Using simulation-based inference (SBI), such as randomization tests, as the primary vehicle for introducing students to the logic and scope of statistical inference has been advocated with the potential of improving student understanding of statistical inference and the statistical investigative process. Moving beyond the individual class…

Relativizing the popular belief that student effort is the key to success, this article finds that effort in the most advanced mathematics course in US high schools is not consistently associated with college calculus performance. We distinguish two types of student effort: productive and ineffective efforts. Whereas the former carries the…

This report builds on the 2013 and 2014 Reports on Unmet Need and Student Success at Maryland Public Four-Year Institutions by providing data on six-year graduation rates for the students in the original 2008 entering cohort. For this report, both descriptive analysis and logistic regression were used to understand the relationship between…

University freshman participated in this study to determine the difference in learning gains when using a digital reader rather than a traditional textbook in a participatory learning environment. The findings indicate that a combination of focused reading and participatory instruction result in increased learning, thus, challenging traditional…

According to 2012 data, four-year, public institutions in Maryland enroll a slightly higher share of students than is exhibited nationwide. In Maryland, 40% of all undergraduates and 52% of full-time undergraduates attend these institutions. Moreover, tuition and fees at Maryland public four-year institutions only increased 0.3% (or $31) according…

Even after repeated instruction, first year college chemistry students are often unable to apply stoichiometry knowledge to equilibrium and acid-base chemistry problems. The dynamic and interactive capabilities of online technology may facilitate stoichiometry instruction that promotes more meaningful learning. This study compares a…

A key factor in the decline of Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) scores (a factor that has been overlooked) is the concurrent decline in the availability of textbooks. The simultaneous decline of both SAT scores and textbooks suggests a strong cause-and-effect relationship. A recent study by the Ohio Education Association indicated that there are…

Reading selections from six Scholastic Aptitude Tests (SAT) administered from 1947 to 1975 were analyzed to determine whether a decrease in the difficulty level of elementary and secondary textbooks, workbooks, and teachers' guides corresponded with the SAT score decline. Various indices of reading difficulty and challenge were used. Readability…

This paper analyzes Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) score declines of two decades--the 1960s and 1970s. The importance of pervasive societal influences is accepted. A variety of data suggests, however, that the increase in school retention rates of poorly prepared students and the resulting heterogeneity of the high school population is a unifying…