Predicting student performance using educational data is a significant area of machine learning research. However, class imbalance in datasets and the challenge of developing interpretable models can hinder accuracy. This study compares different variations of the Synthetic Minority Oversampling Technique (SMOTE) combined with classification…

This case study describes an experience of using constructivist grounded theory to analyze data. The project investigated how high school students improved their approaches to learning mathematics. Over 4 months, students participated in processes which supported their learning while simultaneously generating data, including interactive writing,…

Although several types of figurative language exist, neuropsychological tests of non-literal language have focused on proverbs. Metaphors in the form X is (a) Y (e.g., "The body's immunological response is a battle against disease.") place a lower demand on language skills and are more easily manipulated for novelty than proverbs.…

There is much agreement among chemical education researchers that expertise in chemistry depends in part on the ability to coordinate understanding of phenomena on three levels: macroscopic (observable), sub-microscopic (atoms, molecules, and ions) and symbolic (chemical equations, graphs, etc.). We hypothesize this "level-coordination…

District and state education leaders frequently use screening assessments to identify students who are at risk of performing poorly on end-of-year achievement tests. This study examines the use of a universal screening assessment of reading skills for early identification of students at risk of low achievement on nationally normed tests of reading…

We have investigated the various approaches taken by first-year university students (n[image omitted]550) when asked to determine the direction of motion, the constancy of speed, and a numerical value of the speed of an object at a point on a numerical linear distance-time graph. We investigated the prevalence of various well-known general…

In light of the emergence of statistical analysis techniques based on data mining in education sciences, and the potential they offer to detect non-trivial information in large databases, this paper presents a procedure used to detect factors linked to academic achievement in large-scale assessments. The study is based on a non-experimental,…

Information on the HIV/AIDS epidemic in Southern Africa is often interpreted through a veil of secrecy and shame and, I argue, with flawed understanding of basic statistics. This research determined the levels of statistical literacy evident in 316 future Mathematical Literacy teachers' explanations of the median in the context of HIV/AIDS…

In this paper, we introduce various graphical methods that can be used to represent data in mixed research. First, we present a broad taxonomy of visual representation. Next, we use this taxonomy to provide an overview of visual techniques for quantitative data display and qualitative data display. Then, we propose what we call "crossover" visual…

In many practical settings, essentially the same differential item functioning (DIF) procedures have been in use since the late 1980s. Since then, examinee populations have become more heterogeneous, and tests have included more polytomously scored items. This paper summarizes and classifies new DIF methods and procedures that have appeared since…

The primary thesis of this paper is that James J. Gibson and Kurt Lewin and their followers subscribe to the central ecological notions of interdependence of organisms and their environments. An attempt is made to show the connections between Gibson's conceptualization of affordance, and the related Lewinian notion of psychological ecology.…

In 2004 the Australian Flexible Learning Framework developed a suite of quantitative and qualitative indicators on the uptake, use and impact of e-learning in the Vocational Education and Training (VET) sector. These indicators were used to design items for a survey to gather quantitative data for benchmarking. A series of four surveys gathered…

Identifies cognitive strategies used during the categorization of qualitative data and investigates how various factors may be related to the testimonial validity of the categories. Essay writers ranked sets of categories in terms of overall quality and rated them while thinking aloud. Think-aloud protocols for the "best" and…

Explores content or contextual validity of social rule classifications produced by sample of 12-year-old child coders. Analyses of variances revealed that categorization schemes generated by child coders were contextually valid as determined by raters' mean ratings. (Author/RWB)

A study compared the effects of different methods of analyzing trends to illustrate how failure to account for change in classification will lead to misinterpretation of data on the performance of students with disabilities. Data from five years of assessment in Texas is used to illustrate effects of classification changes. (Contains references.)…