We report here on a comparative study of middle school students' attitudes towards science involving three countries: England, Singapore and the U.S.A. Complete attitudinal data sets from TIMSS (Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study) 2011 were used, thus giving a very large sample size (N = 20,246), compared to other studies in the…

This study examined the psychometric properties of a social-networking site (SNS) activities scale (SNSAS) using Rasch Analysis. Items were also examined with Rasch Principal Components Analysis (PCA) and Differential Item Functioning (DIF) across groups of university students (i.e., males and females from the United States [US] and Europe; N =…

English language learners (ELLs) constitute one of the fastest growing subpopulations of students in the United States. It is important to determine whether the assessments used by states in determining students' proficiencies are valid and fair for ELLs. This study focused on several standards-based assessments in mathematics and science…

Recent international studies note that countries whose students perform well on international science assessments report the need to change science education. Some countries use assessments for diagnostic purposes to assist teachers in addressing their students' needs. However, in the United States, standards-based reform has focused the national…