The project approach to learning includes a focus on in-depth study of a topic, along with teaching style, learning style, and theme. In contrast to a thematic approach, the project approach encourages children to be actively engaged in their own studies, with teachers acting as guides and facilitators. In the project approach, students use…

This report documents the results of a survey on the current use and management of approval plans, and compares them with similar studies published in SPEC kits in 1982 and 1988. Overall, Association of Research Libraries (ARL) institutions still consider approval plans to be efficient and cost effective. Survey results include: (1) the percentage…

End-user interfaces for the online public access catalogs (OPACs) of OhioLINK, a system linking major university and research libraries in Ohio, and its 16 member libraries, accessible through the Internet, are compared and evaluated from the user-oriented perspective. A common, systematic framework was used for the scientific observation of the…

In 1990, the Online Catalog Advisory Committee (OCAC) of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC) charged a subcommittee with developing and implementing ways to measure the impact of the expanded online catalog on staff, users, collections, and library operations. The UIUC's online public access catalog, ILLINET (Illinois Library and…

The introductory technology course for preservice teachers provides a forum for them to develop technological competency as they reflect on their own learning processes, develop a deeper understanding of learning theory, examine the relationship between theory and practice, critique the nature of school-based learning experiences, and analyze…

This document contains four papers from a symposium on strategic human resource development (HRD). "Examination of the Use of Scenarios as Learning and Decision-Making Tools for Human Resource Development" (Roger F. Miller, Susan A. Lynham, Joanne Provo, Jeanne M. St. Claire) explores the potential value of scenarios as learning and…

Research efforts have established that the Mantel-Haenszel procedure (MHP) is an effective method for detecting the presence of test items exhibiting differential item functioning (DIF). While the MHP has been advocated for situations where item response theory based methods may not be usable, recent findings have suggested that the performance of…

In 1990-91, 20 countries (Brazil, Canada, China, England, France, Hungary, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Jordan, Korea, Mozambique, Portugal, Scotland, Slovenia, Soviet Union, Spain, Switzerland, Taiwan, and the United States) surveyed the mathematics and science performance of 13-year-old students (and 14 countries also assessed 9-year-olds in the same…

Following the introduction of a one-credit practice lab, and computer-assisted practice into a developmental reading course at the Riverside Campus of Austin Community College (Texas), students made gains on course exit test scores. In an effort to determine whether the test-score gains were due to increased practice time or due to the use of…

A discussion of second language program evaluation focuses on the interpretability of test scores as a criterion in program evaluation. It looks at both test design and research design issues. First, eight method-comparison, program evaluation studies that compare acquisition-based and analysis/practice based methods are described. Acquisition…

Educators working with elementary school children need to consider the impact of unstructured and structured hypermedia on the learning occurring in computer-assisted instruction. This paper discusses a case study of a collaborative group of four boys during a summer science camp. Their interactions with two different examples of hypermedia are…

At Northern Maine Technical College (NMTC), the mean age of students increased from 19.7 years in 1978 to 28.6 in 1991. In an effort to evaluate NMTC's nursing programs as perceived by traditional students (under 22 years of age) and nontraditional students (22 years of age or older), questionnaires were administered to 59 practical nursing…

Data from a sample of participants in JTP (Job Training Partnership) Ohio under Title III of the Job Training Partnership Act (JTPA) were analyzed and the findings compared to results from a companion study of Title IIA adult Ohio JTP participants. Respondents were surveyed during the 14th-17th weeks following the end of their JTP participation.…

Many education reformers criticize the mediocre state of learning in high schools in the United States. In order to insure that all students have equal access to high quality teaching, it is argued that educators must explore the potent connections among school setting, ability grouping, teaching methods, and student opportunity to learn. The…

A sample of 15 eighth-grade Hispanic students in a bilingual classroom were used for a descriptive analysis of students' writing samples to compare their growth between pre- and post- writing samples in Spanish and English. This was accomplished by juxtaposing English and Spanish pre- and post-tests using the same holistic rubric developed by the…