The present paper aims to discuss how data from international large-scale assessments (ILSAs) can be utilized and combined, even with other existing data sources, in order to monitor educational outcomes and study the effectiveness of educational systems. We consider different purposes of linking data, namely, extending outcomes measures,…

This article gives a short overview based on the "EU High Level Group of Experts on Literacy" (HLWG) report to address issues and challenges in Europe on improving literacy competencies in schools. Furthermore, an analysis is conducted focusing on the promotion of reading and early literacy skills in schools taking into account…

This study examines the changes in educational inequality at the school- and individual-levels in 1991 and 2001. Comparisons are made between the IEA Reading Literacy Study 1991 and the so called 10-Year Trend Study in PIRLS 2001. The between-school differences in reading achievement variance and the size of the relationship between SES and…

We investigated various structural models of phonological processing and the relationship of phonological processing abilities to basic reading. Data were collected on 116 kindergarten and first grade students. The specific ability model, which included phonological awareness, phonological memory, and rapid automatized naming as separate…

This study examined relations among early family risk, children's behavioral regulation at 54 months and kindergarten, and academic achievement in first grade using data on 1298 children from the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) Study of Early Child Care and Youth Development. Family risk was indexed by ethnic…

We tested a model considering the manner in which mothers' use of their own social relationships and efforts to facilitate their children's school-based social relationships were associated with two distinct types of school-based competence: academic achievement and levels of stress experienced within the school environment. Fourth grade children…

This article reports on a large-scale study that aims to validate the theory of strategic competence proposed by Bachman and Palmer (1996) through the use of structural equation modeling (SEM). The present study examines the relationship of test-takers' long-term strategic knowledge (i.e., trait strategies) and actual strategy use (i.e., state…

The Programme for International Student Assessment comparative study of reading performance among 15-year-olds is reanalyzed using statistical procedures that allow the full complexity of the data structures to be explored. The article extends existing multilevel factor analysis and structural equation models and shows how this can extract richer…

This study employed observed factor index scores as well as latent ability constructs from the "Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-Fourth Edition" (WISC-IV; Wechsler, 2003) in estimating reading and mathematics achievement on the "Wechsler Individual Achievement Test-Second Edition" (WIAT-II; Wechsler, 2002). Participants…

Participants were 443 (52.6% male, 47.4% female) ethnically diverse, 1st-grade, lower achieving readers attending 1 of 3 school districts in Texas. Using latent variable structural equation modeling, the authors tested a theoretical model positing that (a) the quality of teachers' relationships with students and their parents mediates the…

The current study examined the influence of symptoms of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) on student academic achievement in reading and in mathematics in a sample of 146 first- through fourth-grade students, 103 of which were identified as having ADHD and academic problems in reading and/or math. A theoretical model was examined…

It has been demonstrated that the individual variation in the level and rate of learning for a cohort of students over time can be estimated by hierarchical linear models. Models of this type can also be estimated using widely available structural modeling software, which provides a flexible framework for model explorations, including the use of…

This study assesses the predictive validity of the Phelps Kindergarten Readiness Scale (PKRS) for later academic achievement and explores the utility of a domain-specific measure of kindergarten readiness. Kindergarten readiness scores were significantly correlated with both math and language arts achievement as measured by New York State…