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Descriptors:
Performance Based Assessment; Teacher Education; Data Analysis; Student Leadership; Testing; Resident Advisers; Statistical Analysis; Substance Abuse; Leadership; Workshops

Abstract:
A primary goal of assessment is to deliver truthful and clear information that can be used to inform and improve outcomes. Although there are multiple ways to achieve this goal, common approaches can be broken down into two major categories: (1) direct assessment; and (2) indirect assessment. Indirect assessment typically relies on general measures and students' self-reports of what they have learned. Direct assessment, on the other hand, is a good way to observe very tangible evidence of assessment outcomes. Direct assessments are those using "structured, predetermined response options that can be summarized into meaningful numbers and analyzed statistically." Whereas indirect assessments provide a picture of student perspectives, direct assessments indicate what they actually know or are able to do. Direct assessment can take many forms, such as quizzes, commercial tests, and portfolios. All of these direct assessments share a common theme of being able to demonstrate the students' learning. Conducting direct assessment can provide assessment data that are viewed as more valid and legitimate by both staff and faculty alike. In this article, the authors outline how three separate departments at the University of North Carolina Wilmington (UNCW) used direct assessments to develop a better understanding of what their students knew, as well as to enhance their trainings and workshops. Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract

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Descriptors:
Decision Making; Schools of Education; Data; Teacher Education Curriculum; Teacher Education Programs; Information Literacy; Information Skills; Skill Analysis; Skill Development; Management Information Systems; Data Analysis; Data Collection; Data Interpretation; Educational Needs; Curriculum Implementation; Knowledge Base for Teaching; Policy Analysis; Systems Approach; Change Strategies; Educational Change

Abstract:
Data-driven decision making has become increasingly important in education. Policymakers require educators to use data to inform practice. Although the policy emphasis is growing, what has not increased is attention to building human capacity around data use. Educators need to gain data literacy skills to inform practice. Although some professional development opportunities exist for current educators, fewer formal courses and opportunities for data literacy development in schools of education have been developed and implemented. This article explores issues around the growing need for data-driven decision making in programs in schools of education. The issues are complex and the actors needed to bring about change are multiple. A systems perspective to explore course and programmatic implementation is presented. Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract

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Descriptors:
Academic Achievement; School Effectiveness; Accountability; Achievement Gains; Data Analysis; Correlation; Educational Quality; Evaluation Methods; Scores; Mathematics Tests; Psychometrics; Grade 4; Grade 5; Elementary School Students

Abstract:
Accountability systems that measure student learning rather than student achievement have the potential to more accurately evaluate school quality. However, one methodological concern has remained surprisingly absent from discussions of value-added modeling. Standardized assessments that exhibit either positive or negative correlations between achievement and achievement gains will produce value-added estimates that contradict actual patterns of school effectiveness. This study uses student-level state assessment data to explore the ramifications of these relationships for value-added indicators. Within this state's assessment, the author finds strong negative relationships between achievement and subsequent achievement gains--initially low-scoring students appeared to gain more than their high-achieving peers. Because students are not randomly assigned to schools by achievement, these child-level correlations strongly influence school-level value-added estimates, in some cases quite dramatically. However, the manifestation of these relationships varies across four different analytic techniques, depending on how a particular approach modeled the associations between initial status and gain. (Contains 6 tables, 2 figures and 4 notes.) Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract

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Descriptors:
Economic Impact; Neighborhoods; Urban Renewal; Educational Improvement; Improvement Programs; School Turnaround; Real Estate; School Location; Community Benefits; Data Analysis; Value Judgment; Cost Indexes; Community Development

Abstract:
This study investigates the economic impact of a "turnaround" school on real property values in its surrounding community as related to the argument introduced by Tiebout in 1956 correlating local public goods, in this case school success, to housing-location decision making. Using single-family home sales found on the Multiple Listing System and data from the Realist Tax Record, we found property values in the school's catchment area were higher than in nearby neighborhoods feeding other public schools; houses were selling closer to their initial asking price and were on the market for shorter times than in comparable neighborhoods. (Contains 2 tables, 2 figures, and 4 notes.) Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract

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Descriptors:
Educational Finance; Evidence; Stakeholders; Expenditures; Voting; Tax Effort; Community Characteristics; School District Wealth; Operating Expenses; Political Attitudes; Consciousness Raising; Change Strategies; Multiple Regression Analysis; Data Analysis; Statistical Data; Input Output Analysis; Cost Effectiveness; Audits (Verification); School Budget Elections; Politics of Education; Schematic Studies

Abstract:
Using logistic regression, this study sought to understand the relationship between district characteristics, district finances, levy characteristics, and campaign expenditures with new operating levy outcomes. We found that employee benefits as a percentage of the district's budget were negatively associated with levy outcomes, while salaries were positively associated with levy outcomes, suggesting that voters may be more sensitive to retirement and healthcare benefits than salaries when voting. While campaign spending was related to levy success, types of expenditures were largely insignificant. School district personnel must be cognizant of the local conditions in crafting campaigns and recruiting community stakeholders. (Contains 4 tables, 1 figure, and 6 notes.) Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract

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Descriptors:
Student Attitudes; Gender Differences; Genetics; Foreign Countries; Data Analysis; Comparative Analysis; Scientific Concepts; Religion; Parent Background; Educational Attainment; Multivariate Analysis; Monte Carlo Methods; Gender Bias; Social Environment; Cultural Context; Trend Analysis; Behavior Patterns; Questionnaires

Abstract:
Innatism is the belief that most of the human personality can be determined by genes. This ideology is dangerous, especially when it claims to be scientific. The present study investigates conceptions of 1060 students from Estonia and France related to genetic determinism of some human behaviours. Factors taken into account included students' religion, gender, parents' education level and the school curriculum. The data analysis used [chi][squared] for single comparisons but also multivariate analyses as between-class analysis and the Monte Carlo test to differentiate samples. The difference in the answers from students of the two countries is strongly significant, Estonian students' answers being more innatist and linked with more intolerant attitudes than French ones, although in both cases the majority is tolerant. For each country, very few factors differentiate students: only gender in France for the question on sexism and schools in Estonia. These findings show how sociocultural context is important for questions containing values interacting with scientific knowledge. The interpretation of the results infers significantly different trends among Estonian and French students' conceptions about the determinism of human behaviours and performances. (Contains 1 table and 7 figures.) Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract

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Descriptors:
Higher Education; Institutional Evaluation; Governance; Data Analysis; Institutional Research; Professional Identity; Institutional Characteristics; Knowledge Management; Change Strategies; Educational Change; Educational Policy; Educational Development; Policy Formation; Case Studies; Data Collection; Data Processing; Educational Environment; Performance Factors; Comparative Education

Abstract:
Recent changes in European higher education have accompanied a strong desire and need by national ministries to have comparable data across institutions and a growing recognition from campus leaders that effective planning and decision-making requires reliable institutional data and analyses. This has induced changes and restructuring of duties and roles of administration, administrative staff and academic staff. In North America, internal institutional data analysis is often referred to as institutional research. We examine the roles and functions of institutional research within North America and how the changes within European higher education have created a purpose for institutional research. Specifically, we explore the topical areas of institutional assessment, data management, institutional governance, as well as the changing identity of academic professionals within European universities. Within our examination, we explore in-depth one European country's higher education system to demonstrate how history, culture and legislative changes manifest into a need for institutional research. Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract

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Descriptors:
Academic Achievement; Factor Analysis; Factor Structure; Educational Attitudes; Achievement Need; Comparative Education; Cross Cultural Studies; Outcome Measures; Individual Differences; Social Differences; Comparative Analysis; Learning Motivation; Self Motivation; Measurement Objectives; Measurement Techniques; International Education; Achievement Tests; Attitude Measures; Predictor Variables; Educational Research; Data Analysis; Achievement Rating; Evaluation Methods; Evaluation Research

Abstract:
We estimated the invariance of educational achievement (EA) and learning attitudes (LA) measures across nations. A multi-group confirmatory factor analysis was used to estimate the invariance of educational achievement and learning attitudes across 55 nations (Programme for International Student Assessment [PISA] 2006 data, N = 354,203). The constructs had the same meaning (factor loadings) but different scales (intercepts). Our conclusion is that comparisons of the relationships between educational achievement and learning attitudes across countries need to take into consideration two sources of variability: individual differences of students and group differences of educational systems. The lack of scalar invariance in EA and LA measures means that the relationships between EA and LA may have a different meaning at the level of nations and at the student level within countries. In other words, as PISA measures are not invariant in scalar sense, the comparisons across countries with nationally aggregated scores are not justified. (Contains 2 figures and 5 tables.) Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract

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Descriptors:
Mathematics; Course Selection (Students); Gender Differences; Ethnic Diversity; STEM Education; Longitudinal Studies; Racial Differences; Advanced Courses; Performance Factors; Academic Achievement; High School Students; Majors (Students); Achievement Gap; Predictor Variables; Academic Records; Data Analysis; Statistical Analysis; Educational Trends; School Effectiveness; Institutional Characteristics; Achievement Need; Individual Differences

Abstract:
In 2004, the pattern in academic pathways for high school students in the USA showed that students were completing more demanding mathematics courses. Despite the upward pattern in advanced-level mathematics course-taking, disparities among racial/ethnic groups persisted between 1982 and 2004. Using data from the Education Longitudinal Study of 2002 (ELS: 2002; Ingels et al., 2007), the current study sought to advance understanding of gender and ethnic differences in advanced mathematics course-taking. Furthermore, this study examined how the differences are related to science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) pathways in college. Results showed that the relationships between exploratory factors (both individual- and school-level factors) and advanced mathematics course-taking and STEM choices differed across ethnicity and gender. This highlights the need for further research that disaggregates data by both ethnicity and gender. (Contains 3 tables and 2 figures.) Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract

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Descriptors:
Educational Quality; Foreign Countries; Instructional Leadership; Urban Schools; Data Analysis; Rural Schools; Educational Resources; Parent Participation; Parent School Relationship; Elementary Schools; Questionnaires; Teacher Attitudes; Hierarchical Linear Modeling; Educational Environment; Rural Urban Differences

Abstract:
Shortcomings of educational quality in rural schools remain a key focus in the literature related to developing countries. This paper studies whether rural primary schools in Malaysia, an upper middle-income developing country, are still experiencing lower levels of educational resources, school climate, school leadership, and parental involvement than their urban counterparts. A survey questionnaire, containing items related to these 4 factors, was distributed to teachers in the 2 school locations. In the study, 1183 teachers from 63 rural schools and 1367 teachers from 60 urban schools were involved. Due to the hierarchical nature of the data, multilevel modelling analysis was used for data analysis. Open-ended questions were analyzed using text analysis. Findings showed that generally no differences between urban and rural schools in educational quality as perceived by teachers were found, which contradicts previous studies. Nevertheless, results did show that rural teachers perceived lower levels of school climate. (Contains 6 tables and 1 figure.) Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract

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