Educational Assessment, Evaluation, and Research Commons^™

An Analysis Of Linking Formative And Summative Evaluations For Program Advancement, Angela E. Carey

Wayne State University Theses

The purpose of this study was to determine if there is a relationship between the functions of Formative Evaluations and the functions of Summative Evaluations in successful programs. The success of the individual programs was measured according to their own expectations as listed in their objective; that is if said objectives were met or exceeded. The study focused on the functions of each evaluation process which included Formative (Implementation) and Summative (Outcome; Impact and Cost Benefit) Evaluations. Data was collected from previous education based research studies provided by Wayne State University's Online Journal Library system. A correlation analysis was utilized …

Student Performance In Virtual Schooling: Looking Beyond The Numbers, Michael Barbour, Dennis Mulcahy

Education Faculty Publications

Seven years ago the Centre for Distance Learning and Innovation began a virtual high school within the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador. Designed primarily to provide courses in specialized areas to students in rural areas, where schools have difficulty in attracting these teachers, there is concern that the opportunities provided by this virtual school are “second rate.” The purpose of the study is to examine the student achievement in standardized public exams and final course scores in the province between different delivery models, geographic location and subject area to determine whether or not students are succeeding in the virtual …

Transformative Learning : An Examination Of The Impact Of Short-Term Study Abroad, Jesse Carson Pugh

University of the Pacific Theses and Dissertations

When selecting a study abroad program, some students undertake a semester or academic-year study abroad program, while other students undertake a two-to eight-week study abroad program. Both study abroad opportunities allow students to become immersed in a culture different from their own. This research project is an exploratory study that looks at the impact of short-term study abroad programs on undergraduates at a public institution. This study examines how participants change in regards to their understanding of the host culture, explores what students learn about their host cultures, and looks at the intercultural development that the students gain from spending …

A Phenomenological Study Of Assessment Methods In The Inquiry -Based Science Classroom: How Do Educators Decide?, Gina G. Tash

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The purpose of this phenomenological study was to describe the experiences of science educators as they select and develop assessment methods for inquiry learning. Balancing preparations for standardized tests and authentic inquiry assessment experiences can be challenging for science educators. The review of literature revealed that current research focused on instructional methods and assessment, students' assessment experiences, and teachers' instructional methods experiences. There remains a gap in current literature regarding the experiences of science educators as they select and develop assessment methods for inquiry learning. This study filled the gap by providing a description of the experiences of science educators …

High-Stakes Testing And Teacher Burnout In Public High School Teachers, Gail Tucker

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Demands associated with the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 contribute to the risk of teacher burnout; however, the relationship between teacher burnout and specific teaching assignments is unclear. Accordingly, the purpose of this study was to investigate if burnout is greater for high-stakes subject area public high school teachers than for low-stakes subject area public high school teachers and to ascertain teachers' perceptions about difficulties associated with teaching a high-stakes subject area. The job demands-resources model and the multidimensional model of burnout provided the theoretical framework. The concurrent mixed methods design included quantitative tests of differences in burnout …

Exploring The Factors That Influence Attitudes And Achievement When Students Take Computerized Tests, Jessie E. Kilgore Jr.

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Currently, a problem exists in K-12 education related to the use of technology for the assessment of student learning. Specifically, due to the lack of access to and infrequent use of computers for middle school students, the rise in the use of high stakes computer-based tests may negatively impact student test scores in poor, urban schools. The conceptual framework of this study was informed by Albert Bandura's theory of self-efficacy, the work of The National Center for Fair and Open Testing regarding ending the misuses and flaws of standardized testing, and James Popham's research on quality assessment. The central research …

The Impact Of Enrollment In A Combined Reading And Learning Strategies Course On Exceptional Students' Fcat Reading Scale Scores, Coral Kathleen Hanson

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Previous research has shown that because remediation and support replace required and career-defining courses, exceptional students fall behind, ill equipped to act in society as autonomous adults. No Child Left Behind requires reading proficiency, so students failing standardized tests must take remedial courses. Individualized education plans often require support courses. However, there remains an important gap in the literature regarding the usefulness of reading, standardized testing, and leadership research to solve this problem. A class combining reading and support for students with exceptionalities exists at 1 high school. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to explore the combined program …

Facilitating High School Student Success Through Read 180: Analysis Of Program Impact Using Measures Of Academic Progress (Map), Holly Mcwhorter

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

In response to its failure to meet state mandated proficiency standards in reading and mathematics over the past three years, a rural, Title I high school (LS) in South Carolina purchased and implemented the commercially available literacy program READ 180 (R180) for the 2008-2009 academic year. While previous research reported by Scholastic, Incorporated (R180) had provided support for the use of R180 in improving literacy, these studies have been criticized recently for their lack of comparable control groups, experimenter bias and lack of data from other content areas such as mathematics. The purpose of this study was to determine the …

Programme Oriented And Institutional Oriented Approaches To Quality Assurance: New Developments And Mixed Approaches, Deirdre Lillis, Tara Ryan

Articles

This paper considers the programme validation arrangements in place in one half of the Irish higher education sector. It outlines how responsibility for programme validation can be safely delegated to Institutions within a robust overarching framework for quality assurance. It compares programme validation in Institutions with self awarding status with Institutions that have their programmes validated by a national Awarding agency. The paper concludes that when programme validation in Ireland and (potentially) across Europe is examined more closely, processes that appear to be very different on the surface can be quite similar in reality. From a philosophical perspective it appears …

The Digest Edition 2008/2 : Using Data To Improve Student Learning, Marion Meiers

Research Digest

This Digest is focused on studies that have investigated how data can be used in schools to examine teaching practices in order to improve student learning. A selection of relevant websites is listed, and a full reference list is provided. Links to those references for which full-text online access is freely available are also included. School systems, principals and teachers have access to an extensive range of data that can be used for a variety of purposes. Accountability processes and data have come to play a significant place in policy development and reform efforts. There is a large body of …

How Are They Doing?: Examining Student Achievement In Virtual Schooling, Michael K. Barbour, Dennis Mulcahy

Education Faculty Publications

Six years ago the Centre for Distance Learning and Innovation began a virtual high school within the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador. Designed primarily to provide courses in specialized areas to students in rural areas, where schools have difficulty in attracting second language, mathematics and science teachers. However, there has been some concern that the opportunities provided by this virtual high school are "second rate" or only able to cater to independent, self-motivated students. The purpose of the study is to examine the student achievement in standardized public exams and final course scores in the province between different delivery …

Developing Tests And Questionnaires For A National Assessment Of Educational Achievement, Prue Anderson, George Morgan

Assessment and Reporting

This book addresses the design of two types of data collection instruments: student achievement tests and background questionnaires. Part 1 covers the development of an assessment framework and a test blueprint, item writing, pretesting, and final test layout. Part 2 delineates comparable stages and activities in the construction of background questionnaires, which are used to gather information from students, teachers, head teachers, or parents on variables that might help explain differences in student performance on the achievement test. Part 3 describes how to design a manual for test administration to help ensure that all students take the test under standardised …

The Impact Of Professional Development On Assessment And Grading Practices For Secondary Teachers, Nicole Lynn Roorda

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Studies suggest that a potential misalignment between assessment and grading practices in reporting secondary student academic achievement has negatively impacted students since grades may not truly reflect actual achievement. Accordingly, the purpose of the current study was to compare secondary teachers' use of academic and nonacademic factors when reporting student achievement before and after professional development on assessment and grading practices. Following change theory, the study investigated the efficacy of employing professional development as a means of influencing more standard and appropriate practices among secondary teachers with regard to using academic and nonacademic factors when employing standards-based reporting to determine …

The Impact Of A Professional Learning Community On Student Achievement, Brandon S. Carter

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Professional learning communities (PLC) have the potential to strengthen students' academic achievement. An academic pyramid of interventions, one aspect of PLCs, may be especially helpful in schools where subgroups of students are underperforming relative to other students on standardized testing. This quantitative, one-group, pretest-posttest study examined the impact of implementing an academic pyramid of interventions as part of a PLC on middle school student academic achievement. The 100 students from grade 7 and 8 who participated in the study were identified by teachers as being at-risk for success on the Criterion Referenced Competency Test (CRCT). The reading and math test …

The Effects Of Teacher Race In The Elementary School On Student Achievement Test Scores, John Stortz

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The racial and gender composition of elementary school teachers does not match those of the students and this may be contributing to an inequity of achievement scores between African American and European American students. This ex post facto causal comparative study compared three levels of elementary school diversity personnel staffing on Grade 4 African American student Criterion-Referenced Competency Test (CRCT) scores and differences between male African American scores and female African American scores in a suburban Atlanta county. Nine intentionally selected elementary schools were chosen representing 3 racial diversity personnel staffing levels including 39% to 50%, 25% to 27%, and …

Evaluating A Four State Workforce Education Project: Questions Of Investigative Interest And Impact, Neal Grandgenett, Elliott Ostler, Applied Information Management Institute, Jeanne L. Surface

Teacher Education Faculty Publications

How can a large scale, multi-state, collaborative workforce development project be evaluated? This article describes the evaluation process of the Midwest Center for Information Technology (MCIT). The project uses “impact threads” to connect the outcomes of the project to strategic evaluation questions. The MCIT project, involving 10 public two-year colleges located in Nebraska, Iowa, South Dakota, and North Dakota, strives to assist partner colleges in enhancing information technology training and related degree programs. The MCIT was funded as a regional center within the Advanced Technological Education (ATE) program of the National Science Foundation (NSF). This article details the evaluation plan …

An Inquiry Into Retention And Achievement Differences In Campus Based And Web Based Ap Classes, Michael Barbour, Dennis Mulcahy

Education Faculty Publications

A decade ago the Advanced Placement (AP) program was introduced into the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador. Initially, schools embraced this opportunity to provide their students with opportunities that were previously unavailable. However, within a few years the AP program was relegated to urban and large regional high schools. Few smaller, and particularly rural schools, were able to offer AP courses only to the brightest one or two students taking it as an independent study. In 1997-98, schools began to delivery AP courses in a web-based method. The purpose of the study is to examine the retention rates and …

Harnessing Innovative Technologies In Higher Education: Access, Equity, Policy & Instruction, Kathleen P. King, Joan K. Griggs

Department of Leadership, Policy, and Lifelong Learning

This publication is an attempt to capture the evolution of distributed higher education over the last decade by tracing the applications of new technologies funded by the Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education (FIPSE). As FIPSE surveyed the current state of distance/distributed education, there existed an opportunity to help post econdary education make the transition to this new generation of distance education made possible by the explosive growth of the Internet and other new technologies. These technologies created the potential for students to access learning that was interactive, customized, and self-paced; to more easily merge lifelong learning with the …

Investigating The Links Between Teacher Professional Development And Student Learning Outcomes, Marion Meiers, Lawrence Ingvarson

Professional learning for teachers and school leaders

This report, in two volumes, describes an investigation of the links between teacher professional development and student learning outcomes. The study, funded by the Australian Government, provides a review of the research literature and of national and international initiatives linking professional development with student outcomes. It provides detailed case studies of the school-based trials of ten professional development programs in a number of different sites. It examines the repeated measures of student achievement from students in the classes of teachers in the school-based trials. Analysis and discussion of a common questionnaire completed by teachers in the school-based trials is provided. …

Brief 18: Creating A Culture Of Inquiry, New England Resource Center For Higher Education, University Of Massachusetts Boston

New England Resource Center for Higher Education Publications

The Community College Student Success Think Tank, part of the Community College Student Success Project, funded by Lumina Foundation for Education, brings student and academic affairs officers together with institutional researchers to reflect on trends and issues surrounding data-driven decision making in community colleges. Participants consider various forms of accountability data, processes and analyses to bring about institutional transformation. At a recent meeting, Think Tank members discussed ways to create a culture of inquiry at community colleges.

Valuing Community Playgroups: Lessons For Practice And Policy, Geraldine French

Reports

The Community Playgroup Initiative (cpi) was established and funded by the Katharine Howard Foundation (KHF) in partnership with the South Eastern Health Board (SEHB*) and with assistance from the Equal Opportunities Childcare Programme (EOCP). This three-year project was developed to assist community playgroups to deliver a high quality sessional service and to identify and evaluate the impact of funding and support on the quality of service provided to children and their families. A further aim of cpi was to highlight the value of community playgroups. Among the objectives of cpi were that children and families would benefit, that staff and …

Investigation Of The Relationship Between A Job-Embedded Model Of Professional Development And Reading Achievement Of Elementary School Students., Janet Faulk

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The development of highly effective teachers is of interest to school systems because the quality of the teachers is associated with students' success. This study explored the relationship between teachers' participation in a job-embedded model of professional development and students' achievement in reading.

Teachers in the third grade and fifth grade at five different elementary schools received more than 100 hours of training. The reading achievement scores of students assigned to these teachers were compared to the scores of students whose teachers did not participate in the training. Findings in this study were mixed. Fifth-grade students whose teachers participated in …

Connecticut Blueprint For A Nclb “Housse” In Educational Technology, Antoinette P. Bruciati

Education Faculty Publications

According to the United States Department of Education, teacher quality is one of the most critical aspects of the teaching and learning process. The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (NCLB) has required that state agencies assume the responsibility for increasing student achievement and ensuring teacher quality by the end of the 2005-2006 school year. The NCLB outlines minimum qualifications that are needed by teachers who work on any facet of classroom instruction and authorizes state administrators to establish the criteria through which an experienced teacher will meet the subject matter competencies in a specific content area. This paper …

An Evaluation Of The Using Information Technology Program At East Tennessee State University., John Dalton Chenoweth

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation presents information gathered and analyzed during an evaluation study of the Using Information Technology (UIT) program at East Tennessee State University. The UIT program, which all undergraduate students must complete before graduation, consists of satisfying a computer literacy foundation requirement and a two course UIT-intensive requirement. The foundation requirement is satisfied by completing a two credit hour course or a challenge exam. Students then take two courses that have been designated as UIT-intensive. One of these courses must be completed in the major.

The study, which used a responsive evaluation methodology, involved generating a list of evaluation questions …

Brief 13: The Critical Connection: Department Chairs' And Associate Deans' Strategies For Involving Faculty In Outcomes Assessment, New England Resource Center For Higher Education, University Of Massachusetts Boston

New England Resource Center for Higher Education Publications

Assessment, with a capital “A”, has become in the academy a politically loaded buzzword that closes many more doors than it opens. Assessment, with a small “a”, however, is a necessary part of any attempt to find the best path forward in environments that change. At meetings this spring, Members of NERCHE’s Departments Chairs Think Tank and Associate Academic Deans Think Tank discussed this controversial issue, focusing on ways to foster climates in which faculty and administrators are collaborative partners in assessment with the intention of strengthening teaching and learning.

Does It Make A Difference? Evaluating Professional Development, Thomas R. Guskey

Educational, School, and Counseling Psychology Faculty Publications

Using five critical levels of evaluation, you can improve your school's professional development program. But be sure to start with the desired result--improved student outcomes.

An Evaluation On The Effectivenss Of A 9-Month Intensive Full-Time Program For The Unemployed, Che Keung Yeung, Yuet Keung Cadbury Chan, Lai Ling Lilian Chow, Yuen Bing Leung, King Chung Joseph Chow

International Vocational Education and Training Association (IVETA) Conference

In September 1998, the Vocational Training Council (VTC) and the Employees’Retraining Board (ERB) jointly conducted a 9-month intensive full-time course in various training institutions for the unemployed persons who were adults of 30 years of age or above and had attended Secondary 3 education. The aim of this course was to provide employable skills so as to enable them to be better equipped when they rejoined the work force in the service sector. The title of the course was Certificate of Skills Training (Service Industries) (CST (SI)).

A Study Of The Relationship Among Student Achievement, Funding, Transitional Aid, Leadership, On The Presence Of Technology In "I" And "J" Secondary Schools, Gene Polles

Seton Hall University Dissertations and Theses (ETDs)

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Assessing The Quality Of Teaching And Learning In Higher Education : The Emergence Of Higher Education As A Service Industry, Nigel B. R Reeves

文學與翻譯研究中心 論文叢刊 Centre for Literature and Translation Occasional Paper Series

No abstract provided.

Harnessing User Communities For Website Location And Evaluation, Tim Beal, Mimi Recker

Instructional Technology and Learning Sciences Faculty Publications

The AsiaWeb Project is looking at the problem of accessing quality and relevant information on the Web. It is the product of collaboration between two disciplinary standpoints. Dr Mimi Recker is approaching the problem from a generic, systems viewpoint, seeing the information domain as a case study and Dr Tim Beal has an interest in the computer access and manipulation of information on Japan, and Asia generally. We are taking business information on Asia as the general subject and within this Japan is a priority area. However, it is considered that the techniques developed could be applied to any subject …