The South African education system bears evidence of fluctuations in the final Grade 12 mathematics marks occurring across different learner profiles. This study reflected on the National Senior Certificate (NSC) mathematics results from the Western Cape Education Department for the years 2009 to 2014, the period just after the introduction of the…

In school settings, sources of self-efficacy have the potential to directly and indirectly influence performance. The problem of this study is the direct relationship between sources of self-efficacy and achievement. In connection with this problem, the impact of sources of mathematics self-efficacy on high school senior students' mathematics test…

This research proposes a new statistic for testing latent variable distribution fit for unidimensional item response theory (IRT) models. If the typical assumption of normality is violated, then item parameter estimates will be biased, and dependent quantities such as IRT score estimates will be adversely affected. The proposed statistic compares…

Background: The excessive use of Internet-based technologies has received a considerable attention over the past years. Despite this, there is relatively little research on how general Internet usage patterns at and outside of school as well as on weekends may be associated with mathematics achievement. Moreover, only a handful of studies have…

Students from urban high schools are usually faced with adverse environmental factors in their pursuit of academic success. These factors make learning more challenging and may confound the measurement of academic performance itself. This study explores how one such factor, ambient noise, affects the measurement of mathematics achievement.…

Purpose: The purpose of the study was to evaluate the implementation and impact of the IDEA Public Schools' Mathematics Curriculum Redesign (MCR) effort, funded by an Innovation and Research (EIR) grant. Methods: The study used a quasi-experimental matching design to examine the effect of MCR on student achievement outcomes. The study compared…

The Supreme Court has agreed to weigh in on the legality of racial preferences, in part thanks to a lawsuit against Harvard College alleging that the school discriminates against Asian-Americans. Proving discrimination at a specific school is an arduous task, requiring access to private, detailed admissions records--as the legal documents in that…

This study uses high school transcript data from the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) High School Transcript Study (HSTS) to determine the validity of student-reported high school courses on the NAEP twelfth-grade student questionnaire. Given that the HSTS is not administered as part of every NAEP twelfth-grade assessment,…

One of the reasons to use technology in education is to visualize and explore the insight of mathematics with optimum possibilities. Geogebra gives visual meaning to symbolic ideas along with optimum dynamic possibilities. The purpose of this experimental study was to know about the potential effect of dynamic geometry software on diverse…

The purpose of this study was to examine mathematically able female adolescents' perceptions of their accelerated mathematics programs. To this end, eight female adolescents were asked to reflect retrospectively in response to a self-administered questionnaire on their perceptions and experiences of a secondary accelerated mathematics program and…

Concerns about the breadth of the U.S. income distribution and limited intergenerational mobility have led to a focus on educational achievement gaps by socio-economic status (SES). Using intertemporally linked assessments from NAEP [National Assessment of Educational Progress], TIMSS [Trends in International Mathematics and Science Survey], and…

The study tested 4 direct and 28 indirect teacher expectancy effects on students' results in the mathematics and literacy sections of the matriculation test, and their final marks in the 12th-grade mathematics and literacy class. The following were considered as mediators: student self-esteem, their self-expectancy, and time spent learning…

The Office of English Language Acquisition (OELA) has synthesized key data on English learners (ELs) into two-page PDF sheets, by topic, with graphics, plus key contacts. The topics for this report on English Learners (ELs) and NAEP include: (1) 2013 Reading Scores for Grades 4, 8, and 12: ELs vs. Non-ELs; (2) 2013 Mathematics Scores for Grades 4,…

STEM education was a systematic teaching and/or learning process in the STEM fields and a positive correlation existed between STEM education, and the economic prosperity and power of a nation in the globalized world. In recent years, rising concerns have emerged about American STEM education. Many stakeholders wondered that whether the nation has…

Florida enacted legislation in 2008 for a statewide program known as the Florida College and Career Readiness Initiative (FCCRI), which was intended to reduce the need for postsecondary remediation. The FCCRI consisted of testing grade 11 students to determine their college readiness and offering math and English college readiness and success…