Instructional research is synthesized, using categories specific and functional enough to provide guidance for classroom practice. The opening chapter presents a theory for conducting a theory-based meta-analysis of the research on instruction, outlining a theory that involves four elements of human information processing: the self-system, the…

A study sought: (1) to discover the size of the physical education curriculum gap between theory and practice by determining the percentage of the schools studied used recommended procedures; (2) to determine if school size had any influence on teachers using recommended procedures; (3) to discover the size of the theory practice gap by…

The use of a three-parameter logistic model for applying latent trait theory has become more popular because of the availability of computer programs. The program Logist 5 can be used not only for the item parameter estimation in the three-parameter logistic model, but also in the two parameter logistic model by setting the third parameter equal…

This book is the first part of a two-volume collection devoted to issues facing racial and ethnic minority families. These chapters grew out of a conference at the University of Wisconsin, Madison, which focused on the strengths and resources of minority families. They represent an effort to share knowledge that can be used for the design of…

This study was designed to fill the "implementation measurement" gap. A methodology to quantitatively measure the level of Comprehensive School Reform (CSR) implementation that can be used across a variety of CSR models was developed, and then applied to measure actual implementation of four different CSR models in a large number of schools. The…

Conventional mastery tests designed to make optimal mastery classifications were compared with fixed-length and variable-length adaptive mastery tests. Comparisons between the testing procedures were made across five content areas in an introductory biology course from tests administered to volunteers. The criterion was the student's standing in…

This document was prepared in connection with a three-year longitudinal study of career expectations of high school students conducted to explain scientifically the process by which youth form career expectations, e.g., educational, occupational, and income expectations. Divided into six chapters, this document contains a theoretical rationale for…

School test performance is commonly summarized in terms of the percentage of students at or above a cut score (PAAC) that has been set on a test. Two approaches to estimating the standard errors for school PAACs were examined in this study: conditional standard errors and overall standard errors. The tests used were English language arts and…

This book offers specific suggestions to teachers who are attempting to relinquish old boss-management systems by putting the newer lead-management theory into practice in their classrooms. Leading, rather than bossing, creates classrooms in which students not only do competent work but begin to do quality work. The book begins by explaining that…

A live tailored achievement testing study was conducted to compare procedures based on the one- and three-parameter logistic models. Previous studies yielded inconclusive results because of the procedures by which item calibrations were linked and because of the item selection procedures. Using improved procedures, 83 college students were tested…

In response to the numerous school reform initiatives being implemented, Sternberg proposed a theory of contextual modifiability stating that successful change in a school requires that the school be modifiable. Sternberg developed the School Characteristics Inventory (SCI), a 116-item Likert scale questionnaire, to assess schools'…

Drawing on four examples of institutional research undertaken at San Joaquin Delta College (SJDC), this paper offers six principles to help researchers make their work more relevant and to enable decision makers to utilize research more effectively. The research examples provide brief descriptions of the need for, methodology of, and findings of…

This paper presents the results of ongoing analyses of the reliability of the System for Teaching and Learning Assessment and Review (STAR) as a comprehensive measure of classroom teaching and learning for making teacher certification decisions. Focus was on the effects of high stakes assessment conditions for certification on the generalizability…

The Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) was used in this study, which attempted to develop a new methodology for assessing the speededness of right-scored tests. Traditional procedures of assessing speededness have assumed that the test is scored under formula-scoring instructions; this approach is not always appropriate. In this study,…

A fundamental worldwide trend of the past few decades has been the remarkable expansion of national systems of formal education. Two competing theories have been adduced to explain how this expansion affects patterns of equality of educational opportunity. The thesis of industrialization holds that educational expansion tends to increase equality…