JITE v36n2 - Twentieth Annual Outstanding Manuscript Award Recipients

Volume 36, Number 2
Winter 1999


Twentieth Annual Outstanding Manuscript Award Recipients

Marie Hoepfl
Associate Editor

For the past 20 years, the Editorial Board of the Journal of Industrial Teacher Education has rewarded excellence in writing through its Outstanding Manuscript Awards program. Each year an awards task force, consisting of current or former Journal editors and officers of NAITTE, is assembled to independently review all refereed manuscripts published in that year's volume of the Journal. Members of the task force first determine whether a manuscript merits an award and then rank order the selected manuscripts. Individual rankings are combined to determine the winners in each award category. The Awards Task Force for Volume 35 consisted of Dr. Rodney Custer, Illinois State University; Dr. Thomas Erekson, Brigham Young University; Dr. Richard Erickson, Professor Emeritus, University of Missouri-Columbia; Dr. Jeffrey Flesher, Commonwealth Edison; Dr. James Gregson, Oklahoma State University; and Dr. Roger Hill, University of Georgia. The Editorial Board of the Journal of Industrial Teacher Education extends warm thanks to these individuals for their contributions to the awards program and for their continued service to NAITTE and the profession.

The Outstanding Manuscript Awards are presented to authors of refereed manuscripts that fall into one of three categories: research, conceptual, or dissertation. The outstanding research manuscript is selected from data-based articles that are not developed from a dissertation or thesis. The outstanding research manuscript for Volume 35 was co-authored by Theodore Lewis and Kwame Peasah, University of Minnesota. Their article, An Investigation of Instructional Thoughts, Beliefs, and Preferences of Selected HRD Practitioners , describes the implementation of HRD degree programs in University departments that traditionally focused on vocational and technology education. While similarities exist, the authors argue that HRD practitioners represent a unique culture that can be viewed distinctly from other educational practice. They describe a study that examined the strongly held views of HRD practitioners regarding such factors as the nature of training, the capabilities trainers should possess, and what constitutes good training practice. Their findings represent a basis for understanding the culture of HRD practice and for examining the structure of HRD education.

The outstanding conceptual manuscript award is chosen from philosophical, historical, curricular, or expository pieces. The outstanding conceptual manuscript for Volume 35 was written by Scott Johnson and Robert E. Nelson, University of Illinois. Their article, entitled Entrepreneurship Education as a Strategic Approach to Economic Growth in Kenya , provides an overview of the economic development problems faced by Kenya and other African nations, then discusses the role of technical education and training in addressing those problems by creating an "enterprise culture" among youth. The authors describe the Enrepreneurship Education Project in Kenya, a multi-faceted effort designed to develop the human potential for entrepreneurship that exists in that nation. As a result, entrepreneurship training has been broadly implemented at the post-secondary level.

The outstanding dissertation manuscript award is selected from articles that report on a thesis or dissertation. Articles in the dissertation category cannot be co-authored. The outstanding dissertation manuscript for Volume 35 was written by Randall T. MacPherson, a Program Manager at Boeing Rotocraft Company. Dr. MacPherson received his Ph.D. from the University of Missouri-Columbia, under the supervision of Rodney L. Custer. His manuscript, Factors Affecting Technological Trouble-Shooting Skills , examines the predictive relationship between five variables, including content knowledge, years of troubleshooting experience, problem-solving style, and successful technological trouble-shooting skills. Years of on-the-job experience and cognitive content knowledge emerged as the primary predictors of problem-solving expertise. The author also describes data collection techniques that may be applicable in other types of problem-solving research.

Outstanding Manuscript Award recipients were recognized at the NAITTE breakfast meeting at the American Vocational Association Annual Conference in December 1998, where they were given plaques commemorating their achievements. Once again, the JITE Editorial Board and the NAITTE organization congratulate the award recipients for Volume 33!


Theodore Lewis
Kwame Peasah
Scott Johnson
Robert E. Nelson
Randall T. MacPherson