In this study, the effects of the use of peer tutoring in Effective and Good Speech Course on students' success, perception of speech self-efficacy and speaking skills were examined. The study, designed as a mixed pattern in which quantitative and qualitative research approaches were combined, was carried out together with 57 students in 2014 to…

Proposition analysis was used to equate the text base of two essays with different readability levels. Easier reading essays were given higher scores than difficult reading essays. The results appear to identify another noncontent influence on essay test scores, leaving increasingly less variance for differences in content. (Author/PN)

For the thirty-seventh year, the Research and Theory Division and the Division of Instructional Design of the Association for Educational Communications and Technology (AECT) sponsored the publication of these Proceedings. Papers published in this volume were presented at the annual AECT Convention in Jacksonville, Florida. This year's Proceedings…

Content characteristics of 1,400 Graduate Record Examination (GRE) analytical reasoning items were coded for item difficulty and discrimination. The results provide content characteristics for consideration in extending specifications for analytical reasoning items and a better understanding of the construct validity of these items. (TJH)

An analysis of the syntax of economics textbooks was undertaken to (1) provide real-language examples of the difficult grammatical structures being taught in an advanced economics reading course, and (2) construct a factual database of the nature of economics textbooks. Five texts representative of those typically used in introductory economics…

Two procedures are presented for detecting violations of the unidimensionality assumption made by latent trait models without requiring factor analysis of inter-item correlation matrices. Both procedures require that departures from unidimensionality be hypothesized beforehand. This is usually possible in achievement tests where several content…

Attempts to facilitate the text selection process for introductory psychology teachers by enabling them to match the level of the text with their students' ability level. Examines 37 introductory psychology textbooks published from 1995-1997 to determine text levels (high, middle, or lower level). Discusses the findings in detail. (CMK)

A model of reading comprehension focuses on eye fixations, which are related to the level of reading processes--words, clauses, and text units. Longer pauses are associated with greater processing difficulty. This model is illustrated for a group of undergraduate students reading scientific articles from "Newsweek" and "Time" magazines. (GDC)

Summary information and recommendations of the Nursing Delineation Study of the Kentucky Nursing Education Project are presented. Nursing tasks were identified, defined, and ranked as part of a systematic analysis of the nursing profession for the purposes of statewide planning. A 17-member task force represented the major domains of nursing…

Testing the assumption that textbooks were getting harder while students' abilities have been declining over the years, a study was conducted to determine the readability levels of six college reading textbooks across three editions to see if they were equal or the same in readability. The study also sought to determine whether these texts were…

Test items, all referencing the same instructional objective, are not equally difficult. This investigation attempts to identify some of the determinants of item difficulty within the context of a first course in educational statistics. Computer generated variations of items were used to provide the data. The results were used to investigate the…

Reported is a study designed to determine whether reading grade level (RGL) assessment techniques used for elementary and secondary education textbooks would discriminate among plant and soil science textbooks. The study was to select the RGL indices suited to quantify the readability of these sources, and to identify the factors affecting…

The IADIS CELDA 2012 Conference intention was to address the main issues concerned with evolving learning processes and supporting pedagogies and applications in the digital age. There had been advances in both cognitive psychology and computing that have affected the educational arena. The convergence of these two disciplines is increasing at a…