MacKenzie, Donald G.

The purpose of this study was to identify factors that predict the length of time a student takes to complete a bachelor's degree. Multiple regression analysis was used to predict the criterion, number of semesters to graduation, from the 33 predictors derived from a questionnaire. Seventy-four percent of the variance in semesters to graduation (F(33,40) = 3.51, p < .0002) was accounted for by the predictors. A subset analysis revealed that 43% (F(9,94) = 7.95, p < .0001) of the variance in number of semesters to graduate was accounted for by the nine predictors judged to be best. These predictors were previous credits earned, change of major, effects of major change, enrollment status, social interaction with faculty, sense of belonging, perception of the academic experience, perception of performance, and expectation of time to graduate. Cross-validation of this subset of predictors yielded an R^2 of .148. This level of shrinkage was due to the small sample size in relation to the number of predictors.

The purpose of this study was to determine if there is a correlation between family dysfunction as perceived by fourth and fifth grade students and behavioral dysfunction in intermediate school students as perceived by fourth and fifth grade students and their teachers. Subjects consisted of regular education students in the fourth and fifth grades. Students referred for psycho-educational evaluation were excluded from this study. Variables investigated were family dysfunction, student behavior, and gender. The study considered the comparative frequency of behavioral dysfunction characteristics among this group and relationships between behavioral dysfunction characteristics. Analysis of data was comprised predominantly of correlation analyses via multiple regression. No significant correlations were found.

Many of the studies dealing with computer-assisted instruction in accounting appear to be descriptive and anecdotal in nature (Bialaszewski, Kocakulah & Bialaszewski, 1986; Cerullo, Topiol & Klein, 1989; Helmi, 1986; Kent & Linnegar, 1988). The purpose of this research was to estimate the effect, if any, that a specific computer-assisted instruction (CAI) program, Hypergraphics, had on student achievement in a basic accounting course at a community college. The results of this study indicate that CAI is no better, yet no worse than traditional instructional methods. The results of this study also indicate that students' grade point averages (GPAs) may contribute to their degree of success in accounting. Students with medium GPAs and students with high GPAs achieved at significantly (p $<$.05) higher levels in an accounting course, regardless of treatment.

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between the criteria used for admission into the Preliminary International Baccalaureate (PIB) course of study at two Florida International Baccalaureate (IB) schools, St. Petersburg Senior High School and Pensacola High School, and the success in the IB diploma examination four years later. The study also sought to determine the predictive accuracy of their respective admissions criteria. The predictor variables for St. Petersburg Senior High School were eighth grade grade point average (GPA), the Comprehensive Test of Basic Skills (CTBS) Total Battery, subscores of the CTBS (Reading Comprehension, Total Mathematics, Total Language) and IQ. The predictor variables for Pensacola High School were eighth grade GPA and California Achievement Test (CAT) Total Battery. The study involved 148 students. Multiple regression analysis indicated that eighth grade GPA is a significant predictor of success in the international Baccalaureate (p < .01). Results also suggest that the CTBS subscore of Reading
Comprehension is a significant predictor of success in the IB (p < .05). CTBS Total Battery, remaining CTBS subscores,
CAT Total Battery and IQ were not significant predictors (p > .05). The combination of eighth grade GPA and CTBS Reading Comprehension provided the most significant contribution to the overall predictive model (p < .01).

The most effective planners in both the private and the public sector are those who are best at strategic planning. Although strategic planning is easier to apply to the private sector, it is becoming the dominant paradigm in the public sector as well. Because politics tend to dominate the planning process in the public sector, successful strategic planning is more difficult to accomplish. School districts are spending an increasing amount of time and resources on planning. It is believed that planning processes that include demographic representation on strategic planning teams will allow school districts to use visionary and strategic thinking, leading to the achievement of consistent and planned results. The purpose of this study was to determine if a significant relationship exists between selected demographic characteristics of action teams and the acceptance of the action plans by the strategic planning team. A review of the related literature includes the history of strategic planning, comparison of private sector and public sector strategic planning, examination of strategic planning in public education, and an overview of stakeholder participation. The study was done during the action team phase of a strategic planning process undertaken by one of the nation's largest public school districts. Two hundred and sixteen action team members were asked to complete and return a three part evaluation instrument. One hundred and sixty nine surveys were returned, comprising a 78 percent response rate. A multiple regression was used to predict acceptance of plans by the strategic planning team from a model composed of demographic characteristics of action team members. Of the six hypotheses tested there were no significant relationships between selected demographic characteristics of action team members and the measure of acceptance of action plans by the strategic planning team. Public school districts may find this study useful as they prepare to do long-range or strategic planning.

A considerable amount of research has been done on specific elements of instructional design and how they affect achievement among academically disadvantaged students (Darch & Carnine, 1986; Woodward & Noell, 1991). The purpose of this research was to consider the relationship between specific instructional design principles in a videodisc program and academic achievement. The results of this study indicate that redesigning instruction alone might not be sufficient to enhance academic performance of learning disabled students. A reformulation of current curricula to include essential knowledge in a discipline might be the first step in educational reform.

This dissertation was designed to determine the source and legacy of power which makes the speaker of the House of Representatives a very powerful figure in the Florida Legislatures, as well as determine whether a significant relationship exists between the speaker's power and the amount of educational benefits and school funding received by his constituency. The Florida speaker possesses more power and influence over school legislation and finance than any other member of the House. His/her priorities have a significant effect on whether the school districts, community colleges, and state universities, receive adequate funding for quality education. The power of the Florida speaker comes from long historical development in England and America via the House rules and precedents established by previous speakers. Although limited by tradition to one term, the Florida speaker ranks among the most powerful speakers in the nation. This study concludes that the speaker of the Florida House has sufficient power to lead his party/faction in the House, guide the flow of legislation, and significantly influence funding for his home district.

The purpose of this research was to consider the possible
relationships between the academic achievement of homeless
children and their attitudes towards school, their
parents' attitudes toward school, their relationships with
their peers, their relationships with their parents and their
self-esteem. The "subjects" were 42 families living in seven
shelters in Dade, Broward and Palm Beach counties. Sixty-nine
children and their parents were interviewed. Three
questionnaires were used to obtain demographic information
and to define the predictor variables. The perceptions
of homeless children and their parents, how these
perceptions relate to each other and the relationships of
these perceptions to school success add to the theoretical
knowledge of the academic achievement of homeless children.

This dissertation focuses attention on the ways in which public and nonpublic school administrators view socio-educational principles, their own and one another's schools, and the ways in which schools could share rather than compete. After an introduction which finds American and Floridian cultural pluralism and educational dualism to have been transplanted by early colonists, the dissertation describes the method by which the data were gathered: a thirty-four item, open-ended questionnaire which was completed by twelve public school and twenty private school administrators and officials largely in two Florida counties--Palm Beach and Broward. The data suggests that while there is general agreement for parental choice in education within both groups and general agreement about the "propriety" of four types of schools (public, independent, church-related, and proprietary), there are misunderstandings, hostilities, tensions, and territorial imperatives at work in day-to-day relationships. The problems of money, certification of teachers and administrators, and defensiveness run through the respondents' views. Areas of school functioning on which the two sectors generally agree include the right of citizens to open new schools, the threat of revenue loss, rejection of the proposed voucher system, public progression based on merit, local accreditation of private schools, and the need to check contract-status prior to engaging a teacher. Other matters are major or minor bones of contention between private and public school leaders: elitism, the problem of brain drain, white flight schools, the place of religion and state-devised curricula, teacher certifications and the right of teachers to move freely from one sector to another, and the transfer of students' records. Because evidence suggests that there is increasing cooperation between public and private school leaders at the national and state levels and no clear progress at the county level, the dissertation concludes with a recommendation that the dominant university in the area extend its interest in the relationship between the sectors and plan bridges to increasing cooperation in the interest of a quest for excellence shared by public and nonpublic schools and their leaders.

Purpose. The purpose of this study was to compare the perceptions of student government leaders and their advisers concerning selected aspects of student government in Florida's nine state universities and 28 community colleges. This comparison will help to determine the educational value of selected student government activities and the roles and responsibilities of student government leaders. Method. The method of investigation used was a descriptive survey. Data were obtained through the use of two questionnaires. Community college student government leaders and their advisers were surveyed at the 1985 Spring FJCSGA Conference held in West Palm Beach, Florida. A total of 67 percent of the student government leaders present at the conference completed and returned their questionnaires. There was an 87 percent return on the faculty adviser's survey. Each of the nine state university student government advisers and student government leaders completed the questionnaires. One hundred percent of the advisers responded and a 58 percent return was received from the student government leaders. Responses were received from a total of 188 student government leaders and 38 faculty advisers. Results. There were statistically significant differences between student government leaders and advisers in universities in the perceptions about the educational value of student government. There were also statistically significant differences in the perceptions of the role of the student government adviser between community college and university students and between community college and university advisers. Recommendations for Further Research. (1) A similar study of private versus public colleges and universities examining roles and responsibilities of student government leaders, and student government funding. (2) This study should be replicated on a national level to ascertain if there are geographical differences in the perceptions of student government leaders and their faculty advisers.