ethanporcaro/eric-fulltext-meta huggingface dataset:
From Efficacy Trial to Large Scale Effectiveness Trial: A Tier 2 Mathematics Intervention for First Graders with Difficulties in Mathematics
Author: Rolfhus, Eric
Date: 2013-00-00
Type: Reports - Research
Subjects: Program Evaluation,Program Effectiveness,Mathematics Instruction,Intervention,At Risk Students,Low Achievement,Predictor Variables,Grade 1,Elementary School Students,Elementary School Mathematics,Urban Schools,Randomized Controlled Trials,Comparative Analysis,Screening Tests,Fidelity,Statistical Analysis,Scores

Large scale longitudinal research (Morgan, Farkas, &amp; Wu, 2009) and a meta-analysis (Duncan et al., 2007) have found that early mathematics achievement is a strong predictor of later mathematics achievement. In fact, end of Kindergarten and end of grade 1 mathematics achievement on ECLS-K and similar mathematics proficiency measures tends to be a stronger predictor than early measures of reading or reading-related skills such as phonemic awareness. Yet, despite increasing interest, there is little research on the effectiveness of recommended best practices in Response to Intervention Models (RtI) in mathematics (Gersten et al. 2009). This study (Rolfhus, et al. 2012) replicates the Fuchs et al. (2005) study as the first large-scale effectiveness trial (one intended to approximate real-world implementation) of &quot;Number Rockets&quot;. While the Fuchs et al. study used interventionists experienced with at-risk students, the current study employed interventionists with a range of experience who were selected from the local community. While the Fuchs et al. study provided interventionists with substantial monitoring and support, the current study provided professional development and a support program similar to those provided by publishers of curriculum products (Agodini et al. 2009). Different measures were used to identify at-risk students, and measure outcomes. Finally, the district in the Fuchs et al. study used just one curriculum; each of the four urban districts in the current study used a different one, which may have provided a more heterogeneous instructional context. This study is the first effectiveness evaluation (and first replication) of &quot;Number Rockets&quot; and builds on the positive findings of the Fuchs et al. (2005) efficacy study. Tables are appended.
Intact School Matching in Education: Exploring the Relative Importance of Focal and Local Matching
Author: Wong, Vivian C.
Date: 2013-00-00
Type: Reports - Research
Subjects: Comparative Analysis,Randomized Controlled Trials,School Districts,Quasiexperimental Design,Research Methodology,Educational Research,Institutional Characteristics,Benchmarking,Class Size,Formative Evaluation,Kindergarten,Error of Measurement,Elementary Schools

The nested data structure inherent in education (i.e. students nested in schools nested in districts) makes intact school matching an appealing approach in observational studies of educational interventions and policies for both theoretical and practical purposes. This paper provides guidance to applied education researchers who are employing intact school matching. First, using a within study comparison (WSC) methodology the authors examine whether intact school matching is able to replicate experimental results. In addition, they examine what approaches to intact school matching lead to the greatest level of bias reduction. Specifically, the authors estimate the ability to reproduce Randomized Control Trial (RCT) results when comparison units are matched. The study draws on data from two RCTs conducted in education and data on other schools and students in the states in which the RCTs were conducted. The RCTs were conducted in Tennessee and Indiana and include schools and students from across the state in both cases. Data from schools (and students attending those schools) that participated in the two RCTs were used to calculate the experimental benchmark. In the case of the Indiana RCT, the quasi-experimental comparison group was drawn from all other schools in the state that did not participate in the RCT. In the case of the Tennessee RCT, the comparison group was constructed from within the RCT using a synthetic WSC design. This paper provides preliminary evidence that intact school matching can replicate experimental estimates and provides some guidance for which approaches are more likely to effectively reduce bias. Tables are appended.
The Validity of the SAT® for Predicting Cumulative Grade Point Average by College Major. Research Report 2012-6
Author: Shaw, Emily J.
Date: 2012-00-00
Type: Numerical/Quantitative Data
Subjects: College Entrance Examinations,Predictive Validity,Test Validity,Scores,Grade Point Average,Correlation,Majors (Students),College Students,Student Characteristics,Gender Differences,Ethnicity,Educational Attainment,Parent Background

The current study examined the differential validity of the SAT for predicting cumulative GPA (cGPA) through the second year of college by college major, as well as the differential prediction of cGPA by college major across student subgroups. The relationship between the SAT and cGPA varied somewhat by major, as well as by major and subgroup (e.g. gender, ethnicity,and parental education level). This variability was likely due to differences in the nature of the college course work,grading practices, student self-selection, and academic cultures (e.g., male dominated or highly competitive) across majors. The findings from this study may be particularly relevant to colleges and universities in examining different admission criteria for acceptance to specialized colleges and major programs within an institution, and thus it could serve as a comprehensive resource for higher education researchers examining college major and performance. Supplemental tables are appended.
Estimating Impacts of Treatment Random Assignment on Classroom Quality in the Head Start Impact Study: The Problem of Missing Data
Author: Friedman-Krauss, Allison H.
Date: 2013-00-00
Type: Reports - Research
Subjects: Early Intervention,Preschool Education,School Readiness,Low Income Groups,Correlation,Educational Quality,Program Evaluation,Experimental Groups,Control Groups,Comparative Analysis,Research Methodology,Data Analysis,Student Placement,Randomized Controlled Trials,Error of Measurement,Research Problems

As a result of the 1998 reauthorization of Head Start, the Department of Health and Human Services conducted a national evaluation of the Head Start program. The goal of Head Start is to improve the school readiness skills of low-income children in the United States. There is a substantial body of experimental and correlational research that has found associations between the quality of children's early childhood classrooms and their subsequent academic success (Pianta, Barnett, Burchinal, &amp; Thornburg, 2009; Raver et al., 2008; 2009; 2011; Zaslow et al., 2010). A particularly important part of evaluating the effectiveness of Head Start is understanding whether the program improves the quality of participants' early learning environments. Results from the original analysis of the classroom quality data from the Head Start Impact Study (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2010) show that randomization to Head Start lead to improvement in the quality of care children received. However, these results are obfuscated by the way in which missing data were handled. The apparent improvements in classroom quality may be due to greater access to formal care settings. To address this problem, the primary objectives of this research are to address the challenges faced when estimating impacts of treatment random assignment on classroom quality within the Head Start Impact Study, to explore how different solutions influence the impact estimates, and to offer methodological solutions. What are the impacts of random assignment to Head Start on measures of classroom quality? Do children who are randomly assigned to Head Start receive higher/better quality care than children who are randomly assigned to the control group? Results confirm that the three types of missing data described here are indeed endogenous to treatment random assignment. Thus, methodological approaches must be used to handle missing data in order to obtain unbiased estimates of impacts of random assignment to Head Start on classroom quality. Tables are appended.
Evaluating the Efficacy of Using Pre-Differentiated and Enriched Mathematics Curricula for Grade 3 Students
Author: McCoach, D. Betsy
Date: 2013-00-00
Type: Reports - Research
Subjects: Program Effectiveness,Mathematics Curriculum,Mathematics Instruction,Elementary School Mathematics,Grade 3,Scores,Algebra,Geometry,Measurement,Graphs,Data Analysis,Pretests Posttests,Comparative Analysis,Individualized Instruction,Randomized Controlled Trials,Regression (Statistics),Mathematics Achievement,Achievement Tests,Standardized Tests

Although research on the effectiveness of differentiated and enriched instruction in improving the achievement of diverse students is still emerging, some studies suggest that students in academically diverse classrooms benefited academically from differentiated learning experiences. The primary research question explored in this study was &quot;What is the impact of implementing the pre-differentiated mathematics curricula in algebra, geometry and measurement, and graphing and data analysis on the achievement of grade 3 students, after controlling for pretest achievement scores?&quot; Specifically, the authors were interested in examining whether math achievement outcomes of treatment and control group students differed. This study compared researcher-designed, pre-differentiated and enriched mathematics curricula in algebra, geometry, and measurement, graphing, and data analysis to the districts' mathematics curricula. The study concluded that, in general, the post-Iowa Tests of Basic Skills (ITBS) scores of students in the treatment group were equal to those in the control group. However, high-achieving students did appear to derive some benefit from the differentiated curricula. This was especially true for high-achieving students in lower-achieving schools. Future research should explore the differentiated units using different post-assessments, including the researcher-developed curriculum-based measures for both the treatment and control groups. Utilizing out of grade level assessments would have provided a clearer picture of the effects of the intervention. Tables and figures are appended.
Impacts of Study Abroad on American Students' Intercultural Competence--A Propensity Score Analysis
Author: Rui, Ning
Date: 2013-00-00
Type: Reports - Research
Subjects: Study Abroad,College Students,Probability,Cultural Awareness,Private Colleges,Student Attitudes,Student Behavior,Interpersonal Competence,Adjustment (to Environment),Student Surveys,Comparative Analysis,Multiple Regression Analysis,Predictor Variables,Statistical Distributions

An institution that offers high-quality study abroad programs is perceived as likely to provide a stimulating learning environment for the students (Stroud, 2010). However, there are very few well-designed evaluation studies that provide evidence about the types of impacts of study abroad programs on students' academic and non-academic outcomes. To fill this void in the literature, the present study aims to estimate, from an institutional perspective, the effect of study abroad experience on students' social, behavioral, and attitudinal outcomes with an emphasis on students' intercultural competence and adaptability using survey data of 1,330 college students who entered a northeastern mid-size comprehensive private university in the fall of 2006. This study not only advances the understanding of the nature of impacts of study abroad programs, but also addresses the need for innovative methods to address the selection bias, i.e., individual and institutional factors that influence students' intent to participate in the programs. Results from this study have important implications and show that the study abroad experience does have a positive impact on habits of mind, social self-concept, civic-awareness, and social agency involvement, but no impacts on academic outcomes. Tables are appended.
Evaluating the Promise of the &quot;FUSION&quot; Tier 2 Math Intervention
Author: Cary, Mari Strand
Date: 2013-00-00
Type: Reports - Research
Subjects: Grade 1,Intervention,Mathematics Instruction,Concept Formation,Number Concepts,Mathematics Skills,Outcomes of Education,Program Implementation,Fidelity,Teacher Attitudes,Elementary School Teachers,Elementary School Students,Randomized Controlled Trials

The low level of mathematics performance of U.S. students in relation to national standards and in international comparisons has concerned educators and policy makers for many years. The authors' primary goals were to design a feasible and usable intervention and gather data on the promise of the intervention to foster students' conceptual understanding of whole number concepts and skills and procedural fluency. The FUSION curriculum was developed using an iterative design process aligned with design experiment methodology. The pilot study took place in nine schools in two suburban school districts in the northwest. The FUSION program is a Grade 1 (Tier 2) mathematics intervention that focuses specifically on building students' early knowledge of whole number concepts. Results indicate that understanding student outcomes, program implementation fidelity, and interventionists' perceptions of--and reactions to--the intervention has been a crucial piece of the iterative design process. The Pilot Study results revealed differential effects for proximal and distal outcomes and the degree to which measured outcomes align with teachers' perceptions of the program's utility. The authors state that their results and the resulting conversations will be useful to the team as they move forward with other curricula design and implementation efforts and as they finalize plans to propose--and conduct--a subsequent FUSION efficacy study.
Evaluation of Alternative Difference-in-Differences Methods
Author: Yu, Bing
Date: 2013-00-00
Type: Reports - Research
Subjects: Evaluation Methods,Bias,Research Methodology,Scores,Simulation,Educational Policy,Statistical Analysis,Measurement,Prognostic Tests,Economics

Difference-in-differences (DID) strategies are particularly useful for evaluating policy effects in natural experiments in which, for example, a policy affects some schools and students but not others. However, the standard DID method may produce biased estimation of the policy effect if the confounding effect of concurrent events varies by individual characteristics and if the experimental group and the comparison group differ in such characteristics. This paper reviews the existing alternative DID methods and compares their identification assumptions with those of the new prognostic score-based DID strategy. The author hypothesize that, in comparison with other existing DID methods, the new prognostic score-based DID strategy invokes assumptions that are relatively more plausible and is more likely to produce unbiased and efficient estimates of policy effects. Empirical findings obtained from simulation studies will inform the understanding of the relative performance of the new prognostic score-based DID method in comparison with the existing DID methods under a wide array of scenarios often plausible in educational policy evaluations with accountability data. The results will contribute to the statistics and econometrics literature and will provide practical guidance for applied researchers.
Integrating Non-Mathematical Domains into Mathematical Development: Key Factors to Consider in Constructing Effective Interventions
Author: Purpura, David J.
Date: 2013-00-00
Type: Reports - Research
Subjects: Mathematics Skills,Short Term Memory,Language Skills,Preschool Children,Elementary School Students,Mathematical Concepts,Regression (Statistics),Intervention,Mathematics Instruction

The successful acquisition and development of mathematics skills and concepts is a critical aspect of children's early academic growth. The purpose of this study was to systematically evaluate the unique relations of working memory and language to a range of specific early mathematics skills in a sample of preschool and kindergarten age children. Data were collected in 45 public and private preschools and elementary schools. Children were assessed on all tasks in the spring of the academic year. Individuals who had either completed or were working toward completion of a Bachelor's degree in psychology or education conducted the assessments. Assessments took place in the local preschools or kindergarten classrooms during non-instructional time in a quiet room designated by the individual school directors or teachers. Children were assessed on 10 measures of early mathematics skills/concepts. To evaluate the relations of language and working memory with specific early mathematics skills, a series of separate mixed-effects regression analyses were conducted. The results of this study suggest that both language skills and working memory are related to a range of early mathematics skills. Although both domains are correlated with all early mathematics skills that were assessed, the nature of these relations differs when accounting for the other domain and controlling for background variables. Tables are appended.
Foundations of Science Literacy: Using Instruction-Embedded Formative Assessment to Strengthen the Relation between Gains in Teacher Pedagogical Content Knowledge and Children's Scientific Thinking
Author: Clark-Chiarelli, Nancy
Date: 2013-00-00
Type: Reports - Research
Subjects: Scientific Literacy,Science Instruction,Teacher Competencies,Pedagogical Content Knowledge,Formative Evaluation,Preschool Education,Faculty Development,Early Intervention,Urban Schools,Coaching (Performance),Pretests Posttests,Science Achievement

The need for a scientifically-literate American population has gained great prominence on the educational landscape of priorities over the past decade; young children will be increasingly exposed to the STEM fields and encouraged to excel in these areas. Professional development is key to assuring that early childhood teachers provide children with cognitively-challenging early learning experiences. Focusing on the Head Start community, &quot;Foundations of Science Literacy&quot; (FSL) is a credit-bearing professional development course that directly addresses the achievement gap in early science education. The program not only addresses an urgent need, it also integrates the resources, structure, and support that preschool teachers need to improve early science learning and teaching. First, based on data from an efficacy study nearing completion, the authors assess whether &quot;FSL without&quot; embedded formative assessments leads to gains in preschool children. Second, drawing on insights from a new development project, the authors describe how instruction-embedded formative assessment can be used to &quot;strengthen&quot; and &quot;clarify&quot; the relation between gains in teacher pedagogical content knowledge and gains in children's scientific thinking. For the efficacy study, FSL was implemented in the greater New York City area and the population included preschool teachers and a sample of children in their classrooms using a randomized controlled trial (RCT) design. The authors highlight a promising approach to learning from mixed (summative) results using formative assessment to provide more nuanced information about children's learning over time and to allow teachers to tailor instruction so that it is more effective. One figure is appended.
Validity of the SAT® for Predicting First-Year Grades: 2011 SAT Validity Sample. Statistical Report 2013-3
Author: Patterson, Brian F.
Date: 2013-00-00
Type: Numerical/Quantitative Data
Subjects: College Entrance Examinations,Predictive Validity,Test Validity,Scores,Grades (Scholastic),Grade Point Average,Correlation,Institutional Characteristics,Student Characteristics,Public Colleges,Private Colleges,High School Students,Tables (Data),College Freshmen

The continued accumulation of validity evidence for the intended uses of educational assessments is critical to ensure that proper inferences will be made for those purposes. To that end, the College Board has continued to collect college outcome data to evaluate the relationship between SAT® scores and college success. This report provides updated validity evidence for using the SAT to predict first-year college grade point average (FYGPA) for the 2011 cohort. Appended are: (1) Institutions Providing First-Year Outcomes for the 2011 Cohort; (2) Raw Correlations of SAT and SHGPA with FYGPA by Institutional Characteristics; and (3) Raw Correlation of SAT and HSGPA with FYGPA by Subgroups.
Validity of the SAT® for Predicting First-Year College Grade Point Average. Research Report No. 2008-5
Author: Kobrin, Jennifer L.
Date: 2008-00-00
Type: Reports - Research
Subjects: College Entrance Examinations,Predictive Validity,Test Validity,Scores,Grades (Scholastic),Grade Point Average,Correlation,High School Students,College Freshmen,Student Characteristics,Private Colleges,Public Colleges,Institutional Characteristics

This report presents the results of a large-scale national validity study of the SAT®. In March 2005, the College Board introduced a revised SAT, with an additional section in writing and minor changes in content to the verbal and mathematics sections. The first full cohort of students taking this test completed their first year of college in May/June 2007. This report documents the methods undertaken to recruit institutions to participate in the study; the procedures for gathering, cleaning, and aggregating data; and the statistical corrections and analyses applied to the data and the results of those analyses. The report concludes with a discussion of the results in light of prior SAT validity studies and a description of future SAT validity research studies. The results show that the changes made to the SAT did not substantially change how well the test predicts first-year college performance. Across all institutions, the recently added writing section is the most highly predictive of the three individual SAT sections. As expected, the best combination of predictors of first-year college grade point average (FYGPA) is high school grade point average (HSGPA) and SAT scores. The College Board continues to encourage institutions to use both measures when making admissions decisions. Two appendices are included: (1) Participating Institutions; and (2) Characteristics of Participating Institutions.
Whose Grades Are Inflated? Research Report No. 2003-4
Author: Camara, Wayne
Date: 2004-00-00
Type: Reports - Research
Subjects: College Entrance Examinations,Grade Inflation,Grades (Scholastic),Grade Point Average,Background,Scores,Educational Trends,Gender Differences,Racial Differences,Ethnic Groups,Grading,Public Schools,Private Schools,Parents,Parent Background,Educational Attainment,High School Students,Statistical Distributions,Student Characteristics,Questionnaires,Academic Achievement,Regression (Statistics),Predictor Variables

There is clear evidence that the average grades earned in high school have been going up for some period of time. This study examines the question of whether students of varying backgrounds have experienced similar increases in grade point average (GPA) over a 25-plus-year period. Changes in SAT verbal and mathematical scores for the same gender and racial/ethnic groups are also examined. Trends in the grading practices of major subjects in the high school curriculum are presented, as are changes in the GPA and test scores for students clustered by the type of community in which their school is located and whether it is public or nonpublic. Three appendices are included: (1) Mean GPA by Year, Gender, Ethnicity, and Parental Education, 1976-2002; (2) Mean SAT-V and SAT-M by Year, Gender, Ethnicity, and Parental Education, 1976-2002; and (3) Ethnicity, Gender, and Parental Education.