A critical look at two typical research designs is presented, the first study being an investigation of field dependence and reaction time in senior tennis players, and the second being an investigation of the concepts of locus of control and achievement motivation in highly successful male competitive tennis players age 65 and older. A critique…

This workbook, which accompanies An Evaluation Primer (TM 007 500) consists of 19 practical exercises for applying evaluation skills to hypothetical educational programs. Each chapter corresponds to a chapter in the primer, with answers keyed accordingly. Intended to provide an introduction to evaluation, the exercises include: identifying the…

Sixteen item statistics recommended for use in the development of criterion-referenced tests were evaluated. There were two major criteria: (1) practicability in terms of ease of computation and interpretation and (2) meaningfulness in the context of the development process. Most of the statistics were based on a comparison of performance changes…

The state of the art in observational studies is discussed, with emphasis on explanatory research--studies of program effectiveness in which an attempt is made to explain the reasons for the results as well as describing the results. In addition to the collection of data and presentation of statistical facts, the explanatory study involves the…

Obtaining accurate and reliable data on curriculum and instruction in two-year colleges poses many unique problems for institutional researchers. The methodologies presented here are those used by the Center for the Study of Community Colleges in a study of science instructional programs. The study included a curriculum component, a survey of…

The average design effects for statistics estimated from the base-year National Longitudinal Study data are presented. Attempts to partition the effects into those due to stratification, clustering, and unequal weighting are discussed. The expected increases in subpopulation sample sizes due to oversampling are calculated and compared with the…

The twofold purpose of this study was to examine the impact of student teachers on pupil achievement and to investigate whether or not cooperating teachers and college supervisors were able to discriminate between those variables that correlated with pupil attainment. Fourteen classrooms of learners who had two different student teachers during…

This report, second in a series of seven, addresses the question, "What events disrupt classroom instruction and what are the most effective techniques teachers use to cope with these disruptions?" This report is a formal presentation of the research. The methodology of the study is delineated, the participants (teachers and observers)…

The issues of treatment assignment is ordinarily dealt with within the framework of testing aptitude treatment interaction (ATI) hypothesis. ATI research mostly uses linear regression techniques, and an ATI exists when the aptitude treatment (AT) regression lines cross each other within the relevant interval of the aptitude variable. Consistent…

The paper presents an overview of an ethological approach to the study of abnormal human behavior and a review of research using ethological approaches (with an emphasis on autism research). Ethology is defined as the study of behavior as it occurs in its natural habitat. The four types of questions ethologists ask about behavior, such as what is…

The generalizability issue is reviewed through previously published results and by presenting new data. When classes (teacher-course combinations) are used as the object of measurement, studies show very consistent results. However, when either the teacher or the course is treated as the object of measurement, with the other being a facet over…

The equipercentile assumption states that students in traditional classrooms who receive no other instructional assistance, will maintain their relative rank order over time. To test this assumption, fall to fall test results on the SRA Achievement Tests were obtained for grades 2-3, and 6-7. Total reading and total mathematics growth scale values…

A study conducted by the School District of Philadelphia and that city's Federal Reserve Bank, entitled "What Works in Reading," was used as a case study to determine what factors influence the translation of research findings into educational policy. The Philadelphia study, which examined variables associated with achievement growth in…

This supporting statement accompanied the first followup questionnaire for the National Longitudinal Study of the High School Class of 1972, when it was submitted for government clearance. The first part of the statement gives the background, uses, and justification of the survey; the largest part describes the plans for the first follow-up…

All available research in which a therapeutic expectancy was directly assessed and than related to a measure of outcome was reviewed. The review revealed that across all studies both client and therapist expectancies appear related to improvement; however, in the better-designed research a differential pattern emerges in which client expectancy no…