Regional Staff Development Institutes for Vocational Teachers and Vocational Counselors Working with Disadvantaged Students: Final Report, June 16-27, 1980.

This report describes planning, implementation, and evaluation procedures involved in conducting eight regional institutes to provide staff development activities for vocational teachers and counselors. The introduction summarizes project purposes and objectives and general background information on the 256 secondary and postsecondary teachers and counselors who participated. Each of the eight institutes is then discussed separately. Information provided in each description includes introduction, pre-assessment of participants, treatment given to participants, post-assessment, conclusions, tables of pre- and post-assessment results, program agenda, and participant comments from post-assessment questionnaires. The final section provides discussion and conclusions based on findings from pre- and post-assessments. These major accomplishments are cited: more realistic education/career planning by disadvantaged students; better linkage between secondary education, postsecondary education, prime sponsors, and community; teachers and counselors more sensitive to needs of disadvantaged students and acting as liaison between them and academic environment of school; establishing mechanism to increase information exchange between prime sponsors and educational institutions; improved teacher and counselor skills for working with disadvantaged; and increased percentage of disadvantaged students continuing education into postsecondary level. Suggestions for enhancing success of teachers working with disadvantaged students and recommendations for practice and research are made. (YLB)