This study reports the evaluation of four positive psychology assessments for use in clinical, education, and research settings with individuals in Ghana, Africa. The analyses attempted to identify validity evidence for internal structure and relationships with related variables for the Satisfaction with Life Scale (SLS; Diener et al.…

Undergraduate students pursuing a Bachelor of Science in Forestry (BSF) at Stephen F. Austin State University (SFA) within the Arthur Temple College of Forestry and Agriculture (ATCOFA) attend an intensive 6-week hands-on instruction in applied field methods. The second week of field station is focused on land measurement activities to introduce…

Accurate measurement of quality of life (QoL) is important for evaluation of autism services and trials of interventions. We undertook psychometric validation of the World Health Organisation measure--WHOQoL-BREF, examined construct validity of the WHO Disabilities module and developed nine additional autism-specific items (ASQoL) from extensive…

The goal of this paper is to examine the psychometric properties of a live-coded behavioral measure of joint attention, the "Attention-Following and Initiating Joint Attention Protocol" (JA Protocol), in order to assist researchers and clinicians in identifying when this measure may meet their joint attention assessment needs. Data from…

These administrative rules of the Illinois Community College Board are divided into eight sections. Under Title 23: Education and Cultural Resources, Subtitle A: Education, Chapter VII: Illinois Community College Board, the following parts are included: (1) Part 1501 Administration of the Illinois Public Community College Act; (2) Part 1502 Joint…

Research has shown that the objectives for laboratory teaching--just as with other teaching methods--are often not achieved and that many laboratory sessions are ineffective and yet expensive in terms of pupil and teacher time, and facilities. There are several reasons for this, but one reason is that instructions for many lab activities are too…

The paper presents the conceptual basis of the theories: Behaviorism, Gestalt, Cognitive Psychology, and the Historic-Cultural Psychology. The essential categories of these theories were validated in a population of 2704 courses at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, MIT (USA). The research seeks the relationship of theories with course…

Self-efficacy, or the beliefs people hold about their ability to succeed in certain pursuits, is a long-established construct. Self-efficacy for science communication distinguishes scientists who engage with the public and relates to scientists' attitudes about the public. As such, self-efficacy for public engagement has the potential to serve as…

Background: Student affect plays a considerable role in mathematical problem solving performance, yet is rarely formally assessed. In this manuscript, an instrument and its properties are discussed to enable educational psychologists the opportunity to assess student affect. Aims: The study was conducted to norm the CAIMPS (instrument) with gifted…

This paper presents a transformative modeling framework that guides the development of assessment to measure students' deep understanding in physical sciences. The framework emphasizes 3 types of connections that students need to make when learning physical sciences: (1) linking physical states, processes, and explanatory models, (2) integrating…

The current study describes the development of a content analysis coding scheme to examine transcripts of online asynchronous discussion groups in higher education. The theoretical framework comprises the theories regarding knowledge construction in computer-supported collaborative learning (CSCL) based on a sociocultural perspective. The coding…

An overview of standards related to demonstrating evidence regarding relationships with criteria as it pertains to instrument development was presented, along with heuristic examples. Additional measures and a comprehensive design are necessary to establish evidence related to the use and interpretation of test scores for the validation of a…

The What Works Clearinghouse (WWC) evaluates research studies that look at the effectiveness of education programs, products, practices, and policies, which the WWC calls "interventions." Many studies of education interventions make claims about impacts on students' outcomes. Some studies have designs that enable readers to make causal…

The ability to convey shared meaning with minimal ambiguity is highly desirable for technical terms within disciplines and professions. Unfortunately, there is no widespread professional consensus over the meaning of the word "validity" as it pertains to educational and psychological testing. After illustrating the nature and extent of…

A misconception exists that validity may refer only to the "interpretation" of test scores and not to the "uses" of those scores. The development and evolution of validity theory illustrate test score interpretation was a primary focus in the earliest days of modern testing, and that validating interpretations derived from test…