A Field Experience: Teacher Orientation

The purpose of this field experience was three fold: 1) to determine the existence of formal teacher orientation programs, 2) the contents of the programs, and 3) the level of satisfaction by the principal(s) regarding the formal teacher orientation programs for newly employed teachers. A survey of the high schools in Educational Service Centers 15, 16, 17, and 18 was conducted. In addition, a thorough review of literature and research associated with the need and benefits from a teacher orientation program was presented. Included in the review was the components of a mentor program. An analysis of the survey results identified three facts. One fact was that only one school actually had a formal teacher orientation program. Secondly, seventy-five percent of the schools whose administrators perceived themselves as having a formal teacher orientation program did not have an evaluation component in the program. Thirdly, none of the schools had a formal mentor program, although forty-four percent of the schools had an informal mentor program. The findings and recommendations concluded from this study provided information regarding the need for a formal teacher orientation program and the benefits that would result for the school, community, students, and the newly employed teacher

An electronic weather vane for field science

This paper details the construction of a weather vane for the measurement of wind direction in field situations. The purpose of its construction was to analyse how wind direction affected the attractiveness of an insect pheromone in a dynamic outdoor environment, where wind could be a significant contributor to odour movement. The apparatus described provides a cheap and easy-to-construct alternative to commercial wind vanes, and was shown to provide accurate and continuous measurement of wind direction

Pruning apple trees

January,1939

Picking, packing, and shipping apples

"June, 1926

Growing fall gardens

"August, 1936

Attending School Matters: Policies to Eliminate Chronic Absenteeism

Chronic absenteeism is among the most pervasive challenges facing public education in the United States as 1 in 10 students misses a month or more of school annually. Further, approximately 7% of fourth and eighth graders miss at least a week of school per month, whereas an estimated 5.5% to 20% of students are absent every day in some urban schools where absentee rates reach as high as 30% (Balfanz and Byrnes 2012). As education leaders and policy makers debate the merits of new intervention strategies under the No Child Left Behind Act and Individuals with Disabilities Education Act to enhance learning, there is a growing concern about the rate at which students miss school. Chronic absenteeism, which occurs as early as the elementary grades, is one of the strongest and most often overlooked indicators of risk factors for students, leading to their becoming disengaged, failing, and dropping out of school. Even though school boards collect attendance data, those data are often not closely monitored. In addition, daily attendance counts that are part of state accountability systems, and that can affect school funding, can hide chronic absenteeism because averages typically do not track individual students

Vegetable growing in Missouri

Cover title.Digitized 2006 AES MoU