IPEDS graduation rates have become de facto means for higher education accountability in the United States, used by the federal government, state and local agencies, non-profits and media to compare and rank institutions. IPEDS uses a limited subset of students, as well as an institutional perspective to measure graduation rate. Under this model,…

In the modern world information has become the new power. An increasing amount of efforts are being made to gather data, resources being allocated, time being invested and tools being developed. Data collection is no longer a myth; however, it remains a great challenge to create value out of the enormous data that is being collected. Data modeling…

Many telephone surveys require interviewers to observe and record respondents' gender based solely on respondents' voice. Researchers may rely on these observations to: (1) screen for study eligibility; (2) determine skip patterns; (3) foster interviewer tailoring strategies; (4) contribute to nonresponse assessment and adjustments; (5)…

Mixed-format assessments are increasingly being used in large scale standardized assessments to measure a continuum of skills ranging from basic recall to higher order thinking skills. These assessments are usually comprised of a combination of (a) multiple-choice items which can be efficiently scored, have stable psychometric properties, and…