Growth curve modeling provides a general framework for analyzing longitudinal data from social, behavioral, and educational sciences. Bayesian methods have been used to estimate growth curve models, in which priors need to be specified for unknown parameters. For the covariance parameter matrix, the inverse Wishart prior is most commonly used due…

Using 1972-2000 data from the Consumer Expenditure Survey (CES), a nationally representative survey of spending conducted by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, this paper investigates changes in the income-based gap in monetary investments in children under the age of six, when most children typically have entered school in the United States. The…

This 2016 Enrollment Report was prepared for the State Board of Higher Education by the North Dakota University System (NDUS). Enrollment trends highlighted herein include a one-year comparison for two-year institutions, four-year institutions, and system wide. Trends over the last five years and the last ten years are also described. For example,…

Effect sizes are commonly reported for the results of educational interventions. However, researchers struggle with interpreting their magnitude in a way that transcends generic guidelines. Effect sizes can be interpreted in a meaningful context by benchmarking them against typical growth for students in the normative distribution. Such benchmarks…

This study aimed to determine the efficacy of a content knowledge and reading comprehension treatment implemented by eighth-grade general education social studies teachers among students with disabilities included in the classes. Data on students with disabilities across 2 years of study were combined for the analysis presented here. Students in…

Typically a longitudinal growth modeling based on item response theory (IRT) requires repeated measures data from a single group with the same test design. If operational or item exposure problems are present, the same test may not be employed to collect data for longitudinal analyses and tests at multiple time points are constructed with unique…

This large-scale, longitudinal study examines teacher attrition data from over 6,500 teachers in Illinois over a 14-year period from 1997 to 2010. Attrition rates between teachers who participated in a Professional Development School (PDS) versus students prepared traditionally are compared. The effects of teacher preparation experiences on…

Effect sizes are commonly reported for the results of educational interventions. However, researchers struggle with interpreting their magnitude in a way that transcends generic guidelines. Effect sizes can be interpreted in a meaningful context by benchmarking them against typical growth for students in the normative distribution. Such benchmarks…

Do schools reduce or perpetuate inequality by race and family income? Most studies conclude that schools play only a small role in explaining socioeconomic and racial disparities in educational outcomes, but they usually draw this conclusion based solely on test scores. We reconsider this finding using longitudinal data on test scores and…

In this study, we tested the outcomes of access to a response to intervention (RtI) model in kindergarten or in first grade on end-of-Grade-2 reading achievement and placement in special education. Across five schools, 214 students who began having access to Tier 2 intervention in kindergarten or first grade were compared in Grades 1 and 2 with…

Career planning courses are one of the most effective ways to improve career development, and the benefits to career decision-making are well documented. The research base regarding whether career courses contribute to academic outcomes is less well-developed. Although recent findings suggest that career courses may improve retention in the first-…

In this study, we tested the outcomes of access to a Response to Intervention (RtI) model in kindergarten or in first grade on end-of-Grade-2 reading achievement and placement in special education. Across five schools, 214 students who began having access to Tier 2 intervention in kindergarten or first grade were compared in Grades 1 and 2 with…

A general diagnostic model was used to specify and compare two multidimensional item-response-theory (MIRT) models for longitudinal data: (a) a model that handles repeated measurements as multiple, correlated variables over time (Andersen, 1985) and (b) a model that assumes one common variable over time and additional orthogonal variables that…

Global economic transformations have never been as dramatic as in the twentieth century. Most countries have experienced radical changes in the standards of income per capita, technology, fertility, mortality, income inequality and the extent of democracy in the course of the past century. It is the goal of many disciplines--economics, history,…

This report provides an analysis of microcomputer software available for elementary and secondary level instruction in 1989 as compared to 1984. Data from the Resources in Computer Education (RICE) database are used to compare distribution of software programs by grade level; hardware manufacturer; application type (drill, tutorial, simulation,…