An active-learning concurrent preparatory general chemistry course was adopted to replace a prerequisite course that lacked effectiveness in improving student outcomes. Our previous study showed that the concurrent course increased final exam performance and retention in a cohort of students. This paper studies the course modality impact of the…

In this article, after describing one approach for teaching critical thinking (CT) that was in place at Baker University from 1990 to 2008, the author describes their experience assessing CT using three standardized exams and shows why the choice of a standardized CT test can be problematic and the results misleading. These results can be…

This study examines trends in Black student achievement and in the Black-White achievement gap over the period 2000 to 2007, employing data from ten states drawn from the NAEP Grade 8 mathematics assessments. Results are obtained for three levels of aggregation: the state, school poverty stratum within the state, and schools within poverty…

This paper profiles California's test score trends through 2008-09. In 2004, the mean scale score on the state 4th grade reading test was 341 for non-Title I students and 315 for Title I students. In 2008, the mean scale score in 4th grade reading was 379 for non-Title I students and 340 for Title I students. Between 2004 and 2008, the mean scale…

An analysis of California's Greater Avenues for Independence (GAIN) work-to-welfare program did not find achievement test score improvement as a result of mandatory adult education participation. This reanalysis of GAIN impact with 581 enrollees and 500 controls finds a more positive overall impact and confirms test score improvements in one…

Four years after the inception of a school desegregation busing program, the average reading achievement test scores of the bused pupils showed the same trends as those among the receiving pupils and pupils at unaffected schools. Tests scores among all kindergarten pupils showed an upward trend, as well as scores in the first, second, and third…

This fact sheet describes important changes in the academic characteristics of recent California high school graduates that relate directly to university eligibility and student preparation. The number of public high school graduates in California has grown by 9.7% since 1995, and the proportion of graduates who complete the full university…

The California Assessment Program (CAP) collects a wide range of achievement and demographic data to help local schools and districts improve their instructional programs. Tests in the areas of English/language arts, mathematics, history-social science and science designed by California educators are administered to students in grades 3, 6, 8, and…

Data collected at three schools in California with programs for students of limited English proficiency (LEP) suggests that exit rates should not be the focus of evaluations of LEP programs and that schools cannot adequately answer questions about students' academic achievement and English language acquisition by program type. (SLD)

The required annual report on compensatory programs funded by the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, Title I, describes California's efforts in the first full year of operation. In general, the programs sought to raise reading and verbal performance levels, improve performance as measured by achievement tests, and also improve students'…

The Gilroy, California, Unified School District contracted with Westinghouse Learning Corporation for the 1970-71 school year for the purpose of improving reading and mathematics achievement of approximately 100 Spanish-surnamed boys and girls from grades 2-4. The average gain at the end of the program was 0.6 achievement years in reading and 0.8…

During the 1975-76 school year, all second and third grade pupils in California were tested in reading achievement and all students in grades six and twelve were tested in reading, written expression, spelling, and mathematics. Reading scores for second and third graders have been improving since 1966, but the 1975-76 scores show little…