ethanporcaro/eric-fulltext-meta huggingface dataset:
University of Chicago School Mathematics Project 6-12 Curriculum. What Works Clearinghouse Intervention Report
Author: What Works Clearinghouse (ED)
Date: 2011-07-00
Type: Reports - Evaluative
Subjects: Secondary School Mathematics,Educational Research,Instructional Effectiveness,High School Students,Mathematics Achievement

The &quot;University of Chicago School Mathematics Project (&quot;UCSMP&quot;) 6-12 Curriculum&quot; is a series of yearlong courses--(1) Transition Mathematics; (2) Algebra; (3) Geometry; (4) Advanced Algebra; (5) Functions, Statistics, and Trigonometry; and (6) Precalculus and Discrete Mathematics--emphasizing problem solving, real-world applications, and the use of technology. The program is designed to allow schools to offer the appropriate math to students regardless of grade level. Beginning with the Algebra course, technology is used in the classroom to aid in the development of properties and skills, and graphing calculators are used to complete assignments at all levels. The What Works Clearinghouse (WWC) High School Math topic area reviewed 20 studies on the &quot;UCSMP&quot;. Two of these studies meet WWC evidence standards with reservations; the remaining 18 studies do not meet either WWC evidence standards or eligibility screens. Based on the two studies, the WWC found potentially positive effects in math achievement for high school students. The conclusions presented in this report may change as new research emerges. Appended are: (1) Study characteristics; (2) Outcome measures for the math achievement domain; (3) Summary of study findings included in the rating for the math achievement domain; (4) &quot;UCSMP&quot; rating for the math achievement domain; and (5) Extent of evidence by domain. (Contains 9 footnotes.)
Accelerated Math[TM]. What Works Clearinghouse Intervention Report
Author: What Works Clearinghouse (ED)
Date: 2011-07-00
Type: Reports - Evaluative
Subjects: Mathematics Instruction,Computer Assisted Instruction,Computer Software,Instructional Effectiveness,Educational Research,Secondary School Mathematics,High School Students

&quot;Accelerated Math&quot;[TM], published by Renaissance Learning, is a software tool used to customize assignments and monitor progress in math for students in grades 1-12. The &quot;Accelerated Math&quot;[TM] software creates individualized assignments aligned with state standards and national guidelines, scores student work, and generates reports on student progress. The What Works Clearinghouse (WWC) identified four studies of &quot;Accelerated Math&quot;[TM] for high school students that were published or released between January 1988 and October 2010. No studies of &quot;Accelerated Math&quot;[TM] that fall within the scope of the High School Math review protocol meet What Works Clearinghouse (WWC) evidence standards. The lack of studies meeting WWC evidence standards means that, at this time, the WWC is unable to draw any conclusions based on research about the effectiveness or ineffectiveness of &quot;Accelerated Math&quot;[TM] on high school students. (Contains 3 footnotes.)
State Skill Standards: Welding
Author: Pointer, Mike
Date: 2005-03-19
Type: Reports - Descriptive
Subjects: Welding,Metallurgy,Metal Working,Machine Tools,Measurement,Safety,Mathematics Skills,State Standards,Career Planning,Occupational Information,Vocational Education,Career Development,Industry,Job Skills,Academic Standards,High School Students,Shop Curriculum,Manufacturing

The Department of Education has undertaken an ambitious effort to develop statewide occupational skill standards. The standards in this document are for welding programs and are designed to clearly state what the student should know and be able to do upon completion of an advanced high-school program. The writing team determined that any statewide skill standards for programs that teach welding should be designed to teach entry-level and advanced skills according to the standards established by the American Welding Society (AWS). The standards cover the following areas: (1) Safety; (2) Measurement and Layout; (3) Metallurgy; (4) Tools and Machines; (5) Oxy-Fuel Welding/Cutting; (6) Shielded Metal Arc Welding; (7) Gas Metal Arc Welding; (8) Flux Core Arc Welding; (9) Gas Tungsten Arc Welding; (10) Plasma Arc Cutting; (11) Fabrication; (12) Weld Testing; (13) Employability Skills. The standards also include the math skills students need to be successful in the industry. These exit-level standards are designed for advanced programs, for students completing the third level of a three- or four-year welding program. Students at the appropriate level of instruction will be expected to demonstrate competence for all performance indicators in the &quot;meets standard&quot; domains for each performance standard. Teachers are encouraged to use them to focus curriculum objectives for entry-level programs, also. The standards are organized as follows: (1) Content Standards; (2) Performance Standards; and (3) Performance Indicators. [This report was prepared by the Office of Career, Technical, and Adult Education, Nevada Department of Education.]
Contextualized Teaching &amp; Learning: A Promising Approach for Basic Skills Instruction
Author: Baker, Elaine DeLott
Date: 2009-10-00
Type: Reports - Descriptive
Subjects: Teaching Methods,Basic Skills,Learning,Colleges,Higher Education,Academic Achievement,Community Colleges,Two Year Colleges,College Faculty

Contextualized teaching and learning (CTL), or the concept of relating subject matter content to meaningful situations that are relevant to students' lives, offers one promising approach to helping students learn more effectively. This brief offers instructors, college leaders, policy makers and funders a high-level summary of the CTL primer--focusing on core components for effective implementation and strategic considerations for colleges interested in starting or expanding CTL practices. (Contains 1 endnote.)
Nevada Program Quality Criteria Site-Based CTE Program Assessment Instrument
Author: Nevada Department of Education, Office of Career, Technical, and Adult Education
Date: 2008-11-00
Type: Tests/Questionnaires
Subjects: Program Improvement,Program Effectiveness,Evaluation Methods,Vocational Education,Evaluation Criteria,State Standards,Program Validation,Secondary School Curriculum

The Program Quality Criteria include ten components designed to help validate a comprehensive career and technical education (CTE) program. Upon a self review or third party review, any program may use this instrument to determine how the program has made progress in its development. The review instrument is not designed as an evaluation tool, whereby a program with low rating scores may be determined as &quot;inadequate.&quot; Rather, the instrument and review process are designed to help focus program improvement. However, it would be expected that any program that has not, for example, aligned the local curriculum with state skill standards would do so as soon as reasonably possible. The Program Review Instrument is to be used for program-improvement purposes. Each of the ten quality criterion are defined by finer, more measurable criteria to determine their status: (1) Exemplary; (2) Adequate; (3) Improving; (4) Inadequate; and (5) Non-Existent. At the end of the document, the results of the review in the instrument are repeated in tables that are more condensed; this way, a quick snap shot of how a program was rated in curriculum development, for example, could easily by noted.
State Skill Standards: Photography
Author: Howell, Frederick
Date: 2007-11-30
Type: Reports - Descriptive
Subjects: Photography,School Activities,Program Effectiveness,Technical Education,Industry,State Standards,Career Education,High Schools,Advanced Courses,Skill Development,Competence,Planning,Administration,Technology,Conservation (Environment),Safety,Performance,Course Content,Equipment,Ethics,Legal Responsibility,Light,Computers,Career Development,Job Skills,Academic Standards,Employment Qualifications

The Department of Education has undertaken an ambitious effort to develop statewide skill standards for all content areas in career and technical education. The standards in this document are for photography programs and are designed to clearly state what the student should know and be able to do upon completion of an advanced high-school program.  Photography is a program that consists of initial fundamentals and sequential courses that prepare students for most occupations in the field of commercial photography. The content and performance standards in this document focus on digital photography, which today is recognized as the industry standard. However, film-based photography is also recognized under content standard 8. In addition to specific skills, the overall program focuses on broad transferable skills and stresses understanding and demonstration of the major elements of the commercial photography industry, including planning, management, finance, technical and product skills, and underlying principles of technology, labor issues, community issues and health, safety, and environmental issues. The standards are organized as follows: (1) Content Standards; (2) Performance Standards; and (3) Performance Indicators.
Nevada State Five-Year Plan: July 1, 2008 through June 30, 2013
Author: Nevada Department of Education, Office of Career, Technical, and Adult Education
Date: 2008-03-11
Type: Legal/Legislative/Regulatory Materials
Subjects: Advisory Committees,Hearings,Federal Legislation,Program Improvement,Program Effectiveness,Vocational Education,Strategic Planning,Educational Planning,Statewide Planning

With the recent enactment of the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act of 2006, Congress has demonstrated overwhelming bipartisan support to continue the country's federal investment in career and technical education. This document, the &quot;Nevada State Five-Year Plan for the Carl D. Perkins Act of 2006,&quot; referred hereinafter as the State Plan, builds upon the one-year transition plan approved for FY'08. The State Plan further emphasizes the key tenets of Perkins IV by focusing efforts on program improvement. The State Plan will be effective from July 1, 2008 to June 30, 2013. Appended are: (1) Career and Technical Education Advisory Committee Member List; and (2) Public Hearings Minutes.
Construct Validity, Reliability and Cross-Cultural Equivalence of the LSP's Cognitive Dimension: A Rasch Analysis
Author: Hardigan, Patrick C.
Date: 2010-01-12
Type: Reports - Research
Subjects: Undergraduate Students,Cognitive Style,Construct Validity,Test Validity,Evaluation Methods,Teaching Methods,Test Reliability,Cultural Relevance,Cognitive Ability,Skill Development

The Learning Style Profile (LSP) is one of the first assessment instruments that measures cognitive skills as well as affective and environmental preferences. Developed for use with sixth-through twelfth-grade learners, the LSP consists of 126 questions representing 24 sub-scales These 24 subscales represent four higher-order constructs: (1) Cognitive Style, (2) Perceptual Preferences, (3) Study Preferences, and (4) Instructional Preferences. Although the LSP was not designed for college students, research shows that it is being used with college-aged students. Past studies which looked at the LSP with college students were exploratory in nature and focused on the perceptual preferences, study preferences, and instructional preference subscales. No analysis has explicitly looked at LSP's cognitive dimensions and its cross-cultural equivalence among traditional-aged college students. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the construct validity, reliability and cross-cultural equivalence of the LSP's cognitive dimension among undergraduate college students using Rasch techniques. Results show that in most cases the number of acceptable items is not enough to cover each subscale's content domain. Where we do have enough items, the subscales suffer from content saturation. While we have evidence for unidimensionality and no differential item functioning we conclude that the LSP should not be used with undergraduate college students. (Contains 2 figures and 5 tables.)
Speaking in the Classroom
Author: McBain, Robert
Date: 2011-07-00
Type: Reports - Descriptive
Subjects: Classroom Techniques,Speech Communication,Student Motivation,Student Behavior,Behavior Problems,Classroom Environment,Discipline,Student Responsibility,Self Control,Student Attitudes,Class Activities,Games,Teacher Student Relationship

Too much speaking and indiscipline in class is an on-going problem for any teacher, it is at its least disruptive and at most it destroys a good positive classroom atmosphere. This article recognizes this and continues this debate and suggests key clues to support teachers in their efforts to maintain a positive classroom atmosphere and discipline so that those students who do want to speak and give answers can do so without being drowned out by other more confident students and any other distractions. At the same time it also suggests activities and practices that teachers could use to teach students to become more independent and responsible in class and enhances the idea of self regulation in student's attitudes towards their own learning so that they learn to concentrate on what's important which aims to give other students a chance to speak up and be heard.
The Efficacy of Mobile Competency Tracking
Author: Kostiuk, Wendy
Date: 2011-05-16
Type: Reports - Evaluative
Subjects: Electronic Learning,Competence,Allied Health Occupations Education,College Faculty,Allied Health Personnel,Surveys,Educational Technology,Handheld Devices,Telecommunications,Teaching Methods

This article addresses the question for post secondary health care educators: "Is utilizing a mobile application to track student competency achievement efficient and effective?" Post secondary health care education customers were surveyed and an internet article search was conducted during which four areas of significance surfaced. First, mobile technology seems to improve student focus, organization and behavior. Second, it can help to better feedback and collaboration. Third, it provides a good return on investment, and fourth, it can result in a decreased workload and increased job satisfaction for educators. Ellen Wagner, Senior Director of Global Education Solutions at Macromedia said mobile learning is here to stay--whether we're ready or not. This very recent exploration has reinforced--not only is this technology here to stay, but for its many capabilities, its portability and accessibility, it is a solution worth great consideration. (Contains 2 figures and 8 notes.)
The State of Proficiency: How Student Proficiency Rates Vary across States, Subjects, and Grades between 2002 and 2010
Author: Durant, Sarah
Date: 2011-06-00
Type: Reports - Research
Subjects: Mathematics Tests,Cutting Scores,Achievement Tests,State Standards,Accountability,Reading Skills,Mathematics Skills,Reading Tests,Difficulty Level,Standardized Tests,Educational Change,Student Evaluation

In 2007, the Northwest Evaluation Association (NWEA) and the Thomas B. Fordham Institute collaborated on &quot;The Proficiency Illusion,&quot; a study that illustrated the issues created by having each state set its own standards for what constitutes student proficiency for reading and mathematics tests, while holding all states to the same accountability standards. By comparing the cut scores that determine proficiency for each state, the authors found that there was significant variation in the difficulty of proficiency levels among states. In some states, it is considerably easier for a student to pass their state test than it is for students in other states. In the four years since the study was published, the educational landscape has changed in many ways. Given all of the changes taking place in the field of education, and fortified with more recent data, the authors decided to update and enhance the original study so that it might inform the next generation of policies governing the nation's schools. The purpose of this study is to shine some light on the limitations of using proficiency rates based on inconsistent and arbitrary &quot;passing scores&quot; to make judgments about educational effectiveness. This report serves as a written summary of the authors' methodology and findings. Appended are: (1) Mathematics cut score estimates for 2009-2010; (2) Reading cut score estimates for 2009-2010; (3) Website References; (4) Sources for 2009-2010 state proficiency rates; (5) Deliberate changes to state cut scores; and (6) Full Methodology. (Contains 13 figures, 2 tables, 35 resources and 4 footnotes.)
An Investigation of the Relationship between Time of Testing and Test-Taking Effort
Author: Wise, Steven L.
Date: 2010-04-28
Type: Numerical/Quantitative Data
Subjects: Academic Achievement,Test Wiseness,Investigations,Schematic Studies,Time Factors (Learning),Learner Engagement,Predictor Variables,Testing Programs,Correlation,Achievement Tests,Reaction Time,Test Theory

This study investigated the relationships between when a test is administered and the amount of test-taking effort exhibited by examinees. Three time-related variables were investigated: the time of year the test was administered, the day of the week the test event occurred, and the time of day that the test event occurred. Mean effort did not appear to vary across either time of year nor day of week. There was, however, a clear time of day effect, with mean effort decreasing throughout the day. In addition, mean effort was found to decreases across grade, and male examinees were found to exhibit lower mean effort than female examinees. (Contains 10 tables, 5 figures and 4 footnotes.)
School Conditional Growth Model: How to Make an &quot;Apples to Apples&quot; Comparison Possible?
Author: Xiang, Yun
Date: 2010-00-00
Type: Reports - Research
Subjects: Academic Achievement,Comparative Analysis,Policy Formation,Data Analysis,Institutional Evaluation,Models,Longitudinal Studies,Institutional Characteristics,Matrices,Evaluation Methods,Context Effect,Accountability,Organizational Effectiveness,Disadvantaged Youth

The purpose of this paper is to offer an analytic perspective to policy makers and educational practitioners regarding how to use longitudinal achievement data to evaluate schools. The authors further discuss the potential practical applications of their models for superintendents, researchers, and policy makers. The premise of the study is that the complexity of the school context can be leveraged within longitudinal growth models to account for more variance than the unconditional counterparts of these models. The following research questions were considered: (1) Do school growth rates differ when school characteristics are taken into account in growth modeling?; (2) Do school growth rates differ when school initial status is taken into account in growth modeling?; and (3) How are schools evaluated differently based on the application of an unconditional model and a conditional model? When researchers and policy makers start to recommend the two-dimension matrix of initial score by rate of change and begin to evaluate schools based on it, this study suggests a three-dimension perspective that considers school contextual characteristics based on their initial status and rate of change. The study is also a demonstration of how schools can be evaluated under the context of a school accountability system in one state. This study can be used to provide a reference of school performance when an amount of growth for a particular school is compared to similar schools in a larger context. School districts, states, or educational funding organizations can use the conditional growth rates to evaluate schools based on the three-dimension matrix shown in this report. Appended are the following tables: (1) schools have different initial status; (2) schools have different percentages of FRL students; (3) schools have different percentages of Minority students; and (4) schools have different teacher student ratios. (Contains 5 figures, 5 tables and 2 footnotes.)
Portland Schools Foundation Ninth Grade Counts: Student Data Report--Outcomes and Participation for Summer 2009 and Participation for Summer 2010
Author: Northwest Evaluation Association
Date: 2011-04-00
Type: Numerical/Quantitative Data
Subjects: High Schools,Summer Programs,School Districts,Grade 9,Student Participation,Outcomes of Education,Transitional Programs,Academic Support Services,Program Effectiveness,Achievement Gains,Educational Assessment,Educational Indicators,Grade Point Average,Attendance Patterns,Credits,Student Records

The Portland Schools Foundation's (PSF) Ninth Grade Counts initiative is a network of more than twenty independent summer transition programs targeting Academic Priority (or &quot;at-risk&quot;) students. These programs share a common focus on providing academic support, enrichment, and career/college exposure for students who show early warning signs for dropping out of school. The programs, which are sponsored by school districts, nonprofits, and colleges, vary in their format and curricula and are available to students identified as Academic Priority, as well as others, across Multnomah County (6 school districts) during the summer between eighth and ninth grades. The purpose of the Ninth Grade Counts summer transition programs is to re-engage Academic Priority students with their education through building skills, attitudes, and beliefs that lead to school success. The primary purpose of this report is to determine whether Academic Priority students who participated in a Ninth Grade Counts program during the summer of 2009 had better academic outcomes in the ninth grade than Academic Priority students who did not attend a program. Key findings include: (1) Ninth Grade Counts has a clear, positive effect on high school credit attainment; (2) Other results were less clear; and (3) There may be an effect for individual programs. In the process of performing this analysis of the Ninth Grade Counts summer 2009 program, some issues were identified that could increase the utility of future reports for this population. These are: (1) Ensure all schools report grade point average statistics for ninth grade; (2) Measure which students received high school credit for summer program participation; (3) Collect the names of courses students have taken, along with grades; and (4) Perform a multi-year study involving a full high school cohort. Appended are: (1) Complete Counts of Cohort 1 Students; (2) Average Performance of Cohort 1 Students; (3) District Data File Layout; and (4) Example of Program Report. (Contains 17 tables, 12 figures and 2 footnotes.)