Using the National Postsecondary Student Aid Study Risk Factor Index, students were placed into four traditional/non-traditional (NT) status categories. For each category, persistence was compared between students who completed a First-Year Experience (FYE) course and a control group of students that did not. It was hypothesized that having a FYE…

Several studies have been conducted related to dropouts from on-campus and distance education courses. However, no clear definition of dropout from academic courses was provided. Consequently, this study proposes a clear and precise definition of dropout from academic courses in the context of e-learning courses. Additionally, it is documented in…

Background: Individual differences in conduct problems arise in part from proneness to anger/frustration and poor self-regulation of behavior. However, the genetic and environmental etiology of these connections is not known. Method: Using a twin design, we examined genetic and environmental covariation underlying the well-documented correlations…

At Western Michigan University, the Graduate Center for Research, Writing, and Proposal Development sustains both doctoral students and graduate advising faculty through the doctoral dissertation process and represents one best practices approach that promotes persistence in graduate education--an especially important benefit, given the national…

Students with learning disabilities are entering college at increasingly higher rates, but persistence and degree attainment is lower than that of their nondisabled peers. Poor transition planning has been identified as a likely contributor to this problem. In an effort to address the needs of these students, several studies have been conducted to…

Background: Cole and Knowles (2000) suggest that making sense of experiences and understanding personal-professional connections are the essence of professional development. These researchers posit that through personal life-history exploration, teachers make known implicit theories, values, and beliefs that underpin teaching and being a teacher.…

The current shortage of teachers, owing primarily to retention and the shortfall in the field of special education, presents serious staffing concerns for serving children with special needs. Beyond supply considerations, teacher preparation programs are an integral part of the solution. Deci, Koestner, and Ryan (1999) described the role of…

Approximately one in every three students entering higher education in South Africa will have dropped out by the end of their first year of study. Under-preparedness has repeatedly been cited as one of the most common causes, with academics suggesting that many students lack the reading and writing skills they need to be successful at university.…

There is increased interest in value-added models relying on longitudinal student-level test score data to isolate teachers' contributions to student achievement. The complex linkage of students to teachers as students progress through grades poses both substantive and computational challenges. This article introduces a multivariate Bayesian…

This article examines the career trajectories and biographies of three women who completed the same graduate preservice program in elementary education. While two have become successful teacher leaders, the third has moved in and out of teaching. This inquiry draws on a ten-year longitudinal study of one of these teachers, positioning that…

Offering tutor support to adult learners at the local level has been regarded as a positive recruitment feature of a postgraduate certificate in medical education delivered by distance learning. This paper reports on the efforts of the academic department in question to compare the expectations and perceptions of tutoring practice of key…

In trying to understand the origin of gender differences favoring girls in reading skills, analysts have examined mainly the performance of students who are in the same grade, with samples pooled across socioeconomic status (SES). Using a longitudinal sample in Baltimore, where all students in a randomly selected panel are the same age and are…

This document presents statistics about the higher education in Maryland for 2010. The tables in this document are presented according to the following categories: (1) Students; (2) Retention and Graduation; (3) Degrees; (4) Faculty; (5) Revenues and Expenditures; (6) Tuition and Fees; (7) Financial Aid; (8) Private Career Schools; and (9)…

The knowledge, skills, and practices of early childhood care providers and teachers are critical factors in their delivery of high-quality developmental and educational experiences to young children. However, studies have found that the majority of professionals that make up the current early childhood workforce are not adequately prepared. Recent…

The 2010 edition of this monograph addresses many topics (e.g., administration of orientation programs, family involvement, student characteristics and needs, assessment, and orientation for specific student populations and institutional types) that were included in previous editions but approaches them with new information, updated data, and…