Community Attitudes Toward School-Based Sexuality Education in a Conservative State

The purpose of this study was to assess community attitudes toward school-based abstinence-plus sexuality education. A dual sampling approach of landlines and cell phones resulted in 988 adults from two counties completing The South Carolina Survey of Public Opinion on Pregnancy Prevention. Among respondents, 87.1% supported school-based abstinence-plus sexuality education, and most of them agreed that various topics (abstinence, sexually transmitted diseases/HIV/AIDS, contraception) should be taught in grades 6 through 8. Few supporters believed that providing birth control information makes it more likely for teens to have sex. There was general consensus that schools and community settings should do more to prevent teen pregnancy and despite a conservative climate, respondents of this study support abstinence-plus sexuality education.     

Attitudes Toward Death Education and Grief Counseling

This article surveyed counselors and counselor educators across the nation regarding their attitudes toward death education and grief counseling. Results were compared to previous research in this area, and it was found that death education and grief training has increased significantly in recent years. Results also indicated that elementary school counselors were more willing than junior or senior high counselors to prepare teachers to help in the area of grief. The primary reasons given by counselors for not attending courses, workshops, or seminars on death education were that training was either not available or not convenient. Counselor educators' reasons for non-attendance varied from time conflict to lack of interest.     

The Impact of Faculty Attitudes Toward Technology, Distance Education, and Innovation

Distance education plays an important role in broadening educational access and increasing higher educational opportunities. The success, however, for any distance education initiative relies on a critical and core resource, namely having participating faculty who provide quality instruction. This study uses survey design and diffusion of innovation theory to examine faculty participation in relation to their technology use, their attitudes toward technology and distance education, and their adoption of innovations at a public postsecondary 10-campus system. Ordinal regression analysis identified 20 significant variables (16 predictors representing the four latent dimensions of the conceptual model and four demographic characteristics) that explain faculty participation in distance education. The findings identify a number of core issues underlying faculty participation and non-participation in distance education which pose implications for policy and practice relevant to technology use and skills, training and development, course design and technical support, quality issues, and workload and compensation.

Education Affects Attitudes of Physical Therapy Providers Toward People with Dementia

A survey was sent to every skilled nursing home (N = 495) in Indiana regarding the demographics, education, and whether the severity of dementia impacts the attitudes of people in physical therapy practice. Physical therapists (PTs) and physical therapist assistants (PTAs) practicing in nursing homes spend considerable time (44.0%) working with patients who have a diagnosis of dementia. As patients with dementia disorders declined cognitively, attitudes of PTs/PTAs become increasingly negative, and respondents feel that education, training, and resources are insufficient to maximize outcomes in the later stages of the disease.     

The Sociocultural Mechanism of the Formation of Young People's Attitudes Toward Education

Research shows that traditional Russian attitudes coexist with attitudes resulting from current Russian society. It is argued that this more recent set of attitudes is too instrumental, and that more traditional attitudes to the acquisition of knowledge need to be strengthened.     

Value of the Geobased Information Systems to State Information and Education Departments

Abstract

The responses of 544 10th grade students to a questionnaire indicated that informal/nonformal science activities (discussions, watching TV, listening to the radio, reading, and other activities, such as visits to museums and field trips) were positively correlated with the following: the extent to which school science is conceived to be related to everyday life, attitudes toward science and science learning, parents' occupation, school environment, intentions for further study, and career aspirations. After-school discussion of what was learned in school was rated the most popular science activity, followed by watching TV, reading, engaging in science-related activities, and listening to the radio, respectively. Informal/nonformal science activities were found to be associated with a strong commitment to science and science learning.     

Student Attitudes Toward Child Behavior Problems

Abstract

This study investigated differences in verbal ability and school achievement of bilingual and monolingual children in grades 3,4, and 5. American children attending a Department of Defense school at Camp Zama, Japan, were classified as bilingual or monolingual based on information provided by parents. Children were also classified as being of high, middle, or low nonverbal ability in terms of the Nonverbal score of the Lorge-Thorndike Intelligence Tests. Dependent variables were the Lorge-Thorndike Verbal Score and the 15 scores on the Iowa Tests of Basic Skills. At grade 3, bilingual and monolingual children performed similarly. By grade 4, monolingual children performed noticeably better than bilingual children on verbal or language type tests, and in grade 5 the differences were even more substantial. On relatively nonverbal tests, bilingual and monolingual children continued to perform similarly.     

Measuring Attitudes Toward Human Relations Training

This article reports a study designed to develop an instrument to measure attitudes toward human relations training. Test-retest stability and internal consistency reliabilities were established.     

Teacher' Attitudes Toward Educational Computing:

No abstract available for this article.     

Influencing Attitudes Toward the Handicapped:

No abstract available for this article.     

Major Influences on Attitudes Toward Science

This research study investigated the attitudes toward science of 8th-grade students in Australia, Canada, Cyprus, and Korea, based on recent TIMSS data, and suggests a model of family and school influences on their attitudes. The structural equation model contained 3 exogenous constructs – family’s educational background, aspiration, school climate – and 2 endogenous constructs – teaching and student attitudes toward science. Educational background, aspiration, and school climate were shown to have a direct effect on attitudes, while teaching was shown to directly affect attitudes and to be affected by aspiration and school climate.     

Endurance of Undergraduate Attitudes Toward Older Adults

This cross-sectional study assessed undergraduate attitudes toward older adults and attitude endurance 3 to 18 months after aging coursework. Survey respondents included 349 students who took an aging elective and 430 comparison students. Aging-elective students indicated more positive attitudes than comparison students. Attitudes did not vary across 3 groups staggered by time elapsed from completing the course until testing (3 to 18 months). 4 variables accounted for the variance in attitudes toward elders at a statistically significant level: majoring in biology, having frequent or occasional contact with unrelated older adults, taking an aging course, and post-course knowledge of aging.     

Third-Age Education in Canada and Japan: Attitudes Toward Aging and Participation in Learning

Lifelong learning is essential to participation in society, and presents important challenges for educational gerontology. This study compares Canadian and Japanese perspectives on (a) attitudes toward aging, (b) the learning needs of older adults, and (c) the role of centers of learning. Surveys were conducted of sample populations in two elder colleges in Japan (N = 419, 753; mean age 66.4,70.5) and two senior centers in Canada (N = 122; mean age 75.0). Results suggest Canadian respondents have more positive attitudes toward aging; Japanese respondents have greater needs for social/communicative learning; and Canadians have a greater need for traditional learning. Future implications for older-adult education and research are discussed.