Canonical variate analysis was employed to measure the direction and intensity of relationships between student ratings of instruction and students' course-oriented attitude change. Change was defined as the residual post-course attitude scores when pre-course attitude scores served as predictors. The Adjective Rating Scale (ARS), a measure of…

A rating scale was developed that could be used to test Raynor's construct of perceived instrumentality--that the perceived importance of a particular achievement (such as a good grade) to the student's future (career) influences the student's efforts to achieve the goal. The scale was developed to study the perceived importance of learning French…

The psychophysical technique of magnitude estimation was used to develop a ratio scale of subjective estimations of adult learning in various adult education activities. A rank order of 26 learning activities and the magnitude estimations in "units of learning" that are expected to occur in each activity were obtained from 146 adult education…

One hundred twenty-eight observers randomly assigned to 16 treatment conditions in a modified Latin square design, viewed three videotapes of simulated classrooms in which teacher behavior was controlled (paralleling psychophysical procedures) to fit unambiguously into specific categories on ratings of frequency and variety of social…

An experimental examination was conducted using a multiple-choice test for the purpose of constructing an examination in mathematics. Some 1,125 secondary school students from various school districts were chosen as candidates. The test consisted of twenty mathematical situations requiring five true or false answers for each test item. No time…

A summary of published reports of the evolution of the "Draw-A-Classroom" Test developed by the Toronto Board of Education is presented along with an extension of the previous literature reviews, an extensive bibliography, and a critical commentary on the test itself. Children's drawings of their classroom are evaluated as a form of…

A study of the reliability and validity of a course evaluation method using small student discussion groups revealed the method to be reliable and productive but found discrepancies between student and teacher objects of evaluation and some dissatisfaction among teachers. (MSE)

The present American higher education setting includes the use of Student Evaluations of Instruction (SEIs). This practice has a history that spans a number of decades and is now firmly established as part of the American system of higher education. However, there is a continuing dispute over the use of the information gathered from SEIs, the…

As part of an effort to monitor the transformation of classrooms within Limpopo Province, South Africa, an instrument was developed to assess students perceptions of their learning environments. The developed questionnaire, the Outcomes-Based Learning Environment Questionnaire (OBLEQ), was designed to measure the impact of the Curriculum 2005…

This study was an investigation of a microcomputer system which was developed to administer, score, analyze, and produce a written report for the Peabody picture Vocabulary Test-Revised (PPVT-R). The variables of reliability, age, gender, level of previous experience with microcomputers, preference for manual or computerized test administration,…

Assesses Scientific Attitude Inventory (SAI) by examining the instrument and 30 studies in which it has been used. In addition, shows how conceptual analysis may be used to investigate validity of a research instrument. Indicates that SAI needs reworking since it is less than certain of what is being measured. (Author/JN)

Differences in ratings of the same instructor teaching the same course on two different occasions are related to differences in background characteristics: (1) higher levels of workload/difficulty, (2) higher expected grades, and (3) instructor experience. (PN)

Describes the Scale of Service Learning Involvement, developed to validate a service-learning model of developmental processes experienced by students engaged in community volunteer work, from sporadic involvement to internalization of social responsibility, and to assess student outcomes. Reliability, concurrent validity, and contrasting group…

A shortened and revised Student Aspirations Survey was administered to 1,160 students in rural middle schools and high schools. Evidence of construct validity was considerable for student responses to the aspirations scales and very limited for student responses to the school climate scales. Suggestions for improvement of score interpretation are…

Explored reliability and validity of British measure of attitude toward training for new technology, economic locus of control, self-efficacy, and self-estrangement for Canadian adolescent population (n=255). Significant differences were obtained for educational settings on variable of attitude toward training for new technology. Males had…