Generally speaking, students have difficulty reporting out measurements and estimates of quantities used in the laboratory, and with handling the significant figures associated with them. When required to make calculation involving quantities with different numbers of significant figures, they have difficulty in assigning the corresponding digits…

Philosophy of data should not be dismissed as a cluster of scholastic puzzles whose solutions are of limited practical value. On the contrary, philosophy of data should be recognized as constituting the core of a field of data studies that is informed by, but far from equivalent to, statistics, computer science, and library and information studies.

The purpose of this paper is to develop a more general method for sample recruitment in experiments that is purposive (not random) and that results in a sample that is compositionally similar to the generalization population. This work builds on Tipton et al. (2011) by offering solutions to a larger class of problems than the non-overlapping…

This chapter will provide potential models for analyzing learning data through a discussion of screening data and then analyzing that data using appropriate statistical techniques.

The article offers the educational information quantization method for improving content quality in Learning Management Systems. The paper considers questions concerning analysis of quality of quantized presentation of educational information, based on quantitative text parameters: average frequencies of parts of speech, used in the text; formal…

This article provides information for Extension professionals on the correct analysis of Likert data. The analyses of Likert-type and Likert scale data require unique data analysis procedures, and as a result, misuses and/or mistakes often occur. This article discusses the differences between Likert-type and Likert scale data and provides…

An in-class activity is described that can be used not only to motivate hypothesis testing, but also to understand and compute the p-value and power in a statistical test. (Contains 3 figures.)

This article tackles the problem of what should be done with real textual data that are contaminated by errors of recording, particularly when the data contain words that are misspelt, unintentionally or otherwise. (Contains 5 tables and 2 figures.)

A jack knife is a pocket knife that is put to many tasks, because it's ready to hand. Often there could be a better tool for the job, such as a screwdriver, a scraper, or a can-opener, but these are not usually pocket items. In statistical terms, the expression implies making do with what's available. Another simile, of an extreme situation, is…

Technology and, in particular, computer algebra systems, allows us to change both the way we teach mathematics and the mathematical curriculum. Curiously enough, unlike what happens with linear system solving, algebraic system solving is not widely known. The aim of this paper is to show that, although the theory lying behind the "exact…

Many of the methodological criticisms of the National Early Literacy Panel (NELP) report presented in this special issue of "Educational Researcher" are not specific to the NELP report but are in fact broad criticisms of much of the quantitative research on early literacy. This rejoinder demonstrates that these criticisms are off target and are…

In this article we describe a semester-long project, based on the popular video game series Guitar Hero, designed to introduce upper-level undergraduate statistics students to statistical research. Some of the goals of this project are to help students develop statistical thinking that allows them to approach and answer open-ended research…

The recent shift toward greater accountability has put many educational leaders in a position where they are expected to collect and use increasing amounts of data to inform their decision making. Yet, because many programs that prepare administrators, including school business officials, do not require a statistics course or a course that is more…

The present paper raises questions about the use of the concept of reputation in sociological studies of the relationship between higher education and the labour market. Sociologists of education have yet to subject the concept of reputation to sustained critique and evaluation. This situation is unsatisfactory because a number of critical…

Resampling methods including randomization test, cross-validation, the jackknife and the bootstrap are widely employed in the research areas of natural science, engineering and medicine, but they lack appreciation in educational research. The purpose of the present review is to revisit and highlight the key principles and developments of…