwale with craft knowledge which,henceforth, will be forever lost to the school, to theircolleagues, and to the profession. In this way, craftknowledge, continually bled off from our schools,taken to the grave---unappreciated, unwelcome,unrevealed, and unused. What a tragic loss to theprofession, to the professionals, and to the cause ofschool reform. (p.60)

Sergiovanni, in The Lifeworld of Leadership (2000)utilizes the theoretical framework developed by Ger-man philosopher, Jurgen Habermas to describe twodimensions that exist in any organization; a "lifeworld"

and a "systemsworld". Sergiovanni asserts that lead-ers and their purposes, followers and their needs, andthe unique tradition, rituals, and norms that define aschool’s culture compose the lifeworld of the school.On the other hand, the management designs, proto-cols, policies and practices, and efficiency andaccountability composed the systemsworld of theschool. Sergiovanni contends that, "school characterflourishes when the lifeworld is the generative forcefor determining the systemsworld, and that schoolcharacter erodes when the systemsworld is the gen-erative force for determining the lifeworld." (p.ix)

The community, then, according to Sergiovanni,is the heart of a school’s lifeworld. It is where mentorsengage with mentees about craft knowledge as wellas common ideals and dreams. He discusses thatcommunities require that people come together toshare common commitments, ideas, and values anduse this core of ideas as the source of authority forwhat they do. He contends that because communi-ties are organized around relationships and ideas,they are defined by centers of values, sentiments,and beliefs that provide the needed conditions forcreating a sense of "we" from the "I" of each individ-ual.

Neafsey (2003) refers to this formative and trans-formative influence one can have on another’s lifeas a way of "helping others recognize their dreams."Serving as a role model or mentor, such people asParks and Mandela perhaps helped others to, asNeafsey says, identify the beginning of their own call-ing, and then to further encourage them to follow it.This kind of mentorship is the formative influence onewould have on another in helping to determine,"What is my life trying to do with me?" Questions foreducational leaders to explore this area would be:

• Are there people whom you have influencedto be the persons they have become?

• Are there particular events or experiences thatcome to mind in which you believe youimpacted the way a person’s life unfolded?

Preparatory components for future teachers andadministrators can help guide them in ways to moredeeply understand what to look for in a mentor andhow to sustain this relationship. Neafsey suggestsexploring the following questions and topics:

• What are the talents you bring to schools andhow might they be experienced by studentsand teachers?

• Who have your role models been and whatqualities made them mentors?

• How do you affirm the talents of others andhow do you discuss this with them?

• How would you tell a colleague about an areaof weakness you have seen or heard about?

• What are differences between mentor, friend,and colleague?

Mentorship5. Describe the qualities which should be demon-strated by those who mentor teachers/school lead-ers.

Questions 5 and 6 address issues of mentorship.The above data shows general agreement in eacharea between future teachers and administratorswith no significant disagreement in the qualities theyseek in their mentors.

Sample comments:Provide emotional supportT (38%): Patience and understanding of the begin-ning teachers’ feelings. Be cooperative and critical,to give feedback so the teacher can learn.L (62%): Professionalism, great listening skills, tact, andcompassion.

Provide help through knowledge and experienceT (66%): Be able to help and instruct beginningteachers in areas to help them become excellentteachers. Patience, concern, openness.L (57%): Patience, positivist, a passion for their posi-tion and also honesty on dealing with the differentparts that are a reality.

Understand "new" teacher career stage needsT (14%): Understanding – beginning teachers are stilllearning. Patience to let us learn. Help us to learnreal-world instances.

Passion as leaderL (9.5%): Excellent school leaders are dynamic andhave a vision and are able to inspire others.

6. Describe the qualities of a teacher/leader whoimpressed you as a role model

Data reveals general agreement in all areasexcept the quality of a teacher or leader who theyfound impressive. In this area leaders identified thosewho demonstrated well the "science" of leadingschools more frequently than future teachers.

Sample comments:



Chart 5: Qualities Demonstrated by those who Mentor . . .

Provide emotional support 14 66 13 61 .03 .847

Provide help throughknowledge and experience 14 66 12 57 .15 .695

Understand “new” teachercareer stage needs 3 14 0 0 3.00 .083

Passion as leader 0 0 2 10 2.00 .157



Chart 6: Qualities of a Teacher/Leader whoImpressed You . . .

Provide emotional support 8 38 13 62 1.19 .275

Demonstrates well the“science” of teaching/leading 3 14 10 48 3.76 .052

Demonstrated well the “art”of teaching/leading 11 52 13 62 .12 .683

Is “other-centered”(student-centered, teacher-centered, school-centered 6 28 11 52 1.47 .225

Provides emotional supportT (38%): Calm, patient, aware. I could "see" her think-ing as she spoke. She was always very conscious toscreen her words so she expressed herself positivelyand appropriately.L (62%): Positive, affectionate, well organized, tried tobring out the best in me, flexible, open-minded.

Demonstrates well the "science" of teaching/leadingT (14%): He was very knowledgeable about the sub-ject and his creativity of getting everyone involved.L (48%): Some qualities that impressed me were orga-nization, compassion, discipline, high expectations,supportiveness.

Demonstrates well the "art" of teaching/leadingT (52%): Patient, creative, had information not alwaysheard, allowed for freedom of individual thoughts,never said "you’re wrong" on an opinion, broughthumor into the classroom.L (62%): Character, professionalism, care, balance.

Is "other" centered (student/teacher/school)T (28%): By making me a part of the whole class L (52%): The school leader was committed to mygrowth as a person as she was to my growth as aprofessional.

Comments: Future teachers and administratorswant emotional support as well as guidance in theskills and arts of their vocation. They look to those withgreater knowledge and experience for leadershipand modeling. A positive, caring mentor needs todemonstrate commitment and patience to best nur-ture the novice.

Implications for the preservice classroom: Ques-tions for reflection and activities

• Are there people whom you have influencedto be the persons they have become?

• Can you recall particular events or experiencesthat come to mind in which you believe youimpacted the way a person’s life unfolded?

• Can you recall particular events or experiencesin which others mentored you and impactedthe way your life unfolded? What qualities inyou allowed them to be a good mentor?

• What are the talents you bring to schools andhow might they be experienced by studentsand teachers?

• How do you affirm the talents of others andhow do you discuss this with them?

Summary and Recommendations It is a long leap from the world of university

coursework and field experiences to assumingresponsibilities of decisions and actions in schools.When teachers and leaders find their jobs over-whelming they may question their choice of vocationand perhaps leave a field in which great successand gratification could have been experienced.Palmer (1998) discusses how we make decisionsbased on "sciences" of the world, and that we mayignore the inner realm of the heart as romantic fanta-sy. It may be the case however, that this inner space

from which one’s call emanates is the most importantplace to look. But little is done in our schools, our uni-versities, and in our daily lives to support the nurturingof our passions, our visions, and our deeper selves asit applies to vocation.

Future teachers and school leaders reveal thattheir call to educate can be supported and honoredin many ways. Clearly, part of the mission of profes-sional preparation programs should include efforts toembrace and nurture the call which led these indi-viduals to our classrooms. The path of the heart mustbe nurtured to meet the challenges of today andone day, pass the torch to others. To paraphrase anold adage, the journey of a thousand miles starts withthe call to begin. Let’s support that call.

CitationsCroasmun, J., Hampton, D., & Herrmann, S. (1999). "Teacher

attrition: Is time running out? Horizon Site. The University ofNorth Carolina. Retrieved January 2005 from: http://hori-zon.unc.edu/projects/issues/papers/Hampton.asp

Darling-Hammond, L., & McLaughlin, M. (1996). Policies thatsupport teacher development in an era of reform. In Moir& Bloom (Eds.), (2003) Fostering leadership through men-toring.

Enz, B.J, and Cook, S.J. (1991, April) Student teachers andcooperating teachers perspectives on mentoring func-tions: Harmony or dissonance? Paper presented at AERASan Francisco CA, April.

Gold, Y. (1996) Beginning teacher support: Attrition, mentoring,and induction. In J. Sikula, T. Buttery, E.Guyton, (Eds.) Hand-book of Research on Teacher Education, (2nd ed.). Associ-ation of Teacher Education.

Intrator, S. (2002) Stories of The Courage to Teach: Honoring theTeacher’s Heart. Jossey Bass.

Kessler, R. (2002, September) "Nurturing Deep Connections". TheSchool Administrator, 59(8), 22. No. 8, Vol. 59. p.22.

Miller, J.(1999) Education and the soul: Toward a spiritual cur-riculum. SUNY Press.

Moir, E., & Bloom, G. (2003). Fostering Leadership through Men-toring. Educational Leadership, 60 (8), 15-18.

Neafsey, J. (2003), Discerning Our Calling: Guidelines for Reflec-tion and Discussion. Project EVOKE, Loyola University ofChicago.

Nieto, S. (2003, May) "What keeps teachers going?" Education-al Leadership 60 (8), 15-18 Vol. 60 No. 8. p. 15-18.

Palmer, P.(1991) Essay in: The grace of great things: Creativityand innovation by R. Grudin (Ed.), Mariner Books.

Palmer, P. (1998) The Courage to Teach. Jossey-Bass.Palmer, P.(1999) Essay in The heart of learning: Spirituality in edu-

cation. S. Glazer (Ed.) Putnam.Serow, R. (1994), Called to teach: A study of highly motivated

preservice teachers. Journal of Research and Develop-ment in Education, Vol 27 (2).

Tabachnik, B.R., and Zeichner, K.M. (1984). The impact of thestudent teaching experience on the development ofteacher perspectives. Journal of Teacher Education, 35 28-36

Whitbeck, D. (2000). Born to be a teacher: What am I doing ina college of education? Journal of Research in ChildhoodEducation. 15, (1), 129-136. Fall/Winter. Illinois State Universi-ty, Center for the Study of Education Policy (2003). Whatwe know about principals in Illinois and the nation: A workin progress. Retrieved January, 2005 from:www.coe.ilstu.edu/edpolctr/policies.

Authentic Leadership: A New ApproachKristina A. Alexander

Kristina A. Alexander has been aclassroom teacher, principal, andsuperintendent of schools. She ispresently an Assistant Professor inthe Department of EducationalLeadership at Northwest MissouriState University in Maryville, MOwhere her assignment is teachingSchool Law and Improvement ofTeaching. She also supervisesadministrative interns.

AbstractAre school leaders being poorly prepared? Do

the traditional courses offered in the hundreds ofadministrator higher education programs adequate-ly provide the necessary tools to succeed as anadministrator in the 21st Century education world?These questions are being asked frequently by manydifferent groups. Some of these groups are powerfuland influential and may determine the future ofadministrator preparatory programs. Will what weknow as traditional programs for the training ofadministrators survive the spate of attacks and clam-or for new ways of doing it?

Much more has been said of the preparation ofschool leaders. Professional practitioners, graduatesof university programs which train principals andsuperintendents, are among the vocally critical ofwhat was required of them and how well it servedtheir need to be job proficient. There are others whowish to move these programs from the university tothe State Department and also to the workplace.Strongly meshed together are a large number ofthose concerned who wish to make the preparationof our school leaders more like an apprenticeship ofthe business world rather than academe. Otherswould eliminate traditional programs for all certifica-tions altogether allowing those who succeed to beable to govern and lead. This paper discusses criti-cisms, selected on-going studies of school leadershipprograms, current programs and describes a newapproach which combines the areas of theory andpractice into a new and unique workable model.Results of a study of the student reactions are pre-sented and treated. Survey results of student reac-tions to the new model is documented. A program,which attempts answers to some of the questionsabout how to improve administrator preparation, isdescribed, analyzed and assessed.

The Current ScenePrograms in Educational Leadership have come

under greater scrutiny in the last several years. State

Departments of Education, feeling pressure frompractitioners who when evaluating their own pro-grams or assessing the strengths of new hires toassume the principalship, have felt that less thanadequate university preparation had been provided.

The struggle to find new ways of approachingthis problem has been tossed about, but in most partuniversities still rely on traditional class work taught byprofessors far removed from the real world whoweigh heavily on the side of theory rather than prac-tice. Worse yet, retired school administrators whohave little enthusiasm for what they are teaching areemployed to teach administration classes and cre-ate classes that are mostly war stories of their pastexperience and void of rigor or academic quality.Klauke (1990) stated in her report that today’sadministrators must acquire fresh skills. Schultz (2005)presented the argument that the typical universityprogram for preparing administrators does not ade-quately do the job. Reform has been suggested byothers who want changes in administrator prepara-tion programs to be revised (Lawrenz, Huffman, &Lovoie, 2005; Petzko, 2005).

Improvement StudiesThe status quo is not necessarily the case in all

endeavors to prepare school leaders. Studies ofinnovative preparation programs for principals arecurrently underway to determine and possibly tochange what is going on. A good example is theStanford study (Darling-Hammond, 2005). The pur-pose of this work is to search for new and differentapproaches to university programs for administrators.This study conducted by The Stanford EducationalLeadership Institute is supported by the WallaceFoundation. The mission of this research is to discoverthe qualities of selected exemplary programs. Whyare these programs so good, what are the charac-teristics of leadership these exemplary programs pro-vide and exactly how are they configured are themajor questions to be answered. They also want toknow what and who supports these programs, howmuch they cost and finally what kind of impact dothese exemplary programs have on the schools? Thelast goal is to discover if the leaders these programsprepared are able to make a positive impact anddemonstrate effective on-the-job leadership asdefined in the research literature. Eight programswere selected for study based on their reputation ofquality. All but one was university-district partnerships.These programs are located in California, New York,Connecticut, Kentucky, and Mississippi. The results ofthis study will no doubt shed new light on what is real-ly working and could serve as a catalyst for change.

Levine (2005), President of Teachers College,Columbia University has recently completed a reportvery critical of the status quo in which he says thatmany university leadership programs are engagedinto a "race to the bottom". He calls for a curricular

balance where theory and the practice of adminis-tration are combined. This would provide, he con-tends, both study in university classrooms and work inschools with successful practitioners. Few schoolswho prepare administrators set up mentoring rela-tionships he reports and most professors are unableto serve as or effectively supervise mentors he goeson to claim.

Philosophical UnderpinningsThere is no doubt differing opinions are prevalent

when developing a curriculum for leadership prepa-ration. These are value-laden choices as any curricu-lum matter would be. The present curriculum devot-ed to the time honored courses we commonlyaccept is still the major force in most universities andit typically consists of a foundation course, schoollaw, supervision, personnel and some little fieldpracticum as a capstone.

A wide spectrum of thought plays a role inbelieving which approach serves administrationpreparation best. Using the traditional educationalphilosophies is helpful in understanding the varyingpositions of those who are speaking out. The perenni-alist in most instances would favor traditional coursework expecting the professor as the one whosemajor rol l is to interpret and tell. The idealistapproaches it from the need to sharpen the intellec-tual process. The realist would put more emphasis onwhat is the current practice and order and disci-plined approaches emphasized, and experimental-ists and existentialists would allow more freedom andallow students more flexibility, without regard to tradi-tion. All those seeking change may fit one of thephilosophical approaches more than another, butmost would have pieces of all of them. However, acareful look and analysis of the current thinkingwould suggest there are few perennialists, few exper-imentalists and existentialists, and many more ideal-ists and realists who are calling for change. They maybe leading the crusade for change and at the headof the parade (Wiles & Bondi, 1984).

ApprenticeshipsThere are those who want to change both

teacher and administrator preparation into whatresembles an apprenticeship. Their beliefs might bedescribed best as like the apprenticeship of the pastwhich prepared artisans for future work. For example,the shoe cobbler would take on a young persondesirous of becoming a cobbler. Through on-the-jobexperiences, actual cobbling, asking a practicingcobbler questions when confronted with problemsand a length of time with on-the-job experiencesand mentoring, would allow those skills to be learnednecessary to become proficient.

Attempts at ChangeThe business world is chock full of practical expe-

riences for trainees and could be responsible for amovement to more and more job preparation foradministrator candidates devoted to on-the-jobworksite. Most frontline managerial positions are con-nected to traineeships, which are most like appren-

ticeships. Table One, which follows, is a summary ofthe New South Wales Government’s Department ofEducation and Training and it reports an example ofthe number of apprenticeships and traineeship pro-grams currently on-going (Department of Educationand Training, 2005, Apprenticeship and traineeshipsystem data). Table One clearly illustrates businesses’concentration of on-the-job training. The largestnumber illustrates the involvement of managers whomust do traineeships. Listed last on this list is definedas education support—school assistants.

In his publications Murphy (2001), with experienceas a Professor at Ohio State University, President ofthe Ohio Principals Leadership Academy, Chair ofthe Interstate School Licensure Consortium andauthor of Educational Administration: A Decade ofReform, has expressed his assertion that there isenough power for change in the standards devel-oped for the "Standards for School Leaders" adoptedby the School Leaders Licensure Consortium. Groupssuch as American Association of School Administra-tors (AASA), National Association of SecondarySchool Administrators (NASSP), and National Associa-tion of Elementary School Principals (NAESP) all haveprovided input for this attempt to improve leadershippreparation. The requirements for preparation neces-sary to meet these standards were intended to solvethe problem.

Murphy’s contention is preparation programsshould prepare students to assume principalshipresponsibilities once, through a test; they havedemonstrated a movement from focus on manage-ment to leadership. A necessity for effective leader-ship is the ability to show a discernment of compas-sionate and humanistic concern. Another key ele-ment is the wisdom of the renovation and change indynamics of management. Future leaders must pos-sess an appreciation of the community of schooladministration as well as the necessary partnershipsthat are involved. Finally, Murphy believes there mustbe an acceptance for morals and principles as wellas philosophical and insightful dimensions of leader-ship (2001).

Most recently preparation program evaluationsof students training to be administrators in somestates have moved to a new format. Missouri, for

Existing Worker Traineeship VocationsTable 1

Vocation N

Business (Frontline Management) 7012Transport & Distribution (Warehousing & Storage) 4098Transport & Distribution (Road Transport) 3730Process Manufacturing 2183Retail Operations 1922Hospitality Operations 1807Food Processing 1753Retail Supervision 1736Transport & Distribution (Rail Infrastructure) 773Education Support – School Assistants 768

example, has in place the School SuperintendentAssessment for superintendents and the School Lead-ers Licensure Assessment for principals (DESE, 2005).Although these requirements are not course specific,they do have an impact on the curriculum fordepartments preparing school leaders. These assess-ments emphasize abilities to analyze and solve realproblems in schools and represent a change inapproach.

Only a minor part of the curriculum requirementsin Missouri focus on actual field experiences with on-the-job training. An academic two-hour coursewhich translates into 90 clock hours of field work is allthat must be done to meet state requirements. Thus,we could conclude that course work as it now standsis not an excellent preparation for these assessmentsand, in fact, one could argue not good preparationfor a real job either. Advisory groups are presentlyworking on a revision of requirements in Missouri butat this writing no major changes have been put inplace.

Northwest Pilot

Faced with the challenge of criticisms of howschool leaders are prepared, Northwest MissouriState University began exploring ways in which thecurrent program could be improved yet, still meetthe requirements set forth by the state regulations.Discarding all parts of the current program was notan option. The total abandonment of the traditionalcourse offerings was not desired and not even possi-ble and still meet certification rules set forth by thestate (Northwest Missouri State University Graduatecatalog, 2003-2005, p. 141-144).

A series of Department of Educational Leader-ship retreats were held. Heated and lengthy discus-sions by the faculty of the department took placeattempting to establish a new and innovative pro-gram to prepare administrators. It was framed in anenvironment which set the limits of the possible revi-sions. Totally abandoning the current program wasnot a goal by the department. Meeting staterequirements was required and understood as essen-tial by all members. Staying within the bounds ofacademe with attention to work loads, qualificationsfor institutions and credits was mandatory. Lessemphasis on theory and more emphasis on field workwere to be included and were deemed a crucialelement. Less face-to-face class time, but morelearning in real world settings was also very impor-tant. The ability of students to accumulate morecredit hours in class than in the traditional setting wasalso agreed upon by the department. Use of elec-tronic computer enhancement to deliver instructionand communicate with students was an agreementthat also meets the demands of the 21st Century. Itwas also deemed necessary to incorporate the newapproach into existing offerings without total loss ofthe traditional program, and it was felt necessary toassess the effectiveness of the new offerings fromboth student and professor points of view. Due to theobvious budget constraints, it was also important to

keep it cost effective and affordable for both thestudent and the institution. In depth discussion includ-ed the importance of an organization that wouldallow those with full time employment to participate.

After several days at the retreat in Nebraska City,Nebraska, the tree city where Arbor Day was first cel-ebrated, the department proposal was born. It wasdecided to continue to use the traditional courses inthe school leadership program, but blend and meshfour of the courses selecting two for one set and twofor another set. The students’ learning environmentwould involve much more focus on field work. Meth-ods of Educational Research and Issues in Educationwere combined and placed into one set as well asSchool Supervision and Foundations of Administrationinto another set. These two new classes in each setwould meet alternatively, reducing the face-to-facetime for students. These classes would be supple-mented through the use of the Internet and eCom-panion. One example of this new approach wouldbe by combining the classes of Issues and Research.A research questionnaire which asks questions aboutIssues could be blended with Research. Assignmentswould also require students to spend more time onprojects which require students to work in the fieldwith real situations in the schools. This might be donethrough the use of a community survey which couldbe administered to educators, patrons, and the gen-eral public. The proper construction of the surveys,evaluation and statistical analysis could be a projectfor the Research class with the Issues class left to dealwith the sociological, philosophical, historical, andsignificance of what was found. This new organiza-tion was given the title Northwest Authentic Leader-ship Program and launched as a pilot during thespring of 2005.

The thrust of the program was the integration ofcourses and subject matter meshed that would allowthem to be linked together and coordinated. Theassumption is that a broader spectrum of learningwill cause students to learn more and a realistic envi-ronment in the field removed from the exclusivenessof the classroom would be beneficial. Students wereencouraged to work with practitioners and schoolpatrons and the general public and use thesegroups’ experiences and advice to help the studentssolve assigned problems. Classes would emphasizethe nature of the real world of education and how itfits into what is being studied. Information can beshared via the Internet and eCompanion with theentire group of students and both professors can pro-vide input, assess and direct learning in this way aswell as traditional ways. Chat rooms, email, andother electronic programs can be organized to fur-ther share information and learning. The schedulemight look as presented in the following illustrations.

Session number one. Face to face classes meettogether for review of course content, explanation ofeCompanion and use of computers and Internet,assign projects, assign teams to work on projects,and assign chat room discussion time.

Session two. Students work in field to gather data,prepare reports for individual and team assignments,visit practitioners, prepare spreadsheets, visit chatroom to discuss projects.

Session three. Face to face for oral reports, classexercises, discussion, analysis of field findings, plan-ning and assignments for next field project, guests,and videos.

Session four. Field work continued.Alternating days are allowed for the preparation

time connected to field experience with practicingadministrators and other educators. Assignmentswere designed so as to mandate that students workclosely with the field representation. Each assignmentwas coordinated so that upon arrival at face-to-faceclasses each of the two classes was able to mesh thereal experiences with theory and apply it to thelearning processes. For an example, an assignmentfor an appointed team of students might be toresearch and provide authentic information for aclass discussion on home schooling. The team’sresponsibility is to find real parents who home school,interview them and create a video to be presentedto the class or preferably schedule the parents for

part of the class activity report so as to learn morefrom real home school parents. This would havebeen preceded by a reading assignment of clashingviews from authors who are proponents and oppo-nents of home schooling. A written e-Companiondocument sharing the clashing views by the studentsto the professor and class prior to meeting for thepresentation would be required. Students then areable to connect the theoretical classroom discus-sions to the real world which 21st Century schoolleaders must face.

Assessment and Analysis

The students reported mixed reactions to thenew system. Some of the comments made on theclass ending surveys found that most students likedthe ability to meet alternatively and have time forfield work. A total of 82% said this was either a strong-ly agree or agree category. Sixty-nine percent saidthat face-to-face classes were their preference astheir only choice.

Table Two that follows reports the findings of thesurvey that was given to the students at the comple-tion of the course.

Students’ Assessment of Authentic Leadership ProgramTable 2

Survey Question 1 2 3 4 5

Had enough time to complete assignments 40% 31% 3% 20% 6%The requirements of the course were clearly understood 32% 47% 3% 15% 3%Using eCompanion was difficult for me 6% 11% 3% 51% 29%I was able to use my personal computer to assist me

with assignments 76% 9% 3% 6% 6%More instruction on computer use would have been helpful 17% 14% 20% 34% 14%The evaluation system used for grading was satisfactory 47% 38% 15% – –All face to face classes are my preference 43% 26% 6% 20% 6%The professor was willing to assist when asked 77% 23% – – –I learned as much or more using this system as I would in

traditional class 29% 21% 9% 24% 18%The opportunity to earn six graduate hours, one night a

week, was a plus for me 67% 15% 15% 3% –Class assignments were appropriate and meaningful 29% 51% 11% 9% –I learned a great deal from this class 31% 46% 9% 11% 3%I learn better by doing rather than listening 43% 43% 6% 9% –My computer skills improved because of this class 18% 32% 21% 24% 5%The subject matter of the class was helpful to me as an

Educator 26% 46% 11% 14% 3%Using the computer and eCompanion for class was helpful

in completing assignments 34% 40% 17% 9% –Classes offered in this format should be a regular part of

educational leaderships’ offerings 43% 34% 6% 9% 9%Because I was able to earn six hours, I appreciated the

opportunity to apply for financial aid 45% 6% 40% 9% –

Notes:1 = Strongly Agree 2 = Agree 3 - No Opinion 4 = Disagree 5 = Strongly Disagree

Conclusion and Summary

Our tendency as professionals who are at institu-tions where the preparation of school administratorsis our function and that preparation is criticized, is todraw the wagons in a circle and prepare to fight tokeep what we have. Many of the attacks may bebased on reality. Our programs as they exist are notdoing the job. This means new and innovativeapproaches are a must until the right formula hasbeen discovered. My sense is even then we will befacing a horizon that never sets on the correct andonly way. These things are ongoing and need modifi-cations. Quality cannot stand still; it is ever changing.

References

Bondi, J.C. & Wiles, J. (1984). Curriculum develop-ment. Columbus, Ohio: Merril.

Darling-Hammond, L. (2005, June 13). Innovative prin-cipal preparation and development programs.Retrieved June 13, 2005 from Stanford Education-al Leadership Institute. Website:http://www.gsb.stanford.edu/csi/pdf/_princi-pal_study_

DET-Apprentinceships & Traineeship (March, 2005).Top ten existing worker traineeship vocations.Retrieved May 2005 fromhttp://apreeniceship.det.nsw.edu.av.html/graphsintrain.htm

Hopkins, G. (2005). Good principals: What traits dothey show? Education World, the Principal Files.Retrieved May 2005 from http://www.education-world.com/a_admin/

Klauke, A. (1990). Preparing school administrators.ERIC Clearinghouse on Educational Manage-ment. Report ED 326939 retrieved March 2005from http://www.eric.ed.gov/

Levine, Arthur (2005). Education Schools Project. Edu-cating school leaders: Report #1.Executive sum-mary. Retrieved May 2005 from http://www.edschools.org/reportsleadership.htm

Lawrenz, F., Huffman, C., & Lavoie, B. (2005, June).Implementing and sustaining standards basescurricular reform. National Association of Sec-ondary School Principals Bulletin. Retrieved June2005 from http://www.NASSP.org

Missouri Department of Elementary and SecondaryEducation: educator certification. RetrievedJune 2005 from http://www.dese.state.mo.us/

Murphy, J. (2001). The changing face of leadershippreparation. School Administrator Web Additions.Retrieved April 12, 2005, from http://www.aasa.org

Petzko, V. N. (2005). Recommendations from princi-pals of highly successful schools regarding princi-pal preparations. Connections: Journal of Princi-pal Preparation and Development, 6, 25-31.Retrieved May 16, 2005, from http://www.Utc.edu/Faculty/Vicki_Petzko/publications Page.htm

Shultz, B. (2005, June). Finally a superintendent: Nowwhat? What graduate school didn’t cover: Deal-ing with fires, angry parents, and mountain lionssimultaneously. School Administrator, Issue 6.American Association of School Administrators.

Skjoi, Susan. Authentic Leadership Program. Certifi-cate program in authentic leadership. NaropaUniversity. Retrieved June 2005 fromwww.naropa.edu/leadership/

Where much is expected from an individual,

that individual may rise to the level of events

and make the dream come true.

– Elbert Hubbard

The Challenges of Full SecondaryEducation Professional Development

School Programs: One AlternativePaul D. Band and Steve Neill

Paul D. Bland, Assistant Professor,is coordinator for undergraduatesecondary education at EmporiaState University. He earned Bach-elor’s and Master’s degrees fromFt. Hays State University and wasa teacher and coach for elevenyears in Kansas Public Schools. Heearned a Ph.D. in Curriculum andInstruction from Kansas State Uni-versity. He served as coordinatorfor secondary education at Lind-sey Wilson College in Columbia,KY and Director of Teacher Edu-cation and Department Chair atSterling College in Sterling, KS. Heis a member of Phi Delta Kappa,Phi Kappa Phi, the Kansas Associ-ation of Colleges of Teacher Edu-cation, and the American Legion.

Steve Neill, Assistant Professor,received his B.S.Ed. from PittsburgState University, Pittsburg, KS witha major in history. He earned anM.S.Ed. in Secondary Educationand an ED.D. in EducationalAdministration from Wichita StateUniversity. His previous experienceincludes nineteen years as a highschool teacher and nine years asa building administrator in KansasPublic Schools. In 2001, he wasrecognized as KASSP District 4Principal of the Year and holdsmembership in KASSP, NASSP, andUSA.

AbstractMany secondary teacher education programs areseeking to either create a large-scale ProfessionalDevelopment School program or expand a smallexisting PDS program. A number of difficulties uniqueto secondary education present themselves wheninstitutions attempt a large-scale PDS program. Thisarticle presents one approach to circumventingthese difficulties while being true to the ProfessionalDevelopment School philosophy.

In 2000, teacher education institutions in Kansaswere shaken when the Kansas State Department ofEducation finalized and implemented its new set ofteacher education standards. These standards rede-fined the nature of teacher education in the stateand included criteria that not only identified whatnew teachers must know, but also listed what theymust be able to do to qualify for a teaching license.The standards referred to these two types of criteriaas "knowledge indicators" and "performance indica-tors" ("Teacher educational licensure," 2004). Inorder to help teacher candidates meet these stan-dards, the teacher education institutions had torevise the kinds of learning and field experiencestheir teacher candidates were experiencing. Espe-cially needed was an increase in the quality andquantity of field experiences.

Emporia State University was among those institu-tions to restructure its teacher education programs tomeet the new standards. ESU has an enrollment of

approximately 5500, with 150 candidates in its sec-ondary education program. It is located in Emporia,Kansas, which is a community of 25,000 people.While Emporia State University works with manyschools in various school districts, the public schoolsworking in the closest partnership with the secondaryteacher education program at ESU are Emporia Mid-dle School and Emporia High School. The schoolshave a combined enrollment of 2300 students repre-senting varied socio-economic and minority sub-groups ("Education report card," 2004).

When the new standards became a require-ment, the Secondary Teacher Education Program atESU had two delivery systems: 1) a campus-based,traditional program that 95% of the candidates com-pleted; and 2) a small Professional DevelopmentSchool program for selected candidates. The tradi-tional campus-based program consisted of severalyears of preparatory coursework in general educa-tion and in the chosen content area. Then, aftercandidates were admitted to teacher education,they completed two semesters of education course-work and field experiences. The first of these profes-sional education semesters was called Phase 1,which consisted of four university courses and a thir-ty-hour classroom observation. The second profes-sional education semester was the traditional studentteaching semester, called Phase 2.

The smaller secondary program, the ProfessionalDevelopment School, was already a field experienceintensive two-semester program that easily mea-

sured up to the new state education standards. Can-didates in the Professional Development School pro-gram completed the same preparatory courseworkleading up to admission to teacher education. How-ever, in the first semester of the PDS program, thecandidates spent a minimum of eleven weeks inEmporia High School, where a core group of teach-ers worked with the PDS candidates. The candidatesdivided the time at the high school between classesin the content area, an English as a Second Lan-guage class, a special education class, and thetechnology center. The education course contentwas delivered at the school in the form of seminarsessions.

The second semester of the PDS was full-time stu-dent teaching in Emporia High School. The highschool benefited from this program in that it hadadditional personnel in these different rooms, assist-ing and teaching as needed. At the end of the pro-gram, candidates in the Professional DevelopmentSchool had much more extensive and well-roundedpreparation than did those in the traditional pro-gram, and easily met the performance indicators inthe Kansas Professional Education standards.

However, according to the new regulations, allsecondary teacher education candidates neededto develop the performance skills identified in thestandards. Thus, the campus-based secondaryundergraduate teacher education program atEmporia State University would have to transformitself into a field experience intensive program. Pro-gram leaders first considered transforming into a fullProfessional Development School-type program,where all candidates in secondary education spentthe two full semesters in a school just as those in thesmaller PDS program did. The propose programwould have involved blending the two separatesemesters into a single experience for candidatesthat lasted all day, every day at a single site. Deliveryof professional education coursework in this systemwould also happen at the PDS site involving both uni-versity and school staff.

The Kansas State Department of Education hadadopted standards for Professional DevelopmentSchools that provided a blueprint for their develop-ment and operation in the state. These standardsare entitled Kansas Model Standards for ProfessionalDevelopment Schools and are very closely modeledafter the NCATE PDS Standards ("Kansas model stan-dards," 2002). The Kansas PDS standards include thefollowing: Standard I, Learning Community, whichaddresses delivery of curriculum and what candi-dates will do in the PDS; Standard II: Accountabilityand Quality Assurance, which addresses the need toensure that PDS programs contain the same acade-mic rigor as any other program; Standard III: Collabo-ration, which addresses collegiality and shared rolesin the PDS; Standard IV: Diversity and Equity, whichaddresses the need for all students to learn; andStandard V: Structures, Resources, and Roles, whichaddresses governance of the PDS ("Kansas modelstandards," 2002). The ESU secondary education fac-

ulty wanted to develop a new program that met atleast portions of these five PDS standards.

Problems

The ESU secondary faculty faced a number ofdifficulties as it looked at the possibility of developinga full Professional Development School program.Three main problems became apparent as sec-ondary education faculty worked to create a fullsecondary PDS program. The first problem involvedstudent schedules. At ESU, during the Phase 1 semes-ter (the first education block), most candidates hadremaining courses in the major to complete and afew had general education requirements to finish.Many had required involvement in campus organiza-tions, activities, and performances related to theirmajors that meet, rehearse, or practice during theday. Therefore, to require an all-day everyday expe-rience in this first professional semester would createtime conflicts with their other requirements andresponsibilities.

A second problem involved potential conflictswith other activities that a PDS system of a two-semester placement in the same building would cre-ate. By policy, candidates were not allowed to par-ticipate in athletics and other activities during stu-dent teaching. As a result, candidates were forcedto student teaching during their "off season". A twosemester program would eliminate that option andcome in direct conflict with athletics, music, debateand other similar activities.

A third difficulty was finding enough buildingsand teachers locally to accommodate the numberof secondary teacher candidates enrolled at Empo-ria State University for a two-semester placement.Ideally, all secondary candidates would have theirown placement for a year, but even when doublingup candidates in available classrooms, there werenot enough area placements for this to happen.Therefore, a full Professional Development Schoolsecondary program would not work for EmporiaState University short of converting the program intoa five-year endeavor.

Review of literature

Professional development schools were estab-lished primarily to revitalize teaching practice and toprovide more effective new teacher training througha sustained partnership between schools and univer-sities (Zimpher, 1990). In the literature, the PDS designis frequently compared to that of a teaching hospitalin medical education in that teaching university fac-ulty and practicing professionals work together in theeducation of future practitioners (Carnegie Report,1986; Holmes Group, 1990; Sedlak, 1987).

Research studies verify the belief that preserviceteachers are better prepared for their professionalduties when trained in a PDS environment. Severalstudies documented an increased level of involve-ment in such things as extracurricular activities andother school functions, assisting other teachers intheir professional development and working in after

school settings with students (Christensen, Pierce etal., 1999; Houston et al., 1995; Wiseman & Cooper,1996) among those teachers trained in a PDS setting.

Solutions

To construct a suitable solution to this dilemma,the faculty saw the need to design a program thatachieved the goals of a professional developmentschool design (to revitalize the practice of localteacher and improve teacher training) while workingwithin the confines that existed in the university struc-ture (student schedule needs, activity conflicts, andlimited local placement options).

The secondary education faculty developed analternative called "Field-Based Teacher Education".The design involved a restructured, field-intensivePhase I that led into the traditional Phase II. The newprogram had one goal in mind: the field experiencewas to be central to the restructured Phase I. Thefield experience would integrate across all Phase 1courses and would have candidates come as closeas possible to experiencing the "real thing" withoutactually taking over classes. Three courses in profes-sional education were then built around the fieldexperience: Principles of Secondary Education, acourse in secondary curriculum and instruction;Classroom Management, a course in management,motivation, strategies for diverse learners; and Edu-cational Psychology, a course in cognition, assess-ments, and related topics. The field experience wasto be a course requirement for ED 333, Principles ofSecondary Education.

The Phase I time block ran daily for approximate-ly two hours, from 8:00 a.m. to 9:50 a.m. The highschool has a block schedule of ninety minutes, withthe courses meeting on alternating days. For thePhase 1 field experience, most candidates wereassigned to a class at the high school that met dur-ing the Phase I time block. For example, the highschool Block 1 met Tuesdays and Thursdays from 8:00a.m. to 9:30 a.m., and Fridays 8:00 a.m. to 8:45 a.m.Candidates then attended a Block 1 class at thehigh school every time it met for the entire semester,thereby becoming a regular and integrated part ofthe processes of the class. The middle school sched-ule had classes lasting forty-five minutes, so the fewcandidates that went to the middle school wereable to attend two courses on an every-other daybasis. The formal class sessions for the Phase I coursesmet in the times in and around the field experience.The schedule looked like this:

o Mondays, 8-9:50: ESU courseso Tuesdays: in the assigned internship classroomo Wednesday, 8-9:50: ESU courseso Thursdays: in the assigned internship classroomo Fridays: in the assigned internship classroom,

then ESU courses

Implementation

The arrangement provided the extensive fieldexperience needed to meet the KSDE performancestandards, as well as portions of Kansas PDS Stan-

dards. In the new program the candidates wouldattend a class every time it met and would work withthe mentor teachers to enhance the learning of thestudents. At the same time, the candidates werelearning "the ropes" of teaching and the mentorteachers were gaining many new ideas for class-room activities and assessments from the interns.Interns were to become essentially classroom assis-tants to the mentor teachers including the prepara-tion of whole-class and small group instruction. Theinternship required application of concepts learnedin Principles of Secondary Education, ClassroomManagement, and Educational Psychology, thusintegrating the professional education courses intothe field experience.

The Phase I team worked closely with the localhigh school and middle school administration andteachers. The Secondary Education Departmentrecruited Building Coordinators to work with thePhase I faculty team to coordinate the school build-ing activities of the Phase I field experience. TheBuilding Coordinators have three broad functions: 1)placing Phase I candidates in a suitable classroom;2) monitoring and facilitating the field experience;and 3) communicating with Phase I faculty regard-ing scheduling issues and changes in the buildings.The building coordinators were able to confer withthe mentor teachers to keep a current roster of men-tor teachers who were willing and/or able to acceptan intern.

Addressing the Problems

The purpose of this program design was toincrease the amount of time that candidates spentin field experience while dealing with the problemsthat adopting a full PDS design would create. Theresulting field experience doubled the amount oftime candidates spent in the internship experience.At the same time, the three problems that PDS wouldcreate were addressed.

1. Students were allowed to continue to meetthe course requirements of their major fields withoutadding to the time required to complete theirdegrees.

2. The design did not require the additionalsemester necessary in a PDS design which allows stu-dents in activities to continue to participate as theyhave in the previous design.

3. The new design also addresses the limits ofavailable teacher/mentors within commuting dis-tance of ESU.

DiscussionThis program is currently in its second year of

operation. Secondary education faculty are lookingclosely at the way in which candidates are meetingthe performance indicators in the standards, as wellas completing the other licensure requirements inKansas. One licensure requirement is successfulcompletion of the Principles of Learning and Teach-ing exam, a standardized examination in the Educa-tional Testing Service’s PRAXIS II series, which assesses

content in the professional education courses. Whilealmost all ESU secondary candidates in the tradition-al program met the cutoff score on the PLT examina-tion in the first testing, education faculty wanted toensure that the changes in the courses and deliverysystems of those courses did not impact student per-formance on this exam. It appears that there hasbeen no impact on student exam results. The univer-sity cites a 100% pass rate for secondary educationmajors on the PLT in its HEA - Title II Report for the2003-2004 Academic Year ("Title II reporting," 2005).

From the mentor teachers’ and candidates’ per-spectives, the revised program has been successful.The mentor teachers know when the candidates willbe in their classes and can plan for their participa-tion. Teachers use interns for a wide variety of tasks,ranging from clerical work to tutoring to whole classinstruction. The main challenge has been to ensurethat the mentor teachers do employ a system wherethe candidate gradually assumes more and moreresponsibility in their assigned class. Candidatesreport satisfaction from beginning their work in theschool in a smaller scale and very gradually addingresponsibilities than what they experience during stu-dent teaching.

From the school district’s perspective, the pro-gram has enhanced their personnel recruitment sys-tem because it creates a "grow your own" system forteacher hiring. Since almost all of the candidatescomplete their internship in the Emporia district, dis-trict teachers and administrators can get to know thecandidates well and watch their performance in theclassroom for an extended period of time. A numberof interns are asked by their mentor teachers toreturn for the student teaching semester. By gettinga year-long look at candidates, administrators andteachers on search committees can make betterinformed decisions about hiring new teachers toreplace those that retire, are transferred, or leave thedistrict.

Attempting a wide scale secondary educationProfessional Development School program is compli-cated because of the many and varied require-ments of the different departments. The field-basedsecondary education program at Emporia State Uni-versity provides essential characteristics of a profes-sional development school while allowing the sec-ondary education majors to complete the require-ments within their majors.

ReferencesCarnegie Corporation of New York. (1986) A Nation

Prepared: Teachers for the 21st Century. NewYork: Carnegie Corporation of New York.ED268120

Christensen, L.M., Pierce, C., Patterson, J., Sims, M.,Bates, D., Bruce, C.A. & Leask, L. (1999, April) Twourban communities in pre-threshold stage ofschool/university partnership: Juxtaposing partici-pant perceptions. Paper presented at the annu-al meeting of American Educational ResearchAssociation, Montreal, Canada.

Holmes Group, Inc. (1986) Tomorrow’s Teacher: AReport of the Holmes Group. East Lansing, MI: TheHolmes Group, Inc. ED270454.

Houston, W.R., Clay, D., Hollis, L.Y., Ligons, C., Roff, L.,& Lopez, N. (1995). Strength through diversity:Houston Consortium for Professional Develop-ment and Technology Centers. Houston, TX: Uni-versity of Houston, College of Education.

Kansas State Department of Education. (2002).Kansas model standards for professional devel-opment schools. (Online), Retrieved May 12,2005. http://www.ksde.org/cert/PDS Model Stan-dards 2002.doc

Kansas State Department of Education. (2004).Kansas state department of education reportcard. (Online), Retrieved May 2, 2005.http://online.ksde.org/rcard/county.aspx?cnty_no=056

Kansas State Department of Education. (2004).Teacher education and licensure: Regulationsand standards for Kansas educators. (Online),Retrieved May 12, 2005.http://www.ksde.org/cert/CertHandbook.doc

Sedlak, Michael W. (1987, Spring) Tomorrow’s teach-ers: The essential arguments of the Holmes GroupReport. Teachers College Record, 88(3) 314-25.EJ350136

The Teachers College. (2005). Title II reporting. Empo-ria State University. (Online), Retrieved May 12,2005. http://www.emporia.edu/teach/title2/

Wiseman, D.L., & Cooper, D. (1996) Discovering thepower of collaboration: The impact of a schooluniversity partnership on teaching. Teacher Edu-cation and Practice 12(1), 18-28.

Zimpher, N. (1990). Creating professional develop-ment school sites. Theory into Practice, 29 (I),42-49.

Where education with dedication begins, greatness is always possible.

– J. H. Simon

Nancy Bragg currently serves asCoordinator of the Center forTeaching, Learning, and Technolo-gy at Illinois State University. From1998 to 2005, she coordinatedinstructional programs and servicesfor I l l inois State’s Center forAdvancement of Teaching. Shereceived her doctorate in Curricu-lum and Instruction from Ill inoisState University and has taughtundergraduate, master’s, anddoctoral Curriculum and Instruc-tion and undergraduate Educa-tional Administration and Founda-tion courses at ISU. Service learningis her active pedagogy of choice.

She has consulted with service learning faculty at ISU and facultystate-wide through Illinois Campus Compact.

Addressing Contemporary IssuesThrough Collaborative Methods

Nancy I. Gaylen, Brenda Boudreau, Tami EgglestonNancy Bragg, Patti Powell, and Victoria Groves Scott

Nancy I. Gaylen is currently anAssociate Professor of TeacherEducation at Millikin University inDecatur, IL and the Director of theSchool of Education. She beganher teaching career as a publicschool teacher in Dade CountyPublic Schools in Miami, FL. HerPh.D. in Administration and PolicyStudies is from Northwestern Uni-versity in Evanston, IL. Her reloca-tion back to Illinois from Coloradobrought her to Millikin Universitywhere she is teaching courses inTeacher Education and enjoyingnew challenges in leading theSchool of Education.

Brenda Boudreau is an Associ-ate Professor of English and Direc-tor of the Writing Resource Centerat McKendree College. Sheteaches both composition and lit-erature, and incorporates serviceprojects into a variety of her cours-es. She participates in such activi-ties as charity races and events forAIDS funding, combating racism,and cancer research.

Patti Powell is currently an Assistant Professor of Education at Trini-ty Christian College in Palos Heights, IL. She graduated from CalvinCollege with degrees in Music education and Elementary Educa-tion. She received a Master’s Degree in Hearing Impairments fromthe University of Arizona and taught at Arizona’s State School forthe Deaf and Blind for five years. She taught music at Elim ChristianSchool (a school for children with disabilities) in Palos Heights for 14years and completed her doctorate in Curriculum and Instructionat the University of Illinois-Chicago in 2004.

Tami Eggleston is an Associate Professor of Psychology at McK-endree College in Lebanon, IL. She uses service learning projects toemphasize psychological theories in many of her courses. She par-ticipates in service projects at group homes and elderly care facili-ties.

Victoria Groves Scott is anAssociate Professor at Southern Illi-nois University Edwardsville in theDepartment of Special Educationand Communication Disorders.She teaches courses in specialeducation methods and assistivetechnology. She has co-writtentwo case study textbooks and atext on phonemic awarenessinstruction. She incorporates ser-vice learning into her courses inspecial education.Abstract

Funded by the State Farm Insurance Foundation, theIllinois Campus Compact-State Farm Faculty Fellowsprogram was designed to promote faculty develop-ment by integrating the traditional faculty roles ofteaching, scholarship, and service with the roles oftheir K-12 collaborators. State Farm Faculty Fellowswere engaged with K-12 collaborators in meaningfulways that enhanced, integrated, and extended thefaculty fellows’ professional work.

To varying degrees, educators in higher educa-tion embrace the three traditional faculty roles ofscholarship, teaching and service. Increasingly, fac-ulty members from all Carnegie classification institu-tions are prioritizing scholarship in their rewards sys-

tems. When former Carnegie Foundation PresidentErnest Boyer (1994) created an alternative conceptcalled the "New American College," he visualized aninstitution which would prioritize outreach and "enrichthe campus, renew communities, and give new dig-nity and status to the scholarship of service."

Boyer was convinced the "academy mustbecome a more vigorous partner in the search foranswers to our most pressing social, civic, economic,and moral problems, and must affirm its historic com-mitment to what I call the scholarship of engage-

ment" (Boyer, 1996). His concept of the scholarship ofengagement reinforced his earlier premise aboutcreatively broadening the scope of scholarship. Hisnew paradigm suggested that the scholarship workof faculty must emphasize not only the discovery ofknowledge, but also the integration, application(outreach or engagement) and sharing of knowl-edge or the "scholarship of teaching" (Boyer, 1990).

Boyer (1990) coined the phrase "scholarship ofteaching" to refer to teaching as scholarly work. Fol-lowing the paradigm shift from teaching to learning(Barr & Tagg, 1995), the "scholarship of teaching"became known as the Scholarship of Teaching andLearning (SoTL) (Hutchings & Shulman, 1999).

Although Boyer’s (1990) expanded conceptionof scholarship is not yet widely embraced, advo-cates from the Scholarship of Teaching and Learningmovement and the Scholarship of Engagement (out-reach) movement are promoting ways of framingintegrative scholarship for tenure and promotion, inways that will be valued by more traditional scholar-ship peers. It is, therefore, important to normalize inte-grative scholarship by developing models that inte-grate service, scholarship, and teaching. Moreover,the new understandings from systematic study on thepart of the teacher are subject to peer review bycolleagues (Glassick, Huber & Maerott, 1997).

Just as universities have outreach missions, so dobusinesses. State Farm Insurance (State Farm Web-site) "supports efforts to assure that all children haveaccess to an education that will allow them toachieve their greatest potential and prepare themto be active participants in a nation and economythat continues as a global leader." Consequently,State Farm has been very supportive of the service-learning movement, especially in K-12 schools. StateFarm Insurance Foundation and Illinois CampusCompact, a coalition of Illinois higher educationpresidents dedicated to supporting collaborativepartnerships promoting civic engagement, co-spon-sored the State Farm Faculty Fellows program. Themonetary incentives promoted faculty developmentby requesting integration of the traditional facultyroles of teaching, scholarship, and service with thevaried roles of K-12 collaborators.

State Farm Fellows addressed contemporaryissues through engaging in their communities’ K-12schools in meaningful ways that enhanced, integrat-ed, and extended the faculty fellows’ professionalwork. The projects exhibited multiple models anddelivery systems that offered educators from diversedisciplines different ways to think about implement-ing integrative and collaborative work. These collab-orations enhanced the motivation, support, learning,and sustainability of this work. In addition to the cam-pus-community organization and campus-schoolcollaborations, other creative kinds of collaborationsemerged: faculty-faculty collaborations, discipline-discipline collaborations, and college-university col-laborations.

In this following section, faculty fellows summa-rized these integrative and collaborative projects;

Exceptional Children Service Learning Project, Litera-cy Tutoring Project, Early Literacy Project, Early Litera-cy Bags in Special Education, and Action Scholarshipin English and Psychology.

Exceptional Children Service Learning ProjectCreative Collaborations

Introduction to Exceptional Children is a coursetaken by every education major at a small faith-based liberal arts college. Imbedded in this course isa 30-hour experience in high school classrooms work-ing with students who have identified disabilities. Pre-service teachers were given the option to partici-pate in the traditional teacher-aiding experience orthe new service-learning experience. Thirty-two pre-service teachers were involved in the traditionalteacher-aiding experience and sixteen in the ser-vice-learning experience. Both groups of pre-serviceteachers spent thirty hours over the course of the fif-teen-week semester in classrooms working with stu-dents who had disabilities.

Pre-service teachers began the preparation por-tion of the service-learning experience by workingwith high school teachers and students to determinepotential community needs that could be met withthe students’ practical skills. The pre-service teachersworked with the students to set up their service-learn-ing, to enhance their practical skills needed for ser-vice-learning, to implement service-learning, and toplan the final celebratory events.

Multiple Models

The project methodology centered on severalscholarship models. Narrative inquiry was used as away of understanding experience through collabora-tion between the faculty fellow and participants,where the faculty fellow enters the experience of theparticipants. Portraiture was used to tell the stories ofthe high school students and pre-service teachersthrough their own voices (Clandinin & Connelly,2000). The portraitist acts as both a scientist and anartist, seeking to document and illuminate the com-plexity and detail of each unique experience, hop-ing that the audience will see themselves reflected init, and trusting that readers will identify with the expe-rience (Lawrence-Lightfoot & Davis, 1997).

The high school students, as they were able,wrote in reflection journals, spoke into taperecorders, or drew about their service-learning expe-riences. The faculty fellow also collected data fromboth groups of pre-service teachers through com-parison of their reflection journals as well as pre- andpost-surveys. The faculty fellow was interested indata about the connection of the teacher-aiding orservice-learning experience to their coursework andabout caring and altruistic behaviors arising fromtheir experiences. She verified data through memberchecking with the high school teachers and pre-ser-vice teachers.

Forty-eight pre-service teachers filled out pre-and post-surveys designed to measure general atti-

tudes and perceptions of college students. This atti-tude and perception surveys were developed by D.Diaz, A. Furco, and H. Yamada from the University ofCalifornia at Berkley and was administered the firstweek of classes and again the last week of classes.

Integrative Scholarship

The results of this survey will be used to under-stand and enhance the service-learning componentof this class in the future. The results of the surveywere tallied, mean scores were derived, and scoresfrom the two groups were compared.

There were a number of interesting comparisonsbetween both the pre and post surveys of each ofthe non-service-learning and the service-learninggroups as well as between the two groups. Onlyscores that differed by at least .2, were considered tobe worth noting.

On the statements, "I find the content in schoolcourses intellectually stimulating," "I am concernedabout local community issues," and "giving some ofmy income to help those in need is something Ishould do," the non-service-learning group went fromagree to disagree while the service-learning groupchanged from disagree to agree.

A marked difference between the two groups ofpre-service teachers emerged from the rich datafrom the reflection journals. After service learningparticipants became so personally invested in theirstudents, several actually changed their majors fromeducation to special education. These pre-serviceteachers not only gained an understanding of stu-dents with disabilities, but also of service-learningpedagogy.

The high school students with special needslearned relationship skills with strangers and ways inwhich they can help people around them. It alsogave them "something they could be proud of." Thestudents saw the real life application in the lessonsand enjoyed doing them.

As teachers, students, and pre-service teacherslearned from each other and served together, theyeach had the opportunity to make a difference inthe lives of others.

Literacy Tutoring ProjectThis integrated teaching/scholarship/service pro-

ject involved Literacy II tutors from a large public uni-versity addressing literacy needs of elementary stu-dents. All elementary education and special educa-tion majors take Literacy II. According to the 2004Campus Compact Service Statistics, collaborationbetween institutions of higher education and K-12schools is one of the most popular forms of servicelearning partnerships. A total of 90 percent of theCampus Compact member institutions (CampusCompact Website) have existing partnerships with K-12 schools.

Creative Collaborations

Terry Pickeral (2003) notes that the basic tenets of

service learning – mutuality, reciprocity, authenticity,and democratic collaboration – make service learn-ing a natural connector of the higher education andK-12 educational systems. Instead of resorting to thefamiliar unbalanced relationship models of highereducation "using" schools as practice fields or provid-ing services to schools, this partnership sought tomeet collective needs by working with both schools.The plan was to accomplish more together thaneither partner could do alone by combining comple-mentary knowledge and skills.

The Literacy II instructor met with the Director ofInstructional Support Programs/Title 1 from the schooldistrict and brainstormed about what kind of scholar-ship could be done together that would be advan-tageous to both the school district and to the univer-sity. Since spring 2003, pre-service teachers in Litera-cy II have provided one-on-one tutoring for area ele-mentary and after-school programs for half-hour ses-sions twice a week over a period of nine weeks. Dur-ing the spring 2004 semester, there were 19 sectionsof 20 students for a potential impact on 380 area ele-mentary students receiving literacy tutoring. Bothpartners were interested in what kinds of impact thistutoring was having on the elementary tutees.

At the collaborating school, second throughfourth grade teachers identified potential needs andreferred tutees. The fourth grade teachers noted aneed for their students to work more with informa-tional text. All teachers who referred students agreedto be available for questions from tutors, and to con-ference with tutors about their tutees’ progress at theend of the semester. Tutors administered a basicreading inventory to measure reading progress anda survey to measure attitude towards reading.

Multiple models

In this model, the faculty fellow and tutors met atthe elementary school two days per week for nineweeks for one-on-one tutoring predominantly withfourth graders. An unanticipated role of the facultyfellow, which became part of this model, was that ofa liaison for other partnerships between the K-5school and the university. Because the faculty fellowwas aware that the fourth grade teachers expresseda need to learn how to teach informational text,when she heard a university colleague express aninterest in doing something with classroom teachersand informational text, she connected the interestedschool and university parties. The teaching andscholarship interests of the university instructors andthe classroom teachers complemented each other.Both university instructors worked together coordinat-ing professional development opportunities for pub-lic school teachers, pre-service teachers, and univer-sity instructors to learn from each other.

The next fall, the university colleague’s qualita-tive methods graduate students did qualitativescholarship in the classrooms of the fourth gradeteachers, who have agreed to try a new informa-tional text projects in their classrooms. The followingspring, the faculty fellow’s Literacy II students were to

tutor fourth grade students of the informational textproject teachers, with more intentionality to informa-tional text.


Based on the tutors’ portfolio of reflections,assessments and documented work from the tutee,both tutors and tutees learned a great deal from thisexperience. However, because of the evolvingnature of the new partnership, the scholarship didnot go as planned. Originally, tutors were to workwith second and third graders on ski l ls whichappeared on a reading progress tests at the begin-ning and end of the year, yet twelve of the twentyreferred students were fourth graders who do nottake reading progress post-tests. Only fourteen of thetwenty students brought back signed permission fromtheir parents to use their scores; only five of thesewere first and second graders who would be takingreading progress post-tests.

There were several possible confounding factors.This tutoring was to be the only intentional interven-tion, yet some of the students were also tutored bystudents from another university and some workedwith teachers in a program after school targeted atraising reading test scores. Attitude towards readingwas a mediating factor which may have influencedthe academic outcome of reading progress. Atti-tude was assessed with a "Garfield" survey, wherestudents circle one of four sketches of Garfield in dif-ferent poses and with different expressions on hisface. However, it is highly unlikely that there wouldhave been a change in attitude on a question like,"How do you feel about reading instead of playing?"Yet, if one of the twenty questions had been "How doyou feel about reading with a grown-up readingpartner?" the response probably would have beenpositive.

Although their reading progress over the yearwas a result of many factors, all tutees progressed atleast a half year and one second grader progressed2.25 years. The scholarship gave seriousness to theproject for both the tutors and the tutees, all ofwhom put forth a good faith effort and were able tosee progress. For the next scholarly endeavor, formalassessments could be designed to align better withthe goals and actual activities.

Early Literacy ProjectService learning was integrated into a children’s

literature course for elementary education majors ata small nonsectarian university. Pre-service teachersexperienced the challenges and rewards of readingearly childhood literature to very small children at afamily literacy program. Pre-service teachers alsohad the opportunity to collaborate with a communi-ty organization and to interact with parents of 0-3year old children. This Early Literacy Project promotesthe vision of the university stated in the university mis-sion statement "experiential learning that connectstheory, practice, and reflection; engaged learning

that connects the classroom, campus, and the com-munity."

The principles that were followed in designing thisproject support what Strand, et al. (2003) in Principlesand Practices: Community Based Scholarship andHigher Education, call community-based scholarship(CBR). They state, "Some practitioners have suggest-ed that some kinds of service-learning are betterthan others at effecting student learning. Specifical-ly, service-learning that stresses collective action,advocacy, critical analysis, and collaboration for thepurpose of social change, the category into whichCBR seems to fall, may well result in greater curricular,academic, and personal benefits for students thanother forms of service-learning without those fea-tures" (Strand, et al,2003,. p. 120).


BabyTALK (Teaching Activities for Learning andKnowledge), is a non-profit, community literacy orga-nization with a national reputation. One of the familyliteracy programs run by BabyTALK is STEPS (SuccessTogether Experiencing Play and Stimulation). This pro-gram is specifically for parents who have pre-schoolchildren and are working on a GED. In addition, theprogram services parents who have pre-school chil-dren and are learning English as a second language.Most of the 0-3 year old children enrolled in the pro-gram display delays of at least 30% in one or moreareas of development; participate in early interven-tion programs, and work with a trans-disciplinaryteam of providers.

Multiple Models

All pre-service teachers in "Children’s Literature"were required to fulfill 10 hours of service learningeither in an elementary school setting or at the STEPScenter. Ten out of 40 pre-service teachers (25%)chose to go to the STEPS center. All 40 pre-serviceteachers attended two workshops put on by theSTEPS director and the faculty fellow. Class sessionswith all 40 pre-service teachers focused on languageacquisition. Learning the principles of the social con-structivist theory was also combined with a discussionof how the principles would be applied at the STEPScenter. Pre-service teachers’ primary focus was tohelp pre-school children build new communicationskills, reinforce positive language patterns that werealready acquired, and assist children practicinggross-motor maneuvers. As pre-service teacherslearned how to assist a 3 year old child learning totalk, other trained professionals were present to sup-port and encourage their work. This model of com-munity-based service learning, piloted by this firstgroup of pre-service teachers, will also be continuedand sustained by the School of Education’s newlyapproved major in early childhood education as itbegins offering coursework in 2004-2005.


There are a number of aspects in service learningthat are important to assess.

Dr. Andrew Furco of UC-Berkley, in a presentation toIllinois Campus Compact’s State Farm Faculty Fellowsin February, 2004, explained that service learningquality is assessed by whether or not the experiencewas intentional, meaningful, integrative and reflec-tive. The service learning was set up as a clearlydefined part of the Children’s Literature course forthe spring, 2004 semester. The syllabus was rewrittenintegrating service learning into the course, relatingservice learning specifically to literacy, collaboratingmeaningfully within the community, and reflectingafterwards.

The reflection tools (Hatcher & Bringle, 1996),classroom discussions, directed writings, and reflec-tive essays, measured two objectives, "to increaseteacher education student’s knowledge of civicresponsibility" and, "to increase teacher educationstudent’s knowledge of how to select and presentearly childhood literature." There were positive out-comes on these objectives based on the nature ofthe narrative statements made in the college stu-dents’ midterm reflective essays and their directedresponses in their final field reports. Attitudinal state-ments that reflected a strong sense of civic responsi-bility and engagement with underserved populationswere also counted as positive. Out of ten studentswho did their service learning at STEPS, seven demon-strated positive outcomes on these two objectives.

Instead of taking a traditional approach to ser-vice learning scholarship and directly connecting theservice learning to the academic outcomes, theEarly Literacy Project takes a new approach to ser-vice learning scholarship. This new approach to ser-vice learning scholarship looks at service learningwithin the context of a course, but also combinesthat with looking at other mediating factors. Acade-mic outcomes are then evaluated. According to Dr.Andrew Furco, University of California, Berkley (2004),the most consistent and strong findings in recent ser-vice learning scholarship show that a service learningexperience that is a clearly defined part of a coursewill not only result in academic outcomes but also inother mediating factors such as increase in self-esteem, empowerment, pro-social behavior, motiva-tion and engagement. The written narrative state-ments by participants that were used as evaluativeresults in The Early Literacy Project show strong exam-ples of empowerment, motivation and engagement.The narrative statements also reflect evidence ofcourse content being applied and synthesized at afairly high level of understanding.

Early Literacy Bags in Special Education ProjectThe next project also involved a service learning

experience with early literacy in special education ata mid-size public university. The project was designedto provide service and materials to families withyoung children who have disabilities. The focus of theproject was the involvement of pre-service specialeducation teachers in the creation of Literacy Bagsto transport children’s books. The project also provid-ed for a parent-training workshop developed and

conducted by the pre-service teachers.It is especially important in the field of teacher

training, that pre-service teachers engage in acade-mic work integrated with service to the communitybecause graduates will go on to assume professionalroles that require a strong dedication and activeparticipation in the community in which they work(Eyler & Giles,1997; Swick, 1999). This project promot-ed both intellectual and civic engagement by link-ing the work pre-service teachers do in their collegecourses to real-world problems and real world needsin education. The project was able to 1) fulfill anunmet community need, 2) better prepare pre-ser-vice special education teachers for their careers,and 3) encourage critical thinking and reflection oncivic responsibility.


This project was designed to provide service andmaterials to families with young children who havedisabilities. The focus of the project was the involve-ment of pre-service special education teachers inthe creation of Literacy Bags to transport children’sbooks. The pre-service teachers created of 23 Litera-cy Bags for an early childhood special educationprogram. It allowed pre-service special educationteachers to work collaboratively with university facul-ty, early childhood teachers, and families of youngchildren with special needs. Pre-service teachersobserved in the early childhood special educationprogram in which the Literacy Bags were donated.They had an opportunity to work with the children,ask questions about planned development of the lit-eracy bag, and evaluate the appropriateness oftheir Literacy Bag design.

Multiple Models

Each college student chose a children’s litera-ture book and created a Literacy Bag to be used byparents in their homes to facilitate early reading andwriting behaviors. The bags included: a bag, a chil-dren’s book, and directions for activities to accom-pany the book. The bags were designed to meet theunique needs of children with disabilities by the incor-poration of assistive technology, a focus on emer-gent language skills, and activities related to con-cepts of print.

The pre-service teachers also conducted a work-shop for families to teach caregivers how to incorpo-rate activities, which would enhance their child’semergent literacy skills, into their daily routine. Thepre-service teachers planned, organized, and facili-tated the workshop which focused on reading tochildren, doing developmentally appropriate activi-ties to go along with the books, and creating a litera-cy rich environment in the home.

Because this project was grant supported, thegrant was written exclusively by the faculty fellow.The project was chosen, designed, and a time linewas created before the college course started. Thisessentially removed student voice from the project.In order to remedy that situation, the pre-service

teachers created their own teams related to thetasks that needed to be completed for the project.The pre-service teachers formed five teams. Theteams were in charge of 1) contacting the earlychildhood teachers and setting up an observation forall of the pre-service teachers, 2) collecting receiptsfor the materials spent on Literacy Bags and monitor-ing finances for the project, 3) organizing publicity forthe project, 4) designing the Family Workshop, 5) cre-ating an evaluation form for the Literacy Bags usingthe course standards.


To evaluate the effectiveness of the project, Ser-vice Learning Reflection Journals were analyzedusing qualitative measures. The pre-service teacherswere able to reflect on their experiences andexpand critical-thinking skills through the use of a Ser-vice Learning Reflection Journal and through classdiscussion. From the journals, themes were identified.There were three themes that emerged related togeneralizing skills learned in this project to futureteaching. The first theme related to the developmentof literacy bags. The pre-service teachers thought Lit-eracy Bags were an effective way to stimulate emer-gent literacy skills in young children. The secondtheme related to collaboration with parents. Many ofthe college students felt especially successful in help-ing parents develop their skills in working with theiryoung children who have disabilities. They also feltpositive about the ability to work with parents in theworkshop. The parents who attended were eager togain information and enjoyed the positive atmos-phere of the workshop. The final theme related to ser-vice learning. Many of the college students who planto teach students at the secondary level were partic-ularly interested in service learning as a way toembed learning standards into community service.The pre-service teachers acknowledged the useful-ness of service learning to increase student motiva-tion and to develop a sense of efficacy.

Action Scholarship in English and Psychology ProjectThe final project is distinctively different from the

other projects. At this small liberal arts college, twoprofessors collaborated on an innovative, integratedteaching experience that includes a service learningproject on high school risky driving behaviors.


In this project, the faculty members were able tomerge collaborative teaching that included a ser-vice learning project that in turn informs their ownscholarly scholarship interests in the areas of sportspsychology and gender studies, respectively. Theproject grew out of a discussion about pedagogicalchallenges to motivating students in courses thatbuild scholarship and writing skills in meaningful ways.Students often divorce what they do in the classroomfrom real world applicability. Specifically, in somecourses, students write surveys or papers without

thinking about audience and purpose. These assign-ments were often viewed as a task done simply for agrade. Although the building of these skills is neces-sary and important, of course, by combining a real-world community service project it engaged the stu-dents in the scholarship and writing process. The orig-inal project involved three English composition class-es and one psychology tests and measurementsclass and one high school. However, after some pub-licity about the project, three other high schoolsasked to be included and became involved in thesurvey. In addition, a sport psychology and socialpsychology class also used the survey results for class-room projects. In sum, two professors, six collegeclasses, and over 150 high school students from fourdifferent high schools were involved in the project.

Multiple Models

The English classes wrote their initial scholarshippapers on risky youth driving behaviors (e.g., speed-ing, distractions, drinking, etc.); the psychology stu-dents then looked at this scholarship as they wrote,analyzed the surveys distributed in the high schools,and finally, the psychology class provided results tothe English students to incorporate into their finalpapers. In addition, the students in both classes pre-pared final reports for a website and for future class-es. Two additional classes (sport psychology andsocial psychology) then utilized the results of the pre-vious semester’s work to develop fact sheets andpersuasive video messages. The resulting fact sheetsand video were distributed to local high schools tobe used in driving educational programs.


The results from this project are threefold. First, theresults from the survey are useful for the high schoolsas they develop educational programs to inform stu-dents about speeding, distractions, and speeding.Second, these results will be useful for the facultymembers in their future scholarly work. And third,pedagogical assessment results provided data onstudent learning. this project was assessed. Specifi-cally, using the principles of effective teaching pos-tulated by Chickering and Gamson (1991), a surveywas designed to assess students’ perceptions of theproject. With appropriate assessment (Angelo &Cross, 1993; Brookfield, 1995), the results of this pro-ject reflect a meaningful learning experience for col-lege students, a useful service to high schools, andrich scholarship data from the actual surveys andpedagogical assessments for the faculty members.

In conclusion, rather than viewing teaching, ser-vice, and scholarship as three distinctive, perhapseven hierarchically opposing entities, this new para-digm establishes a holistic, collaborative, and mean-ingful learning unit. The five State Farm Faculty Fel-lows from the Illinois Campus Compact member insti-tutions developed unique projects that exhibit col-laboration, models, and scholarship findings. Oneach campus, in addition to significant learningexperiences for the students involved and service to

the community partner, there was also an increase ofservice learning visibility on each campus. As part ofthe grant, each faculty fellow was responsible for aservice learning workshop on campus. Moreover, thefaculty fellows presented at a service learning con-ference at Rockford College.

Developing the appropriate models, finding sus-tainable collaborations, and assessing the results arechallenging. Thanks to funding sources such as theState Farm Insurance Foundations and Illinois Cam-pus Compact, resources are available to help withthis pursuit. The positive impact of the recognition ofthe pedagogical value of service learning, the insti-tutional understanding of service the learning, thecollaborations, models, and scholarship results makethe effort worthwhile. Service learning has greatpotential to address contemporary issues as high-lighted in the Greater Expectations report from theAssociation of American Colleges and Universities:"Quality liberal education […] has the strongestimpact when studies reach beyond the classroom tothe larger community, asking students to apply theirdeveloping analytical skills and ethical judgment toconcrete problems in the world around them, and toconnect theory with the insights gained from prac-tice" (www.greaterexpecations.org). As the reportconcludes, "collaboration and concerted action"are the keys to improving education. Five Faculty Fel-low projects in Illinois are doing just that.

ReferencesAngelo, T A, & Cross, K P. (1993). Classroom assess-

ment techniques: A handbook for college teach-ers. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

Association of American Colleges and Universities(2002). Greater Expectations: A new vision forlearning as a nation goes to college. Retrievedon April 3, 2004 from http://www.greaterexpec-tations.org/

Boyer, E L. (1990). Scholarship reconsidered: Prioritiesof the professorate. p. 24. Princeton: CarnegieFoundation for the Advancement of Teaching.

Brookfield, S D. (1995). Becoming a critically reflectiveteacher. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

Campus Compact Website.(http://www.compact.org/news/stats2004/G.html)

Coye, D. (1997). Ernest Boyer and the New AmericanCollege: Connecting the "disconnects." Change,May/June 1997, 21-29.

Chickering, A.W. & Gamson, Z.F. (1991). Applying theseven principles for good practice in undergrad-uate education. New Directions for Teachingand Learning. Number 47, Fall 1991. San Francis-co: Jossey-Bass Inc.

Clandinin, D. & Connelly, F. (2000). Narrative inquiry:Experience and story in qualitative scholarship.San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

Eyler, J., & Giles, D. E. Jr. (1997). The impact of service-learning on college students. Michigan Journalof Community Service Learning, 4, 5-15.

Furco, A. (2004). Assessment and Evaluation Issues inService Learning. A workshop presented to IllinoisCampus Compact State Farm Insurance FacultyFellows at Illinois State University, Bloomington-Normal, Illinois, February 13th, 2004.

Glassick, C.E., Huber, M.T., & Maeroff, G.I. (1997).Scholarship assessed: Evaluation of the professori-ate. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass

Hatcher, J. & Bringle, R. (1996). Reflection Activitiesfor the College Classroom. Indianapolis, IN: IUPUpress.

Hutchings, P., & Shulman, L.S. (1999). The scholarshipof teaching: New elaborations, new develop-ments. Change 31 (5): 11-15

Lawrence-Lightfoot, S. & Davis, J. (1997). The art andscience of portraiture. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

Strand, K. et al. (2003) Principles and Practices: Com-munity-Based Scholarship and Higher Education.San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

Swick, K. J. (1999). Service learning helps futureteachers strengthen caring perspectives. Clear-ing House, 73(1), 29-32.

Author Notes: We wish to thank Illinois Campus Com-pact and The State Farm Insurance Foundation forfunding these projects. We also express our appreci-ation to Kathleen Engelken the Executive Director ofIllinois Campus Compact at Rockford College. Weare also grateful for the support from the faculty,administration, and students at McKendree College,Illinois State University, Millikin University, Trinity Christ-ian College, and Southern I l l inois University-Edwardsville. Finally we thank the community part-ners who made these integrative experiences possi-ble.

If you have knowledge, let others light their candles at it.– Margaret Fuller

Academic and Non-Academic PredictorsOf College Student Retention

Samantha J. White, Elizabeth F. B. Kirby and Mara S. Arugete

Samantha J. White holds an M.Ed. in educational counseling.She currently serves as Assistant Director of Admissions at StephensCollege, Columbia, MO.

Elizabeth F.B. Kirby holds an M.Ed. in educational counseling.While completing this degree, she worked as an admissions coun-selor at Stephens College.

Mara S. Aruguete holds a doctoral degree in experimental psy-chology. She has published numerous research articles on eatingdisorders and obesity, doctor-patient communication, and teach-ing effectiveness. She currently serves as an Associate Professor ofPsychology at Lincoln University in Missouri.

AbstractThe purpose of this study was to examine the

academic and non-academic factors that predictcollege retention. Archival data was collected from299 former students at a small, private women’s col-lege. Academic factors (such as high school gradepoint average and standardized test scores) andnon-academic factors (such as socioeconomic sta-tus and number of low-risk college courses complet-ed) were measured in an effort to predict retention.Results showed that high school grade point averagewas a significant predictor of college retention. Inaddition, the number of low-risk courses a studentcompleted in college predicted retention. Thesefindings suggest that offering students extra servicesin high-risk courses may increase student retention.

One of the most important issues facing collegesand universities is the high attrition rate among stu-dents (Kahn & Nauta, 2001). In recent years, studieshave shown that one fourth of freshmen do not con-tinue past their first year (Kahn & Nauta, 2001; Kirst,2004); while 40% fail to graduate altogether (DeBer-ard, Spielmans & Julka, 2004; Kirst, 2004). Attritionharms the student as well as the academic institu-tion. Students miss out on the benefit of a collegeeducation and colleges experience financial bur-dens directly related to costs of recruitment efforts,lost tuition, room and board, and donations fromalumni (DeBerard et. al, 2004; Lau, 2003). For thesereasons, many colleges have invested in retentionprograms (Dale & Zych, 1996). However, the attritionrate in colleges has not changed appreciably inmany years (Barefoot, 2004). While academic fac-tors (e.g., standardized test scores) may be reliablepredictors of student retention in college, non-acad-emic factors (e.g., parental socioeconomic status)also play a role (Kahn & Nauta, 2001). Knowledge ofthese non-academic factors may help collegeemployees to directly target those students whorequire extra assistance or attention, thereby increas-ing retention (Larose, Robertson, Roy, & Legault,1998). The purpose of the present study is to identify

academic and non-academic factors that predictcollege student retention.

Academic and non-academic factors havebeen associated with college success. Studies havedetermined that high school grade point average(G.P.A.) and standardized test scores (e.g., ACTscores) are reliable predictors of college success(Boatwright & Egidio, 2003; DeBerard et. al, 2004; Fass& Tubman, 2002; Johnson & Beck, 1988; Kahn &Nauta, 2001; Larose, et al., 1998; Szafran, 2001).However, these scores account for only 25% of thevariance in college retention (Wolfe & Johnson,1995), with 75% of the variance presumably relatedto non-academic factors (Tross, Harper, Osher, &Kneidinger, 2000). In light of this research, collegepersonnel often consider academic factors whenmaking acceptance decisions. When colleges raisetheir academic standards for incoming students,attrition rates should decline somewhat. However,because academic factors account for so little vari-ance, colleges that rely solely on academic factorswill likely find it difficult to substantially influenceretention.

Non-academic factors such as socioeconomicstatus and types of courses students enroll in couldalso influence college retention. Students who con-tinue to be financially dependent on their parentsare three times less likely to drop out in their first year(Boyer, 2005). Furr and Elling (2002) found that stu-dents who worked longer hours because they hadfew financial resources were more likely to drop outof college. The types of classes students take whenthey enroll in college may also influence their reten-tion.

Szafran (2001) showed that students who enroll inhigh-risk courses (classes with a high percentage ofD’s and F’s) were less likely to be retained after thefirst year than students who enrolled in low-risk cours-es. By contrast, students who took more low-riskcourses were more likely to remain at the collegeafter their first year, despite the fact that they tendedto enroll in more credit hours per semester (Kimweli &Richards, 1999; Szafran, 2001). Thus, research sup-ports the consideration of non-academic factors in

addition to academic factors when attempting toidentify which students are likely to be retained incollege.

The present study examines academic and non-academic predictors of college student retention.The first hypothesis is that high school experience(G.P.A. and courses taken) and standardized testscores will correlate with retention. The secondhypothesis is that students who show high socioeco-nomic status (measured by parental occupation andneed for financial aid) will show higher retention. Thethird hypothesis is that the number of low-risk coursesthat students enroll in during college will be positivelyassociated with retention.

MethodsParticipants

The authors collected archival data from 299 for-mer students at a Midwestern, private women’s col-lege. The college was founded in 1833, enrollsapproximately 500 students/year, and is located in arural area. The data included all students whomatriculated between 1994 and 1999. The authorsgathered data from the Office of the Registrar at thecollege. Ninety-seven percent of students identifiedthemselves as female and 3% identified as male(Mean age = 18.67, SD = 1.06) on their applications.Eighty-three percent of students identified them-selves as Caucasian, 7% as African-American, 3% asHispanic, 2% as Native American/Alaskan Native, 1%as Asian, and 1% as other (3% did not identify an eth-nic group). Seventy-eight percent of students indi-cated that they would require financial aid.

Procedure

The authors recorded data from student applica-tion files, final high school transcripts, and final col-lege transcripts. Demographic measures includedgender, ethnicity, and age. From high school tran-scripts, the authors recorded the number of mathand English courses completed and G.P.A. Ameri-can College Test (ACT) scores served as a standard-ized test indicator. The study defined retention in col-lege as number of college credit hours completed.Socioeconomic status was defined as parentaloccupation and whether or not the student indicat-ed a need for financial aid on the college applica-tion. Observers scored parents’ occupations on aseven-point scale modeled after the HollingsheadIndex of Social Position (Hollingshead & Redlich,1958). A mean occupation score was calculatedwhen the student listed an occupation for each par-ent. The number of low-risk courses completed incollege was also recorded. Observers defined low-risk courses as "skills" courses (e.g. dance, music, the-atre, equestrian). Internal institutional data hasdetermined that over 50% of people taking thesecourses receive A grades.

ResultsThe first hypothesis in this study was that high

school G.P.A., courses taken in high school, and stan-dardized test scores will correlate with retention. Theauthors analyzed this hypothesis using a linear regres-sion in which the dependent variable was number ofcredit hours completed, and the independent vari-ables were high school G.P.A., ACT score, and num-ber of high school English and math courses. Theregression equation was significant, F (4,273) = 2.92, p< .05, R2 = .04. High school G.P.A. was the only vari-able that significantly predicted college credit hours,ß = 14.16, t (277) = 2.51, p < .05. Contrary to hypothe-sis, ACT score, number of high school English courses,and number of high school math courses did not sig-nificantly predict college credit hours completed.

Hypothesis two predicted that students whohave a high socioeconomic status, measured byparental occupation, would show higher retention.To analyze this hypothesis, the authors computed acorrelation on parental occupation score and thetotal number of credit hours completed in college.There was no significant relationship between thesevariables. This analysis also included a one-wayANOVA using need for financial aid (scored as yes orno) as the independent variable and credit hourscompleted as the dependent variable. Need forfinancial aid was not significantly related to numberof credit hours completed. Therefore, the resultsfailed to support the second hypothesis.

The third hypothesis was that the number of low-risk courses that students enroll in during college willbe positively associated with retention. To analyzethis hypothesis, the authors performed a bivariatecorrelation on the number of low-risk courses takenand the credit hours completed in college. The num-ber of low-risk courses was significantly associatedwith credit hours completed, r (244) = .50, p < .001.Therefore, the higher the number of low-risk coursestaken, the higher the number of college credit hourscompleted.

DiscussionResults of this study showed that the number of

low-risk courses a student completed positively pre-dicted college retention. Similarly, Szafran (2001)indicated that college students who enrolled in ahigh number of low-risk courses were retained longerthan students who enrolled in high-risk courses. Thesefindings indicate that retention might be affected byoffering extra services for students in high-risk courses.One successful program that targets high-risk coursesis Supplemental Instruction (Ogden, Thompson, Rus-sell, & Simons, 2003). Supplemental Instruction offersvoluntary peer-led study sessions for high-risk courses.By targeting the course, rather than the student, thisprogram avoids the stigma that might be associatedwith labeling a student "at-risk." Advisors may also beable to increase student retention if they initiallyadvise students to enroll in low-risk courses. Althoughstudents may eventually have to complete high-riskcourses to fulfill degree requirements, under some cir-cumstances taking such courses could be delayeduntil the risk of student attrition declines in the juniorand senior years (Seymour & Hewitt, 1997).

This study predicted that high socioeconomicstatus would result in greater retention. The data didnot support this hypothesis; parental occupation andneed for financial aid were not associated withretention. These findings contrast with other studiesshowing that retention is positively associated withsocioeconomic status (Braunstein, Mcgrath & Pesca-trice, 2000; Stoecker, et. al, 1988). Yorke (1999) foundthat students cited financial difficulties as one of thetop three reasons why they left an academic institu-tion. One explanation for the lack of associationbetween socioeconomic status and retention mayhave been the measures of socioeconomic status.This study measured self-reported parents’ occupa-tions as opposed to student wages or income. Fur-ther research measuring actual income may revealthat socioeconomic status affects retention.

This study found that high school G.P.A. positivelypredicted college retention. Previous research(Boatwright & Egidio, 2003; DeBerard et. al, 2004; Fass& Tubman, 2002; Johnson & Beck, 1988; Kahn &Nauta, 2001; Larose, et al., 1998; Szafran, 2001) hassimilarly shown that high school G.P.A. and standard-ized test scores are reliable predictors of college suc-cess. Contrary to previous findings (Kahn & Nauta,2001), results showed that academic factorsaccounted for only a small proportion of the vari-ance in retention. It may be the case that academ-ic factors are weaker predictors of retention inwomen’s colleges than in coeducational institutions.In fact, Stoecker, Pascarella & Wolfle (1988) showedthat the predictors of college retention differ for menand women, with high school achievement being aweaker predictor of retention for women. Given thefinding that women are more likely than men toleave college in the first year (Boyer, 2005), furtherresearch on predictors of persistence among femalestudents is warranted. Such research should explorethe role of academic predictors in women’s institu-tions in comparison to similar coeducational institu-tions.

There are two main limitations to this study. First,the authors used archival data and had little controlover the reliability of the recording system. Second,the data may have failed to show that standardizedtest (ACT) scores predicted retention because thedata on standardized test scores was incompletecausing the sample size to be somewhat lower forthis analysis. Despite these limitations, the findings ofthis study indicate that providing extra assistance forstudents in high-risk courses may be one way toincrease college student retention.

ReferencesBarefoot, B. O. (2004). Higher education’s revolving door:

Confronting the problem of student drop out in U.S.colleges and universities. Open Learning, 19(1), 9-19.

Boatwright, K. J. & Egidio, R. K. (2003). Psychological predic-tors of college women’s leadership aspirations. Journalof College Student Development, 44(5), 653-669.

Boyer, P. G. (2005). College student persistence of first-timefreshmen at a midwestern university: A longitudinalstudy. Research for Educational Reform, 10(1), 16-28.

Braunstein, A., Mcgrath, M., & Pescatrice, D. (1999). Mea-suring the impact of income and financial aid offers oncollege enrollment decisions. Research in Higher Edu-cation, 40(3), 247-259.

Dale, P. M. & Zych, T. A. (1996). A successful college reten-tion program. College Student Journal, 30(3), 354- 361.

DeBerard, M. S., Spielmans, G. I., & Julka, D. C. (2004). Pre-dictors of academic achievement and retentionamong college freshman: A longitudinal study. Col-lege Student Journal, 38, 66-81.

Fass, M. E., Tubman, J. G. (2002) The influence of parentaland peer attachment on college students’ academicachievement. Psychology in the Schools, 39(5), 561-573.

Furr S. R. & Elling, T. W. (2002). African-American students ina predominantly-white university: Factors associatedwith retention. College Student Journal, 36(2), 188-203.

Hollingshead, A. B. & Redlich, F. C. (1958). Social class andmental illness: A community study. New York: Wiley.

Johnson, B. G. & Beck, H. P. (1988). Strict and lenient grad-ing scales: how do they affect the performance of col-lege students with high and low SAT scores? Teachingof Psychology, 15(3), 127-131.

Kahn, J. H. & Nauta, M. N. (2001). Social-cognitive predic-tors of first-year college persistence: The importance ofproximal assessment. Research in Higher Education,42(6), 633-652.

Kimweli, D. M. & Richards, A. G. (1999). Choice of a majorand student’s appreciation of their major. College Stu-dent Journal, 33(1), 16-27.

Kirst, M. W. (2004). The high school/college disconnect.Association for Supervision and Curriculum Develop-ment, 62(3), 51-55.

Larose, S., Robertson, D., Roy, R., & Legault, F. (1998). Nonin-tellectual learning factors as determinants for successin college. Research in Higher Education, 39(3), 275-297.

Lau, L. K. (2003). Institutional factors affecting student reten-tion. Academic Search Premier, 124(1), 126-137.

Ogden, P., Thompson, D., Russell, A., & Simons, C. (2003).Supplemental Instruction: short- and long-term impact.Journal of Developmental Education, 26, 2-7.

Seymour, E. & Hewitt, N. (1997). Talking about Leaving:Why Undergraduates Leave the Sciences. Boulder,CO: Westview Press.

Stoecker, J., Pascarella, E. T., & Wolfle, L. M. (1988). Persis-tence in higher education: A 9-year test of a theoreti-cal model. Journal of College Student Development,29, 196-209.

Szafran, R. F. (2001). The effect of academic load on suc-cess for new college students: Is l ighter better?Research in Higher Education, 42(1), 27-50.

Tross, S. A., Harper, J.P., Osher, L. W., & Kneidinger, L.M.(2000). Not just the usual cast of characteristics: Usingpersonality to predict college performance and reten-tion. Journal of College Student Development, 41(3)323-334.

Wolfe, R. N. & Johnson, S. D. (1995). Personality as a predic-tor of college performance. Educational & Psychologi-cal Measurement, 55, 177-185.

Yorke, M. (1999) Leaving early: Undergraduate non-com-pletion in higher education. Palmer: London.

External Assets and the DevelopmentOf Resiliency Among Urban American

High School StudentsTeresa S. Wasonga and Phillip Messner

Teresa S. Wasonga is currently an Assistant Professor at NorthernIllinois University, Department of Leadership, Educational Psycholo-gy, and Foundations. Prior to joining the NIU faculty, she worked atNorthwest Missouri State University in the Department of Education-al Leadership. Her professional interests include resiliency studies ofurban high schools ad high school students, co-created schoolleadership, and multicultural education. Recent research hasfocused on external and internal assets influencing academic suc-cess among urban high school students.

Phillip Messner is Professor of Educational Administration in theDepartment of Educational Leadership, Northwest Missouri StateUniversity. He is coordinator of the Northwest Doctoral Cohort aspart of the University of Missouri-Columbia state-wide doctoralcohort program and dissertation advisor. He also directs the North-west Graduate Center at Kirksville that offers off-campus graduatecredit, certification and degree opportunities for North East Missouri.Recent research has focused on alternative funding for publicschools through school-related foundations.

AbstractThis study investigated the relationships between

measures of external assets and the subsequentdevelopment of resiliency based on a diverse sam-ple of urban students from a Midwestern high school.A disproportionately higher percentages of White stu-dents reported high scores in variables that had sig-nificant impact on their resiliency. These findingsprompted an assessment of research on the roleplayed by hardships in the development of resiliency,although the data does not provide direct measureof hardship. Implications for policy are also exam-ined.

Urban youth today face increasing challengessuch as high poverty, unsafe neighborhoods, acade-mic achievement, and learning a second language.At the same time, the support systems that shouldhelp them meet and surmount those challenges arerapidly disappearing (Miller, Leslie-Toogood, & Kafe,2005). Research has identified resiliency as one of thefactors contributing to youth development and per-severance through the challenges (Henderson & Mil-stein, 2003; Thomsen, 2002). Henderson and Milstein(2003) define resiliency as, "the capacity to springback, rebound, successfully adapt in the face ofadversity, and develop social, academic, and voca-tional competence despite exposure to severe stressor simply to the stress that is inherent in today’s world"(p. 7). WestEd (2000) defined resiliency as the positivedevelopmental outcomes of external assets. WestEdidentified six variables that constitute resiliency. Theyinclude cooperation and communication, empathy,problem-solving, self-efficacy, self-awareness, andgoals and aspirations.

Resiliency as an approach to student develop-ment and schooling involves individual strengths,competencies, and positive social attitudes (Osher &Fleischman, 2005; Thomsen, 2002; Benard, 1996). Thedevelopment of resiliency has been associated withthe social supports and opportunities experienced by

students in their home, peer, school, and communityenvironments (external assets) (Osher & Fleiscman,2005; WestEd, 2000). The assets are cultivated by thepresence of caring relations, high expectations, andopportunities to participate in meaningful activitiesthat engage students’ innate abilities (WestEd, 2000;Benard, 1996). Hanson and Austin (2002) indicatedthat caring relations, high expectation and opportu-nities to engage in meaningful activities were consis-tently related to low levels of involvement in riskbehaviors, high levels of academic achievement,and positive youth development. Wang, Haertel, &Walberg, (1997) identified high expectations and rolemodeling as key protective factors that mitigateagainst the likelihood of academic failure particular-ly for those students in difficult life circumstances.Osher and Fleischman (2005) observed that caringconnections, positive behavioral supports, and socialand emotional learning were essential in a schoolculture. And Finn, Wil lert, and Marable (2003)observed that teens with low attachments to schoolare more likely to be vulnerable as they are less likelyto realize academic success and more likely to bedelinquent in behavior. Based on these findings, itmay be assumed that students who experience envi-ronments rich in positive external assets are also likelyto exhibit adaptive characteristics and competen-cies that enable them to self regulate in their prac-tices and decisions (Solomon, Battistich, Watson,Schape, & Lesis, 2000; Wang, Haertel, & Walberg,1998).

Trueba (2002) disagrees with the hypothesis thatonly positive external assets may lead to the devel-opment of resiliency. He argued that hardships mayalso generate resiliency associated with the ability toadapt and function effectively in school and society.Hardships were described as the difficulties of havingto master different languages, crossing racial andethnic boundaries, and overcoming poverty.Because of these hardships, the students develop apsychological flexibility necessary to self regulate, topass for, or assume different identities for purposes of

survival. This flexibility according to Trueba (2002) isalso resiliency. But it is "resiliency associated with theability to endure hardships and overcome obstacles[that] will clearly be recognized as a new culturalcapital that will be crucial for success in a moderndiversified society" (p. 7).

This study focused on the effects of positive exter-nal assets on the development of resiliency amongurban high school students. The research questionthat provided focus for this inquiry was: How do stu-dents of different backgrounds in an urban highschool differ on the dimensions and impact of exter-nal assets on the development of resiliency?

MethodA survey research design was utilized to investi-

gate the research question. High school studentsfrom an urban school district in the Midwest wereidentified for this study. The school was purposelychosen because it was in a unit district with gradesfrom pre-kindergarten through twelfth grade. Stu-dents in this school were therefore exposed to thesame resources. Students were asked to respondanonymously to a resilience questionnaire. Of the 559students eligible to participate, 522 (93%) eligibleresponses were received. Four hundred and fifty twoquestionnaires provided usable data. The sampleincluded 228 female and 224 males. Three hundredand sixty (75%) of the students were White, 51 (11%)were Hispanic/Latino, and 41 (9%) were AfricanAmerican. The ethnic make up of the school was 78%white, and 10 % Hispanic, 7 % African American, 4 %Asian American.

Measures. The 56-item resiliency questionnaire,the Healthy Kids Resilience Module (WestEd, 2000)was used to measure 17 assets subdivided into thesubscale concepts of external assets (home, peer,school and community) and resiliency (cooperationand communication, self-efficacy, empathy, prob-lem solving, self-awareness, goals and aspirations).The Healthy Kids Resilience Module (HKRM) was usedbecause it assesses strengths, competencies, andpositive social and healthy attitudes and behaviorsexhibited by youth. Constantine, Benard and Diaz(1999) reported a reliability alpha of the HKRM at .80for external assets and .84 for resiliency.

Students were asked to indicate for each item onthe module how much a statement applied to them.Response choices were: 4-very much true, 3-prettymuch true, 2-a little true, 1-not at all true. The follow-ing score categories were derived: High- studentswith average score 9, Moderate- students with aver-age score between least 6 and 8.9, and Low- stu-dents with average score below 6 (WestEd, 2000).Table 1 shows the external assets and their measureswhile Table 2 shows resiliency and their measures(Constantine, Benard & Diaz, 1999).

FindingsDescriptive statistics (means and percentages)

and independent t-test were computed to comparedata between White students and, African American

and Hispanic students. Linear regression analyseswere used to examine the effects of external assetson resiliency for each group of students. An Alphalevel of .05 was used to determine significance.Although these findings enhanced the understand-ing of the interface of ethnicity, external assets andresiliency, they may not be generalized as the resultswere from a convenient sample.

Survey Findings on External Assets and Resilience

The mean scores on external assets and resiliencyare presented in Table 3. The study found significantmean score differences between White studentsand, African American and Hispanic students (t=2.150; p< .05) in favor of white students in the mea-sure of external assets among the students in thestudy. External assets mean scores of African Ameri-can and Hispanic students were also lower than thesample mean. The Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) andPost Hoc analyses indicated that White students hadsignificantly higher mean scores in peer relations thanHispanic respondents (t =-2.650; p< .01). While onlyWhite students scored a high mean (9.3) on externalassets, all groups (White, African American and His-panic students) in the study scored high mean onresiliency.

Inter correlation analyses indicated significantpositive correlations between external assets andresiliency for the sample and for all the groups in thestudy (Table 5). However, the study revealed differ-ences in the percentages of students scoring high onexternal assets by ethnicity (Table 4). Lager percent-ages of White students scored high on external assetsand the subsets compared to African American, His-panic, and the sample. Conversely, a larger percent-age of African American (79%) and Hispanic Ameri-can students (74%) scored high on resiliency com-pared to White students (72%) and the sample (70).

Linear regression analysis was used to identifywhich subsets of external assets best predictedresiliency for each group (White, African American,Hispanic) of students. Table 6 presents the results ofthe regression analyses for each of the groups. Foreach regression, all four components of externalassets were included in the equation (home, peer,school, community). All four subsets of external assetswere significant predictors of resiliency for the sam-ple. Home, peer and community were significantpredictors of resiliency amongst White students andexplained 55% of the variance (Table 6). Home wasthe only significant predictor of resiliency amongAfrican American students while none of the subsetsof external assets was a significant predictor ofresiliency among Hispanic students. The regressionanalyses explained 45% and 46% of the varianceamong African American and Hispanic studentsrespectively.

The study found that a disproportionately higherpercentage of White students compared to AfricanAmerican and Hispanic students scored high on vari-ables that were significant predictors of their resilien-cy. While over 70% of White students scored high on

each of the significant predictor variables, 60% ofAfrican American students scored high on the onlyvariable that was a significant predictor of theirresiliency. Peer relations were the best predictor ofresiliency among White students and the least effec-tive predictor of resiliency among African Americanand Hispanic students. The study indicated thatalthough peer group had the lowest correlation(Table 5) and was the least predictor (negative) ofresiliency among African American students (Table6), it had the largest percentage of students report-ing a high score (65%). For both African Americanand Hispanic American students, lower percentagesof students scored high on variables that were moreeffective predictors of resiliency and vise versa.

Discussion and ConclusionOverall the study found a positive correlation

between external assets and resiliency among thesample and each of the groups. When the data wasdisaggregated by the ethnic/racial groups, the studyfound significant differences. This finding is relevantto educational achievement because, according toGriffith (2002), the achievement gap between whiteand minority students may be associated with 14factors that included school/classroom environment,peer relations, educational opportunities at homeand in the community. The findings predicted thatattempts by educators to close the achievementgap will fail if these educational and societal factorsare not considered in the process of educating chil-dren.

Based on Trueba’s (2002) argument, we believedthat race/ethnicity influenced the nature of the rela-tionship between external assets and resiliency. Stu-dents from minority backgrounds African Americanand Hispanic are more likely to experience hardships(mastery of different languages, crossing racial andethnic boundaries, and overcoming poverty). Wefound differences in the levels of external assets bymean scores and percentages of students reportinghigh on external assets across racial/ethnic groups infavor of white students. We also found differences inthe levels of resiliency across racial/ethnic groups infavor of Black/Hispanic students.

In particular we found that external assets didnot predict resiliency among Hispanics while homewas the only significant positive predictor of resiliencyamong African American students. Unlike White stu-dents, lower percentages of African American andHispanic students scored high on variables that werehighly correlated to, or predicted their resiliency.Also, external assets based on caring relations, highexpectations and opportunities to engage in mean-ingful activities explained less variance amongminority students (45%) than it did among White stu-dents (55%). These findings led to the conclusion thatpositive external assets only do not explain the devel-opment of resiliency. Going by Trueba’s argument,hardships may also explain resiliency. It is thereforelogical to claim that positive external assets andhardships, independently or in combination may

contribute to the development of resiliency. This maybe the reason that Black and Hispanic studentsreported higher mean scores with larger percentageof students scoring high in resiliency and lower meanscores in external assets based on the WestEd surveyand definition of external assets.

Trueba (2002) explained that hardships likenuances of racism, language proficiency, andpoverty, more commonly found among AfricanAmerican and Hispanic students, lead to differentexperiences. These have not diminished the devel-opment of resiliency among African American andHispanic students. Trueba (2002) argued that there is"an intimate relation between people’s capacity toendure hardships, challenges, and difficult situationsin life, and their ability to redefine themselves in orderto function effectively in new social, cultural, linguis-tic, and economic contexts" (p. 8). These social con-texts, as reported by Kozol (1991), are predictors ofsuccess or failure for a large number of students.Those who are able to redefine themselves and over-come hardships can be said to have developedresiliency and are more likely to self regulate and arelikely to less at risk of school failure or engage in riskybehaviors. However, as Trueba (2002) cautions us,that this resiliency may be used for survival not acad-emic achievement. He found that nuances of racismare some of the most draining factors in academiaand academic achievement and resiliency devel-oped out of hardship may be viewed as less func-tional for academic achievement and more func-tional for immediate economic survival. Althoughresiliency based on hardships may be advantageousfor survival, schools need to recognize this it as newcultural capital that may be transformed into oppor-tunities.

Research has shown that White students report-ed larger social networks and more interactions withperceived sources of support than Hispanic/Latinostudents (Kenny & Stryker, 1994). White students alsodeveloped the most rational plans in school andcareer because knowledge concerning maximallyefficient means for achievement was more prevalentin their environment (Hoelter, 1982). On the otherhand, Getz (1977) found that environmental condi-tions contributed more to lower achievement scoresof Hispanic students. Their teachers were often per-ceived as uncaring, biased and insensitive to stu-dents’ cultures at home. They were also seen as lack-ing the necessary sociocultural capital to succeed atthe level of mainstream population. The institutional-ization of such attitudes in places providing externalassets (school, community, peers, home) may haveled to lower scores on external assets in this study.

Implications for Leaders and SocietyEducators are taking stock of 50 years since the

Brown v. Board of Education decision. On the whole,equal access has not led to equal achievementwhile school segregation is on the increase (Kozol,1991; Kozol, 2000). Local communities, state policy-makers, and the federal government have kept

equal achievement on their agendas, as expressedin such efforts as "No Child Left Behind." However,these efforts must be all inclusive - beyond schools.Schools should expand the operational definition ofeducation to include the role of external assets in thecontext of positive external assets and hardships inrelation to youth development and learning. All stu-dents should get the benefits of positive externalassets as these have been found to have a positivecorrelation with resiliency and academic achieve-ment.

Schools should assess student external assets,and use these to understand and guide issues of dis-cipline, high-risk behavior, and intervention. Educa-tors should recognize that although some students’resiliency may be based, in part, on ability to endurehardships as opposed to positive external assets, it iscultural capital that may be crucial for these stu-dents’ success and self regulation. This finding sug-gests the need for complementary approach toschooling (cultural capital); one that augmentsexternal assets, especially for African American andHispanic American students, while recognizing theimpact of hardships on their development.

This study has developed a case for the need ofa comprehensive approach to youth development,one that requires action by all stakeholders in thecommunity. School leaders and policy-makers shouldcontinuously examine their practices, relations withstudents, and pay closer attention to the connec-tions between positive assets, hardships, resilienceand academic achievement.

Table 1External Assets and Their Measures

External Asset Measures

Home Caring relations (Someone interested in my schoolwork, listens tome, and talks with me about my problems).High expectations (Someone who wants me to do my best, believesthat I will be a success and expects me to follow rules).Meaningful participation (I help make decisions, do fun things or gofun places with adults and do things at home that make a difference).

Peer Caring relations (I have a friend who really cares about me, talks with me about my problems, helps me when I am having a hard time).High expectations (My friends try to do what is right, do well inschool, get into a lot of trouble).

School Caring relations (Teacher or adult who cares about me, notices whenI am not there, listens to me when I have something to say).High expectations (Teacher/adult who tells me when I do a good job,wants me to do my best, believes that I will be a success).Meaningful participation (I help decide class activities and rules, dointeresting activities at school, do things in my school that make adifference).

Community Caring relations (Adult who really cares about me, who notices whenI am upset and who I trust).High expectations (Adult who tells me when I do a good job, wantsme to do my best and believes that I will be a success).Meaningful participation (I take lessons in music, art, sports or hobbyor are a member of a club, I help other).

Table 2Resilience and Their Measures

Resilience Measures

Cooperation and I can work with others who have different opinions thanCommunication mine, work with other students my age, and stand up for

myself without putting others down.

Self-efficacy I can work on my problems, do most things if I try, do manythings well

Empathy I feel bad when someone gets their feelings hurt, try to understand what others go through, and try to understandwhat other people feel and think.

Problem Solving When I need help, I find someone to talk with, know whereto go for help with a problem, and try to work out problemsby talking about them.

Self-awareness There is a purpose to my life, I understand my moods andfeelings, and I understand why I do what I do.

Goals and Aspirations I have goals and plans for the future, I plan to graduate fromhigh school, I plan to go to college or some other schoolafter high school.

Table 3Mean Score of External Assets and Resiliency

Scores by EthnicityHigh Mean Scores Moderate Mean Scores

External Assets Sample (9.2) African American (8.8)White Americans (9.3) Hispanic Americans (8.8)

Resilience Sample (9.6)African American (9.8)Hispanic Americans (9.5)White Americans (9.6)

Table 4Percentage of Students Scoring H (High) by

Troups on External Assets and Resilience

External Home Peer School Community ResiliencyAssets

Groups (n)

Sample (452) 60 68 70 50 62 70African A (41) 52 60 65 46 57 79Hispanic (51) 45 60 53 40 53 74White (360) 73 70 72 52 74 72

Table 5Correlations between Resiliency and

External Assets by GroupsExternal Home Peer School CommunityAssets

Sample .707** .586** .612** .617** .619**African American .668** .704** .481** .599** .554**Hispanic .674** .545** .447** .682** .628**White .714** .591** .645** .615** .618**

**p<,01

Table 6Regression Models Predicting Resiliency

Variable B SE b T Adj. R F

Sample Home .163 .038 .189 4.301** .367 133.34Peer .280 .033 .333 8.538**School .101 .050 .129 2.018*Community .173 .048 .219 3.634**

African Home .364 .126 .656 2.877** .446 8.25American Peer -.064 .116 -.105 -.550

School .069 .158 .120 .434Community .027 .145 .044 .187

Hispanic Home .178 .099 .205 1.789 .464 15.88American Peer .128 .097 .153 1.326

School .242 .150 .294 1.618Community .262 .176 .303 1,489

White Home .157 .045 .176 3.529** 547 109.518Peer .323 .039 .377 8.393**School .048 .057 .061 .845Community .211 .053 .271 3.993**

* p<.05; ** p<.01

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Mankind . . . grows beyond its work, walks up the stairs of its concepts, emerges ahead of its accomplishments.

– John Steinbeck

Students’ Perceptions of Faculty’s TeachingAbility Based on Their Ethnicity, Accent,

And Academic DisciplineLea Lee and Louis H. Janda

Lea Lee is an Associate Profes-sor in the College of Education atOld Dominion University in Norfolk,VA. She teaches undergraduateand graduate reading educationcourses. Her major interests includediversity, multicultural education,reading, working with parents, andearly childhood education. Sheearned her Master’s Degree fromChicago State University and aPh.D. from the University of Min-nesota in the area of early child-hood and reading education. Shehas taught in several colleges inKorea and the United States, aswell as young children in Chicago,IL.

Louis H. Janda is an AssociateProfessor in the Department of Psy-chology at Old Dominion Universitywhere he teaches both graduateand undergraduate courses inpsychological assessment, educa-tional assessment strategies, andresearch methods. He received hisdoctorate from Arizona State Uni-versity in clinical psychology. Hehas published several books deal-ing with psychological assessmentand has provided assessment ser-vices in both business and clinicalsettings.

AbstractThis study examined 236 college students’ per-

ceptions of professors’ teaching competence basedon the professors’ ethnicity, the presence of anaccent during lectures, and academic discipline.The study found that European-American andAfrican-Americans professors were perceived to bemore effective than Asian-American professors inteaching effectiveness regardless of academic disci-pline. The findings of this study suggest that studentsdo have preconceptions about the effectiveness offaculty based on their ethnicity. Especially, Asianprofessors were evaluated significantly lower thanEuropean and African professors.

IntroductionThe increased employment of non-Americans on

campuses throughout the country reflects a growingethnic diversity among professors in social sciencecolleges. While more and more minority professorsare entering the fields of social sciences and educa-tion, students who are majoring in these fields tend tobe white Americans rather than foreign or minoritystudents. When these students are enrolled in cours-es taught by professors with ethnic and linguisticbackgrounds different than their own, some studentsunfortunately tend to lack respect, are ready to criti-cize, give lower course evaluations, and encountersome level of discomfort, tension and conflict (Boute,1999; Hendrix, 1995; McGowan, 2000).

However, foreign and minority professors in thecolleges of science, mathematics, and engineeringare as well accepted as white professors in the col-lege community by other faculty and their students

(Connors, 1987). Harrington, Southerland, and John-son (1993) reported that the majority of the non-American teaching faculty at the science collegesmigrated to the United States from Asia, India, andWestern Europe and over half of the graduatedegrees are conferred on non-American students inthese colleges. Many students and professors inthese colleges are foreigners and share similar cultur-al and ethnic backgrounds that enable them tocomfortably relate to each other.

To determine if students at a social sciences col-lege in an urban mid-Atlantic university valued diver-sity among faculty, this study examined their percep-tions of professors varied in their ethnic background,linguistic background, and academic discipline. Thepurpose of this study was to investigate whether for-eign and minority professors are perceived as beingcompetent as white professors. This study examinedwhether the students in a college of education ratedprofessors differently on course evaluations. Specifi-cally, this study addressed the following questions.

1. Do students’ perceptions of professors differbased on the professors’ ethnicity?

2. Do students’ perceptions toward professors dif-fer when the professors are speaking Englishwith a foreign accent?

3. Do students’ perceptions toward professors dif-fer depending on the content of the course,specifically computer science versus readingeducation?

4. Does the professors’ ethnicity interact witheither speaking with an accent or the acade-mic discipline in determining student’s percep-tions toward professors?

Review of LiteratureDiverse learning environment adds richness and

quality in cross-cultural interactions, which play a sig-nificant role in students’ intellectual, social, and per-sonal development (Adams, 2002; Boylan, Sutton,and Anderson, 2003; Chang, 1999; Pascarella,Palmer, Moye, and Pierson, 2001; Smith et al., 1997;Terenzini, Cabrera, Cokbeck, Bjorklund, and Parente(2001). The evidence from research conducted overthe past decade is quite clear that ethnic and cultur-al diversity allows professors and students to retaintheir personal identities, to have a sense of belong-ing, to take pride in their own heritage, to foster anappreciation of diversity among the entire collegecommunity, and to maintain a society where all peo-ple are equally respected, which symbolize the soci-ety’s democratic commitment to human dignity andequality. Diversity in higher education makes astrong positive contribution to student retention, intel-lectual self-confidence, social self-confidence, andsatisfaction with the college experience, which helpstudents to be better prepared to work in a diversework force (Lee, 2002; Smith, 2004; Yates, 2000).

Nevertheless, there are some cases where minori-ty professors face the reality of biased treatment andare perceived as less qualified as a result of somestudents’ and professors’ biased perspectives. Har-rington, et al. (1993) reported that students assessednon-American professors as less competent thanAmerican professors in their course evaluations andthey are appeared to be biased toward their profes-sors’ teaching ability. In a similar study, Neves &Sanyal (1991) found non-American professors weremore likely to be perceived positively by non-whiteand older students, and students with higher GPAs.Foreign professors might, therefore, be consideredmore effective and be professionally satisfied in insti-tutions located in cosmopolitan areas where stu-dents and faculty members are culturally diverse orwhere the student population is older.

Tantalizingly, Galbraith (2002) found that ethnicand racial minorities at social science colleges, espe-cially at older universities with a smaller population ofminority students and professors, face discrimination.Race and ethnicity were viewed as a potentialsource of conflict in the relationship between stu-dents and professors in several studies (Black, Maki,and Nunn, 1997; Cracraft, 1988; Gladstein & Mailick,1986; Goodwin & Nacht, 1983; Lee, Adb-Ella, & Burks,1981; Nisbett & Wilson, 1977; Penny & White, 1998).

Jacobs and Friedman (1988) observed that somestudents with biased perceptions about instructors’teaching ability based on the professors’ ethnic andlinguistic backgrounds try to avoid registering forcourses taught by foreign professors. These studentsmay not benefit as much from the course as non-biased students (Smith and Necessary, 1994). Thus, itis critical for students to have unbiased opinionsabout the course and professor before experiencingand interacting with professors who have differentethnic backgrounds. Kadushin (1985, pp. 164-165)claimed that learning could take place best when

the nature of such interaction is positive, and whenprofessor and student accept each other’s differ-ences, and are comfortably relaxed with each other.In this positive and unbiased learning environment,the level of student participation in learning is higherand anxiety is lower, which in turn facilitates learning.Based on the reviewed literature, the authors con-cluded that some students and professors in highereducation still need to make an effort to appreciatethe unique contributions of all cultures in classes andto embrace different perspectives from ethnicallyand culturally diverse peoples. University administra-tors still need to maximize equality of opportunity forall individuals and minority groups to pursue acade-mic excellences in various academic fields on cam-pus, and facilitate the implementation of diversityand the enhancement of human dignity and demo-cratic ideals.

MethodsParticipants

The participants in this study were 236 undergrad-uate and graduate students enrolled in ten randomlyselected education courses in a college of educa-tion located in an urban area in Southeastern Vir-ginia. Of the 236 participating students, 195 werefemale and 41 were male students. The participants’ethnic backgrounds were 194 Caucasian, 37 African-American, 1 Hispanic, and 4 Asian/Pacific Islanders.Total number of ful l-t ime instructional facultyemployed in the college was 79, which includes 66Whites, 6 Blacks, 2 Asians, 2 Hispanics, 2 AmericanIndians, and 1 non-resident alien.

The college of education believes it is importantto have a student body that is diverse and activelyseeks students from a broad range of diverse groups.

InstrumentA student questionnaire was used to assess stu-

dents’ perceptions of faculty competence as a func-tion of ethnicity, use of an accent, and academicdiscipline in a higher education setting. The ques-tionnaire consisted of a scenario, biographic ques-tions, and seven course evaluation questions, andwas coded with a three digit number appearing atthe top of each page to reflect the three indepen-dent variables as shown in the table 1. Three inde-pendent variables (ethnicity, use of accent, andacademic discipline) were used to create twelve dif-ferent scenarios based on 12 imaginary professors.Although each scenario included three identicalindependent variables, they were varied to reflect3x2x2 factorial design with instructors’ ethnicity(Asian, African, and European), use of an accent(Yes and No), and academic discipline (ReadingEducation and Computer Science). For example, ascenario with a code number 111 depicted an imag-inary professor as follows: "Dr. Kaneko was born in anAsian country but received a doctorate degree froman American University. Dr. Kaneko speaks Englishfluently but does have a pronounced accent. Stu-dents must listen closely to understand Dr. Kaneko's

lectures. Dr. Kaneko specializes in teaching Methodsof Reading Instruction."

Table 1. Independent Variables

Ethnicity Use of an accent Field of expertise

1. Asian 1. Yes 1. Reading Education2. African 2. No 2. Computer Science3. European

Twenty evaluation sheets were made for each ofthe 12 imaginary professors. Thus, there were a totalof 240 evaluation sheets. The use of fictitious profes-sors was appropriate to control extraneous variables,such as, grade expectations, instructors’ appear-ance, personality conflicts, lifestyle, beliefs, amountof required work, and negative class environment,which might contribute to course ratings.

The dependent variables consisted of sevencourse evaluation items that were used by the uni-versity to assess teaching competence. Question 1addressed overall teaching effectiveness as aninstructor. Question 2 addressed the instructor’s abili-ty to communicate ideas effectively. Question 3addressed the instructor’s consistency/punctuality inmeeting class and using allotted time. Question 4addressed the instructor’s helpfulness, sensitivity,responsiveness to all students’ needs. Question 5addressed the instructor’s overall quality of profes-sors’ course. Question 6 addressed how much theyhave learned or benefited from an instructor. Finally,question 7 addressed the instructor’s organization,structure, and clarity of requirements. Each of theseven questions in the evaluation sheet has five rat-ings ordered from A = poor, B = acceptable, C =good, D = very good, and E = excellent.

ProcedureThe questionnaire was passed out to students

who were taking education courses in the middle ofthe semester when students are not normally expect-ing a course evaluation. The classes included in thestudy were ten randomly selected undergraduateand graduate education classes. Once the classeswere selected, the researcher contacted the profes-sors who taught the selected courses to provide thepurpose of the study and the directions to administerthe evaluation. All of the professors are white Ameri-cans who have taught at the college for at least 5years full-time and agreed to distribute and collect asurvey to their students. They were directed to telltheir students that the questionnaire would be keptconfidential, therefore the participants did not writetheir names nor personal identification numbers onthe evaluation form. The participating professorspassed out one questionnaire and one scan sheetper student.

Students had to find a questionnaire code num-ber appearing on top of the questionnaire and writethe number on the scan sheet before they marked

answers like the sample they were shown by the par-ticipating professors. Participants were asked toread one scenario appearing above the courseevaluation questions, answer biographic questions,and evaluate the professor’s competence on a scansheet using a number 2 pencil. It took about fiveminutes for each student to read a scenario andcomplete a questionnaire. Students rated a facultydescribed in a scenario on a five point scale arrang-ing from A = poor, B = acceptable, C = good, D =very good, and E = excellent. The letter ratings A to Ewere converted to number ratings, A = 0, B = 1, C =2, D = 3, and E = 4 before entering the numeric rawdata.

The participating professors collected both thequestionnaire and completed scanner sheets andtold the students that their cooperation was appreci-ated. All 240 evaluation sheets were collected bythe instructors participating in this study during class.Although the return rate was 100%, four unmarkedanswer sheets were disregarded, therefore 236 wereincluded in the data analysis. Four responses had tobe eliminated since they were either incomplete orleft blank with descriptive remarks about the evalua-tion form. The collected data was exported intoSPSS, which was used to perform the MultivariateAnalysis of Variance (MANOVA) and UnivariateAnalyses of Variance (ANOVA).

ResultsThe results of three research questions investigat-

ed in this study were as follow.1. Do students’ perceptions toward professors dif-

fer based on the professors’ ethnicity? The MANOVAresults indicated that students’ perception towardthe teaching competence of professors was signifi-cantly different based on the professors’ ethnicbackgrounds (F= 2.22, p, < 0.05). Consequently,ANOVAs were performed in an attempt to identifyspecific aspects of teaching competence that weresignificantly affected by the professors’ ethnicity.The ANOVAs revealed that the ethnic background ofprofessors was a significant factor in a course evalua-tion in four aspects of teaching competence - theoverall effectiveness (F = 6.40, p, < 0.05), effectivecommunication of ideas (F = 4.95, p, < 0.05), overallquality of course (F = 5.09, p, < 0.05), and benefitfrom the course (F = 4.20, p, < 0.05), taught by profes-sors. The means and standard deviations for each offour aspects of teaching competence are presentedin Table 2. Table 2 indicates that Asian professorswere rated significantly lower in four aspects ofteaching competence. However, ethnicity was notsignificant in three other aspects of teaching compe-tence – consistency/punctuality in meeting class andusing allotted time, helpfulness/sensitivity/responsive-ness to all students’ needs, and course organization,structure, and clarify of requirements.

Table 2. Mean and SD for Professors’Four Aspects of Teaching Competence

Asian African European

Mean SD Mean SD Mean SD

Overalleffectiveness 1.77a .10 2.16b .10 2.23b .10

Effectivecommunicationof ideas 1.48a .12 1.78b .11 1.99b .12

Overall qualityof course 1.83a .11 2.26b .11 2.25b .11

Benefit fromthe course 1.80a .11 2.14b .11 2.26b .12

Means that share a common superscript do not differ significantly at p< .05.

2. Do students’ perceptions toward professorsdiffer when the professors are speaking English withtheir native accent as opposed to speaking with noaccent? The MANOVA results indicated that stu-dents’ perception toward the teaching competenceof professors was not significantly different based ontheir use of an accent (F = 1.05, p, > 0.05).

3. Do students’ perceptions toward professorsdiffer depending on the academic discipline, specifi-cally computer science and reading education?The MANOVA results indicated that students’ percep-tion toward the teaching competency of professorswas significantly different based on the teachingsubjects (F = 2.61, p, < 0.05). The ANOVA results, how-ever revealed that there were no significant effectsfor any of seven aspects of teaching competence -the overall effectiveness, effective communicationof ideas, overall quality of course, benefit from thecourse, consistence/punctuality in meeting class andusing allotted time, helpfulness/sensitivity/responsive-ness to all students’ needs, and course organization,structure, and clarify of requirements.

4. Does the professors’ ethnicity interact with sub-jects of the courses taught or speaking with anaccent in determining student’s perceptions towardprofessors? The MANOVA indicated no significantinteraction effects.

Table 3. Summary of MANOVA Results forInteractions among Variables

(V1 = Ethnicity, V2 = Use of Accent, and V3 = Teaching Subject)

Variables F df Significance

V1*V2 1.52 7 1.15

V1*V3 1.98 7 0.06

V2*V3 1.22 7 0.28

V1*V2*V3 1.26 7 0.26

P <0.05

ConclusionWhile it was predicted that there would be a

main effect for the instructor’s ethnicity, the directionof this main effect was not as predicted. Since amajority of the students who participated in thestudy were white, and given that Boute (1999), Hen-drix (1995), and McGowan (2000) have found that

some white students tend to rate African-Americanprofessors low on course evaluations, it was predict-ed that professors with a European-American back-ground would be judged more favorably than thosewith either an or Asian-American background. Theresults of this study, indicated, however, European-Americans were perceived to be no different thanAfrican-Americans in teaching effectiveness, andboth of these groups were judged to be more effec-tive than Asian-American professors. The results vali-date the finding of Jacobs and Friedman (1988) thatstudents either avoid classes taught by non-nativefaculty or rate them lower on course evaluations andcongruent with Harrington, et al. (1993) that non-native professors were perceived as less competentregardless of whether they had adequate Englishlanguage skills.

It may be that these results are a function of therelatively small Asian-American population in the col-lege as well as in the geographical area in which thisresearch was conducted. This lack of experiencemay hamper students’ ability to view Asians profes-sors as competent. Future research may includemore qualitative items in order to learn why studentsseem to perceive Asian-American professors as lesseffective than either European-American or African-American professors.

Given that complaints from students about notbeing able to understand the lectures of foreign-born faculty are relatively common in some studies,such as, Jacobs and Friedman (1988) and Smith andNecessary (1994), it was expected that there wouldbe a main effect for lecturing with an accent. Thatsuch an effect was not found is difficult to explain.Perhaps making abstract judgments about the effortrequired to listen to lectures delivered in accentedEnglish is different from the reality in some cases. Insome cases the accent of foreign or minority facultymay be slight and even lend an exotic quality to thelectures while in others cases, students must payclose attention to understand the material. Perhapsfuture research could utilize audiotapes in which thenature of the accent is manipulated to learn moreabout how this variable influences perceptions ofteaching effectiveness.

Finally, it was predicted that there would be aninteraction effect involving ethnic background andsubject of the course. The reasoning was that for-eign-born faculty are more common in disciplinessuch as computer science and engineering andhence students would have had more experiencesattesting to their competence in these areas than ineducation where such faculty are rare. Contrary tothis expectation, Asian-American faculty werejudged to be less effective in both the computer sci-ence course and the education course. Again, thepossible explanation may be the lack of previousexposure to Asian faculty, which created a negativeperception about Asian professors’ teaching ability.As Galbraith (2002) reported, ethnic and racialminorities in a college with a smaller population ofminority students and professors tend to face discrim-

ination. The fact that 90% of students enrolled in thecollege are White or Black and less than 3% areAsian may explain why Asian professors were viewedas less effective regardless of their teaching subjects.

The findings of this study can be used to alerthigher education society that students may view cer-tain minority faculty as less competent professors.Although universities are supposed to be free fromethnic prejudice or racial conflicts and professors’competence should be judged solely by their schol-arly or professional merits, it needs to be noted that,as this study suggests, some students viewed the abil-ities of Asian-American professors lower than profes-sors of other ethnicities.

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AbstractThe study investigated specific teaching events

which student teachers found stressful and possibleremedies to these events which cooperating teach-ers confirmed. Although both student teachers andcooperating teachers agreed on the stressful natureof teaching overall, they disagreed on the stressfulnature of some teaching events. Analysis of vari-ance showed significant difference in the amount ofstress by semester, gender, category, geographicarea, age, teaching field, and years of experiencefor some teaching events. Both cooperating teach-ers and student teachers indicated that disciplinewas a major problem although less pronounced inrural than in suburban and urban areas. In addition,both groups suggested that increasing physicalsecurity would be a good remedy in suburban andurban areas.

While most practicing teachers/educatorsacknowledge that the assumption of teachingresponsibility carries with it the acceptance of stress,this study suggests that stress factors and potentialremedies as identified by student teachers andcooperating teachers must be carefully analyzedand controlled if their student teaching experiencesare to be positive, a unique contribution of this study,thus, leading to a satisfying career and less turnoverin the teaching corps.

The term stress has been associated with theteaching profession for quite some time. Selye (1956)defined stress as "the nonspecific response of thebody to any demand" (p.1). Selye (1974) stated, "It isimmaterial whether the agent or situation we face isunpleasant; all that counts is the intensity of thedemand for readjustment or adaptation" (p.28). Hegoes on to say that stress, in and of itself, is not anevil. Stress has both positive and negative conse-quences (Selye, 1974). Maslach (1976), Greenwood

and Greenwood (1979), and Gupta (1981) have indi-cated that increased teacher stress has led toreduced efficiency, tardiness, absenteeism, andturnover. Therefore, colleges and universities thatprepare teachers should pay particular attention tothe perceived stressful teaching events that studentteachers face and endeavor to provide solutions forthose problems.

Turney (as cited in Williams & Graham, 1992) stat-ed that the student teaching experience is "the sin-gle most important interaction in a teacher prepara-tion program where student teachers put it alltogether under the supervision and guidance of asignificant other" (p. 34). Schempp (1985) agreedwith this analysis by suggesting the student teachingexperience generally be regarded as a very valu-able component of pre-service preparation ofteachers. While much has been written about therole of cooperating teachers, stress in student teach-ers and effective coping methods have received farless attention. Although specific causes were notidentified with a level of certainty, the literature in theteaching practicum suggest that student teachersexperience some levels of stress (Aitken & Mildon,1999). Failure to cope with negative teaching eventsmay impede the professional development of stu-dent teachers and, hence, might affect their successas first year teachers. It is important to identify thoseteaching events that cause stress so that, ultimately,effective strategies for lessening stress may be devel-oped.

Fogarty and Yarrow (1994) also reported that stu-dent teachers, irrespective of their degree of experi-ence, were ‘significantly more stressed’ (P. 16) bytheir relationships with pupils than by the evaluationof the cooperating teacher. Clement (1999) report-ed that classroom management, formal observa-tions, and social and emotional problems of the stu-dents were perceived as primary stressors in the livesof student teachers. In a similar study related to Eng-

Student Teaching and StressSolomon Abebe and Joan Kitterman

Solomon Abebe, Ph.D., is Asso-ciate Professor of Education atTaylor University where he teacheseducational foundations andsupervises student teachers.

Joan Kitterman, Ed.D, is Profes-sor of Education at Taylor Universitywhere she teaches reading andspecial education courses. Shealso supervises student teachers.

lish as a Second Language (ESL), Carver, Scheier andWeintraub (1989) concluded that teachers usedsocio-emotional techniques which involved express-ing feelings to others and seeking support as copingmechanisms. Some also chose denial and disen-gagement as a strategy for dealing with stress. Inter-estingly, job searches as well as family issues werealso rated as stressors for student teachers. Theseparticular student teachers suggested that the coop-erating teacher assisted them most frequently indealing with their stress, while the college supervisorswere rated as the second source of help to relievethe stresses in their lives. Cole and Knowles (1995)reported that student teachers often experienceemotional trauma and confusion regarding collegesupervisors’ and cooperating teachers’ expectationsduring field experience. Other issues of concern forstudent teachers, as stated by Mitchell and Schwa-ger (1993), were supervisors’ expectations, communi-cation with parents and the college, and being ableto make a connection with new experiences.

In evaluating the results of the survey, Clement(1999) stressed the importance of colleges/universi-ties providing support to cooperating teachers tomake them aware of the stressors in the lives of stu-dent teachers. Likewise, student teachers need tobe made aware of the stress in the student teachingexperience and then attempt to eliminate somestress from their lives, such as outside employment orother duties.

MethodParticipants in this study were current student

teachers and their respective K-12 cooperatingteachers in two metropolitan cities and their sur-rounding county schools covering urban, suburbanand rural geographic areas in a Midwest state. Thesurvey was conducted during the fall and springsemester of the same academic year. Based on theirexperience, effectiveness, and degrees earned,cooperating teachers were selected by their respec-tive school administrators to mentor student teachersfor a period of one semester. Student teachers wereinformed during the all-day seminar at the beginningof the semester about the intent of the survey, theprocedures and the benefits of participating. Theywere also instructed to mention the survey to theircooperating teachers. The cooperating teacherswere also informed of the survey, the process andprocedures in a letter which was enclosed alongwith the survey instrument. Student teachers deliv-ered the packet to the cooperating teachers. Thissingle procedure may have created ‘demand char-acteristic’ for the cooperating teachers to feel oblig-ed to complete the survey. However, they had achoice not to participate. Both groups received apacket with the survey, stamped return envelope,including a letter describing the survey items,anonymity, guidelines and instructions of when andhow to fill out the survey. Ninety-two surveys weresent to cooperating teachers; 38 surveys werereturned (41.3%). Ninety two surveys were sent to stu-

dent teachers and 52 were returned (56.5%). Theresponses to 13 teaching events and 13 potentialremedies were arranged along a five-point LikertScale. Teaching events were ranked from low stress(1) to high stress (5) and potential remedies wereranked from very poor (1) to excellent (5). Each sur-vey item is identified by the letter "V" and a number,such as V1, V2, V3, etc., to match the complete sur-vey statement to the shortened version of the surveyitems which are displayed in the tables. The actualsurvey which participants received was written in fullrather than what is shown in the tables in the follow-ing results. Although minor modifications weremade to meet the needs in this survey, Wright (1985)originally developed and field tested the surveyitems at New Mexico State University, which dealtwith stress-related teaching events in the classroom.Data were analyzed using ANOVA and MANOVAand descriptive statistics between and amonggroups. Dependent variables that showed signifi-cant difference are reported below, including meancomparison for each variable by gender, age,teaching level, geographic area, teaching field, cat-egory, and years of experience.

Conducting a study involving both studentteachers and their cooperating teachers, using thesame instrument, on stress events and potentialremedies during the same period of time might assistin identifying and matching events of stress with theremedies as perceived by both practitioners. Theperspectives of both student teachers and cooper-ating teachers are important in matching stressevents to perceived remedies for each. Therefore,this study discusses teaching events which studentteachers found stressful and possible remedies tothese events which cooperating teachers confirmed.Although only significant results are reported, cautionis needed as readers interpret the results as somesample numbers (n) are much smaller than others.

Results and DiscussionMeans by semester

Analysis of variance showed significant differ-ence in stress level for the variable "Lecture" withgreater mean for the spring semester than the fallsemester. Analysis of variance also showed signifi-cant difference for three variables as stress remedies.The variable "Expulsion" showed greater mean forspring semester than the fall semester. Another wasthe variable "Payment for student teaching" withgreater mean for fall semester than spring semester.The third was the variable "Reduce supervisor’s visits"with greater mean for spring semester than the fallsemester. When asked if teaching was stressful, bothcooperating teachers and student teachers agreedthat it was with some variation. Cooperating teach-ers (42.2%) and student teachers (57.8%) said teach-ing was stressful. The differences by semester mayhave been impacted by the different calendars ofinstructional days between fall semester and springsemester. The use of lecture may have been moreprominent in the spring semester because the fall

semester included more review in preparing studentsfor statewide tests. Expulsion of students may havebeen more of a consideration in the spring semesterbecause of weariness among teachers and students.No other significant differences were detected bysemester. (See Table 1.)

Table 1Test of Means by Semester

Same Calendar Year

Means by genderAnalysis of variance and mean comparison

showed significant results by Gender for one vari-able. The variable "Student teacher/parent relation-ship" showed significant difference with greatermean for female than male. Two other variablesshowed significant difference as a potential remedyfor stress. One was "Reduction of class size" withgreater mean for male than female. Another wasthe variable "Reduce pull out …interruptions" withgreater mean for males than for females. Female stu-dent teachers appeared to place a much greateremphasis upon relationships with parents as indica-tors of stress. Because this study included morefemale student teachers and many of those wereelementary student teachers, these findings mayhave been a result of the more prevalent contactthat elementary teachers have with parents. Like-wise, the class size variable may have been an indi-cation of larger classes at the secondary level. Thereduction of pull-out interruptions may have been anindication that males are less tolerant of this aspectof education than females. No other significantresults were detected. (See Table 2.)

Table 2Test of Means by Gender

Means by categoryAnalysis of Variance showed significant differ-

ence by Category for three stress events and fourpotential remedies as perceived by participants. Thevariable "Expecting the unexpected" showed signifi-cant difference with greater mean for the categoryof Cooperating teacher than Student teachers. Thevariable "Power debate with students" showed signifi-cant difference with greater mean for the categoryof Cooperating teachers than Student teachers. Thevariables that showed significant difference by Cate-gory indicating possible remedies for stress elementswere as follows: "Payment for student teachers" withgreater mean for Student teachers than for Cooper-ating teachers; the variable "Presence of cooperat-ing teacher" with greater mean for Cooperatingteachers than for Student teachers; conversely, thevariable "Absence of cooperating teacher" withgreater mean for Student teachers than for Cooper-ating teachers. Both variables suggested that bothgroups indicated that their role is as important as theother role. The variable "Doing less lesson plans" withgreater mean for Student teachers than for Cooper-ating teachers suggested that student teachers werein favor of it as a stress remedy. (See Table 3.) In"Expecting the unexpected", cooperating teachersmay have recognized more of "the unexpected"than did the student teachers; the student teachersmay have not known that these events were "unex-pected". Likewise, the use of power debates mayhave been a relatively unknown phenomenon of stu-dent teachers. As a remedy, the payment issue mayhave sounded like a good idea to student teachers,but cooperating teachers may have viewed that asa rite of passage and not a realistic option. Anotherremedy, the presence of the cooperating teacher,was important to the cooperating teachers whowould be expected to show much ownership of theclassroom. Conversely, the student teachers mayhave felt more freedom in the absence of the coop-erating teacher. Preparing few lesson plans naturallyappealed to the student teachers but this may havereflected the time required to produce the lengthylesson plans of this particular teacher education pro-gram and not the planning inherent in the teacherplan book. Further, it is expected that student teach-ers would experience stress in the experience; how-ever, many cooperating teachers experience muchstress in this experience as well. It is important to reit-erate that both variables, "Absence of cooperatingteacher" and "Presence of cooperating teacher",suggest that both groups indicated that their role isas important as the other. No other significant resultswere reported. (See Table 3.)

Table 3Test of Means by Category

Category = Student Teacher, Cooperating Teacher

Means by geographic areaAnalysis of variance showed significant differ-

ence for three stressful events and one potentialremedy by Geographic area (Urban, Suburban, andRural). The variable "Unmotivated students" showedgreater mean for Urban and Suburban than for Rural.Another variable was "Working with peers" thatshowed greater mean for the Suburban group thanboth Urban and Rural. Another variable was "Man-aging discipline", with greater mean both for Subur-ban and for Urban groups than Rural. Although par-ticipants in the three areas (Urban, Suburban, andRural) suggested that discipline was a problem andneeded to be dealt with, the figures indicated thatthe problem was less pronounced in rural regions.Participants suggested that discipline problems weremore pronounced in urban and suburban regionsand, therefore, increasing physical security in thoseregions might help in coping with the stressors. Itmust be cautioned, however, that the means for thevariable "Unmotivated students" for all three groupswere high, suggesting that stress was evident; how-ever small the mean difference was among groups,it was significant. Therefore, the problem was lesspronounced in rural areas than the other two. Thesefindings may have been a reflection of the smallersize of most rural settings. Those student teachers insuburban schools found it more stressful to work withpeers but that, too, may have been a reflection ofthe numbers of teachers in these schools. As a reme-dy, increasing security in a school setting may havesimply reflected the perception of danger in anurban or suburban setting. No other significant resultswere detected. (See Table 4.)

Table 4Test of Means by Geographic Area

Means by ageTwo perceived potential remedies showed signifi-

cant difference by Age. Analysis of varianceshowed significance with the variable "Absence ofcooperating teacher" with greater mean for agegroups 31-35; for age group 26-30; for age group 20-25; and for age group 41-45 than for age group 36-40; for age group 46-50 and for the age group Over51. The variable "Preparing less lesson plans",although small, showed significant difference withgreater mean for age group 20-25 and age group31-35 than age group 36-40, age group 41-45, agegroup Over 51 , age group 46-50 and age group 26-30. The younger cooperating teachers may havefelt more comfortable leaving the classroom in thehands of the student teachers or may have remem-bered the stress they felt as a student teacher whensomeone was watching them. Likewise, writingfewer lesson plans was, generally, a greater relieverof stress for the younger cooperating teachers andmay have reflected their more recent experienceswith this task. No other significant results were detect-ed. (See Table 5.)

Means by teaching fieldAnalysis of variance and mean comparison by

Teaching Field showed significant difference for twostress events and one potential remedy. The variable"Selection of materials" showed significant differencewith greater mean for Art, History, Music, Mathemat-ics and Science than English, Elementary educationand for Physical education. The variable "Cooperat-ing teacher’s demands" also showed significant dif-ference by Teaching field with greater mean forMathematics, Elementary Education, English, andArt. Lower means were detected for Science, Music,Physical education, and History. In addition, thevariable "Parent involvement" showed significant dif-ference as a stress remedy by Teaching field withgreater mean for Art, Music, Elementary education,Science, Physical education and History. Lowermean was detected for English and Mathematics. Itmust be cautioned that the small number of respon-dents in the five fields should be taken into account.On the other hand, the number of respondents washigher in elementary education and English, yet themean was significantly lower. Because some sub-jects may be less structured than others, the selec-

tion of teaching materials proved to be stressful forsome student teachers. The cooperating teachers’demands upon student teachers generallyappeared to create more stress in those subjectareas that were involved in state-wide testing. As astress remedy, parent involvement was generally veryhigh for elementary education student teachers buteven higher for music and art student teachers.These two subject areas sometimes involve parentswith various agendas. No other significant resultswere detected. (See Table 6.)

Means by ExperienceAnalysis of variance also showed significant dif-

ference for the following variables as potential stressremedies by Number of Years of Experience. Thevariable "Reducing class size" was a favorable choice

with greater mean for 11-15 years; for Over 26 years;for None (student teachers); for 16 – 20 years; for 1-5years; for 6-10 years; and for 21-25 years of experi-ence. The variable "Presence of cooperatingteacher" showed significant difference as a potentialstress remedy with greater mean for 6-10 years; 11-15years of experience; for Over 26 years; for 21-25years; for 16-20 years; for None (student teachers);and for 1-5 years of experience.

The variable "Absence of Cooperating Teacher"showed significant difference as a potential stressremedy, with greater mean for None (student teach-ers); for 11-15 years; for 1-5 years, 6-10 years, and 16-20 years of experience; for Over 26 years; and for 21-25 years of experience. Essentially, all participants inthis survey acknowledged the potential of reducingclass size as a stress remedy. The presence or

Table 5Test of Means by Age

Table 6Test of Means by Teaching Field

Table 7Test of Means by Experience

absence of the cooperating teacher varied tremen-dously as a reducer of stress. Those responses mayhave been more a reflection of the relationshipbetween the student teacher and the cooperatingteacher. No other significant differences weredetected. (See Table 7.)

ConclusionIn order to gain a better understanding of the chal-

lenges facing student teachers and to provide effec-tive coping mechanisms, it is necessary to identifystressors with great certainty so that remedies andcoping strategies may be developed. Furtherresearch of this kind is surely needed to validatethose emotions that are a result of the perceivedstress-inducing teaching events. Recommendationsto reduce stress in student teaching are the follow-ing:

1. Opportunity should be provided to all educa-tion majors, particularly in the methods courses, tolearn about stressful teaching events and what to doabout them.

2. Opportunity should be provided to all cooper-ating teachers in the field to learn about stressfulteaching events and the perceived remedies ascoping mechanisms so that they could serve as thefirst line of response as needed.

3. Teaching events and coping strategies shouldbe devised and discussed on a continuous basis dur-ing student teaching seminars.

4. Opportunity should be provided to all collegesupervisors addressing targeted expectations andother events that might contribute to the studentteachers’ apprehensions of the supervisors’ pres-ence.

5. Teacher education programs should includeprocedures designed to improve knowledge ofurban and suburban education issues as well as thegrowing diverse populations and how they mightcontribute to stress in the teaching profession. Theauthors believe these need to be addressed in theearly stages of teacher education programs.

ReferencesAitken, J.L & Mildon, D. (1999). The dynamics of per-

sonal knowledge and teacher education. Cur-riculum Inquiry, 21, 141-162.

Carver, C., Scheier, M. & Weintraub, J. (1989). Assess-ing coping strategies: A theoretically basedapproach. Journal of Personality and Social Psy-chology, 56, 267-283.

Clement, M. (1999). Reducing the stress of studentteaching. Contemporary Education, 99, 20-26.

Cole, A. & Knowles, J. (1995). University supervisorsand pre-service teachers: Clarifying roles andnegotiating relationships. The Teacher Educator,30 (3), 44-56.

Fogarty, M. & Yarrow, A. (1994). Pre-service teacherstress and the practicum: An action researchproject. P. 1-17. ED 375 142.

Greenwood, J.W., III, & Greenwood, J. W., Jr. (1979).Managing executive stress: A systems approach.New York: John Wiley & Sons.

Gupta, N. (1981). Some sources and remedies ofwork stress among teachers. Southwest Educa-tion Development. Austin, Texas. ERIC 211 496.

Maslach, C. (1976). Burnout. Human Behavior, 5, 16-22.

Mitchell, M. & Schwager, S. (1993). Improving the stu-dent teaching experience: Looking to theresearch for guidance. Physical Education, 50(1), 31-38.

Schempp, P.G. (1985). Becoming a better teacher:An analysis of student teaching experience.Journal of Teaching in Physical Education, 4(3),158.

Selye, H. (1956). The stress of life. New York:McGraw-Hill Book Co.

Selye, H. (1974). Stress without distress. New York: Lip-pincott.

Williams, W. & Graham, J. (1992). The relationshipbetween supervising teachers’ personal attribut-es and professional background and the attitudeof their student teachers. The Teacher Educator,28, 34-45.

Wright, R. (1985). An examination of student teach-ing as a potential source of professional stress. APaper presented at the Rocky Mountain Educa-tional Research Association. (Copy requestedand mailed in 1986.) New Mexico State Universi-ty, Las Cruces, New Mexico.

Correction does much, but encouragement does more.Encouragement after censure is as the sun after a shower.

– Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

Kiran Padmaraju is currently afull time instructor in the Depart-ment of Early Childhood, Elemen-tary, and Middle Level Educationat Eastern Illinois University whereshe teaches courses in education-al technology, child and adoles-cent development, and method-ology of teaching language arts.Before coming to the U.S. in 2001,she taught in an English-mediumprivate school in Hyderabad, Indiafor fourteen years. In India, shereceived two bachelor’s degrees,one in commerce and another ineducation. She also holds a post-graduate degree in English Litera-

ture from Osmania University in India and received her second mas-ter’s degree in Elementary Education from Eastern. At present, sheis working on her Ph.D. in Curriculum, Instructional, and Media Tech-nology at Indiana State University. Her research interests includeteacher education and minority faculties in higher education.

Why Critical Thinking?Kiran Padmaraju

Abstract

This article is an attempt to look at an importantissue: "critical thinking," and argue the need for pro-moting critical thinking activities in the K – 12 settingand even at the college level. Well-known authorsand their views on why critical thinking activities mustbe promoted are explored throughout the article. Italso focuses on why it is hard to include critical think-ing activities in K-12 settings and how teachers arealso caught up in the system that values a score onstandardized tests more than involvement in creativeand critical thinking activities.

The critical habit of thought, if usual in a soci-ety, will pervade all its mores, because it is away of taking up the problems of life. Meneducated in it cannot be stampeded bystump orators…They are slow to believe. Theycan hold things as possible or probable in alldegrees, without certainty and without pain.They can wait for evidence and weigh evi-dence, uninfluenced by the emphasis orconfidence with which assertions are madeon one side or the other. They can resistappeals to their prejudices and all kinds ofcajolery. Education in the critical faculty isthe only education of which it can be trulysaid that it makes good citizens.

William Graham Sumner, Folkways, 1906 (As cited in http://www.criticalthinking.org/)

Written in the beginning of the twentieth century, thisholds much more true for our present society. In the

recent years we have been witnessing radicalchanges in our perceptions especially with regard tohuman interactions and human behavior. Added tothat is the tremendous pace of changes in technolo-gy. The future holds big challenges for us as well asour future generations. With the expansion of choic-es available to everyone comes the challenge ofmaking the right choices. So how do we train othersand ourselves in making the right choices? How canwe teach someone to evaluate what is right andmake the best possible choice? The answer lies incritical thinking.

But what is critical thinking? There are a numberof definitions and many educators interpret it andexplain it in multiple ways. The National Council forExcellence in Critical Thinking Instruction defines criti-cal thinking as: Critical thinking is that mode of think-ing - about any subject, content, or problem - inwhich the thinker improves the quality of his or herthinking by skillfully taking charge of the structuresinherent in thinking and imposing intellectual stan-dards upon them (Scriven & Paul, 2004). In her book,Critical and Creative Thinking: Strategies for Class-room, Susan Wilks (1995) emphasizing the impor-tance of promoting critical and creative thinking inthe classroom encourages the use of the inquirymode. In another book titled, The Critical ThinkingHandbook – 6th-9th grades (Paul, Binker, Jensen, &Kreklau, 1990), the authors define critical thinking as"thinking which evaluates reasons and brings thoughtand actions in line with evaluations" (p. 52). The idealof the critical thinker, the book suggests, can beroughly expressed in the phrase "reasonable person,"meaning a person who evaluates reasons and evi-dence, can distinguish poor from strong reasoning,make assumptions and evaluate them, reject unwar-ranted inferences, and distinguish what is knownfrom what is merely suspected. Scriven & Paul (2004)identifies the characteristics of what he refers to as "awell cultivated critical thinker" as one who: raises vitalquestions and problems, formulating them clearlyand precisely; gathers and assesses relevant infor-mation, using abstract ideas to interpret it effectivelyand comes to well-reasoned conclusions and solu-tions, testing them against relevant criteria and stan-dards; thinks open-mindedly within alternative sys-tems of thought, recognizing and assessing, as needbe, his/her assumptions, implications, and practicalconsequences; and communicates effectively withothers in figuring out solutions to complex problems.

It is clear that critical thinking is considered bymany as an essential component of learning and isadvocated by many. But the question that is oftendebated is whether it can be taught. And if it can betaught, then what is the best way to approach it.Many researchers and educators concur with the

idea that critical thinking can be taught, or ratherinculcated into the school curriculum. While this is awidely recognized belief, there are many wholament the lack of critical thinking opportunities forchildren in K-12 school settings, for that matter evenin higher education. Why is it so?

One reason proposed by Peter Kline (2002), isthat American children can't think, as they haven'tbeen properly taught to read. He laments the exces-sive push towards standardized testing that focuseson comprehension rather than interpretation, whichKline considers a better measure of the ability tothink. Drawing from research on physiological differ-ences in learning development, varying learningstyles, and pedagogical approaches to teachingreading, and use of visualization and imagination inreading, Kline in his book, Why America's childrencan't think: Creating independent minds for the 21stcentury offers a different approach to reading thatencourages engagement and thinking. Many otherauthors have written about how critical thinking canbe infused into the curriculum.

While many teachers and professors keep com-plaining about the lack of thinking capacity or sheerlaziness with regard to thinking deeply about any-thing in their students, Winn (2004) claims that themajority of teachers and professors do not use thekind of teaching materials or discussion strategiesthat would build in their students ‘a mental set and ataste for critical thinking.’ Field studies in many sec-ondary schools have shown that teachers use limitedrange of pedagogical options and recalling answersstill is the primary form of assessment. Thus the typicalclassroom atmosphere and procedures dull the pos-sibilities for creating the very qualities of mind thateducators avow as their goal. But who is to blame forthis!

Definitely not all blame can be laid on the teach-ers’ table. The teachers themselves are caught up inthe system that values a high score on a standard-ized test more than it values a creative response.And it is indeed unfortunate that this form of stan-dardized assessment continues to be advocated bythe powers-to-be.

Another impediment to critical thinking is theongoing debate regarding teaching basic skills orcritical thinking skills, which has been going on formore than three decades now. Fortunately, the casefor critical thinking is made by the empirical evi-dence drawn from the results of assessments con-ducted by the National Assessment of EducationalProgress (NAEP) once a year or two since 1969 in vari-ous subjects— including mathematics, science, read-ing, and civics, taken by representative samples of4th, 8th, and 12th graders throughout the UnitedStates (U.S. Department of Education, 2000). Becauseeach student takes only a small subset of the exam,the full exam can cover a substantial breadth anddepth of material. Test items include both multiple-choice responses and more complex written respons-es so that they assess both basic skills and criticalthinking skills. In addition to the test, students and

their teachers and school administrators also fill outquestionnaires that furnish information about studentand teacher backgrounds and the instructionalpractices used in the classroom. On examination ofresults, a clear pattern emerged: across subjects,teaching for meaning was associated with higherNAEP scores; or in other words, teaching thatemphasizes advanced reasoning skills promoteshigher levels of student learning and performance(Wenglinsky, 2000, 2002, 2003).

Why is it with this that even with empirical evi-dence like this one and others, do schools not focuson critical thinking? Winn (2004) focuses on two rea-sons: American society and American educationhave always idolized the ‘quiz whiz,’ one who canshoot back correct answers to factual questions as ina TV game show. Added to that is the societal pres-sure to conform and to shy away from critical think-ing because it is not "polite" or "nice." Winn claims"Americans commonly confuse the adjective "criti-cal" with negativism, conveniently missing the pointthat the opposite of critical thinking is "uncritical"thinking, which is not thinking at all!" (p. 496). As wemove into this new information age, and areinformed about the modern day debacles such asthe Iraq conflict, the Columbia space shuttle disaster,the ravaging of the world’s natural resources, thefinancial scandals of Enron and WorldCom, and soon, critical thinking needs to be encouraged, notignored.

What will happen if we continue to be in denialwith regard to critical thinking in schools? Robert J.Sternberg (2004) of Yale University has put forth whathe calls as ‘four alternative futures for education inthe United States.’ In the first future, the one heclaims is being faced by most children in the world,where children are only called on to recall and rec-ognize, he shows a bleak picture where there is acomplete disconnect between secular and democ-ratic principles and what is taught in schools. Thesecond future that Sternberg (2004) offers is that ofthe critical thinker who is less likely to commit terribledebacles and will be a good problem solver. Thethird future offered is that of successful intelligentthinkers who have the creative skills to generate newideas, the analytical abilities to know whether theyare good ideas and the practical abilities to knowhow to implement the ideas and convey to othersthe value of their ideas. Sternberg claims that eventhis is not enough and to validate his claim, he givesthe examples of the top-level managers in compa-nies such as Enron, Global Crossing and World COM.They were all well educated and smart, yet some-thing fundamental was missing in the way they wereeducated. Sternberg calls this missing piece of thepuzzle, ‘wisdom.’ It is not enough to teach studentsto be intelligent and knowledgeable, but also how touse them. The four futures that Sternberg offers buildon the previous ones. So isn’t it really unbelievablethat instead of moving on to the second future of anation of critical thinkers, we want to go back to theprevious one, a nation of rote memorizers (p. 67-77).

It is hoped that the stakeholders will soon realizethe road all the push towards standardized testing isleading to and refocus all their energies into promot-ing critical thinking thus creating a nation of wisethinkers. Though this can be a daunting task, it is notimpossible. Fortunately, there are many informedand wise thinkers and educators who have shownthe path and have given concrete ideas and sug-gestions on how this can be done. If we look at one particular discipline alone, say, lan-guage, a number of successful strategies that canbe used to promote critical thinking have been iden-tified. M. A. K. Halliday (1975) taught us that lan-guage did not develop because of one languageuser but rather because of two, and they wanted tocommunicate. Language is first and foremost asocial meaning-making process. Most of what weknow about language we have learned from beingin the presence of others (Wells, 1986). Harste (2003)argues that too often in the past our English lan-guage arts curricula have focused on meaning mak-ing with a half hour of phonics thrown in. For the mostpart, studying language in terms of what work it doesand how it does it has been left out, as has providingdaily opportunities to inquire into problems of person-al and social relevance to learners. This is what Harsterefers to as ‘critical literacy.’ The real question thateach of us has to ask is, "What kind of literate beingshould inhabit the 21st century?" Asked differently,"What kind of lives do we want to live and what kindof people do we want to be?" Hopefully, the answeris that we want critically literate beings that knowhow language works and can use it to make mean-ing and reposition themselves in the world in a moredemocratically thoughtful and equitable manner.

A curriculum built on critical literacy is one thathighlights diversity and difference while calling atten-tion to how we are constructed as literate beings.One theoretical model that offers a useful frameworkfor thinking about critical literacy is Luke and Free-body's model of reading as social practice (1997).According to this model, reading is best understoodas a non-neutral form of cultural practice-one thatpositions readers in certain ways and obscures asmuch as it illuminates. Luke and Freebody argue thatin preparing readers for the 21st century, teachersneed to help children develop their resources in sev-eral areas:1) as code breakers, 2) as text partici-pants, 3) as text users, and 4) as text critics (p. 214).

Another model for promoting critical thinking inlanguage arts is focused on reading area. Whenteachers share critical texts with children and talkwith them about the issues raised by these books,they become deeply involved in the process of cul-ture making. They "interrupt" (Davis & Sumara, 1999)current views regarding reading instruction and thetopics of conversation that are appropriate for chil-dren (Leland, Harste, Ociepka, Lewison, & Vasquez,1999). Teachers who value teaching as a set of criti-cal practices disrupt the normative patterns of soci-ety and open up spaces for new voices to be heard.Using selected children's literature is one way to

begin critical conversations; they could also beginwith newspaper articles, interviews with communitymembers, or events in our schools. These teachersstrive to disturb the status quo and this leads them todevelop young minds that can think critically. Theyprovide compelling evidence that teachers with acritical perspective can change the patterns of inter-action in classrooms and enlarge the space of thepossible. Since they are involved in complexresearch, they are not concerned primarily withdescribing or analyzing what is, but with finding outhow what they are doing has affected the lives andsituations of others. This kind of educational researchis not simply research that takes place in educationalsettings; this kind of educational research is "researchthat seeks to educate" and affect the way things are(Davis & Sumara,1999, p. 31-32).

In one situation, Whitney Dotson, a new urbanteacher who actively grabs all the opportunities thatshe can get to involve her students in critical thinkingdid a remarkable thing (Harste, & Leland, 2000).When her third graders were upset because thehome of one student's grandmother had been con-demned by the Board of Health and was scheduledfor demolition, she urged them to take action bywriting letters to the Board of Health. Instead of beingpositioned as helpless victims, they thus positioningthemselves as social activists who are challengingthe status quo and asking for change. They are start-ing to understand the political capital that is inherentin language. Whitney is helping them and herself tounderstand that this capital is there for the taking.Harste and Leland argue that this is exactly whateducation should be doing-especially for the teach-ers and children of "beleaguered" public schoolseverywhere.

Even at the earliest of ages, it is possible toencourage children to explore possibilities and thinkcreatively. If we look at the simple activity of brain-storming, if done in the right context and in the rightmanner, it can promote very deep level thinking inchildren of all ages. What is required for this activityto be successful is to set the stage where the teachercan:

• Create a safe environment for children tobe able to say any thought without fearor ridicule.

• Ask open-ended questions.• Provide time for children to think and express

their ideas.• Be a model for sharing "crazy" ideas

(Church, 2004).The few models discussed here provide a

glimpse into the possibilities of inducing critical think-ing skills into the school curricula, in the language artscurricula. Other researchers have identified strate-gies for promoting critical thinking in other disciplinesas well.

The discussion on critical thinking could not becomplete without acknowledging the valuable con-tribution of Paul, et. al. (1990) who have identifiedwhat they refer to as the "36 dimensions of critical

thought." These are classified into three areas: affec-tive strategies, cognitive strategies – macro-abilitiesand cognitive strategies – micro-skills. The affectivestrategies include the following: thinking indepen-dently; developing insight into egocentricity or socio-centricity; exercising fair-mindedness; exploringthoughts underlying feelings and feelings underlyingthoughts; developing intellectual humility and sus-pending judgment; developing intellectual courage;developing intellectual good faith or integrity; devel-oping intellectual perseverance; and developingconfidence in reason. The cognitive strategies--macro-abilities include: refining generalizations andavoiding oversimplifications; comparing analogoussituations: transferring insights to new contexts; devel-oping one's perspective: creating or exploringbeliefs, arguments, or theories; clarifying issues, con-clusions, or beliefs; clarifying and analyzing themeanings of words or phrases; developing criteria forevaluation: clarifying values and standards; evaluat-ing the credibility of sources of information; question-ing deeply: raising and pursuing root or significantquestions; analyzing or evaluating arguments, inter-pretations, beliefs, or theories; generating or assess-ing solutions; analyzing or evaluating actions or poli-cies; reading critically: clarifying or critiquing texts; lis-tening critically: the art of silent dialogue; makinginterdisciplinary connections; practicing Socratic dis-cussion: clarifying and questioning beliefs, theories, orperspectives; reasoning dialogically: comparing per-spectives, interpretations, or theories; and reasoningdialectically: evaluating perspectives, interpreta-tions, or theories. The cognitive strategies--micro-skillsinclude: comparing and contrasting ideals with actu-al practice; thinking precisely about thinking: usingcritical vocabulary; noting significant similarities anddifferences; examining or evaluating assumptions;distinguishing relevant from irrelevant facts; makingplausible inferences, predictions, or interpretations;evaluating evidence and alleged facts; recognizingcontradictions; and exploring implications and con-sequences (p. 56).

Looking carefully at the list above, unfortunately,not many of these activities are not what the typicalclassroom activities comprise of. These critical think-ing skills can be incorporated into the curricula ashas been seen in the discussion earlier. A few com-mitted and critical thinkers among the vast majorityof educators see this urgent need and respond to it.More and more educators need to join these ranksso that we can have a future where we have wisethinkers who have both the knowledge and intelli-gence and the ability to use it wisely for the better-ment of humanity.

ReferencesChurch, E. B. (2004, Oct). Building language through brain-

storming. Scholastic Early Childhood Today, 19(2), 46-47.

Critical thinking consortium. Retrieved 20th September,2004, from www.criticalthinking.org.

Davis, B., & Sumara, D. (1999). Another queer theory: Read-ing complexity theory as a moral and ethical impera-tive. Journal of Curriculum Theorizing, 15 (2),19-38.

Halliday, M. A. K. (1975). Learning to mean: Explorations inthe development of language. London: EdwardArnold.

Harste, J. C. (2003, Mar). What do we mean by literacynow? Voices from the Middle, 10(3), 8-13.

Harste, J. C., & Leland. (2000, Oct). Critical literacy: Enlarg-ing the space of the possible. Primary Voices K-6, 9(2),3-8.

Harste, J. C., Leland. (2000, Oct). Critical literacy: Enlargingthe space of the possible. Primary Voices K-6, 9(2), 3-8.

Kline, P. (2002). Why America's children can't think: Creatingindependent minds for the 21st century. Maui, HI: InnerOcean.

Leland, C., Harste, J., Ociepka, A., Lewison, M., & Vasquez,V. (1999). Exploring critical literacy: You can hear a pindrop. Language Arts, 77, 70-77.

Luke, A., & Freebody, P. (1997). Shaping the social practicesof reading. In S. Muspratt, A. Luke, & P. Freebody (Eds.),Constructing critical literacies (pp. 185-225). Cresskill,NJ: Hampton.

Mesher, D. (1995). Mission Critical. Retrieved 20th Septem-ber, 2004, from http://www2.sjsu.edu/depts/itl/.

Paul, R., Binker, A., Jenson, K., & Kreklau, H. (1990). Criticalthinking handbook: A guide for remodeling lessonplans in language arts, social studies and science.Rohnert Park, CA: Foundation for Critical Thinking.

Scriven, M., & Paul. (2004). Defining critical thinking (TheCritical Thinking Community). Retrieved December 1,2004, from http://www.criticalthinking.org/aboutCT/definingCT.shtml

Sternberg, R. J. (2004). Four alternative futures for educationin the United States: It's our choice. School PsychologyReview, 33(3), 67-77

U.S. Department of Education. (2000). Trends in academicprogress: Three decades of student performance.Washington. DC: Author.

Wells, G. (1986). The meaning makers. Children learning lan-guage and using language to learn. Portsmouth, NH:Heinemann.

Wenglinsky H. (2000). How teaching matters: Bringing theclassroom hack into discussions of teacher quality.Princeton. NJ: Educational Testing Service.

Wenglinsky, H, (2003). Using large-scale research to gaugethe impact of instructional practices on student read-ing comprehension: An exploratory' study. EducationPolicy Analysis Archives, 11, 19.

Wenglinsky, H. (2004, September). Facts or critical thinkingskills? [What NAEP results say]. Educational Leadership,pp. 32-35.

Wenglinsky. H. (2002). How schools matter: The link betweenteacher classroom practices and student academicperformance. Education Policy Analysis Archives, 10,12.

Wilks, Susan (1995). Critical and Creative Thinking: Strategiesfor Classroom

Winn, I. J. (2004, March). The high cost of uncritical teach-ing. Phi Delta Kappan, pp. 496-497.

Jill Rennels is currently pursuinga Master’s Degree from EasternIll inois University in Family andConsumer Sciences with a focuson child and family studies. Sheearned a Bachelor’s Degree fromEastern Illinois University and hasworked with middle school stu-dents incorporating life skills intothe classroom setting and facili-tating life skills groups. She is Presi-dent of the Parental AdvisoryBoard through the Illinois Coalitionfor Community Services, memberof the Domestic Violence Adviso-ry Board for H.O.P.E. of East Cen-tral Illinois, and member of the

Board of Directors at the Charleston Community Daycare.Research interests include family violence, adolescent program-ming, and parental involvement.

Don’t Turn the Other Cheek: Power andControl of Domestic Violence Education

Jill Rennels

AbstractThe purpose of this exploratory research was to

examine ways that education impacts common fal-lacies regarding domestic violence. This articleexamines the feminist and ecological perspectives.Areas, such as policy reform, family therapy, researchprocesses, character education, and domestic vio-lence in-service education training should be exam-ined to make further attempts to help individuals,families, and communities recognize domestic vio-lence issues and understand the impact that theseissues have on society.

IntroductionA group of men from a small, rural community

meet at their local coffee shop. A married, hetero-sexual couple they all knew came into conversationbecause one of the men had heard the woman wasfiling for a divorce. The rumor was that her husbandwas physically abusive towards her. This is an exam-ple of intimate violence in a heterosexual relation-ship; Sally Lloyd (2000) states that "research spanningthe past three decades has clearly demonstratedthat violence which occurs in a close relationshipmust be understood within this context of intimacyand power" (pp. 19-20).

All of the men at the coffee shop may have haddifferent opinions about the decisions this couplehad made, or were about to make. Many judgmentsare made towards other individuals and families withregards to interactions taking place in families. Com-mon myths, judgments and assumptions are createdregarding domestic violence. Despite the intentions,misunderstandings regarding domestic violence donot help victims of domestic violence. In fact,

assumptions or misinformed individuals can destroywhat little confidence victims have. Education ondomestic violence issues can play a major role inbreaking this cycle.

Facts regarding domestic violenceDomestic Violence is an issue that affects many

lives in America today. In 2002, the Illinois CoalitionAgainst Domestic Violence (ICADV) provided "over553,000 hours of direct client services, 47,384 adultclients of domestic violence (96% of whom werewomen) with services, and 11,019 children of victimsof domestic violence with services" (Illinois Coalition,2003, p. 7). These statistics represent the numbers ofservices provided through agencies that are fundedby the ICADV. Therefore, these numbers do not rep-resent every victim in Illinois because those thatsought services from other agencies are not includedin these numbers and there is no way to report thosethat did not seek any services.

The ICDAV defines domestic violence as "a pat-tern of coercive control that one person exercisesover another" (Illinois Coalition, 2003, p. 15). Whilesome individuals may associate domestic violencewith solely physical violence, this is not the case.Domestic violence can include various forms of rela-tionship violence along with verbal, emotional, psy-chological, sexual, and economic abuse.

The ICDAV (2002) reported,

"congress passed the Violence AgainstWomen Act [VAWA in 1994], part of the fed-eral Crime Victims Act, which funds servicesfor victims of rape and domestic violence,allows women to seek civil rights remedies forgender-related crimes, and provides trainingto increase police and court officials’ sensitiv-ity" ( p.14).

Since the VAWA, there has never been a greaterawareness of the issue of domestic violence. Forexample, many prevention programs have derivedfrom this problem and there are many available shel-ters for women and children across the United States.However, despite efforts to raise awareness aboutdomestic violence issues, many people remain unin-formed, or misinformed.

The Impact on SocietySociety—as a whole—would greatly benefit from

improving and expanding education regarding cleardefinitions of domestic violence, the effects ofdomestic violence, identification of victims and whydomestic violence happens in so many homesacross the country. While domestic violence causes

immediate trauma, it also has long-term effects. It isa critical national problem that impacts individuals,families, and communities.

The Need for Proper Training and Professional Development

Children may not always be victims of direct,physical abuse, but witnessing abuse within theirhomes may be just as traumatic for them. Kearney(1999) wrote that "each violent act they witnessharms or confuses children [, and…] over time, theylose the meaning of morality and love. If teachers orschool social workers are not properly trained onassessing these situations, children may never learnhow to effectively manage conflicts. They may goon believing that certain types of behavior are nor-mal, and, in turn, the issues associated with domesticviolence are never faced (Kavemann, 2004).

Stereotypes about "proper" roles and responsibili-ties of men and women often begin in younger child-hood, and are reinforced during adolescence. Forexample, "research on gender-role differentiation inthe family shows that children’s household tasksbecome more differentiated in adolescence, andchildren’s activities with the same-sex parent intensifyat the same time" (Sapiro, 1999, p. 102). Gendersocializations may be at the root of cause withregards to males believing they should demonstratemasculinity and never show signs of weakness, suchas crying. Therefore, it is the social responsibility ofthose who have had training in domestic violence tocreate community awareness regarding issues thatcan be linked to domestic violence.

Psychologist, Albert Bandura, hypothesized andplaced emphasis on the learned behaviors of chil-dren and adolescents. Through Bandura’s researchwe learn about "modeling" as a process of observingothers’ behaviors and/or behavioral patterns.According to Crain (2005), who examined the workof Albert Bandura, "children’s minds are structured bythe environment, by the models and the social train-ing practices the environment provides" (Crain, 2005,p. 209). Studies have shown partial support for thistheory when examining aggressive behaviors; thesestudies have all examined and hypothesized thatwhen children witness aggressive behaviors in theirhome environments, it increases the likelihood thatthese children will exhibit aggressive behaviors asadults and possibly even abuse their own children(Malley-Morrison & Hines, 2004). However, it is imper-ative that we do not generalize. All children andadults deserve the right to establish their own reputa-tion without negative criticisms or bias due to familystructures, race, and socio-economic backgroundsor disadvantages.

Malley-Morrison and Hines (2004) state "judg-ments that people make about interactions in fami-lies—for example, whether they are normal, accept-able, and justifiable, or violent, abusive, and intolera-ble—are influenced by many factors, including per-sonal experience, religious values, personal andcommunity biases, education, and professional train-

ing (p. 3)." In their book, "Family Violence in a CulturalPerspective," Malley-Morrison and Hines note thatjudgments can help in certain situations that call forhelp of social service agencies, but these judgmentscan also lead to harsher realities, such as seriousharm or injuries of victims.

Common fallacies about domestic violenceinclude (but are not limited to): alcohol abuse is thecause of domestic battery incidents, domestic vio-lence only occurs in families that are poverty stricken,battered women provoke the abuse, and all womenwho are battered enjoy it or they would call thepolice. None of these are true—to say the least.

Psychologist, Lenore Walker, has worked with bat-tered women for 3 decades. Walker stated, "victimsof domestic violence come from a wide variety ofages, races, religions, educational levels, culturesand socio-economic groups" (Illinois Coalition, 2003,p. 24). Walker has found that these women mayexhibit a low self-esteem, have traditional beliefs infamily unity, accept responsibility for others’ actions,suffer guilt or denial, or have many other reasons forremaining in an abusive relationship.

Victims of "relationship violence" often stay withthe abuser because they love him/her, fear him/her,or fear for the future of their children; victims mayalso be insecure about being financially indepen-dent, have acquired learned helplessness, believethat the perpetrator will not do it again, or they maynot trust the legal system (Illinois Coalition, 2003). Thevictim may have been raised in a home wherethey—as a child—witnessed this pattern of powerand control by their own father (Dykstra, 2004). Pre-vention and intervention measures can be takenthrough school or community based in-service train-ing sessions regarding definitions, effects, and pat-terns associated with domestic violence.

While various statistics are misread or misinterpret-ed regarding frequencies and consequences of vio-lent, intimate partner relationships, individuals arequick to jump to conclusions about types of violenceand control tactics (Johnson, 1995). For example,various websites might make references that elude tomales being the abusers 95% of the time, or at least itmay be interpreted this way. However, it is crucial forindividuals to understand the underlying fact thatthese statistics may allude to victims of homicide ornumbers reported by domestic violence serviceagencies.

Individuals also need to be educated on the vari-ous types of intimate partner relationships. Johnsonand Ferraro (2000) wrote an article which includeddifferent types of partner violence, types of perpetra-tors, and types of relationships; these researchers illus-trated four patterns of partner violence: (1) commoncouple violence [later renamed this situational vio-lence], (2) intimate terrorism, (3) violent resistance,and (4) mutual violent control. Personal opinionsand/or bias on the issue of domestic violence cancause more harm than good because of the possibil-ity of great tension between different sides.

Johnson and Ferraro (2000) state,

"the distinctions are based not on behavior ina single incident , but on more general pat-terns of control exercised across the manyencounters that comprise a relationship, pat-terns that are rooted in the motivations of theperpetrator and his or her partner" (p. 949).

Those who work with victims and perpetrators ofdomestic violence must be able to differentiatebetween types of violence to have a better under-standing of situational needs and outcomes for vic-tims and abusers. It is equally important to base ser-vices offered to victims and/or perpetrators on factu-al research and theoretical perspectives; over theyears, there have been many hard lessons learnedwhen evaluating services for survivors of domesticviolence (Riger, S., Bennett, L, Wasco, S.M, Schewe,P.A, Frohmann, L., Camacho, J.M., & Campbell, R.,2002).

Obtaining professionals from a variety of religiousbackgrounds to help with education and/or domes-tic violence prevention services is also important.Some victims may make a decision to remain in amarital relationship with abusers based solely onefforts to remain faithful to their religion. Women inabusive relationships often feel subordinate andbelieve it is their duty to be submissive to their hus-bands (Sapiro, 1999). Taking a multi-culturalapproach to education helps to ensure educatorsremain nonjudgemental, and in turn, educators willsee more effective interactions with victims and/orperpetrators of domestic violence.

Law enforcement officials have a very importantrole in domestic violence cases. Domestic disputesmay generate frustrations by law enforcement offi-cials because they may find themselves going to thesame homes repeatedly while legal action is nottaken against the offenders. Henning, Jones, andHoldford (2005) discuss the increases of arrest andprosecutions for assaults in intimate partner relation-ships. In the 2005 study, Henning et al. conclude that

"both male and female domestic violenceoffenders engage in socially desirableresponding during court-ordered evaluations,that both attribute greater blame for therecent offense to their spouse/partner thanthey acknowledge for themselves, and thatsignificant numbers of both genders deny therecent incident and/or minimize the severityof the offense" (p. 131).

Research has shown that "women who leave theirabuser are 75% more likely to be killed by their bat-terer than those who stay in the relationship [, and…]of those women who leave, 50% are at a greater riskfor ending up homeless and living on the streets" (Illi-nois Coalition, 2003, p. 40).

Another example of a group of people who arecommonly uninformed, or misinformed, aboutdomestic violence is professionals involved in drugand alcohol treatment and/or prevention programs.With knowledge of domestic violence issues, drugand alcohol counselors can give their clients theopportunity to receive necessary counseling on

these two separate issues. Although drug and alco-hol counselors may be highly trained in their field ofexpertise, it is difficult for them to be cross-trained inother areas, such as domestic violence. If domesticviolence experts offer educationals for clients and/orstaff within drug and alcohol treatment facilities,myths about domestic violence can be elucidated.Through education, drug and alcohol counselors aregiven access to domestic violence resources. Thiswould also diminish opportunities for those seekingdrug and alcohol counseling (or their family mem-bers) to be misguided, or receive unnecessary treat-ment.

While awareness of domestic violence issues hasimproved, those with domestic violence traininghave a responsibility to educate other professions onthis serious matter. While it affects many differentsocial statuses, ages and races, domestic violence isone of the most serious problems in the nation.Together, domestic violence advocates, lawenforcement officials, teachers, medical profession-als, and clergymen can promote safety and well-being for victims of domestic violence. Professionalswho are properly trained can empower individuals,families, and communities to recognize domestic vio-lence issues and seek opportunities to avoid the neg-ative societal consequences.

Theoretical ApplicationThe Feminist Framework is just one approach that

helps define the role of sexism in domestic violenceissues. Some of the propositions within the feministframework include, but are not limited to: implica-tions that "gender structures all societies…, the familyis not monolithic…, and the family is a central institu-tion for the reproduction of oppression" (White andKlein, 2002, p.183-184). This theoretical applicationrepresents many of the feminist issues that are associ-ated with the family, such as family roles, culture vari-ability, social expectations, and gender stereotypes.However, one must be cautious not to overexert afeminist perspective as this could result in bias.

Another approach which is a more conceptualmodel to evaluating domestic violence issues is anecological approach. Malley-Morrison and Hines(2004) describe this approach as "the view thathuman development and behavior should be ana-lyzed within a nested set of environmental contexts,labeled the microsystem, mesosystem, exosystem,and macrosystem [as originally cited by Bronfren-brenner, 1979] " (p. 16). We live in a morally ambigu-ous society, and we are surrounded by various cul-tures and beliefs. This theory allows us to see howdomestic violence issues come about from variouscultural perspectives. For example, whenresearchers look at abusive adults who were abusedas children they may see family organization as aprocessing system; researchers, White and Klein(2002) state, "as children mature in their corporateroles and become more interdependent, they tendto follow the normative system that gave rise to theirparental ecosystem" (p. 213).

These theories allow us to see a need for valuingeducation. Prevention and intervention efforts mustbe made to support multi-cultural education anduniversally accepted virtues that support opportuni-ties to end the cycle of violence.

ConclusionIn Family Theories, White and Klein (2002) suggest

interventions should include policy reform, familytherapy, and review of the research process. Clear-ly, these would all play a major role in ending thecycle of violence.

Individuals should not underestimate the impor-tance of education and prevention in domestic vio-lence issues. For example, policy reform may helpimprove areas, such as unequal wages and jobopportunities for women. However, policy reformalone will not change existing circumstances. In thissituation, education could change societal condi-tions with time and it could also help prepare victimsso that they do not have unrealistic expectations. Ifwomen are seeking help because they want toleave an abuser, educating women and childrenabout what they can expect when they are facedwith financial adversity might help. Education canalso play a role in giving victims the resources theyneed, such as time, job sources, child care providers,and/or financial assistance, to help them with uncer-tainties about economic strain as they attempt toterminate a relationship.

Those that are properly trained to work with vic-tims of domestic violence know that no one shouldtell a victim—woman or child—what they should orshould not do, and because there are a variety of sit-uational outcomes, no one can tell them exactlywhat to expect. With more training offered, or morein-service education brought to the community bydomestic violence agencies, differences can truly bemade in life or death situations.

How an adolescent develops positive moral val-ues may have an impact in the decision-makingprocess throughout the stages of adolescence.There are programs designed to guide teachers andfamily service workers as they attempt to help youthdevelop social skills. "Inculcation" is the term thatRice and Dolgin (2005) used to define teaching spe-cific values and norms to students, [and…theydefine] "values clarification," as an approach toteaching moral education by helping studentsbecome aware of the values or virtues they have tooffer others. Programs that offer social skills or char-acter education may play a role in helping increasechildren’s awareness on issues, such as domestic vio-lence. Programs, such as this may teach children

universally accepted values and help them to deci-pher between normal and abnormal behavior. Thismay also guide them towards positive strategies forcoping, or help build skills for conflict resolution.

It is evident that when proper measures aretaken with education, the individuals in our society—as a whole—are not "turning their cheeks". Everyattempt that is made for education is a step to breakthe cycles of violence that occur in our communities.

ReferencesDykstra, C. (2004). Domestic violence and child

abuse: Related links in the chain of violence.Abstract repreinted from a quarterly publicationof the American Humane Association—Protect-ing Children, 11, 3. Retrieved from the CASAdatabase: http://www.casanet.org/library/domestic-abuse/cycle.htm.

Henning, K., Jones, A. R., Holdford, R. I didn’t do it,but if I did I had a good reason: Minimization,denial, and attributions of blame among maleand female domestic violence offenders. Journalof Family Violence, 20, 3.

Illinois Coalition Against Domestic Violence. (2003).The Illinois model: Training manual for domesticviolence services. Springfield, IL.

Johnson, M. P (1995). Patriarchal terrorism and com-mon couple violence: Two forms of violenceagainst women. Journal of Marriage and theFamily, 57, 283-294.

Johnson, M. P, & Ferraro, K. J. (2000). Research ondomestic violence in the 1990s: Making distinc-tions. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 62,948-963.

Kavemann, B. (2004). Children and domestic vio-lence. Fempower Magazine. Retrieved Febrary10, 2004: http://www.wave-network.org.

Kearney, M. (1999). The role of teachers in helpingchildren of domestic violence. Childhood Educa-tion, 75, 290-296.

Lloyd, S. A. (2000). Intimate violence: Paradoxes ofromance, conflict, and control. National Forum,80, 4.

Riger, S., Bennett, L, Wasco, S.M, Schewe, P.A,Frohmann, L., Camacho, J. M, & Campbell, R.(2002). Evaluating services for survivors of domes-tic violence and sexual assault. Thousand Oaks,CA: Sage Publications, Inc.

Sapiro, V. (1999). Women in American Society: Anintroduction to women’s studies. (5th ed). Moun-tain View, CA: McGraw-Hill.

White, J. M., & Klein, D. M. (2002). Family theories.(2nd Ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications,Inc.

Portable vs. Permanent Classrooms:A Quasi-Experimental Study of Fifth Graders’

Attitude and Mathematics AchievementTak Cheung Chan

Tak Cheung Chan, Professor of Educational Leadership, Kenne-saw State University, GA, is a graduate of the University of Georgia.He has been a classroom teacher, assistant school principal, schoolprincipal, and district office administrator. His previous experience inhigher education includes serving as an Assistant Professor at Val-dosta State University and as an Associate Professor at GeorgiaSouthern University. His research interests include educational plan-ning, facility planning, school business administration, schoolfinance, and international education.

Abstract

In this study, 43 fifth graders attended mathematicsclass in a portable classroom whereas 38 had theirmathematics class in a permanent classroom of anelementary school. Student attitude and mathemat-ics achievement between the two groups werecompared. No significant difference was found. Stu-dent attitude and achievement was also observedthrough teachers’ perception. Teachers in generaldid not perceive that portable classrooms had anynegative impact on student attitude and achieve-ment.

IntroductionPortable classrooms have been used by school

districts nationwide to provide additional neededspace when permanent school buildings havereached their full capacity (Moore, 1999; Sturgeon,1998; Wyatt, 1997). The increased use of temporaryportable classrooms is evident in light of the pressurefor facility needs as a result of population growth andlegislation on class size reduction (Economist, 1996).School districts have no choice but to use portableclassrooms as temporary spaces to house the stu-dents while the new classrooms are under construc-tion. In most cases, these portable classrooms will beremoved when the new school building is ready toaccommodate the students. However, in manyschools, portable classrooms simply stay for manyyears without any plan for relocation.

Conceptual FrameworkPublic attitudes toward the use of portable class-

rooms have not been positive (Gibson & Eatough,1968; Stoddard, 1997). Pre-fabricated configurations(Heise & Bottoms, 1990), safety concerns (Heise &Bottoms, 1990; Kennedy, 2000; Naylor, 1997), unat-tractive appearance (Moore, 1999; Taylor, Vasu, &Vasu, 1999), isolation from permanent buildings(Heise & Bottoms, 1990), costly maintenance (Calla-han, 1997; Daneman, 1998; Fickes, 1998), possiblehealth risks (American School & University, 1999),

poor ventilation (Callahan, 1999), and quick deterio-ration (Fickes, 1998) are just a few examples of thelimitations of using portable classrooms. Researchhas documented the impact of physical environ-ment on pupil behavior, attitude, and performance(Chan, 1996; Cramer, 1976; Earthman, Cash, &Berkum, 1996; Hines, 1996; Hones, 1974; McGuffey,1972). It is not difficult to associate the possibility ofnegative effect of portable classrooms and pupilbehavior, attitude, and performance. However,research in portable classrooms is limited or lacking.Chan (2004) compared student achievement,behavior, and attitude between portable and per-manent classrooms. The findings of the study indicat-ed significant difference in student attitude betweenportable and permanent classrooms but no differ-ence was found in student achievement and behav-ior. A similar study was also conducted by Chan(2003) to seek the teachers’ perception on theimpact of portable classrooms on student achieve-ment, behavior and attitude. Results showed thatteachers predominantly claimed they were the onesto make the difference in students not the classroomenvironment. More research is needed to examinehow the portable classroom environments impactteachers’ and students’ classroom activities.

Purpose of the StudyThe purpose of this study is to investigate the stu-

dent attitude and achievement in portable class-rooms by comparing them with those of students inpermanent classrooms. This study is importantbecause it generates significant findings so muchneeded in the understanding of the impact ofportable classrooms in the learning process.

Research QuestionsThe following research questions are developed

for this study:1. Do students housed in portable classrooms

have more negative attitudes toward their schoolsthan those housed in permanent classrooms?

2. Do students housed in portable classroomshave lower mathematics achievement than thosehoused in permanent classrooms?

3. How do teachers perceive the impact ofportable classrooms on student attitude andachievement?

MethodologyDesign.

The research design of this study is quasi-experi-

mental. While full control of variables in an experi-mental setting is not possible, the researcher wasable to take advantage of the set environment ofschool that assigned part of the fifth graders toattend mathematics class in a portable classroom,and the rest of the fifth graders in a permanent class-room. In examining student attitude and mathemat-ics achievement in portable and permanent class-rooms, both quantitative and qualitative measureswere used. Quantitative data (student mathematicsscores and student attitude scores) were collectedfrom 81 fifth grade students in an elementary schoolin Georgia. These students were housed partly inportable classrooms and partly in permanent class-rooms. The qualitative aspect of the study was con-ducted through soliciting written responses from theeight teachers teaching these classes. All eightteachers were asked how they perceived the impactof portable classrooms on student attitude andachievement. By using this combined quantitativeand qualitative methodology, the researcher wasable to collect data of different formats to examinethe research topic from multiple perspectives.

Participants.

Participants in this study were 81 fifth grade stu-dents in a Georgia elementary school that housedthe gifted programs. Fifth grade was selected for thestudy because of the availability of test scores in theIowa Test of Basic Skills (ITBS). The school had adepartmentalization organization with four teachers(language, science, math, and social studies) form-ing a teaching team. The 81 students in this studywere assigned to eight classes taught by two teamsof teachers. Teacher D, a mathematics teacher, wasassigned to teach in a portable classroom while therest of the teachers were housed in permanent class-rooms. A total of 43 students attended Teacher D’smathematics class in the portable classroom while 38students received their mathematics instruction fromTeacher H in a permanent classroom. Table 1 illus-trates how teachers and students were assigned ineither portable or permanent classrooms in this study.

Instrument.

Student attitude data were collected using StudentAttitude Inventory (SAI) developed by Dr. Carroll W.McGuffey of University of Georgia (See Appendix 1).SAI was used in several educational facility studiesbefore and was successfully tested to be a solidinstrument with high level of validity and reliability.The instrument contains 55 items soliciting students’attitude toward their immediate learning environ-ment. High and low scores in SAI are indications ofpositive and negative attitudes respectively.

Student achievement data were collected fromthe results of the Iowa Test of Basic Skills (ITBS) takenby the fifth grade students in Spring 2003. ITBS scoresin the mathematics area were examined in this study.ITBS scores in language art, social studies, and sci-ence were also collected and were used as controlvariables.

Qualitative data on teacher perceptions werecollected by using a researcher designed instrumentconsisting of open-ended questions (see Appendix2). Teachers were asked how they perceived theimpact of portable classrooms on student attitudeand achievement.

Table 1Class and Teacher Assignment to Portable

and Permanent Classrooms

(P) = Class housed in a portable classroom

Procedure.

This study was conducted in a departmentalizedelementary school in Georgia where students movefrom room to room to attend classes. Eight classes of81 fifth grade students were involved in this study.Four of the classes with a total of 38 students (controlgroup) were housed in permanent classrooms for allthe academic instructions including mathematics.The other four classes of 43 students (experimentalgroup) received their mathematics instruction inportable classrooms and the rest of the classes in per-manent classrooms. The purpose of this study was tocompare student attitude and mathematics scoresof students in portable classrooms and permanentclassrooms. Because both groups of students studiedmathematics in the same school setting, variablessuch as principal’s influence, program impact, andcourse requirements were under control. The two vet-eran mathematics teachers, one teaching in aportable classroom and one in a permanent class-room, were teachers of comparable qualificationsand teaching experiences. Students in both theexperimental group and control group responded tothe Student Attitude Inventory. They were directed torespond to the attitude inventory by reflecting theirfeeling of their immediate classroom environment.

The impact of portable classrooms on studentattitude and mathematics achievement was alsostudied through the perceptions of the teachers whotaught the students in class. A survey consisting ofdirect open-ended questions on portable classroomswas administered to the eight teachers to solicit theirperceptions on the impact of portable classrooms onstudent attitudes and mathematics achievement.

Data Analysis.

Pearson’s correlations were performed to involveall the academic variables in this study to observethe possible interrelationship between any two vari-ables. Results of the analysis indicated strong correla-tions between ITBS scores of mathematics and ITBSscores of science, social studies, and language arts.(see Table 2) Therefore, it was decided that ITBSscores of science, social studies, and language artswould be included in the analytical process to mini-mize their possible effect on mathematics scores. Uni-variate Analysis of Variance was used to analyze ifsignificant difference existed in attitude and mathachievement between students in portable class-rooms and permanent classrooms.

Table 2Correlation Matrix (Math, Science, Language,

and Social Studies)

** Significant at the .001 level (2 tailed).* Significant at the .05 level (2 tailed).

FindingsResults of Univariate Analysis of Variance indicatedthat no significant difference existed (F = 3.227)between portable and permanent classrooms in stu-dent attitude after controlling the effect of studentrace, socioeconomic status, and ITBS scores. (seeTable 3)

Table 3Univariate Analysis of Variance – Student Attitude

In mathematics achievement, the differencebetween portable and permanent classrooms wasnot significant (F = .159) after controlling such factorsas race, socioeconomic status, student attitude, andITBS scores of language, science, and social studies.(see Table 4)

Table 4Univariate Analysis of Variance – Math

Although non-significant differences were foundbetween portable and permanent classrooms inboth student attitude and mathematics achieve-ment, greater difference was found betweenportable and permanent classrooms in student atti-tude (Significance level = .077; see Table 3) thanmathematics achievement (Significance level = .691;see Table 4).

Teachers’ survey responses were in qualitativedata format and were coded, categorized, andanalyzed for patterns of similarities and differences.Special effort was exerted to examine the generalpatterns of responses. Some of the qualitative analy-ses are displayed in the following paragraphs.

Teachers were asked if they perceived that stu-dents in portable classrooms had more negative atti-tudes toward their schools than those in permanentclassrooms. They responded by indicating that stu-dent attitude toward their school should not beaffected by the physical environment, whether itwas a permanent classroom or a portable class-room. Some of the teachers’ comments are quotedas follows:

"Since we cater to gifted kids, these kidsusually have a healthy attitude about them-selves, learning, and school." (Teacher F-4)

"It really depends on the teacher’s atti-tude. The kids pick up on the adults’ attitudesvery easily." (Teacher B-1)

Teachers were asked if they perceived that stu-dents in portable classrooms had lower achievementthan those in permanent classrooms. All the teachersresponded with negative statements. They pro-nounced with confidence that teachers made thedifference in student academic achievement, notthe environment. As stated by some of the teachers:

"I believe that student achievement isdetermined by the teacher’s abilities toteach, not by being in a portable classroomor not being in one." (Teacher D-4)

It’s not the setting; it’s the teacher whomakes the difference." (Teacher G-4)

"Students scored the same as other stu-dents in the school on tests." (Teacher H-4)

"We have many less interruptionsbecause we are off the beaten path. It is qui-eter." (Teacher C-3)

In the issue of using portable classrooms, someteachers have expressed their reservations. Theircomments and concerns are quoted for reference inthe following:

"The only difference was the distance tothe restroom. So we probably had slightly lesstime for class because we stopped to use therestroom before each class." (Teacher H-4)

"I think they [students] have to put moreeffort to maintain performance because ofinconvenience of routine tasks." (Teacher A-3)

"I taught in a portable classroom in…..County for a year. The trailer was old withbrown paneled interior walls and a very noisyair conditioning." (Teacher H-4)

Most of the teachers’ concerns about the use ofportable classrooms were focused on their distantlocation, inconvenient accessibility to needed facili-ties, and their physical conditions. Teachers worriedthat extended time needed for students to movefrom place to place might possibly shorten the stu-dents’ instructional time. Students might have to workharder to make up for it.

DiscussionAs Teacher F stated, the school in this study is a

special school for the gifted students. Students in thisschool have experienced success in their lives andtherefore have a healthy attitude about themselvesand the school in general. Poor physical conditionsof portable classrooms did not do enough damageto downgrade the attitude of these achieving stu-dents. This explains the reason why no significant dif-ference was found in student attitude betweenportable and permanent classrooms in this study. Theresult is contrary to Chan’s previous study (2004) inwhich gifted students were not involved.

In student achievement, both quantitative andqualitative analyses of data actually point to thesame direction that portable classrooms did not neg-atively impact student achievement. No significantdifference was found in students’ mathematicsachievement between portable and permanentclassrooms. The findings of this study confirm those ofprevious studies by Chan (2003, and 2004) andKrawitz (1987).

It should be noted that even though the teachersmade it very clear that they were the ones whomade a difference, not the physical environment ofclassrooms (Teacher C-3, Teacher D-4, Teacher G-4,and Teacher H-4), however, they also indicated theirreservations in using portable classrooms. Inconve-nient access to some needed facilities is a majordrawback in using portable classrooms.

In designing this study, the researcher selectedstudent behavior as one of the dependent variablesto be examined. Student behavior was eventuallyeliminated from the study because the school princi-pal confirmed that there was no noticeable behav-ioral problem in a gifted school of this nature.

The quasi-experimental design of this study is dif-ferent from the previous Chan’s studies on portableclassrooms. Chan’s study of teacher attitude inportable classrooms (2003) was basically a surveytype of study whereas his study of student attitude,achievement and behavior in portable classrooms(2004) was causal-comparative in nature. This wouldallow readers to evaluate the results of these studiesfrom different perspectives.

ConclusionThough no significant difference was found in stu-

dent attitude and student mathematics achieve-ment between portable and permanent classrooms,the findings of this study are important in two ways:(1) They provide solid evidence to support the find-ings of previous studies that portable classrooms donot negatively impact student achievement. (2) Theyindicate that, under certain levels of affectivedomains, such as motivation and determination,human performance may cease to be impacted bythe physical conditions of the environment. Manyquestions in the use of portable classrooms remainunanswered. In light of the limited available studies inportable classrooms, continuous effort in this researcharena is strongly encouraged.

References:Callahan, M., Parker, D. S., Dutton, W. L., & McIlvaine,

J. E. R. (1997). Energy efficiency for Florida edu-cational facilities: The 1996 energy survey of Flori-da schools. Cocoa, FL: Florida Solar Energy Cen-ter.

Callahan, M., Parker, D. S., Sherwin, J. R., Anello, M. T.(1999). Evaluation of energy efficiency improve-ment to portable classrooms in Florida. Cocoa,FL: Florida Solar Energy Center.

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Chan, T. C. (2003, October). Using portable class-rooms: How do teachers perceive? A presenta-tion to the Annual Conference of the SouthernRegional Council for Educational Administration,Little Rock, AR.

Chan, T. C. (2004). A comparison of student achieve-ment, attitude, and behavior between portableand permanent classrooms. Scottsdale, AZ:Council for Educational Facilities Planners, Inter-national.

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Appendix 1:

Our School Building Attitude Inventory

A Survey of Students

Is your class in a portable classroom? YES _____ NO _____

Gender: Male ____ Female ____ Race: White _____ Black _____ Other _____

Instructions: Please circle Yes or No in each of the followingitems. When you are circling, refer the items to the classroomyou are sitting in.

Yes No 1. My room is just the right size.

Yes No 2. My chair is comfortable.

Yes No 3. I need a better place to keep my booksand things at school

Yes No 4. This room is really a good place to be.

Yes No 5. The lights help me see better.

Yes No 6. This room makes it easy for me to study.

Yes No 7. My friends are happy in this room.

Yes No 8. I like to go to school in this room.

Yes No 9. I fee restless in this room.

Yes No 10. I can get hurt easily in this room.

Yes No 11. I can read my book easily in this room.

Yes No 12. I would like to tear this room down.

Yes No 13. This room is unpleasant.

Yes No 14. My classroom is bright and cheerful.

Yes No 15. This room is so noisy.

Yes No 16. I have a good place to put my books andthings at school.

Yes No 17. I like to play on the school grounds.

Yes No 18. I go to school in a nice room.

Yes No 19. This room is quiet.

Yes No 20. The colors of the walls are bright and pretty.

Yes No 21. The room is too dark and ugly.

Yes No 22. I feel uncomfortable in this room.

Yes No 23. I like to play at this school.

Yes No 24. This room is too hot.

Yes No 25. This entire room looks pretty bad.

Yes No 26. This is the best classroom I have ever stayed.

Yes No 27. I like to come into this room.

Yes No 28. This building is beautiful.

Yes No 29. My classroom is a cozy place.

Yes No 30. I feel really good in my classroom.

Yes No 31. I feel sick in this room from time to time.

Yes No 32. This classroom is very comfortable.

Yes No 33. My classroom is a clean place.

Yes No 34. This classroom is friendly and inviting.

Yes No 35. I get tired and sleepy in this room.

Yes No 36. This room is too cold.

Yes No 37. This classroom is not a good place to study.

Yes No 38. I can hardly see writings on the board.

Yes No 39. This classroom is great in every way.

Yes No 40. I feel at home in school.

Yes No 41. The desks in this room are not comfortable.

Yes No 42. I could learn better if this room is prettier.

Yes No 43. I would like to have more comfortablechairs.

Yes No 44. I don’t like my classroom.

Yes No 45. My classroom is too crowded.

Yes No 46. This school is scary sometimes.

Yes No 47. The bathroom is too far away.

Yes No 48. I feel isolated in this room.

Yes No 49. I like this classroom.

Yes No 50. The lights in this room give me headache.

Yes No 51. This room is like a jail.

Yes No 52. I feel really comfortable in this room.

Yes No 53. I can hardly learn anything in this room.

Yes No 54. This room is most comfortable.

Yes No 55. There are more good points than bad

points in this classroom.

Appendix 2:

Teachers’ Perception of the Impact of PortableClassroom on Student Attitude and Performance.

Are you presently teaching in a portable classroom? (Please cir-cle) YES NO

Years of teaching experiences _________ Gender:Male____ Female____

Highest degree earned: Doctoral ___ Specialist ___ Master’s___ Bachelor’s ____

Please respond to the following questions the way you per-ceive:

1. Do you perceive that students housed in portable class-rooms have more negative attitudes toward their schools thanthose housed in permanent classrooms? Why? Please elabo-rate your answer.

2. Do you perceive that students housed in portable class-rooms have poorer academic per formance than thosehoused in permanent classrooms? Why? Please elaborateyour answer.

3. Other comments, examples, or experiences:

Scott Fredrickson received hisdoctorate in Instructional Technol-ogy from Texas Tech University. Hewas an Assistant Professor in theDepartment of Computer Infor-mation Systems and in theDepartment of Education at theUniversity of Alaska-Southeast –Sitka. He has been at the Universi-ty of Nebraska at Kearney since1992 and is a Professor of Instruc-tional Technology in the Collegeof Education. He has presentedat 30 state and national confer-ences on instructional technolo-gy, has published 29 articles in ref-ereed journals, and nine bookchapters and monographs.

Twenty-First Century “Catch 22”Instructor Comments in Asynchronous Web-Based Courses

Scott Fredrickson, Ken Nelson,Robert J. Walden and Patricia Hoehner

Robert J. Walden is an AssistantProfessor in the Special EducationProgram, Department of TeacherEducation, at the University ofNebraska at Kearney. He earnedhis Ph.D. in Special Educationfrom the University of Oklahomaat Norman. He holds an M.Ed. inSpecial Education and a B.B.A. inaccounting. He has conductedresearch in goal attainment forcollege students with disabilitiesand team-teaching at the sec-ondary level in public schools. Hehas presented at local, state, andinternational conventions on vari-ous special education topics and

served as a reader for state challenge grant proposals for the stateof Oklahoma and presentation proposals for various conferences.

Ken Nelson received his doc-torate in Educational Administra-tion from the University of Nebras-ka at Lincoln. He currently servesas an Associate Professor in theEducational Administrationdepartment at the University ofNebraska at Kearney. He is veryinvolved in the delivery of educa-tional programs via distancelearning. He is past president ofthe Nebraska Association ofSchool Administrators and haspresented at numerous national,regional, and state conferences.

Patricia Hoehner received herdoctorate in Administration, Cur-riculum, and Instruction from theUniversity of Nebraska at Lincoln.She is Associate Professor andChair of the Educational Adminis-tration department in the Collegeof Education at the University ofNebraska at Kearney. She teach-es undergraduate students viafiber optics and online. Prior tocoming to UNK in 1998, she wasan administrator for the publicschools in McCook, NE. She holdsa Nebraska Professional TeachingCertificate with endorsements inmathematics, English, and gifted

education, and a Professional Administrative Certificate withendorsements in principalship and superintendency.

AbstractUsing two datasets consisting of 732 graduate

students in 20 web-based classes and two subjectareas, instructor postings and student responses wereanalyzed to determine if instructor postings reducedstudent responses. This study determined there wasan extremely high positive correlation betweeninstructor postings in discussion forums and studentpostings in those forums.

IntroductionThe emergence of the Internet has not only

impacted education, but has caught the attentionof both advocates and critics of web-based classes.Numerous studies have been conducted to deter-mine if online classes are as effective as the tradition-

al face-to-face classes, and, more importantly, howvaluable is interaction to the success of the learningexperience.

Critics often liken online classes to an assembleline approach to teaching. Criticisms range fromthe lack of nonverbal clues that could lead to misun-derstandings to the creation of an environment thatallows students to simple "lurk in the background"passively reading discussions without participating(Peters, 1993).

In their study, Smith, Ferguson and Caris (2001)interviewed 21 instructors who taught both in the dis-tance and face-to-face format. Consensus is thatthe lack of both nonverbal clues and the physicalpresence of fellow classmates is not a deterrent, butan encouragement for the usually shy student in a

face-to-face class to participate online. The level ofinteraction is broadly supported according toresearch conducted by Feedback Research "Mostpeople considering online education believe thequality of online education is better than taking class-es in an actual classroom setting" (Online Education,2005, p. 1).

When the authors began teaching web-basedcourses many years ago, it was their belief that whenthe instructor commented in a discussion thread thestudents perceived that comment as the definitiveresponse and the discussions ceased. One of theauthors and several other colleagues were so con-cerned about the apparent interruption of the dis-cussions that they stopped commenting publicly inthe discussion forums, and would only respond to stu-dents via email to prevent the termination of the dis-cussions. However, that led to the instructors havingto make the same response numerous times to differ-ent students. It also seemed that students’ responsesnevertheless diminished over time as the instructorfailed to respond to comments over the duration ofthe course. At best, it was a bewildering dichotomy.

Why should instructors be concerned about thelack of online discussion in web-based courses? Verysimply, online discussion is the heart and soul of aweb-based class. Although PowerPoint presenta-tions, readings, links to external web sites, video andaudio clips, and other such instructional media canbe included in web-based courses, most of theinstructor guided student learning takes place in thediscussion boards.

In a study of critical thinking Burbach, Matkin,and Fritz (2004) concluded that courses which utilizedactive learning strategies did improve critical thinkingskills" (p. 489). According to a study by Christopher,Thomas, and Tallent-Runnel, students involved withonline discussion boards used higher levels of thinkingskills. In agreement, Harkavy and Blank (2003) notedthat "the best learning takes place when (students)have voice, are able to question, are activelyinvolved, and are encouraged to solve meaningfulproblems…" (p. 212). From all indications, the morestudents participate in online discussions, the morethey will understand the subject matter and the morethey will improve their ability to learn.

Frey, Alman, Barron, and Steffens (2004) notedthat "the interactions between the students and theinstructor, and the interactions among the studentsare vital components of successful adult learningexperiences" (p. 90). According to Shea, Pickett,and Li (2005, p. 2), "If the benefits associated withonline teaching are to be realized--especially thosemost clearly revered, such as increasing access tohigher education--faculty participation and engage-ment is critical."

In 1999, Beaudin conducted a study to identifytechniques used by instructors to keep students ontopic. Questionnaires completed by 135 onlineinstructors indicate that keeping online asynchronousdiscussion on topic is effected by the questioningstrategies of the instructor. The design of the ques-

tion, the provision of guidelines for responses, andthe leadership of the instructor to keep the studentfocused assisted the student in reaching the learningobjective.

Not only does student interaction increase thelearning in an on-line classroom, it enhances thecommunity building that the instructor should bedeveloping. According to several studies (Choi, 1999;Park & Kin, 2000)) student-to-student andstudent/faculty communication in the discussionboards are the major community development toolfor online courses. While Rovai (2001) noted that"…on-line instructors can create virtual learning envi-ronments that promote a sense of classroom com-munity" (p. 45). In 2002, Brown (p. 9) states, "….build-ing community is a key ingredient for successfulteaching and learning…. The community leadercreates a friendly environment, cheers strong contri-butions, and nudges reluctant contributors." In addi-tion, Rovai found that "moderate and positive rela-tionships were found between numbers of messagesposted and classroom community …" (p. 40). Frey,Alman, Barron, and Steffens (2004) noted that stu-dents became more familiar with each other "…bet-ter than in traditional courses" (p. 90).

As in a traditional classroom setting, students fol-low the instructor’s expectations for participation bythe instructor’s behavior. When the instructor rarelycommunicates with the students, they are lessinclined to pose questions even indirectly to theinstructor. In an empirical study relating coursedesign to factors in 73 asynchronous online coursesto student perceptions of them, Swan, Shea,Fredrickson, Pickett, Pelz & Maler (2002) found thatthe greater the percentage of course grades thatwere based on discussions, the more satisfied stu-dents were with their courses, the more they thoughtthey learned from them, and the more interactionthey thought they had with both their instructors andtheir classmates.

In a distance education report ("InstructionalInteraction," 2004), the author discussed a study con-ducted at the University of Massachusetts that indi-cated "…the frequency of instructor-to-student inter-action in each course was strongly, positively corre-lated to positive student attitudes about the course"(p. 3). The research indicates that student interac-tion with the instructor is beneficial in a variety ofways and since the authors’ personal feelings werethat instructor comments in the discussion board inonline classes decreased student interactions, a reso-lution needed to found.

Research ProblemInstructor comments posted in the online discus-

sion forums, decrease student participation in thosediscussion threads. This hypothesis was based oninstructor perceptions after teaching web-basedclasses for over seven years. It was strictly anecdotalevidence, but it was developed based on theauthors' perceptions that instructor postings inhibitedstudent responses on the discussion board.

MethodTwenty online classes were evaluated with a total

of 732 graduate students in either educationaladministration or in instructional technology. Fifteenclasses were taught by one instructor and five byanother over a four year period. The classes weresegregated by instructors for analysis purposesbecause of the different nature of the two types ofclasses, the different teaching styles of the twoinstructors, and a belief that clearer results would beobtained if the datasets were kept separate. A fre-quency count of the number of instructor commentsand the number of student responses and commentswere tallied for each class. The total number ofinstructor postings was compared to the total num-ber of student postings within the respectivedatasets. The datasets were used to determine ifthere was a correlation between the instructors’comments and the students’ comments. Paired tTests were conducted using the datasets. Theexpected result was a negative correlation or, atbest, perhaps no correlation would be apparent atall.

ResultsThe hypothesis was not supported. In fact, the resultsshowed an extremely positive correlation betweeninstructor comments and student responses in bothsets of classes. The Pearsons R coefficient wasextremely positive. For the educational administra-tion dataset of five classes, the coefficient was .9822with a p value of 0.01. For the 15 instructional tech-nology classes dataset, the coefficient was .8880 witha p value of 0.001. Figure 1 represents the educa-tional administration dataset and Figure 2 is theinstructional technology dataset. Both the figuresshow that increasing the instructor’s postings of com-ments and questions will precipitate more numerousposting of comments by the students.

Figure 1

Figure 2

DiscussionIt is obvious that the authors’ perceptions and

the results of this study are significantly different. Per-haps the instructors’ perceptions were developed inthe first online class or two that were taught. Due tothe newness of the technology, the inexperiencewith online learning on the part of the students andinstructors, and the change from satellite delivery ofclasses to web-based delivery for the instructors alltended to reinforce that opinion. However, afterseven years of online instruction, the students andthe instructors have become more proficient in thatenvironment. In any event, these results indicatethat the instructors’ erroneous opinions should bechanged and they should be posting more com-ments if they want their students to become moreengaged with online learning and obtaining its asso-ciated benefits. As the cited research above indi-cated, students need to be engaged, active partici-pants in their learning to develop higher levels ofthinking and to develop a better sense of communi-ty, both of which allow students to learn more andgain a broader understanding of the instruction.

In the analysis of the data, no distinction wasmade between content postings, community build-ing postings, or simply class "housekeeping" postings.Instructor postings were also not separated into ques-tions posed to the class as a group or in response toquestion by a student or a group of students. Post-ings were simply tallied. In the future, those distinc-tions should be taken into account and analyzed.Student postings were also not classified into student-to-instructor postings, student-to-student postings, orstudent responding to student/instructor postings.Instructor/student emails and telephone conversa-tions were also not included. Those classificationsshould be examined also.

Although the classifications of postings were notdetailed, they still provide a valuable insight into theworkings of a web-based class. Instructors need toplan their postings to facilitate their classes and theyshould not worry about stopping student commentsbecause the instructor merely posts a comment.

ConclusionThere is a direct, strong, and positive correlation

between instructor comments on the discussion

board and student responses in online classes. Otherresearch indicates that engaged, active participa-tion of students improves their learning and retentionof the material. Therefore, online instructors need toincrease the number of postings in discussion forumsto improve that participation by students. Postingsshould be a comprehensive and a thorough part ofan online class. In their study comparing traditionallydelivered instruction to online instruction, Ryan, Carl-ton, and Ali (1999) concluded that "interactive com-munication must be built into the process. Facultyneed to be creative in developing an environmentfor participation, interaction, and socialization" (p.275). Instructors cannot be "interactive" if they areconcerned about stifling the conversations by post-ing their comments. The effectiveness of onlineinstruction will be reduced if instructors are overlyconcerned about the effect of their postings on stu-dent participation. The results of this study indicateinstructors should post their comments and focus onthe instruction to increase student participation in theclass.

ReferencesBeaudin, B.P. (1999, November). Keeping online asyn-

chronous discussions on topic. Journal of Asyn-chronous Learning Networks, 3, 2-19 RetrievedAugust 31, 2005 from: http://www.sloan-c.org/publications/jaln/v3n2/v3n2_beaudin.asp

Brown, D. G. (2002, December). The role you play inonline discussions. Syllabus, 1,9.

Burbach, M.E., Matkin, G.S., Fritz, S.M., (2004, Sept.)Teaching critical thinking in an introductory lead-ership course utilizing active learning strategies:A confirmatory study. College Student Journal,38, 482-493.

Choi, J. (1999) Exploration on educational strategiesfor enhancing interaction in web-based instruc-tion. Korean Journal of Educational Technology,15, 129-154.

Christopher, M.M., Thomas, J.A., & Tallent-Runnels,M.K. (2004, Spring). Raising the bar: Encouraginghigh level thinking in online discussion forums.Roper Review, 26, 166-171.

Online education scores high marks (2005, June), 1-2.Retrieved June 19, 2005, from: http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/050615/sfw022.html

Frey, B.A., Alman, S.W., Barron, D., & Steffens, A.(2004, Spring). Student satisfaction with the onlineMLIS program at the University of Pittsburg. Jour-nal of Education for Library Science, 45, 82-97.

Harkavy, I, & Blank, M.J.. (2003, Winter) A Vision forLearning beyond Testing and Choice. ReclaimingChildren and Youth, 11, 211-215.

Instructional interaction: Key to student persistence?(2004, June 1). Distance Education Report, 12, 3.

Park, I., & Kim, M. (2000). Impact of anonymity ondemonstration and negative statements in syn-chronous virtual discussions. Korean Journal ofEducational Technology, 16, 91-106.

Peters, O. (1993). Three types of interaction, in K.Harry, M. Hohn, and D.Keegan (eds). (1993). Dis-tance education: New perspectives. Routledge:London

Rovai, A.P. (2001) Building classroom community at adistance: a case study. Educational TechnologyResearch and Development, 49, 33-48.

Ryan, M.E., Carlton, K. H.; & Ali, N.S.. (1999). Evalua-tion of traditional classroom teaching methodsversus course delivery via the World Wide Web.Journal of Nursing Education 38, 272-277.

Shea, P., Pickett, A, and Li, C. S. (2005, July). Increas-ing access to higher education: A study of thediffusion of online teaching among 913 collegefaculty. International Review of Research inOpen and Distance Learning, 1-19. RetrievedSeptember 12, 2005 from: http://www.Irrodl.org/content/v6.2/shea.html

Smith, G.G., Ferguson, D., and Caris M. (2001, April).Teaching college courses online vs face-to-face.The Journal Online, 1-8. Retrieved September 15,2005 from: www.thejournal.com/magazine/vault/A3407.cfm - 32k

Swan, K., Shea, P., Fredericksen, E., Pickett, A., Pelz,W., and Maher, G. (2000). Building knowledgebuilding communities: Consistency, contact andcommunication in the virtual classroom. Journalof Educational Computing Research, 23 (4), 389-413.

What is a weed? A plant whose virtues have not yet been discovered.

– Ralph Waldo Emerson

College of Education and Professional Studies

Dear Colleagues,

For over 40 years, Eastern Education Journal has served as a forum for scholarly,research-based discourse dealing with contemporary issues in the field of education.From humble beginnings, it has come to be one of the nation’s state-of-the-artpublications.

In addition to providing opportunity for publication of research-based manuscripts,Eastern Education Journal also encourages publication of strong position papers, originalpoints of view, research summaries, program descriptions, book reviews, and other features related to education teacher preparation, and the professional developmentof both inservice and preservice teachers, as well as administrators.

Eastern Education Journal is published annually by the College of Education and Professional Studies at Eastern Illinois University, Charleston, Illinois. It is a refereed journaland currently includes nine Editorial Board members representing diverse disciplines andareas of study. Eastern Education Journal is distributed annually to numerous schools,universities, school districts, and various education organizations across the nation. Anexemplary model of university publications, Eastern Education Journal continuouslystrives to promote research and education-related commentary.

ADDITIONAL COPIES OF THIS ISSUE

• Request Spring 2006 Issue (Volume 35, Number 1) and number of copies• Send $5 (includes shipping and handling) per copy to:

Rosemary HarrisAssistant to the Dean

Eastern Illinois UniversityCollege of Education and Professional Studies

600 Lincoln AvenueCharleston IL 61920-3099

Eastern Education JournalManuscript Guidelines, Editorial Procedures, and Submission Requirements

Eastern Education Journal seeks articles representing contemporary issues in education. Manuscriptsshould focus on concepts, research, or practice. Research summaries, program descriptions, bookreviews, and original points of view are encouraged. Eastern Education Journal is published in the springand may include thematic and non-thematic sections.

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room number -- and nine-digit zip code); telephone number, and email address. Provide thesame information for each author if more than one author is involved.

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Send manuscripts, correspondence, or inquiries to:

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