Reviews alternative assessment practices in several nations and questions whether these techniques should be used in the United States. Focuses on moderation, a technique in which trained evaluators adjust grades to ensure equitable distribution among participating schools. Concludes that evaluation in art education presents special problems and…

Explains the need for meaningful performance measures in libraries and the Total Quality Management (TQM) approach to data collection. Five tools representing different stages of a TQM inquiry are covered (i.e., the Shewhart Cycle, flowcharts, cause-and-effect diagrams, Pareto charts, and control charts), and benchmarking is addressed. (Contains…

Describes five interfaces to remote, full-text databases accessed through distributed systems of servers. These are WAIStation for the Macintosh, XWAIS for X-Windows, GWAIS for Gnu-Emacs; SWAIS for dumb terminals, and Rosebud for the Macintosh. Sixteen illustrations provide examples of display screens. Problems and needed improvements are…

A study used correlational analysis and step-wise multiple regression to build mathematical models representing the dynamics of student evaluation of courses and teachers. The resulting models were very strong and were subsequently used to improve academic programs in Kuwait's Institute of Banking Studies. (Author/MSE)

A total of 45 junior and 44 senior high school students were examined during a verbal concept formation task to determine the influence of self-efficacy on self-regulation. Findings showed that self-efficacy influenced aspects of self-regulation. Results provided support for the construct validity of self-efficacy as different from cognitive…

The theoretical background, organization, performance subtests (object assembly, geometric design, block design, mazes, picture completion, and animal pegs), verbal subtests (information, comprehension, arithmetic, vocabulary, similarities, and sentences), reliability, validity (factor analysis), interpretation, advantages, and limitations of the…

Study surveyed South Dakota's Native American and Euro-Asian elementary teachers regarding differences in learning styles between Native American and Euro-Asian children. Analysis revealed significant differences in the way the two groups view factors contributing to lower reading achievement of Native American students. (SM)

C. S. Dweck's achievement goals model was tested by examining relationships between individual differences in achievement-goal tendencies and perceived causality for 123 undergraduates (45 males and 78 females). The stronger each performance-goal tendency, the more unstable and controllable low ability was perceived. Inconsistencies with Dweck's…

Performance assessment is discussed as it relates to evaluation of clinical performance in medical education. Issues include the meaning of reliability and validity in performance assessment and the balance between them, including simple vs. complex behaviors; stability of performance; specific vs. generic abilities; and experts' roles in clinical…

Uses a Hebrew version of the Attributional Style Questionnaire (ASQ) to assess the attributional style among 120 Israeli undergraduate students. Students were asked whether their performance of a cognitive task was a result of personal or situational factors. Findings suggest that attributional style and situational cues contribute to the quality…

A method for training physicians in a simple, efficient, and effective smoking cessation counseling strategy consisted of lunchtime seminar, follow-up reinforcement session, and prompt sheet for use during counseling. The counseling strategy emphasizes individual motivation, assessing and addressing obstacles to quitting, drug therapy, contracting…

Discusses faculty status for academic librarians and describes a study of 304 academic libraries that surveyed tenure and promotion policies. The influences of job performance, research and publication, and service are discussed; educational requirements are examined; and suggestions for future research are given. (25 references) (LRW)

Interviews with 55 new lecturers at an Australian university focused upon early experiences in the institution and attitudes regarding teaching and student evaluations. Among findings were that help in learning about the institution and special consideration in workload favored the more academically qualified while help in solving problems favored…

Children as young as five years of age responded faster in a categorical task when information was initially presented to the left hemisphere, and faster in a coordinate task when information was initially presented to the right hemisphere. This finding provided evidence for the existence of distinct subsystems that compute categorial and…

Forty-nine children (ages 8-17) with mental retardation recognized facial expressions less accurately than did subjects without retardation who were matched on chronological age. Mental age-matched groups showed no differences in accuracy at a younger mental age, but a difference was found at an older mental age. (Author/JDD)