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A study of factors related to professional developmental levels by primary grade teachers
Abstract
The purpose of the study was to identify developmental stages of teachers with regard to factors such as service, age, degree status, and district size and examine the attitudes of K-2 teachers regarding their professional growth in each of the stages. The population for the study was primary teachers in the kindergarten, first, and second grades in school districts in the state of Nebraska. Once the categories and indicators were determined from a review of literature, a survey was designed for teachers. (1) The survey had reliability scores in the moderate range for the placement of respondents into the categories of orientation, integration and refining. (2) There were three significant findings when the demographic questions were compared with the three developmental stages of orientation, integration, and refining: (a) respondents who did not have children tended to score higher on the orientation scale; (b) younger teachers tended to score lower on the integration scale; and (c) people from the smallest districts tended to score lower on the refining scale, while teachers from districts with 1001 to 5000 students tended to score higher on the refining scale. (3) There was a relationship between the stage level and the way in which the teacher viewed change. Orientation teachers (the beginning stage) saw themselves as making few changes and waiting for others to lead the way. Integration teachers (the next stage) wanted to make sure the change was not a fad. Refining teachers (the final stage) saw themselves as leaders in making changes. (4) There were staff development activities specific to each of the three stages which teachers preferred or did not prefer. (5) There was a relationship between the developmental stage level and the sophistication of the curriculum format preference of the teachers.
Subject Area
Curricula|Teaching
Recommended Citation
Spangler, Susan Eileen, "A study of factors related to professional developmental levels by primary grade teachers" (1992). ETD collection for University of Nebraska-Lincoln. AAI9225495.
https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/dissertations/AAI9225495