A total of 685 articles in "Mental Retardation,""American Journal of Mental Deficiency," and "American Journal on Mental Retardation" from 1980 through 1989 were examined. The mental retardation classification system developed by the American Association on Mental Retardation was used in over 50 percent of the…

The effect of reducing the number of score groups in the matching criterion of the Mantel-Haenszel procedure when screening for differential item functioning was investigated with a simulated data set. Results suggest that more than modest reductions cannot be recommended when ability distributions of reference and focal groups differ. (SLD)

This study examined the influence of challenge-based recreation on the collective efficacy of families with at-risk adolescents. Thirty-four families participated in one of three experimental groups and a control group. Collective family recreation efficacy and conflict resolution efficacy increased for families in all three recreation contexts.…

The purpose of this study is to demonstrate that performance assessment increases educational value in teaching-learning activities using a quasi-experimental research design. In this research, the three measurement criteria of educational value are suggested as "improvement & advancement," "sincerity & enthusiasm," and "individuality &…

The purpose of this study was to assess phonological and morphosyntactic change in children with co-occurring speech and language impairments using different goal attack strategies. Participants included 47 preschoolers, ages 3;0 (years;months) to 5;11, with impairments in both speech and language: 40 children in the experimental group and 7 in a…

The present study aims to investigate whether the learning materials that based on constructivist learning principles have an effect on fifth grade Social Studies students' attitudes, their academic success and their retention. The study was conducted at Sehit Ali Gaffar Okkan Elementary School, Eskisehir. The participants of the study were 5th…

Despite the increasing use of the microgenetic methodology to examine change, the techniques employed to analyse microgenetic data remain fairly unsophisticated. This paper reviews the existing ways of analysing such data and describes their limitations. We use two recent studies to illustrate how modelling can avoid these problems and reveal…

This quasi-experimental study investigated how direct contact between students with and without disabilities impacted disability-related attitudes and specific self-efficacy of study participants. Study participants (N = 170) were students without disabilities who attended general education schools. Students in an experimental group (N = 77)…

This study examined whether requiring undergraduate college nonmusic majors, enrolled in a music fundamentals course, to own a keyboard would enhance their keyboard skills. The course included instruction in reading notation, singing and keyboard skills. There were two groups. One group (experimental) owned keyboards and had them accessible at…

There is a great need to identify specific instructional methods that effectively promote positive skill development in young children with developmental disabilities. One method that has received strong empirical support with children with autism is Discrete Trial Teaching (DTT); however, the effectiveness of DTT has not been extensively…

This study of middle-school students in California focused on the effectiveness of using innovative teaching strategies for enhancing the classroom environment, students' attitudes and conceptual development. A sample of 661 students from 22 classrooms in four inner city schools completed modified forms of the Constructivist Learning Environment…

Cross-cultural skills are a major criterion for success in the global business environment. For American managers in multinational organizations, this means learning to manage cultural difference at three levels: self, interpersonal, and organizational. Since literature indicates that training programs based on cross-cultural and learning theories…

This article builds on 30h of observations made in classrooms in secondary schools in Tanzania in the fall of 2004. The article presents an empirical study using an experimental group that was taught in Kiswahili and a control group taught the same topics in English. The author takes the reader straight into some of the classrooms and gives…

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of the conceptual change text oriented instruction over traditionally designed instruction on ninth grade students' understanding of the human circulatory system concepts, and their retention of this understanding. The subjects of this study consist of 73 ninth grade female students…

In this essay, the authors argue that linked-course learning communities serve students at nonresidential metropolitan public universities by increasing their academic achievement, reducing their attrition, and engaging them in the project of public education. They use a winter 2004 research project to argue that linked courses create supportive…