New Hampshire's Performance Assessment of Competency Education (PACE) innovative assessment system uses student scores from classroom performance assessments as well as other classroom tests for school accountability purposes. One concern is that not having annual state testing may incentivize schools and teachers away from teaching the breadth of…

Sources of longitudinal achievement data are increasing thanks partially to the expansion of available interim assessments. These tests are often used to monitor the progress of students, classrooms, and schools within and across school years. Yet, few statistical models equipped to approximate the distinctly seasonal patterns in the data exist,…

School Improvement Grants (SIGs) exemplify a capacity-building investment to spur sustainable changes in America's persistently lowest-performing schools and stimulate the economy. This study examines both short- and longer-term effects of the first two cohorts of SIG schools from four locations across the country. Dynamic…

Prior graphing research has demonstrated that clinical interviews and free-response instruments produce very different results than multiple-choice instruments, indicating potential validity problems when using multiple-choice instruments to assess graphing skills (Berg & Smith in "Science Education," 78(6), 527-554, 1994). Extending…

Idaho uses the English Language Arts and Mathematics tests from the Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium (SBAC) for the Idaho Standard Achievement Tests (ISAT). ISAT results have been have been reported almost exclusively as "percent proficient" statistics (i.e., the percentage of Idaho students who performed at the "A" level…

This study aims to determine students' characteristics that predict their academic success. The study group consisted of 4,229 students studying at middle schools in Burdur. The data were collected using a questionnaire in the 2014-2015 academic year and analyzed using CHAID (Chi-squared Automatic Interaction Detection) analysis, a type of…

The aim of the study was to determine whether the general intelligence, cognitive processes, school achievement, and intelligence-achievement relationship of adolescents with subclinical levels of obsessive-compulsive symptoms differed from those of their normal counterparts. From an initial large pool of 14-year-old Bengali students in eighth…

Gender achievement gaps on national and state assessments have been a popular research topic over the last few decades. Many prior studies examine these gaps in different subjects (e.g., mathematics, reading, and science) and grades (typically kindergarten through eighth grade) for students living in various regions (typically states or countries)…

This study investigated whether the subjective well-being of eighth grade students varies with specific individual characteristics, individual circumstances and familial characteristics. The study population was comprised of 408 students (206 girls, 202 boys) who were in the eighth grade in the academic year 2014-2015 in Malatya in Turkey. Data…

This study examined the relations between the schoolwide prevalence of teasing and bullying (PTB) and schoolwide academic performance in a sample of 271 Virginia middle schools. In addition, the study examined the mediating effects of student engagement. A three-step sequence of path models investigated associations between schoolwide PTB and…

The purpose of this study is to investigate whether students are more successful on abstract or illustrated test questions. To this end, the questions on an abstract test were changed into a visual format, and these tests were administered every three days to a total of 240 students at six middle schools located in the Erzurum city center and…

This study concerns peer selection and influence dynamics in early adolescents' friendships regarding academic achievement. Using longitudinal social network analysis (RSiena), both selection and influence processes were investigated for students' average grades and their cluster-specific grades (i.e., language, exact, and social cluster). Data…

Students take standardized tests and in most cases, the results have implications not only to the students, but also teachers and administrators. The students' motivation to perform may be a factor, especially in the infrequent situations when there aren't consequences to the students, only the administration. The tests in the middle school years…

For the past decade, the accountability model associated with No Child Left Behind (NCLB) emphasized proficiency on end of year tests; with Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) the emphasis on proficiency within statewide testing programs, though now integrated with other measures of student learning, nevertheless remains a primary metric for…

The purpose of this study was to examine the influence of teacher-related factors on the academic achievement of 8th grade special education students. Specifically, this study examines effect of the teacher related factors of instructional technique, teacher specialization, teaching experience, teacher certification, and teacher attitudes toward…