A nontechnical approach to statistics is presented. The examples and illustrations have been drawn from the classroom and the needs of teachers who wish to measure and understand the progress of their pupils. The areas covered include the following topics: (1) different forms of average, middle value, dispersion of data around the average, and the…

To reduce problems in comparing gains in the rate of students who progress to the next level of education, a nonlinear transformation is recommended. Two such transformations, probits and logits, are presented. Log linear models are recommended for an appropriate statistical test of sampling error. (Author/GDC)

Using data from the U.S. Decennial Census and the National Longitudinal Surveys, we find little evidence of differences in the return to schooling across racial and ethnic groups, even with attempts to control for ability and measurement error biases. While our point estimates are relatively similar across racial and ethnic groups, our conclusion…

The Third International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) measured mathematics and science achievement of middle school students in more than 40 countries. About one quarter of the tests' nearly 300 items were free response items requiring students to generate their own answers. Scoring these responses used a two-digit diagnostic code rubric…

The National Household Education Survey (NHES) is a telephone survey of the noninstitutionalized civilian population of the United States that collects data on educational issues that are best explored through contact with households rather than with institutions. In the 1996 NHES (NHES:96) the topical components of interest were parent and family…

A broad range of strategies in sampling, measurement, design, execution, implementation, and analysis are examined. Specific strategies are suggested that tend to be successful in the real world of psychiatric clinical research. (Author)

The quality of educational data in Nepal was evaluated by investigating three questions: (1) the extent of reporting error in national education data; (2) accuracy of error estimation; and (3) levels at which error is introduced. Evidence suggests that data may be more accurate than decision makers suppose. (SLD)

This paper comments on a critical review of cohort studies on PCB-related neurodevelopmental deficit in young children by D.V. Cicchetti, A.S. Kaufman, and S.S. Sparrow (CKS). Major points of criticism of CKS, namely alleged violation of statistical principles, presumed lack of clinical significance of findings, and alleged insufficient control of…

Among the plethora of cooperative learning studies, several investigations of cooperative or group assessment (CA) have appeared. In this investigation, the methodology of R. R. McCown (1992) is refined to examine CA in a classroom setting, primarily examining achievement outcomes and student perceptions of the CA process. Fifty-six undergraduates…

The regression-discontinuity approach to evaluating educational programs is reviewed, and regression-discontinuity post-program mean differences under various conditions are discussed. The regression-discontinuity design is used to determine whether post-program differences exist between an experimental program and a control group. The difference…

A two-dimensional, compensatory item response model and a unidimensional model were fitted to the reading and mathematics items in the Woodcock-Johnson Psycho-Educational Battery-Revised for a sample of 1,000 adults aged 20-39 years. Multidimensional information theory predicts that if the unidimensional abilities can be represented as vectors in…

One of the most frequently used research methods in education and psychology involves repeated observations on the same individuals. When sample sizes are relatively small and a multivariate analysis lacks power, there are currently two analytical options in testing time effects. One is to assume a time series structure to these observations, and…

The advantages of applying confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) to multitrait-multimethod (MTMM) data are widely recognized. However, because CFA as traditionally applied to MTMM data incorporates single indicators of each scale (i.e., each trait/method combination), important weaknesses are the failure to: (1) correct appropriately for measurement…

A framework is described for preparing process profiles of two different surveys conducted by the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES): the Recent College Graduates Survey and the Higher Education General Information Survey (HEGIS) Fall Enrollment Survey. The process profile examines the adequacy of the entire survey process, using…

This paper evaluates the logic underlying various criticisms of statistical significance testing and makes specific recommendations for scientific and editorial practice that might better increase the knowledge base. Reliance on the traditional hypothesis testing model has led to a major bias against nonsignificant results and to misinterpretation…