The Development of Vocational Agriculture before the Vocational Education Act 1963

Agricultural education programs are experiencing pressure to change from a variety of educational and societal influences. This pressure is not new to agricultural education programs. The evolution of vocational agriculture from 1945 to 1963 provides a historical example of vocational education change as a result of social influences. Rural America experienced unprecedented emigration after World War II. The loss of students from farming families, the intended recipients of vocational agriculture, should have hampered local programs, but in fact the opposite occurred: enrollment in vocational agriculture continued to grow. We examine how vocational agriculture teachers transformed local programs to match their emerging clientele before the Vocational Education Act of 1963

Personality Type as a Predictor of Interaction Between Student Teachers and Cooperating Teachers

The thesis from which this item is derived can be found at http://hdl.handle.net/10355/4146.Agricultural Education teaching interns from the University of Missouri and the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and their respective cooperating teachers participated in the study (n = 56). The purpose of the study was to assess personality type as a predictor of interaction between student teachers and cooperating teachers. The Myers-Briggs Type Indicator was given to student teachers and cooperating teachers to determine personality types and the Mentoring Relationship Questionnaire was used to measure interaction aspects. The MBTI test was given to student teachers at the beginning of their internship and the MRQ was given midway through the internship. Cooperating teachers completed the MBTI in March and the MRQ in April

PERCEIVED PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT NEEDS OF IDAHO SECONDARY CAREER AND TECHNICAL EDUCATION TEACHERS: PROGRAM MANAGEMENT

The purpose of this study was to examine the perceived professional development needs of Idaho secondary career and technical education teachers for a set of non-instructional competencies specifically associated with duties related to program management. The population of this study consisted of CTE teachers employed by Idaho secondary schools (N=725). Sixty-one percent (n=446) of the population participated in the study. The findings indicated that the top five perceived in-service training areas for the program management construct, as identified by a mean weighted discrepancy score (MWDS) ranking, to be “Grant writing & funding opportunities”; “Understanding federal (Perkins), state, and local funding”; “Establishing and organizing co-op/internships”; “Developing an effective public relations program”; and “Developing curriculum-based school-to-work and/or school-to-career activities”. Individuals involved with teacher preparation and in-service training can use the findings of this study to inform the development of pre-service curriculum and in-service educational offerings

Identifying Perceived Professional Development Needs of Idaho Secondary CTE Teachers: Program Management Needs of Skilled and Technical Science Teachers

The purpose of this study was to examine the perceived training needs of Idaho secondary skilled and technical science teachers for a set of non-instructional competencies specifically associated with duties related to program management. The population of this study consisted of skilled and technical science teachers employed by Idaho secondary schools for the 2008-09 academic year (N=181). Sixty percent (n=109) of the 181 teachers participated in the study. The findings indicated that the perceived in-service training areas for the program management construct, as identified by a mean weighted discrepancy score (MWDS) ranking, to be grant writing and funding opportunities, developing curriculum-based school-to-work and/or school-to-career activities, and establishing and organizing co-op/internships. Individuals involved with teacher preparation and in-service training can use the findings of this study to inform the development of pre-service curriculum and in-service educational offerings

Experiential Learning Curricular Development Model for Stimulating Student Interest in Green Collar Careers

Green jobs are in high demand, yet there is lack of a trained workforce for the green industries. Early exposure to green careers can stimulate future employment interest among students. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of an experiential learning unit of instruction designed to expose students to and develop knowledge about the green collar workforce. The study used a mixed method research design. A purposive sample of 101 (n=101) secondary students in career development type classes were given a pre-test, treatment, and post-test that involved both quantitative and qualitative responses. The findings revealed that the developed curriculum did increase student awareness of, and knowledge about the green collar workforce. Educators interested in career guidance and work force preparation may adopt the curriculum examined, or choose to develop their own based off the same experiential learning theory principles used in the development of the green collar workforce curriculum

A study of social comparisons and their effects on high school choir directors /

This study was designed to examine social comparison usage by high school choir directors, and possible attributes that may affect the types of comparisons that are utilized. Directors from four Midwestern states were invited to participate in a survey designed to answer research questions pertaining to the extent to which they engage in social comparisons, the different ways that they socially compare, and potential relationships between job attributes, perceived control, and social comparison types. Three hundred and sixty-three participants returned usable surveys for a response rate of 31.6 percent. Results indicated that directors were engaging in social comparison, mostly to seek information, problem solve, and validate opinions. These comparisons were upward assimilative, which research has found to have positive emotional outcomes, such as inspiration and admiration. Two attributes, perceived control and number of years taught, played a role in three comparison types, Upward Assimilation, Upward Contrast, and Downward Assimilation. A qualitative component of the survey confirms that the participants were engaging in upward assimilative behaviors, but also provide evidence that some directors experienced the negative effects of comparisons, as well. Future research to examine the possible effects and emotional outcomes of social comparison use by choir directors.Dr. Wendy Sims, Dissertation Supervisor.|Includes vita.Includes bibliographical references (pages 90-100)

Red Chert Quarrie in the Munsungun Lake Formation: Moving beyond Norway Bluff

Red chert attributed to the Munsungun Lake geologic formation located in northern Maine is common in terminal-Pleistocene, fluted-point-period lithic assemblages throughout New England. A visually identical material also appears in some later-period sites in coastal Maine. Until recently no bedrock source for this red chert showing convincing evidence of precontact use was known. Here we present the NKP site complex, a series of quarry-related stone-toolmanufacturing workshop sites associated with outcrops of high-quality red/green chert. These outcrops represent the only known source of this material with evidence of precontact human use within the Munsungun Lake formation. Although unequivocal fluted-point-period artifacts, such as fluted bifaces, are not yet documented at the NKP complex, the recurrent appearance of red Munsungun chert in fluted-point-period lithic assemblages in New England suggests the manufacture of fluted points took place in the vicinity of these outcrops

Clinically Relevant Plasmid-Host Interactions Indicate that Transcriptional and Not Genomic Modifications Ameliorate Fitness Costs of Klebsiella pneumoniae Carbapenemase-Carrying Plasmids

The rapid dissemination of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) around the globe is largely due to mobile genetic elements, such as plasmids. They confer resistance to critically important drugs, including extended-spectrum beta-lactams, carbapenems, and colistin. Large, complex resistance plasmids have evolved alongside their host bacteria. However, much of the research on plasmid-host evolution has focused on small, simple laboratory plasmids in laboratory-adapted bacterial hosts. These and other studies have documented mutations in both host and plasmid genes which occur after plasmid introduction to ameliorate fitness costs of plasmid carriage. We describe here the impact of two naturally occurring variants of a large AMR plasmid (pKpQIL) on a globally successful pathogen. In our study, after pKpQIL plasmid introduction, no changes in coding domain sequences were observed in their natural host, Klebsiella pneumoniae. However, significant changes in chromosomal and plasmid gene expression may have allowed the bacterium to adapt to the acquisition of the AMR plasmid. We hypothesize that this was sufficient to ameliorate the associated fitness costs of plasmid carriage, as pKpQIL plasmids were maintained without selection pressure. The dogma that removal of selection pressure (e.g., antimicrobial exposure) results in plasmid loss due to bacterial fitness costs is not true for all plasmid/host combinations. We also show that pKpQIL impacted the ability of K. pneumoniae to form a biofilm, an important aspect of virulence. This study used highly relevant models to study the interaction between AMR plasmids and pathogens and revealed striking differences from results of studies done on laboratory-adapted plasmids and strains

Postoperative Meningitis in Patients with Cervical Cord Tumor: A Case Report

Postoperative meningitis after spinal surgery is a rare complication that can result in a life-threatening condition. Linezolid (LZD) is an oxazolidinone which has been approved in Japan for infections caused by methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus. The authors encountered a case of postoperative meningitis with cerebrospinal fluid leakage (liquorrhoea) that occurred after resection of a cervical cord tumor. The infection was caused by methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus epidermidis(MRSE). Debridement and suture of the dura matter was carried out. LZD was given intravenously. The infection was cured without any sequelae. Based on this result, we concluded that LZD might be considered as one of the first choices for the treatment of postsurgical meningitis caused by MRSE

Personality type as a predictor of interaction between student teachers and cooperating teachers

The entire dissertation/thesis text is included in the research.pdf file; the official abstract appears in the short.pdf file (which also appears in the research.pdf); a non-technical general description, or public abstract, appears in the public.pdf file.Title from title screen of research.pdf file viewed on (May 24, 2006)Includes bibliographical references.Vita.Thesis (Ph. D.) University of Missouri-Columbia 2005.Dissertations, Academic -- University of Missouri--Columbia -- Agricultural education.Pairing of student teachers with cooperating teachers has not been studied intently in agricultural education. With student teaching being an important aspect to teacher preparation, it should be a research priority. The purpose of the study was to determine if personality type could predict aspects of interaction between cooperating teachers of agricultural education in two Midwestern states and their student teachers. Student teachers and cooperating teachers in agricultural education for the 2003-2004 school year, from the University of Missouri-Columbia and University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, participated in the study.The study was descriptive-correlational, quantitative research. To measure personality type, the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator was used. To measure interaction aspects, the Mentoring Relationship Questionnaire (Greiman, 2003) was used. Findings suggest that, according to both cooperating teachers and student teachers, that student teachers were receiving psychosocial assistance from cooperating teachers. In addition, according to both student teachers and cooperating teachers, student teachers did not need much, nor did they receive much support related to roles and responsibilities of an agriculture teacher. Although the study found strength in relationships between overall perceived similarity and interaction satisfaction, personality type was found to have little influence on the variables