The evaluation of an inservice education program in a Texas state school for the mentally retarded

The purpose of this study was to evaluate an inservice education program in a state school for the mentally retarded in Texas. Specifically, the answers to several questions were sought: 1. Do attendants score higher on paper and pencil tests as a result of differing types of instructional methodologies? 2. Do attendants display higher scores on an observational checklist as the result of differing instructional methodologies? 3. Does there appear to be any correlation between the paper and pencil scores and the observational scores? 4. Do personal characteristics of attendants show any correlation with observation or performance scores? Procedure Data were collected from newly employed primary care personnel at Travis State School and were analyzed for differences in instructional methodologies. The instructional methodologies were: 1. Traditional classroom instruction 2. On-the-job-training 3. Fifty percent classroom instruction/fifty percent on-the job training