A 1-year panel study of 591 children in fifth grade explored the accumulative effects of the presence and contexts of video game violence on aggression and the antiviolence norm in Japan, on the basis of a comprehensive content analysis of video game violence. The results suggest that contextual effects of violent video games are quite complex,…

A classroom exercise for undergraduate and beginning graduate students that takes about one class period is proposed and discussed. It is an easy, interesting exercise that demonstrates important aspects of sampling techniques (sample amount, particle size, and the representativeness of the sample in relation to the bulk material). The exercise…

In the summer of 2006, several major news outlets gave prominent coverage to a sociological study with a grim message: Americans' social isolation had increased radically since the 1980s. Whereas in 1985, Americans reported that, on average, they had 2.94 friends or family members with whom they discussed important matters, by 2004 that number had…

This report provides the Nebraska Legislature with comparative statistics to monitor and evaluate progress toward achieving "three key priorities" for Nebraska's postsecondary education system: (1) Increase the number of students who enter postsecondary education in Nebraska; (2) Increase the percentage of students who enroll and…

This report, the fourth in an IERC series on public school principals in Illinois, summarizes recent research on the characteristics associated with principal effectiveness and examines Illinois data on the relationship between principal characteristics, student proficiency, and teacher qualifications. In order to investigate the relationships…

The digital divide between genders and generations in school, i.e., between teachers and secondary school students in Finland, was investigated comparing statistical data in 1999-2000 and in 2002-2004. ICT skills were intertwined with both generation and gender. Teachers were familiar with some traditional applications, students with new…

In 2009, Lumina Foundation officially adopted its Big Goal that 60 percent of Americans obtain a high-quality postsecondary degree or credential by 2025. That same year, Lumina began reporting on progress toward the Big Goal in a series of reports titled "A Stronger Nation through Higher Education". The core of the reports is Census data…

This report provides information on fields of bachelor's degrees in the United States using data from the 2009 American Community Survey (ACS). It includes estimates of fields of bachelor's degree by demographic characteristics including age, sex, race, Hispanic origin, nativity, and educational attainment. This report also looks at geographic and…

The "Annual Disability Statistics Compendium" is a publication of statistics on people with disabilities and government programs that serve the population with disabilities and is modeled after the Statistical Abstracts of the United States, published yearly by the U.S. Department of Commerce. The "Compendium" is designed to…

In 1970, prior to the 1972 enactment of Title IX, there were only 2.5 women's teams per school and a total of only about 16,000 female intercollegiate athletes. In 1977/1978, the academic year preceding the mandatory compliance date for Title IX, the number of varsity sports for women had grown to 5.61 per school. A decade later, in 1988, the…

Americans' perceptions of childhood disability have changed dramatically over the past century, as have their ideas about health and illness, medical developments, threats to children's health and development, and expectations for child functioning. Neal Halfon, Amy Houtrow, Kandyce Larson, and Paul Newacheck examine how these changes have…

How many students repeat a grade each year? How do retention rates vary across states and over time? Despite extensive research on the predictors and consequences of grade retention, there is no systematic way to quantify state-level retention rates; even national estimates rely on imperfect proxy measures. We present a conceptually simple…

This dissertation consists of three essays on education and macroeconomics. The first chapter analyzes whether public education financing systems can account for large differences among developed countries in earnings inequality and intergenerational earnings persistence. I first document facts about public education in the U.S. and Norway, which…

This "Practitioner's Guide to Growth Models," commissioned by the Technical Issues in Large-Scale Assessment (TILSA) and Accountability Systems & Reporting (ASR), collaboratives of the "Council of Chief State School Officers," describes different ways to calculate student academic growth and to make judgments about the…

Due to the paucity of research on struggling adult readers, researchers rely on child-based reading constructs and measures when investigating the reading skills of adults struggling with reading. The purpose of the two studies in this investigation was to evaluate the appropriateness of using child-based reading constructs and assessments with…