Degree Name
EdD (Doctor of Education)
Program
Educational Leadership
Date of Award
8-1985
Committee Chair or Co-Chairs
Robert Shepard
Committee Members
Gem Kate Greninger, William Acuff, Robert Spangler, Dennis McGinnis
Abstract
Purpose. The purpose of this study was to determine whether certain characteristics of public school administrators are present which can be used as descriptors for other educators' potential for acquiring computer literacy from a specific staff development model. Procedure. Participants in the study were 44 public school administrators from the Northwest Education Region of North Carolina. The study was quasi-experimental, using a pretest, treatment, and posttest design. The treatment of the subjects consisted of six three-hour sessions of computer literacy training. It was administered over a 12-week period of time. A model for staff development of computer literacy was designed to include the basic and most important concepts of computer literacy, as identified by a search of the literature and examination of available models. Two instruments were used to obtain the data necessary for the study; a personal data sheet was developed to collect the demographic data required to determine the independent variables and The Minnesota Computer Literacy and Awareness Assessment was used to measure attitudes toward computers and computer knowledge. Data were analyzed by the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences Extended (SPSSX) which computed the Pearson Product-moment or t tests as deemed appropriate for each of 12 hypotheses. The minimum acceptable level for determining significance was at the .05 level. Findings. Data analysis indicated that: (1) Attitudes toward computers have an effect on the attainment of computer knowledge. (2) The staff development model designed was effective in promoting computer literacy. (3) The attainment of computer literacy results in a more positive attitude toward computers. (4) The variables of age, gender, position in school system, or length of time in the educational profession do not significantly influence attitudes toward computers. (5) The attainment of computer knowledge was significantly higher for females than for males. (6) The attainment of computer knowledge was not influenced by the area of initial certification or position in the school system. (7) Assignment as principal of an elementary school or a secondary school did not influence attitudes toward computers or the attainment of computer knowledge.
Document Type
Dissertation - unrestricted
Recommended Citation
Coffey, Leota W., "Identifying Characteristics To Use As Descriptors of Educators’ Potential for Acquiring Computer Literacy" (1985). Electronic Theses and Dissertations. Paper 4294. https://dc.etsu.edu/etd/4294
Copyright
Copyright by the authors.