Journal of Agricultural Education - Vol. 37, No. 2, 1996

This study was designed to determine the extent of hearing loss experienced by high school agriculture teachers in West Virginia, and the hearing conservation practices used by those teachers and their students. Data regarding teacher training and characteristics were collected and teachers were tested for auditory sensitivity. More than three-fourths of the teachers tested were found to have high frequency hearing loss. Most teachers had not received information in college concerning hearing conservation. More than a third never wear hearing protection in their school shops and only about five percent always do. More than half the teachers reported difficulty in getting students to use safety and health equipment, with safety glasses and hearing protection presenting the greatest problems. The authors suggest that hearing conservation instruction begin in teacher preparation programs and that intensive inservice programs be provided for current teachers. They further suggest that information regarding hearing conservation methods and practices be incorporated into appropriate units and lessons, and that hearing protection equipment be provided by the schools and routinely used by teachers and students. Agriculture is a noisy business. Levels of noise high frequency signals. Additionally, it was found potentially damaging to hearing have been known to that five of these seven did not wear hearing be associated with agricultural activities for nearly protection in their shops, and over half indicated 60 years (Bunch, 1937). Logically enough, high that they had trouble getting their students to use levels of noise are also found in the shops of safety equipment. The purpose of the present study programs preparing young people for careers in was to provide information to teachers, teacher agriculture (Weston & Stewart, 1980; Woodford, educators, and supervisors regarding the prevalence Lawrence, & Bartrug, 1993). The prevalence of of hearing loss among agriculture instructors in high frequency loss of hearing ostensibly caused by West Virginia and teachers' personal and over-exposure to noise has been found to be professional hearing conservation practices. unacceptably high in students enrolled in general shop classes (Roeser, 1980; Woodford, 1981; Woodford & O'Farrell, 1983; Plakke, 1985) and in agricultural mechanics classes (Woodford et al., 1993). The figures reported in these studies vary Subjects were 46 male agriculture instructors somewhat, but generally reflect a prevalence of attending the West Virginia Vocational Education around 30%. Conference in Charleston, WV in the summer of Woodford et al. (1993) reported that all seven deviation of 7.54 years. Mean years of experience agriculture instructors they tested while studying in agricultural instruction was 16.5 years with a their high school students, had loss of hearing for range of 3 to 32 years and standard deviation of Research Procedures 1993. Mean age of these individuals was 40.4 years with a range of 26 to 58 years and standard