FACTORS INFLUENCING THE TENURE OF VOCATIONAL AGRICULTURE TEACHERS IN MISSOURI

Purposes. The purposes of this study were to ascertain which of the selected factors have contributed to the teacher turnover rate and tenure of vocational agriculture teachers in Missouri and to provide a broader data base to assist the agricultural education staff in program evaluation and long range program planning and modification.;Conclusions. (1) The availability or the lack of availability of supplemental income had little influence on the teachers decision to continue teaching vocational agriculture or to quit. Thus, it was concluded that the supplemental income had little or no influence on the short tenure and high turnover rate of vocational agriculture teachers during the time period covered by this study. (2) The pre-college agricultural experiences of the graduates were very similar in all aspects studied. Thus, it was concluded that pre-college agricultural experience had little to no influence on the short tenure and high turnover rate of vocational agriculture teachers during the time covered by this study. (3) Teachers accumulated more college credits beyond the undergraduate degree and attended more in-service credit courses than did the graduates who taught and quit. Thus, it was concluded that the number of college credits or advanced degrees earned and the number of in-service credit courses attended may influence teacher tenure. (4) The marital status and the employment status of spouses were similar between the two groups. Thus, it was concluded that marital status and spouses contribution to family income had little to no influence on the short tenure and high turnover rate of vocational agriculture teachers during the time covered by this study.;Procedures. The population consisted of 290 agricultural education graduates from the University of Missouri-Columbia between 1972 and 1979 who were certified to teach vocational agriculture in Missouri. The instruments used were the Teacher Survey and the Non-teaching Graduate Survey. The data were analyzed using Chi Square, the analysis of variance procedure, the test of Least Significant Difference and Duncan's Multiple Range Test. Null hypotheses were tested at an alpha level of .05.