The concept of Grit has gained momentum in the last several years as a better predictor of achievement than traditional measures, such as IQ. Duckworth, et al. (2007) found grit to be positively correlated to the Big Five personality dimension of conscientiousness, but not to IQ, causing the authors to hypothesize that grit is a good noncognitive…

This exploratory case study, focused on a music teacher preparation program, examined the coursework ePortfolios of pre-service music teachers to determine if any parts of the ePortfolio process predicted teaching effectiveness in the classroom during the student teaching semester. Sixty-five undergraduate pre-service music teachers made up the…

The current study sought to determine if community based gardening projects would reduce perceptions of the need to use communication devices--cell phones or text messaging--and increase the likelihood of participating in future volunteer projects. Results strongly support the predictions in that the experimental group post-test mean score of the…

This study was designed to identify the help seeking behaviors of preservice teachers who are at risk for failure of state certification examinations through use of a scale adapted to the arena of teacher education, the Preservice Teacher Help Seeking Scales (PTHSS). In the past, self-report measures of help seeking behavior patterns have been…

Describes the theoretical framework, measurement properties, predictive power, and reliability and validity of the Drug Education School Evaluation Instrument (DESEI), used to determine the effectiveness of the North Carolina Drug Education Schools. The DESEI is included. (BH)

Results of an educational innovation study, which related the degree of dissemination effort to the nature of the innovation itself, reveal a positive relationship between the diffusability index (rating methodology) and selected indicators of the actual dissemination (i.e., number of times articles apppear in newsapers, journals). Three…

A validity scale for the Sharp Consumer Satisfaction Scale was developed and used in experiments to assess patients' satisfaction with community mental health centers. The scale discriminated between clients who offered suggestions and those who did not. It also improved researcher's ability to predict true scores from obtained scores. (DWH)

The paper presented evidence of the criterion related validity of several Comprehensive Ability Battery (CAB) tests relative to criterion variables representing first year college achievement. Information regarding the criterion related validity of nontraditional tests of the CAB reflecting divergent production hypothesized to be associated with…

A scale assessing teacher beliefs concerning the responsibility for student academic success was developed and validated. The results show a striking difference in male/female teacher responses. Female teachers consistently assumed greater responsibility for the learning outcomes of their students. (JN)

This discussion of research methodologies and performance prediction in business simulations describes a study of undergraduates that considered time in the prediction of simulation performance, and explored how relationships between performance and its antecedents vary over the simulation's duration. Hypotheses tested are explained and results of…

Reports on a study done at Aberdeen University (England) which assessed the learning styles of first-year medical students. Results indicated that these students scored higher than other students in achievement (including study methods and competitiveness) and prediction for success. Includes the instrument used. (TW)