Large-scale databases are an underutilized source of data for secondary analysis by researchers. Major government and private databases available to the public, the types of agencies developing them, and how to obtain and utilize them are described. A catalogue of 20 databases, their characteristics and sources is included. (BS)

Presents the characteristics of 199 studies included in the most recent volume of dissertation abstracts with tables: categorizing the studies by type; summarizing the use of different independent variables, and design considerations; tabulating the types of measures mentioned; and presenting data analysis techniques and sampling plans. (Author/JM)

Highlighting the importance of precision in recording, analyzing, and interpreting data in experimental psychology courses, the author proposes that students be assigned grades of A or F for the results section of laboratory reports. Papers receiving F's could be resubmitted for reduced grades until they are free of errors. (GEA)

Advocates greater use of the Public Use Microdata Samples (PUMS), computer readable samples of individual and household records from the manuscript census schedules. An analysis of southern migration during and after World War II reveals the wealth of material in PUMS and the many ways it can be used. (MJP)

An example of real-world data is used to introduce comprehensible and visual images of the data and their attributes and relationships. Stem-and-leaf plots, box-and-whisker plots, and scattergrams are used to encourage prompt recognition of data characteristics and to effect appropriate interpretations and inferences. (JJK)

In education research, a polar distinction is frequently made to describe and produce different kinds of research: "quantitative" versus "qualitative." In this article, the authors argue against that polarization and the associated polarization of the "subjective" and the "objective," and they question the attribution of generalizability to only…

GCSE (General Certificate of Secondary Education) Handling Data coursework should be a golden opportunity to engage students in meaningful "real-life" mathematics. The marking criteria for GCSE handling data coursework puts emphasis on students' ability to plan and carry out a statistical project and to make meaningful analysis of the…

The purpose of the study was to assess the status of elementary health and health education in public schools throughout South Dakota during the 2005-2006 school year. The study was designed to provide current data collected from both elementary and secondary school principals and teachers regarding health and physical education curricula,…

This study is an action research based both on quantitative and qualitative research techniques carried out with a group of fifth grade students in K"r,ehir during the 2003-2004 education year. In the study, the main purpose was to improve historical time concept and chronology perceptions among fifth grade students. Students' interests, reactions…

This study examined the perceptions of teachers on the effectiveness of organizational communication in their schools and whether the perceptions differed between teachers in primary and junior high schools as a function of gender, age, marital status, seniority, and rank. Data were collected from a sample of 334 teachers in 63 schools, working in…

Evaluation can be crucial to help meet the needs and requirements of the teacher, students, and curriculum in distance education. Distance education usually encompasses a wide diversity of students, multi-site classrooms, little opportunity for interaction among students, and unfamiliar technology. Because of these uncertainties, evaluation of…

Third in a series, the monograph summarizes the key evaluation issues, design approaches, and statistical techniques used in conducting the 1980-1983 impact evaluation of Indian Education Act Title IV Part A programs. The monograph describes the major problems in evaluating the program to determine the degree of its positive contribution to…

An instrument to assist in assessing textbooks was created to provide a concise format for comparison and evaluation. Textbook characteristics were selected to illustrate content and proportion of characteristics of textbooks. Nine textbook characteristics were selected for quantifying the content areas of textbooks: (1) number of pages in the…

The linking of research and action, basic methods of social research, and the uses of research in distance teaching are examined, with examples drawn from the Lesotho Distance Teaching Centre and other distance teaching programs. Ways in which research can be useful and early stages of research design and planning are discussed. An explanation of…

This document describes the review, analysis, and decision-making process that Trinity University, Texas, went through to develop the three-part computer network that they use to gather and analyze EEG (electroencephalography) and EKG (electrocardiogram) data. The data are gathered in the laboratory on a PDP-1124, an analog minicomputer. Once…