In this study 149 kindergarten children were assessed for knowledge of letter names and letter sounds, phonological awareness, and cognitive abilities. Through this it examined child and letter characteristics influencing the acquisition of alphabetic knowledge in a naturalistic context, the relationship between letter-sound knowledge and…

The calculation of composite indicators and the derivation of respective rankings is a common method used to benchmark countries or regions. However, although the statistical robustness of these rankings is often criticised, they often still spark off heated political debate. Here, we assess the sensitivity of the province ranking published by the…

On the basis of previous research on self-construals, the theory of reasoned action, and persuasive communication, the authors hypothesized that individual, behavioral-focused information would be more effective in increasing help-seeking intention among college students in the United States, whereas relational, normative-focused information would…

Now that all 50 states and the District of Columbia are building statewide longitudinal data systems, the next step is to ensure that the information in these systems is used to improve student learning. The Data Quality Campaign (DQC) has identified 10 actions that states can take to ensure that the right data are available and accessible and…

The primary goal of this project was to examine the predictability of Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) reading item difficulty (equated delta) for main idea items, and the predictability of main idea, inference, and explicit statement item types. A secondary purpose was to contrast the responses of high verbal and low verbal ability examinees.…

This paper presents findings of a study that attempted to predict the future concerns of a sample of Canadian school board members. The three-round Delphi study was conducted by mail with a random sample of 350 school board members in a western Canadian province. The response rate was 39 percent. Participants predicted that their future top…

The relationship between test item characteristics and testing time was studied for a computer-administered licensing examination. One objective of the study was to develop a model to predict testing time on the basis of known item characteristics. Response latencies (i.e., the amount of time taken by examinees to read, review, and answer items)…

How well a combination of junior/senior undergraduate grade point average (GPA), scores on the Miller Analogies Test (MAT), and writing sample scores can predict success for students seeking a Master's degree in education was studied. Success was determined for the study by the student's graduate GPA and whether or not the student graduated from…

The 1994 and 1996 Federal Forecasters Conferences provided forums at which forecasters and those involved in predicting trends from different federal agencies and other organizations could meet to discuss various aspects of forecasting in the United States. The theme of the 1996 conference was "Federal Forecasters Look 10 Years Ahead."…

The study applied a stress and coping model including acculturation to understanding the predictors of depressive symptoms, alcohol use, and life satisfaction of 108 native Salvadorans who immigrated to the United States in the past 5 years. Acculturation was negatively related to depression and alcohol use, and positively related to life…

To help increase the understanding of sources of difficulty in test items, a study was undertaken to evaluate the effects of various aspects of prose complexity on the difficulty of achievement test items. The items of interest were those that presented a verbal stimulus followed by a question about the stimulus and a standard set of…

This proceedings report describes exercises used in a workshop on environmental scanning, designed to assist institutional research officers to develop competency in establishing and maintaining an external analysis capability on their campuses. The workshop offered an opportunity for participants to experience several techniques used in…

This essay presents the major ideas of the book "The Work of Nations: Preparing Ourselves for 21st Century Capitalism" (1991), written by Robert Reich, Secretary of Labor in the Clinton administration. Reich describes the development of the symbolic-analyst as the new citizen in the economic order, utilizing the basic skills of…

This essay critiques the book "The Work of Nations: Preparing Ourselves for 21st Century Capitalism" (1991), by Robert Reich, Secretary of Labor in the Clinton administration. Reich described the development of the symbolic-analyst as the new citizen in the economic order, utilizing the basic skills of abstraction, system thinking,…

The multiplicity of variables describing the financial conditions of postsecondary institutions makes it difficult to assess changes in higher education finance from year to year and to find the relationship between these finance variables and average faculty salaries. This study sought to determine if a small number of factors could be derived to…