| The purpose of this study was to validate and explore Browning's competencies for the teaching of occupational home economics. Four research questions were set forth to guide this effort.;Information was gathered from a sample representing over one thousand secondary occupational home economics teachers in West Virginia and its five bordering states. One-half of these teachers, or 567 teachers, were solicited to participate in the study. Of this number, 231 subjects returned usable instruments for data analysis.;Two instruments were used for this study. The Browning (1980) instrument was comprised of 69 teaching competencies and used a five-point rating scale. A demographic instrument was completed by the subjects participating in the study.;Factor analysis was conducted to determine the underlying structure of the 69 competencies. The results of this analysis produced 17 factors which reorganize the competencies into a priority ranking of the components of the occupational home economics teaching role. Scores for each factor were derived and used as a basis for testing differences in factor mean scores for subjects grouped by demographic variables. Some significant differences emerged from these analyses.;The 17 factors were compared with Browning's original categorization of competencies, and with the Standards for High School Occupational Home Economics Education, developed by Griffin and Clayton (1981). The comparison with the Browning categorization showed how the factors reorganized the competencies.;Content analyses of the responses to four, open-ended questions indicated that occupational home economics teachers have used a broad range of experiences to benefit their teaching. The subjects, in general, did perceive the 69 competencies to be comprehensive and accurate representations of their role.;The results of this study reinforce the validity of Browning's competencies and contribute to the knowledge of the major components of the role of occupational home economics teachers. |
