Use of multivariate analysis (e.g., multivariate analysis of variance) is common when normally distributed outcomes are collected in intervention research. However, when mixed responses--a set of normal and binary outcomes--are collected, standard multivariate analyses are no longer suitable. While mixed responses are often obtained in…

A high school principal and faculty celebrated after hearing that their students in each of the quartiles had improved in both reading and mathematics on the state accountability assessment. Because of the percent of increases in achievement levels on the test, the Florida Department of Education awarded the school an A for 2011. Shortly…

This article discusses how the Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) accountability mechanism of No Child Left Behind makes use of supposedly objective standardized test scores to describe schools in a certain way when the very same results could serve to draw very different conclusions. Examining the proficiency scores of students from a specific middle…

Using National Assessment of Educational Progress mathematics data, a predictive model indicated that states could be classified as "No Score Gain" or "Score Gain" states based on median household income and the percentage of students participating in free and reduced-price lunch. Implications associated with the findings suggested that these two…

Federal education policy in recent years has encouraged state and local education agencies to embrace data use and analysis in decision-making, ranging from policy development and implementation to performance evaluation. The capacity of these agencies to make effective and methodologically sound use of collected data for these purposes remains an…

This paper uses data from the 1996 and 2001 panels of the Survey of Income and Program Participation to assess the impact of recent policy initiatives intended to increase access to Food Stamps. It finds that reductions in state certification requirements increased Food Stamp participation rates of income-eligible families with children by one to…

Asserts that policymakers and the general public should be well informed about economic and social issues. Contends that a statistical system in a democracy has a heavy responsibility to ensure that the data represent fact, not opinion. Discusses changes made in the Consumer Price Index to prevent it from becoming politicized. (CFR)

This report describes a method to estimate the number of migrant and seasonal farmworkers present in a prescribed area during crop harvest, and to pinpoint areas of high need for health and social services. The collection of health clinic and federal program data on migrant and seasonal farmworkers in Florida, northwestern Ohio, and Maryland's…

In 1989 and 1990 the Advisory Committee on Student Financial Assistance to standing committees in the U.S. Congress identified and explored issues for consideration in the reauthorization of the Higher Education Act and Title IV programs. Through 18 months of information gathering the Committee uncovered three problem areas. The first problem is…

This study analyses infant health data from the 332 poorest rural U.S. counties for the period 1975-1985. The study updates and expands a report released in 1986. The data show that, until 1980, rates of infant mortality and low birthweights (LBW) improved significantly, especially in rural areas. The trend toward better prenatal care in rural…

The Job Training Placement Act (JTPA) of 1982, a federally funded program directed by individual states, provides financial assistance to any state education agency responsible for education and training. Section 123(b) of the JTPA requires states to match the federal assistance with income from other sources. This paper reports on the study…

This monograph provides a compilation of 1985-1993 statistical data on children and youth with disabilities. Data sources included: (1) national surveys that collect economic and social information; (2) national surveys on health status; (3) health surveillance reports; and (4) program and administrative data from federal programs serving…