Offers ideas for developing a Web-based course in music education, addressing such issues as the transmission of audio information, real-time communication, and testing and copyright. Provides selected resources for Web-based instruction. (CMK)

Explored psychological effects of sexual abuse in adolescents by comparing Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory profiles of sexually abused adolescents with those of nonabused adolescents with behavior problems. Found significant differences on four of the scales. Sexually abused adolescents revealed more severe pychopathology than the…

Investigates the effect of a 30-minute presentation of Carol Kuhlthau's Information Search Process (ISP) model on undergraduate students' perceptions of research and research paper anxiety, focusing on results of the quantitative analysis. Highlights include pretests and posttest results; and data analysis and hypothesis testing. (Author/LRW)

Examined the effects of positive interdependence versus no interdependence on college students' academic achievement. Students took weekly electronic quizzes where they could interact with groupmates in a chat room. Achievement was measured via biweekly examinations. Students in the positive interdependence condition engaged in significantly more…

A strong relationship is shown between students' state assessment test pass rates and students' socioeconomic status (SES). State sanctions based on assessment scores can affect graduation, student diplomas, school accreditation, school funding, teacher rewards and promotion, paperwork requirements, regulations, work expectations, improvement…

Describes a software system that allows teachers and students in practically any subject to make interactive expert systems of quizzes on the Internet. Discusses the design of the system, including building a database of questions and answers; integrating text files of questions and answers with JavaScript-HTML pages; and the JavaScript and HTML…

Examines the validity of large-scale educational assessment, suggesting that construct validity is insufficient for assuming an achievement measure's internal validity and that the uses of assessment results affect external validity. Discusses the role of learning theory in large-scale assessment, purposes of large-scale assessment, item types and…

Evaluated a computer-delivered response type for measuring quantitative skill, the "Generating Examples" (GE) response type, which presents under-determined problems that can have many right answers. Results from 257 graduate students and applicants indicate that GE scores are reasonably reliable, but only moderately related to Graduate…

Accommodations are test-administration changes that do not change the underlying construct being measured. The Individuals with Disabilities legislation and regulations provide little guidance on implementing assessment accommodations for students with learning disabilities. Certain research-based checklists or rating scales help link…

Examines the relationship between childrens scores on a standardized test of musical aptitude, Gordons Primary Measures of Music Audiation, and their performance on specific musical tasks. Suggests a need for a type of test that provides a broader perspective of childrens musical abilities, since there is no correlation between the test and tasks.…

Analyzes the everyday academic language proficiency of German-Turkish Bilinguals who grew up in Germany as children of Turkish immigrants and learned German as a second language. Everyday and academic language proficiency was measured with two different C-tests. Scores obtained were compared with those of a control group of Turkish university…

The Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System is a damaging and dangerous "reform" with fundamental flaws: assumptions that all children undergo the same developmental process and that everyone requires the same knowledge to be successful; the fact that the guide and exams cover irrelevant material; and the idea that testing is…

Findings are presented from the National Center on Educational Outcomes' 1999 survey of state directors (n=48) of special education about test participation rates and factors that influence participation. More students are participating in statewide testing, however, there are factors that continue to inhibit greater participation. Recommendations…

Considers how standards and high-stakes testing corrupts instruction. Notes that the cyclic nature of scope-and-sequence standards, isolated instructional practices, and isolated items on tests is a closed system that has no authentic purpose beyond the academic hallways of schools. Concludes that reading and writing are individual acts at the…

Describes a technique that uses short stories about individuals to reinforce students' knowledge of developmental theories. Indicates that these case study presentations may have improved the students' understanding of theories, as illustrated by higher quiz scores. Discusses the uses and benefits of the case study method. (CMK)