Department of Agricultural Education & Studies

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Graduate Programs: Greg Miller 515-294-2583 / Undergraduate Programs: Mike Retallick 515-294-4810

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Graduate Student Scholarly Work

Kessell, J.E. (2000).  An assessment of the integration of desktop videoconferencing as a tool for the enhancement of communication and student teacher supervision in agricultural education.  Master’s thesis.

This quasi-experimental study investigated whether effective communication between student teachers and university supervisors and student teacher supervision could be achieved with desktop videoconferencing.  The characteristics described in this study included:  (1) demographic data from participants; (2) attitudes of student teachers, cooperating teachers, and university supervisors toward using desktop videoconferencing as a tool for enhanced communication and instructional supervision; (3) reflective thinking levels reached by student teachers in the treatment and control groups.  Furthermore the study sought to describe costs, savings and added value involved in communicating and performing instructional supervision through desktop and to evaluate whether the treatment given in this project effected student teaching grades.

To meet the objectives of this study an attitudinal instrument was developed and given as a pre and post-test to gather data from student teachers, cooperating teachers and university supervisors about using desktop videoconferencing as a tool for increased communication and instructional supervision.  A reflective thinking instrument was given to student teachers upon completion of their student teaching experience to measure levels of reflective thinking achieved by the student teachers.  Instruments were filled out and returned to the researcher.

Student teachers were undecided about the use of desktop videoconferencing as a tool for enhanced communication and instructional supervision after experiencing the technology during their student teaching experience.  Cooperating teachers and university supervisors agreed that desktop videoconferencing could be used as a tool for enhanced communication and instructional supervision during the student teaching experience.

The information generated through this study should be of relevance for university supervisors in agricultural education and university supervisors across the country in any department.  This study should contribute to the body of knowledge in the practice of student teacher supervision.