| The purpose of the study was to determine if health factors would serve as predictors of agriculture teacher efficacy. Teacher efficacy was defined as the power of an instructor (teacher) to produce an effect. The study utilized an ex post facto correlational design. Health factors (e.g., major surgery, job stress, colds, etc.) and major health categories (e.g., injuries, communicable disease, systemic problems, etc.) were used as independent variables and the criterion variables included high, intermediate, and low teacher efficacy groups (as rated by administrators and state supervisors). The sample for this study included all agriculture teachers that had responded (321) to a national health study of agriculture teachers conducted by Lee and Westrom in 1988. The population included 12,053 teachers. The teacher efficacy evaluation instrument was developed by the researcher and mailed to the immediate administrator and state supervisor of the agriculture teachers in the sample. Health data from the teacher health study conducted by Lee and Westrom were also utilized. Discriminant analysis was used to determine if a discriminant function of health factors served as a predictor of agriculture teacher efficacy. The researcher failed to reject the null hypothesis when utilizing administrator ratings of agriculture teacher efficacy. Discriminant function one was statistically significant. The leading predictor in the function was days missed from school due to systemic problems. Other meaningful predictors included alcohol use and skeletal experiences. Mean scores indicated that high efficacy teachers missed.8 days less school per teacher per year than low efficacy teachers, missed less days for major surgery, but missed more days due to systemic related problems. They also experienced more skeletal problems and used less alcohol.;The consequential effects of the statistically significant discriminant function were limited. The small amount of explained variance to unexplained variance (low eigenvalue) indicated a weak predicting ability for the discriminant function.;Teacher health factors did not serve as accurate predictors of agriculture teacher efficacy in this study. The correlation of certain health factors to teacher efficacy justify further research. |
