Embedded assessments, tasks within the context of instruction, can serve as important tools for improving teaching and learning. In this article, we report on the assessment design principles and a nine-step development model that guided the construction of innovative embedded assessments. Using multiple sources of data--expert reviews, a…

Research in music education asserts that video review by performers facilitates self-directed learning and transforms performing. Yet, certain videos may be traumatic for musicians to view; those who perceive themselves as failing or experience performance-related failures are prone to feelings of distress and sadness that can negatively affect…

This monograph summarizes the development of the Pupil Observation Survey Report (POSR), an instrument designed to be completed by pupils in junior and senior high school classes in order to describe their teachers. The instrument consists of 38 statements followed by four choice agreement scales. Data from a single class are reduced to item means…

Details the development of an instrument for reporting teacher and course effectiveness in college composition courses. (HOD)

A questionnaire survey of students in basic English courses on the McKeesport campus of Pennsylvania State University revealed how students respond to teacher comments on their compositions, and how teachers can write more effective comments. (DD)

Describes students' reactions to questions on essay tests. Examines relationships in attitudes and essay questions, the effects of readability on student attitudes, and the effects of question length and rhetorical structure. Concludes that certain rhetorical features of essay questions affect how students respond on tests. (KEH)

Surveyed student opinions and found, among other reactions, they (1) consider that evaluating teacher performance is important and (2) prefer the Small Group Instructional Diagnosis (SGID) method over end-of-course ratings because of the timing, feedback quality, oral exchange, and personal approach involved in SGID. (PD)

Presents the case that evaluation is an essential element of successful distance education programs. Uses a synthesis of the program evaluation and distance education research literature to form a framework for conducting evaluations of online programs. Evaluators should assess student performance, determine program and cost effectiveness, monitor…

Examines whether analysis techniques of student/teacher interactions widely used throughout the United Sates could be applied to a music instruction setting in Japan by analyzing two videotaped music lessons of different teachers. Finds that teacher A, who used five times more feedback, was rated higher overall by both Japanese and U.S. students.…

An evaluation of group project activities in terms of participant acquisition of vocational skills and competencies was undertaken in secondary vocational and postsecondary vocational schools within Wisconsin and Minnesota. Questionnaires dealing with study objectives were administered to 234 students and 17 teachers involved in the activities,…

A study made to identify the critical educational needs of the State of North Dakota is presented in the six chapters of this report and its appendixes. Chapter I, Introduction, discusses historical considerations and provides an overview of the report. Chapter II contains a comprehensive but concise description of the technical procedures…

A summary is presented of a study to determine the impact of school authority systems on student disengagement from high school. Student disengagement is defined as the extent to which students refrain from participating in activities offered as part of the school program, tasks of scholarship and citizenship, and extracurricular activities. The…

This report details the findings of a study to determine the impact of school authority systems on student disengagement from high school. The study, guided by Dornbusch and Scott's theory of evaluation and authority, examined the impact of four types of incompatibilities in the system for the evaluation of student performance on three forms of…

The 7th International Conference on Education Data Mining held on July 4th-7th, 2014, at the Institute of Education, London, UK is the leading international forum for high-quality research that mines large data sets in order to answer educational research questions that shed light on the learning process. These data sets may come from the traces…