Many higher education institutions are focusing on their admissions operations. They are attempting to ensure a steady stream of enrolling students, and/or attempting to ensure the quality or composition of their entering classes. However, many colleges have not developed a comprehensive method of tracking student cohorts, measuring retention, and…

This document is one of the 5 sections of the Data Element Dictionary developed as part of the WICHE Management Information Systems (MIS) Program. The elements in this section apply to both the current and historical data concerning facilities. The purpose of the WICHE MIS Program is to make it possible to derive data which will be truly…

This report is in two parts; the first part deals with a construction of a data base for bibliometric studies. The second part provides a detailed account of the results of those studies. Needs for a data base, the search for a possible candidate, and the decision to build the Check List of Social Sciences Serials (CLOSSS) are explained in the…

Describes the formation of the Child Language Data Exchange System (CHILDES), a system formed to foster the sharing of computerized data on language acquisition. Details the governance of the system, the nature of the database, the shape of the coding conventions, and the types of computer programs being developed. (SED)

Describes database and index design and data collection methods for compilation of the National Tune Index, a comprehensive, multifaceted tool for research in and analysis of eighteenth century American and British secular music, restoration of early American theater works, and identification of specific tune or text fragments. (MBR)

A public utility company uses laser wands to read bar-coded labels on furniture and equipment. The system allows an 80 percent savings of the time required to create reports for inventory control. (MLF)

State education agencies are increasingly building the capacity to collect and manage sizable quantities of information about schools and districts and to match individual student records over time and across databases. An adequate statewide student data-collection system makes it easier for a state to meet legal reporting requirements such as…

This paper describes the experiences of researchers conducting research using an online course for the professional development of middle school mathematics and science teachers. The paper also offers recommendations to developers of course management systems (CMS). The online course focused on strategies that promoted gender equitable pedagogy…

This paper serves as an example of how one may approach the use of a large database for comparative education purposes. Considerations include determining three aspects about the databases, and one case study. The three aspects include the type of database that is used, the method in which the data were collected and errors, and the structure of…

Application of a generalized data base management system enabled the new Physics-Mathematics-Astronomy Library to couple the immediate needs of moving and integrating two libraries with long-term capabilities. (Author)

Discusses efforts to locate studies on the older adult second language learner. Notes that one online and three compact disk databases were searched, using search strategies and subject headings appropriate to each particular file. Results reveal that most of the relevant studies were retrieved from the ERIC and the Linguistics and Language…

Chronicles the need for and development of an interdisciplinary, integrated neighborhood-level database for Boston, Massachusetts, discussing database content and potential applications of this database to a range of criminal justice problems and initiatives (e.g., neighborhood crime patterns, needs assessment, and program planning and…

Outlines design of an open computer system that relies on distributed computing for collection and storage of data from very large samples. Purpose of the system is to provide a base of reliable data for assessing impact of technology on delivery of educational materials. The system consists of an open instrument that generates student forms, an…

Stresses the importance of common understandings of cost definitions and data collection in order to create reliable databases with optimal utility for inter-institutional analysis. Examines definitions of common expenditure categories, discusses cost-accumulation rules governing financial reporting, and explains differences between direct costs…

How has technology affected student achievement? There is a never-ending and misunderstood debate regarding technology integration that revolves around two main factors. First, the definition of student achievement has changed. Information technology literacy is now part of the skill set students will need to be successful, bringing with it a…