Education Commons^™

Developing Large-Scale Assessments, Ray Philpot

Ray Philpot

A seminar on large-scale assessment given to a post-graduate class at Boston College, USA. In this seminar I discussed concepts in measurement theory, explained the principles for developing large-scale assessments and gave practical advice on how high quality tests can be constructed.

Authentic Digital Representation Of Creative Works In Education: Addressing The Challenges Of Digitisation And Assessment. Final Report, C Newhouse, Jeremy Pagram, Pina Tarricone, Martin Cooper, Alistair Campbell, Mark Hackling, Lisa Paris

Dr Pina Tarricone

No abstract provided.

The Impressions Of Emergency Services Students In A Homeland Security Course: The Benefits Of Reflective Thinking And Journaling, Eric Russell, John Fisher

Dr. John R. Fisher

This case study explored the impressions a homeland security course had on the emergency service student. The setting for the study was a state-sponsored university in the western United States. The 17 participants were declared, undergraduate emergency services majors that underwent a 7.5-week distance learning homeland security course. Grounded theory was used to analyze and develop themes from student reflections from the class. The findings of the study suggested that the most important impressions students took from the class were about global awareness, an understanding of the vulnerabilities of terrorism to the nation and the importance of a homeland security …

The Impact Of Library Resource Utilization On Undergraduate Students' Academic Performance: A Propensity Score Matching Design, Felly Kot, Jennifer Jones

Jennifer L. Jones

This study uses three cohorts of first-time, full-time undergraduate students (N=8,652) at a large, metropolitan, public research university to examine the impact of student use of three library resources (workstations, study rooms, and research clinics) on academic performance. To deal with self-selection bias and estimate this impact more accurately, we used propensity score matching. Using this unique approach allowed us to construct treatment and control groups with similar background characteristics. We found that using a given library resource was associated with a small, but also meaningful, gain in first-term grade point average, net of other factors.

Helping Kids With Disability, Katherine Dix

Dr Katherine Dix

Pisa Problems, Christopher Tienken

Christopher Tienken

Project-Based Chinese As A Foreign Language Instruction: A Teacher Research Approach, Gulbahar Beckett

Gulbahar Beckett

A Literature Review Of How Videogames Are Assessed In Library And Information Science And Beyond, Ron T. Brown

Ron T. Brown

In this paper the author explores how videogames and gaming are assessed in Library and Information Science (LIS) and in other fields. The author concludes with a discussion of some potential future directions for assessment practices of videogames and gaming in LIS.

Implementing A Generic School Improvement Framework: Experience Of The National School Improvement Tool In Australian Settings, Elizabeth A. Hartnell-Young, Robert Marshall, Robert Hassell

Robert Marshall

This is a collection of three papers presented at a symposium ‘Implementing a generic school improvement framework: experience of the National School Improvement Tool in Australian settings’ at the 27th International Congress for School Effectiveness and Improvement (ICSEI) , Yogyakarta Indonesia, 27 January 2014.

Paper A: Development of a school improvement framework with broad application in different contexts by Dr Elizabeth Hartnell-Young, ACER. School improvement has been a focus of attention in Australia for some time, but the publication of results in international testing such as PIRLS (Progress in International Reading Literacy Study), TIMSS (Trends in International Mathematics and Science …

Stakeholder Perceptions Of Ielts As A Gateway To The Professional Workplace: The Case Of Employers Of Overseas Trained Teachers, Judith (Judie) L. Cross

Judith (Judie) L Cross

This paper reports on a qualitative study which explored stakeholder perceptions of the IELTS test as a gateway to the professional workplace for teachers in Australia and New Zealand. The goal of this study was to research perceptions of school principals as regards teachers who have entered the profession through IELTS or other English language proficiency test pathways and how the changing language demands of teaching may have impacted on these perceptions. Three research questions were addressed, with data for the study collected from 21 principals through their participation in one-to-one interviews and/or face-to-face focus groups. Five IELTS sample Speaking …

Faculty Attitudes Toward General Education Assessment: A Qualitative Study About Their Motivation, S. K. Macdonald, L. M. Williams, R. A. Lazowski, S. Jeanne Horst, K. E. Barron

S. Jeanne Horst

No abstract provided.

Social Epistemology And The Pragmatics Of Assessment, Kenneth J. Gergen, Ezekiel J. Dixon-Román

Ezekiel J Dixon-Román

In the present offering we challenge the presumption that the educational testing of students provides objective information about such students. This presumption largely rests on an empiricist account of science. In light of mounting criticism, however, empiricist foundationalism has given way to a social epistemology. From this standpoint, empirical data are only objective for those who share assumptions and values that are themselves without foundations. Thus, the major questions to be raised about testing are not in terms of whether test results supply the truth about those who are evaluated, but concern the utility of the tests for the full …

Children’S Enjoyment Of Play During School Lunchtime Breaks: An Examination Of Intraday And Interday Reliability, Brendon P. Hyndman, Amanda Telford, Caroline Finch, Shahid Ullah, Amanda Benson

Dr Brendon P Hyndman

Background: Enjoyment and play during school lunchtime are correlated with children’s physical activity. Despite this, there is an absence of studies reporting children’s enjoyment of play during school lunchtime breaks. The purpose of this study was to examine the intraday and interday reliability of children’s enjoyment of school lunchtime play. Methods: Surveys used to assess children’s enjoyment of lunchtime play were distributed to and completed by 197 children (112 males, 85 females), aged 8–12 years attending an elementary school in Victoria, Australia. Children completed the surveys during class before lunch (expected enjoyment) and after lunch (actual enjoyment) for 5 days. …

Rasch Maximum Likelihood Estimation For Theta And W-Scores With Panel Study Of Income Dynamics Woodcock-Johnson Revised Achievement Raw Scores, Ezekiel J. Dixon-Román

Ezekiel J Dixon-Román

This appendix explains the estimation of the Rasch maximum likelihood estimated thetas using the raw scores of the Woodcock-Johnson Revised Achievement Measure in the Panel Study of Income Dynamics. It is then discussed how to estimate the W-scores from the Rasch maximum likelihood estimated thetas. The W-scores ensure stability in score changes that accounts for item difficulty and person ability for growth modeling.

Advancing Grounded Theory: Using Theoretical Frameworks Within Grounded Theory Studies, Donald Mitchell Jr.

Donald Mitchell Jr., Ph.D.

Assessing The Need For Graduate Global Education Programs In The United States, Krishna Bista, Amany Saleh

Krishna Bista

Global education plays an increasingly important role in enriching students’ learning experiences in US institutions of higher education. Students are connected to the world through global culture, economics, politics, technology and immigration. This paper examines the perceptions of 305 graduate students and alumni concerning the need for global education programs in the United States. Participants shared their views of the importance of global education in understanding today’s economy, culture, and environment, while addressing our future needs and challenges. There were no significant statistical differences between the perceptions of graduate students and alumni or between those of international and American students …

Facilitating Teachers’ Thinking About Pedagogy And Technology With An Online Curriculum Planning Tool, Kirsten R. Butcher, Heather Leary, James Foster, Holly Devaul

Heather Leary, Ph.D.

The current study analyzed the impact of a year-long adoption of an online curriculum planning tool on teachers’ thinking about content and pedagogy, as well as their use of technology in the classroom. The online planning tool was adopted district-wide following professional development training with the purpose of supporting teachers’ development of differentiated, student-centered instruction with digital resources. Structured interviews with high school science teachers were used to determine how teachers’ thinking about key concepts and instruction changed during the course of technology adoption. Verbal protocol analysis was used to code interviews, using comprehension theory and national reform approaches in …

The Development, Validity, And Reliability Of A Psychometric Instrument Measuring Competencies In Student Affairs, Rishi Sriram

Rishi Sriram, Ph.D.

The study of competencies in student affairs began more than 4 decades ago, but no instrument currently exists to measure competencies broadly. This study builds upon previous research by developing an instrument to measure student affairs competencies. Results not only validate the competencies espoused by NASPA and ACPA, but also suggest adding a new competency and dividing some existing competencies into separate ones. Competency strengths, competency weaknesses, and implications for current practice and future research are discussed.

Development Of A School Improvement Framework With Broad Application In Different Contexts, Elizabeth A. Hartnell-Young

Dr Elizabeth Hartnell-Young (Consultant)

School improvement has been a focus of attention in Australia for some time, but the publication of results in international testing such as PIRLS (Progress in International Reading Literacy Study), TIMSS (Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study) and PISA (Programme for International Student Assessment) in recent times has heightened awareness of comparisons between Australian students and their peers in other countries (eg. Thomson, Hillman, Wernert, Schmid, Buckley, and Munene, 2012). This paper describes the National School Improvement Tool (ACER, 2012) developed in Australia to support school and system improvement efforts.

Implementing A Generic School Improvement Framework: Experience Of The National School Improvement Tool In Australian Settings, Elizabeth A. Hartnell-Young, Robert Marshall, Robert Hassell

Dr Elizabeth Hartnell-Young (Consultant)

This is a collection of three papers presented at a symposium ‘Implementing a generic school improvement framework: experience of the National School Improvement Tool in Australian settings’ at the 27th International Congress for School Effectiveness and Improvement (ICSEI) , Yogyakarta Indonesia, 27 January 2014.

Paper A: Development of a school improvement framework with broad application in different contexts by Dr Elizabeth Hartnell-Young, ACER. School improvement has been a focus of attention in Australia for some time, but the publication of results in international testing such as PIRLS (Progress in International Reading Literacy Study), TIMSS (Trends in International Mathematics and Science …