In this paper, we develop a mixed stochastic approximation expectation-maximization (MSAEM) algorithm coupled with a Gibbs sampler to compute the marginalized maximum a posteriori estimate (MMAPE) of a confirmatory multidimensional four-parameter normal ogive (M4PNO) model. The proposed MSAEM algorithm not only has the computational advantages of…

Although phonemic awareness is an essential skill in learning to decode written words, practitioners may question which phonemic awareness tasks best operationalize their relationship with orthographic mapping, the process that converts a decoded word into one instantly recognized on sight. Tests from the "Woodcock-Johnson IV" were used…

This article reviews the administrative, scoring, and psychometric properties of the Wechsler Individual Achievement Test, Fourth Edition (WIAT-4, NCS Pearson, 2020). The WIAT-4 is one of the more commonly administered broadband measures of academic achievement. The instrument was determined to be well-conceptualized, and generally…

Part-time work is a form of career development that can be expected to provide students with resources of value to their transitions into work. International research shows that teenagers who work part-time alongside their full-time studies can expect to do better when they entered the labour force as young adults. Studies suggest strongly that…

Learning trajectories refer to the progression of students' knowledge acquisition and skill development within a specific domain. By identifying students' proficiency levels across specific knowledge points or attributes, cognitive diagnostic models (CDMs) allow researchers to systematically describe and analyze learning trajectories. This study…

While testlets have proven useful for assessing complex skills, the stem shared by multiple items often induces correlations between responses, leading to violations of local independence (LI), which can result in biased parameter and ability estimates. Diagnostic procedures for detecting testlet effects typically involve model comparisons testing…

A secondary analysis of PISA 2018 data was conducted to investigate the reading achievement of students with an immigrant background. While prior research suggests the importance of demographic characteristics in secondary PISA analyses, a major critique is that PISA centers destination characteristics over origin ones, limiting the study of the…

Levels and drivers of adolescent life satisfaction (LS) vary across nations. School is known to be an important aspect of life affecting adolescent LS, but there are gender differences in how schools may influence LS. However, little is known about how these gender differences vary across countries. A series of statistical analyses (bivariate…

Collaborative problem-solving competence (CPSC) is a core skill in the twenty-first century. As an innovative literacy, CPSC was assessed for the first time in the Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) 2015. Our study aims to identify the effects of student's perceptions toward interpersonal relationships on CPSC in PISA 2015.…

This quantitative, causal comparative study analyzed the effect of participation in a blended learning program has on the STAAR Mathematics and Reading Language Arts assessments for fifth grade students in a large, urban school district in North Texas. The study evaluated the performance of fifth graders on the STAAR assessment in mathematics…

The Texas Education Agency (TEA) has implemented a student accountability system that measures students' performance on the State of Texas Assessment for Academic Readiness (STAAR) in several content areas. Therefore, teachers and administrators all over the state are always seeking ways to ensure that students are academically well prepared.…

Cross-national comparisons of educational achievement rely upon each participating country collecting nationally representative data. While obtaining high response rates is a key part of reaching this goal, other potentially important factors may also be at play. This paper focuses on one such issue--exclusion rates--which has received relatively…

Learning strategies have been recognized as important predictors of mathematical achievement. In recent studies, it has been found that Asian students use combined learning strategies, primarily including metacognitive strategies, rather than rote memorization. To the best of the authors' knowledge, there is only one prior study including South…

Background: Life satisfaction is a key component of students' subjective well-being due to its impact on academic achievement and lifelong health. Although previous studies have investigated life satisfaction through different lenses, few of them employed machine learning (ML) approaches. Objective: Using ML algorithms, the current study predicts…

The recent PISA mathematics results delivered disappointing news for the United States of America (USA). These results underscored the education system's continuing inequalities. An important question concerns to what extent and to which part of the educational system do these sources of inequality occur? In this paper we use PISA 2012 data merged…