THE TEACHING ABILITY, JOB PERFORMANCE, AND ATTITUDES OF VOCATIONAL AGRICULTURAL TEACHERS WHO RECEIVED THEIR UNDERGRADUATE DEGREES IN SELECTED LAND-GRANT AND NONLAND-GRANT UNIVERSITIES IN THE UNITED STATES (PROGRAM EVALUATION, EFFECTIVENESS)

The study focused on the teaching ability, job performance, and attitudes of vocational agriculture teachers who received their undergraduate degrees from selected land-grant and nonland-grant universities.;Methodology. A list of the vocational agriculture teachers who graduated from land-grant and nonland-grant universities in the 1981-82 school year was requested from 37 universities in ten states that have both land-grant and nonland-grant universities which prepare vocational agriculture teachers. A proportionate random sample of 200 teachers was drawn from the population of 300 reported by the universities. Data were collected from school administrators, vocational agriculture teachers and state supervisors of agricultural education.;Findings and Summary. There were no significant differences in the administrators perception of the teaching ability and job performance. The quality of the vocational agriculture programs and the attitudes of teachers toward vocational agriculture was the same for graduates of both universities. One possible solution to vocational agriculture teacher shortage is to include more nonland-grant universities in the preparation of vocational agriculture teachers.;Knowledge of subject matter was rated higher by the administrators for both groups of teachers than was their teaching skills.;Objective of the Study. The purpose of this study was to compare the teaching ability, job performance, and attitudes of vocational agriculture teachers who received their undergraduate degrees from selected land-grant and nonland-grant universities during the 1981-82 school year in the United States.;Both groups of teachers had less positive attitudes towards adult education in agriculture. The teachers from land-grant and nonland-grant universities had lower program quality scores in the area of adult education.;Both groups of teachers had higher program quality scores on SOEP component of vocational agriculture. State supervisors of agricultural education indicated that the quality of teacher preparation at land-grant universities was better. However, twenty-nine percent of the variance of the supervisors rating was explained by the type of institution from which they received the bachelors degree.