Browsing by Subject "Work life balance"
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Item Agricultural Science Teachers' Perceptions of Online Curriculum Resources in Agricultural Education(2014-10-14) Rutherford, VanessaThe purpose of this study was to determine the perceptions of agricultural science teachers? use of online curriculum resources in regard to planning time, time management, classroom management, content knowledge, home and work life balance, and teacher stress. This descriptive study was conducted in the state of Texas using a population census of agricultural science teachers who were Instructional Material Services (IMS) Online subscribers. A response rate of 47.6% was achieved (N = 290, n = 138). The respondents completed an online survey using the Qualtrics? system. The survey included 32 Likert scale items, as well as demographic items. We conducted a pilot test using a panel of experts that included the out of state users of Instructional Material Services online system and pre-service teachers to establish reliability. Reliability was analyzed and calculated for the pilot study and a Cronbach?s Alpha of a = .75 was obtained. Additionally, post hoc reliability was calculated, resulting in a reliability of a = .73. The instrument contained 32 Likert scale items that allowed participants to rank their level of agreement with online curriculum on a scale of one (Strongly disagree) to four (Strongly agree). These Likert scale statements addressed how online curriculum effects agricultural science teachers? planning time, content knowledge, time management, classroom management, teacher stress, and home and work life balance. The findings of this study included demographic data, self-efficacy in Agricultural Food and Natural Resource pathways, descriptive characteristics, perceptions of online curriculum resources regarding the different factors the impact agricultural science teachers, listed previously. In this study 34.1% of the population had taught 0-5 years and 23.9% had taught more than twenty years. When asked to rank their stress on an average day we found that 61.6% of these teachers reported classroom instruction causing the most stress by either ranking it first, second, or third. Findings showed that online curriculum resources has aided in the improvement of planning time, time management, classroom management, content knowledge, and has also somewhat improved home and work life balance for these agricultural science teachers in the state of Texas.Item The modern, mobile me : an exploration of smartphones, being always on, and our relationship with work in the United States(2010-05) Davis, Jennifer Deering; Browning, Larry D.; Stephens, Keri; Ballard, Dawna; Cherwitz, Richard; Scott, CraigExperts estimate that by 2013, every adult in the world will own a mobile phone. Mobile technologies are one of the fastest growing and most widely adopted technologies in history. This study seeks to understand the impacts of an increasingly mobile culture in the United States, focusing on how being “always on” impacts individuals' relationships with work. Being always on refers to an individual’s propensity to remain continuously connected to the world through a web-enabled, mobile technology device, such as an iPhone or BlackBerry. Influenced by Clark's (2000) work-family border theory, I conducted 49 in-depth interviews, in order to develop a communicative model of being always on. The model is characterized by using new mobile technologies, needing to be connected, blurring boundaries between work and non-work spheres, identifying with work, working long hours, and having work-life balance. Being always on is linked to a strong work identity and desire for control over one's time. However, being constantly connected with a smartphone also means being more connected to work; it has become easier to work longer hours, have work leak into personal time, and slowly but ultimately lose control over the boundaries between work and non-work domains. Ironically, individuals who are always on in order to gain more control over their time may actually end up giving up more control than they gain. However, always-on individuals actually feel like they have an appropriate work-life balance, which complicates traditional understandings of the meaning of “balance.” Instead, these findings suggest always-on individuals actually “atomize,” a term that refers to the breaking down of communicative tasks into small pieces to can be completed anywhere, at any time, enabling flexibility and control.