A COMPARISON OF SELECTED CHARACTERISTICS OF TEACHERS OF ADULTS IN AGRICULTURE AS PERCEIVED BY TEACHERS, SUPERVISORS, AND TEACHER EDUCATORS

Research throughout the decades of adult program development in agriculture has found the teacher of the adult program to be the key person in its successful development and conduction. The research also indicated that there are questions of concern in the areas of the technical expertise and teacher qualifications needed by the teacher of adults in agriculture.;The design of the study was ex post facto since it was not possible to exert direct control over the independent variables.;Randomly selected study samples were drawn from the Missouri secondary vocational agriculture teacher and the central region teacher of adults populations. The remaining three populations were used in their entirety. Instrumentation used consisted of descriptive data gathering forms for each group, the Teacher of Adults in Agriculture Profile, and the Adult Technical Needs Form. All forms were developed by the writer with the aid of a panel of experts and were pilot tested prior to use.;The data were analyzed using analysis of variance and non-parametric rank order statistical procedures. Null hypotheses were tested at an alpha level of .05.;The primary purpose of this study was to ascertain if differences existed between the way the state supervisor of vocational agriculture in each state, one teacher educator for adult programs in agriculture in each state, Missouri vocational agriculture teachers, Missouri teachers of adults in agriculture, and teachers of adults in agriculture from the twelve state central region viewed selected characteristics and technical needs of teachers of adults. Secondary purposes were to ascertain if the teachers differed when grouped on the basis of selected demographic variables and to develop a profile of a teacher of adults in agriculture.;The following conclusions were formulated as a result of the findings: (1) The view of teachers of adults on administrative and interpersonal job related functions were incongruent with the views of teacher educators, Missouri secondary teachers, and state supervisors. (2) Individuals preparing to be teachers of adults may need additional expertise and preparation in the technical areas related to farm/ranch business management. (3) The state supervisors of the Northeastern states would tend to place less emphasis on the development of local adult programs, less emphasis on confidentiality by the teacher of the adults, and a greater emphasis on involving the spouses of the adults than the respondents from the Southern, Central, and Pacific states. (4) The differences among teacher groups in rating the statements on the Teacher of Adults in Agriculture Profile can most often be explained in terms of their present teaching responsibilities with teachers of adults being older, teaching a larger percent of their own adult classes, and having an undergraduate emphasis in agricultural education, agricultural economics, or animal science.