The purpose of this applied dissertation was to examine the effects of constructivist pedagogy when addressing the issues associated with below proficiency scores in basic skills in mathematics on the state exit exam. Scores of thirty-four 11th and 12th grade students who did not perform at the state-mandated levels of proficiency in basic skills…

A standards-based exit policy was implemented in an urban district in the northwestern United States. This paper considers the second year of implementation with a group of 2,581 students in the fifth grade. Of these, 104 were identified as not having the skills to exit fifth grade. Reading achievement as measured by two tests, the Iowa Tests of…

High school graduation requirements vary from state to state and district to district across the United States. These requirements establish criteria that students must meet in order to obtain diplomas or certificates of completion. An increasingly common graduation requirement is the achievement of a passing score on an exit exam, a practice…

Ability estimates yielded by the one- (1PL), two- (2PL), and three-parameter (3PL) models and the nominal response model (NRM) were compared with the number-right (NR) scoring model using items not susceptible to test-wiseness (NTW) and items susceptible to the ID1 test-wiseness strategy. These items were contained in grade 12 diploma examinations…

If personal computers (PCs) are used to facilitate learning, then a home computer might be considered a potential input in an educational production function. Using data on British youths from the British Household Panel Survey between 1991 and 2001, this paper explores the link between ownership of a home computer at ages 15 and 17 and subsequent…

Developmental mathematics students are generally students who are at risk of dropping out of school because of various factors. Many are nontraditional students who have jobs and families; others are traditional students who lack the skills needed to succeed in the college environment. Math anxiety, fear, and intimidation often affect…

This study examined the effect of oral administration accommodations on test structure and student performance on the Reading test of the South Carolina High School Exit Examination (HSEE). The examination was given at Grade 10 and was untimed; hence, students were permitted as much time as they needed to answer all the questions. Three groups of…

The purposes of this study were to determine the actual amount of instructional time spent on social studies, to determine the variety of instructional strategies used during social studies instruction, and to assess the frequency and types of technology usage during social studies instruction. As part of addressing the No Child Left Behind Act, a…

This general achievement trends profile includes information that the Center on Education Policy (CEP) and the Human Resources Research Organization (HumRRO) obtained from states from fall 2008 through April 2009. Included herein are: (1) Bullet points summarizing key findings about achievement trends in that state at three performance…

A cost-effectiveness analysis was conducted of Gordon, Kane, and Staiger's (2006) proposal to raise student achievement by identifying and replacing the bottom quartile of novice teachers, using value-added assessment of teacher performance. The cost effectiveness of this proposal was compared to the cost effectiveness of voucher programs, charter…

The main objective of the research was to find out the correlation between the marks obtained by the students of Allama Iqbal Open University in assignments and final examination of M.A (Education) M.Ed in Autumn 2006. For this purpose, the result gazette of M.A (Education) M.Ed was obtained from the regional campus of Allama Iqbal Open…

"Education Matters" is the monthly newsletter of the Association of American Educators (AAE), an organization dedicated to advancing the American teaching profession through personal growth, professional development, teacher advocacy and protection. This issue of the newsletter includes: (1) Johnny Can Write...If We Challenge Him (Bill…

This 2007-2008 manual, "Handbook of Procedures for the Graduation Program," has been approved by the British Columbia Minister of Education on July 18, 2007 for the purpose of setting out graduation requirements. The handbook outlines procedures for efficiently sharing student data between schools and the Ministry of Education, and…

The primary purpose of this study was to identify potential sources of gender differential item bias (DIF) in a high school exit examination composed of both selected-response and constructed-response items in the content areas of English, social studies, mathematics, and biology. A secondary purpose was to determine the agreement between the…

During the past two years, three independent studies--conducted by Policy Analysis for California Education (PACE), American Institutes for Research (AIR), and the Consortium for Policy Research in Education (CPRE)--have examined the accomplishments, shortcomings, and continuing challenges of California's Public Schools Accountability Act (PSAA).…