Do students really enroll in Introductory Geology because they think it is "rocks for jocks"? In this study, we examine the widely held assumption that students view geology as a qualitative and remedial option for fulfilling a general education requirement. We present the first quantitative characterization of a large number of…

The purpose of this study was to establish an accepted skill set, knowledge base, and overview of personal qualities necessary to be a director of a university or college based, non-proprietary intensive English program (UIEP). This research serves as a means of moving towards meeting three critical needs in the field. This research should inform…

This report analyzes changes in public school staffing over time by examining data from the annual editions of the Digest of Education Statistics, which is compiled by the U.S. Department of Education's National Center for Education Statistics. The report's main part analyzes changes in public school staffing over the past generation, the fiscal…

Though the NCAA has established rules that require student-athletes to complete their college degree in an expeditious manner, the 40/60/80% rule may impinge on student-athlete academic decisions (i.e., degree choice). Yet limited empirical data exist regarding the nature and prevalence of student-athlete degree impingement. The purpose of this…

Organizational citizenship behavior (OCB) is a social science construct defined by Organ (1988) as employee actions that are discretionary, not formally recognized or rewarded, and that are helpful to the effectiveness of the organization. This study explored part-time work as a base of OCB by investigating the relationship between this construct…

The purposes of this multiple case study were to determine if manufacturing and services sector employers found value in the use of an ePortfolio in the hiring process, and to develop a suggested template for an ePortfolio format to be used within career and technical education. Electronic portfolios "allow students to showcase their…

A review of literature suggests women superintendents face several disadvantages gaining access to positions as public school district superintendents. This study focused on (1) which characteristics applied to the prediction of women superintendents in California public K-12 system; (2) if the predecessor's sex predicted for the successor's sex;…

Higher education institutions are increasingly looking to online education as a means to broaden their market reach, increase student enrollments and ultimately realize increased tuition revenue. Many institutions, however, find that they have insufficient infrastructure resources to launch one or more fully online learning programs. A small…

The outstanding performance of Shanghai students in the 4th Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA 2009) gained widespread attention at home and abroad. In this paper, the authors attribute this outstanding performance to three traditional factors and six modern factors. The traditional factors are high parental expectations, belief…

In considering and evaluating approaches to the admission of college students, the usual approach is to try to measure past academic achievement and primarily verbal and math ability on the assumption that these abilities will predict subsequent college academic grades and achievement. These measures do predict classroom achievement, though far…

This study looks at the policies and practices shaping teacher quality in the Kansas City, Missouri School District (KCMSD). It is part of a series of analyses by the National Council on Teacher Quality (NCTQ) in school districts across the nation. Framing this analysis are five policy goals for improving teacher quality: (1) Staffing. Teacher…

Nearly three years ago, in an effort to understand just how to get student teaching "right," the National Council on Teacher Quality (NCTQ) entered into a comprehensive review of the student teaching experience. For this work, the authors focused on its delivery at the undergraduate level for future elementary teachers, but they can identify no…

In an effort to understand what makes a student teaching experience strong, the National Council on Teacher Quality (NCTQ) has undertaken this comprehensive review. Over a period of two years, NCTQ researchers examined the student teaching programs of a stratified random sample of 134 higher education institutions across the United States, with at…

This paper studies the determinants of college major choice using a unique "information" experiment embedded in a survey. We first ask respondents their "self" beliefs--beliefs about their own expected earnings and other major-specific outcomes conditional on various majors, their "population" beliefs--beliefs about…

This study examines Illinois school superintendents' perceived importance of the Illinois school superintendent content area standards and performance indicators. This study is significant because it provides an opportunity for rigorous reflection in identifying Illinois school superintendents' perceived importance of superintendent behaviors that…