The "regular education initiative," whose chief proponent is Assistant Secretary of Education Madeleine Will, calls for the merger of special education and regular education into one system. It is based on the Adaptive Learning Environment Model (ALEM) developed by Margaret Wang and her associates. This paper reviews the research,…

An evaluation plan based on the STAR (Sensible Technology Assessment/Research) model will be used to evaluate the Apple Classroom of Tomorrow (ACOT). Visits to three ACOT schools and interviews with their teachers, students, and administrators were used to obtain an initial understanding of what ACOT means to the process and outcomes of…

The purpose of this paper is to present a general research model for the study of interpersonal communication competence. The paper summarizes the research background for the model and covers considerations for a general theory of competence. It notes that recently the communication field has shifted in emphasis from concerns of public speaking…

Three possible versions of Project Follow Through are discussed to explore the kinds of knowledge that each approach would yield and to describe alternative ways in which the program could maintain the unique feature of federal coordination of research. Versions compared include (1) a federally coordinated research program designed to generate…

The accuracy of trait estimates obtained from three vertical equating methods was examined. The procedures studied included two anchor test designs and a single-group design. Data from two content areas and two grade combinations were studied. A three-parameter logistic model was used to perform the equatings. The results obtained were used to…

In true experiments in which sample material can be randomly assigned to treatment conditions, most researchers presume that the condition of equal sample sizes is statistically desirable. When one or more a priori contrasts can be identified which represent a few overriding experimental concerns, however, allocating sample material unequally will…

A research project was conducted to develop and implement a model for community college missions. The new model would depart from existing models, which utilize a hierarchy of decreasing levels of generality beginning with institutional missions and culminating in objectives. In contrast, this research defined institutional mission in terms of…

Considerations of validity that are central to all disciplines in the social sciences are discussed, and concepts that are an essential part of the intellectual equipment of the social sciences researcher are systematically analyzed. Fundamental methodological concepts underlying decisions made in the research process are highlighted to encourage…

This paper reports on the activities of the National Center for Teacher Education, which is examining what teachers are taught and what they learn in different kinds of teacher education programs. The Center's work combines case studies of different teacher education programs with longitudinal studies of participants' learning. Putting together…

The effects of conditions of informed consent and disclosure on the performance of 84 students doing a statistics laboratory assignment for an introductory graduate course in statistics at a state university in the southeast were studied. Four separate classes taught by three instructors were included. Subjects ranged in age from 22 to 47 years,…

Described are the accomplishments of Project Agam during its first 6 months of operation. Discussion focuses on curriculum materials project staffing, program implementation, related research and evaluation plans, and teacher training. An outline of the projected work plan, including a pilot study and restricted and larger-scale experimental runs,…

Purposes of research in higher education, the issue of research paradigms, and the identification of research questions are discussed in this keynote panel paper. Different purposes of research include conceptual and theoretical development, relating theory and practice, and improving practice. Higher education as a field has not yet given much…

Generalizability theory is based upon analysis of variance (ANOVA) and requires estimation of variance components for the ANOVA design under consideration in order to compute either G (Generalizability) or D (Decision) coefficients. Estimation of variance components has a number of alternative methods available using SAS, BMDP, and ad hoc…

Shared-work compensation (SWC) can provide a method whereby layoffs and unemployment may be avoided by reducing all workers' time. As compensation, workers receive a comparable percentage of their unemployment insurance benefits. Although Western European countries have used work-sharing programs and Canada has implemented an experimental SWC…

Problems associated with the analysis of data collected using the Solomon Four Group Design are discussed. The design includes an experimental group and a control group that have been pretested and posttested, and an experimental and a control group that have been posttested only. A sample problem is approached in three different ways. First, the…