Presented in this report are the results of the feasibility testing of selected micro-teaching and video recording feedback techniques in a laboratory setting designed to simulate vocational teacher education. Volunteer teachers were selected and randomly assigned to three treatment groups in a repeated measurement design to compare the relative…

Effects of the simulated office practice approach, the cooperative arrangement, and the model office plan on student knowledge and attitudes were compared. All three approaches had a significant positive impact; they differed significantly only in selected areas, leading researchers to conclude that schools should utilize approaches suited to…

Describes the emphasis of decision support systems as being on the decision making process itself, rather than the flow of information; reviews the uses of microcomputers in libraries in recent years; and compares five decision modeling software packages. An appendix lists the name, manufacturer's address, price, and hardware requirements of each…

Reviews two case studies which evaluate the use of gaming/simulation as a participatory method for including users in the design of community projects. Questionnaires and interviews are used to compare visual gaming methods with verbal discussion methods in designing an activity center for handicapped residents and a community garden project. (LRW)

Clarifies appropriateness of certain simulation approaches by distinguishing between different types of simulations--experimental, predictive, evaluative, and educational--on the basis of purpose, assumptions, procedures, and criteria for evaluating. The kinds of questions each type best responds to are discussed. (65 references) (MBR)

To better understand the issues behind the colonization of the New World and to see why some colonies and empires failed while others flourished, students analyze the motivations and resources of the colonial powers. Noting that the results of the colonial era are counter-intuitive (the Spanish, who colonized areas rich in gold, silver, and…

Compares results of giving undergraduate students actual instructor feedback, computer-simulated instructor feedback, or no feedback. There were advantages to giving actual instructor-supplied feedback for exam performance, in-class responsiveness, and attitudes toward the instructor and other students. (JMV)

A study compared the interviewing skills of 15 advanced-standing (bachelor's degree-holding) and 23 master's degree students of social work, with blind raters evaluating student use of 3 core skills: facilitation; questioning/clarification; support/empathy. No statistically significant differences were found between the groups, supporting the…

Ignorance of the characteristics of a mixed population may lead to bias in a summary measure of a phenomenon. A test based on sample kurtosis is demonstrated by a simulation study to be more powerful than six other known tests in detecting a class of mixed normal distributions. (SLD)

Two issues in analysis of interactions in complex linear models are considered. One is the omnibus test for interaction, and the other concerns follow-up tests when the omnibus test is significant. Reconsidered omnibus and follow-up tests are illustrated on an educational data set analyzed using the Statistical Analysis System. (SLD)

To examine cultural differences in planning processes, two instruments, one of which was a computer simulation, were used with 38 Brazilian and 38 German university students. Results are discussed from a functional perspective that interprets cognitive processes within their ecocultural context. (SLD)

Inquiry learning requires the ability to understand that theory and evidence have to be distinguished and co-ordinated. Moreover, learners have to be able to control two or more independent variables when formulating hypotheses, designing experiments and interpreting outcomes. Can sixth-grade (9-10 years) children be trained to acquire these…

A statistical test for detecting answer copying on multiple-choice tests based on Cohen's kappa is proposed. The test is free of any assumptions on the response processes of the examinees suspected of copying and having served as the source, except for the usual assumption that these processes are probabilistic. Because the asymptotic null and…

Comparing variability of test scores across alternate forms, test conditions, or subpopulations is a fundamental problem in psychometrics. A confidence interval for a ratio of standard deviations is proposed that performs as well as the classic method with normal distributions and performs dramatically better with nonnormal distributions. A simple…

In this study, the effects of different types of support for learning from multiple representations in a simulation-based learning environment were examined. The study extends known research by examining the use of dynamic representations instead of static representations and it examines the role of the complexity of the domain and the learning…