The role perception of faculty members in postsecondary schools offering occupational education

The purpose of this study was to determine the role of faculty members in postsecondary schools offering occupational education from their expressions about selected opinions, beliefs, and attitudes. The information, which heretofore had not been collected, provided supportive data to the Wyoming State Department of Education for implementing a comprehensive occupational education program from kindergarten through the fourteenth year. The population included full-time and part-time faculty members at the seven community colleges and two technical institutes in Wyoming. A data gathering instrument in the form of an opinionnaire was constructed with the assistance of a five-member review panel. The instrument was edited and refined following a pilot study at a community college in Montana. The opinionnaires were bulk-mailed to the institutions that were included, in the survey where' an accomplice distributed them to the respondents. Fifty-five per cent of the estimated potential number of respondents returned the opinionnaire that included an attached, self-addressed envelope. Comparisons of role perception were made from the data received among (1) faculty members who taught occupational education and those who did not teach these courses, (2) faculty members of the various institutions included in the study, and (3) part-time and full-time faculty members. Other comparisons were made to determine if there were differences in the faculty members' perception of their role relative to their age, sex, years of teaching experience, and years in their present position. ..