Physics problem-solving ability is among the crucial skills physics students require as it enhances their conceptual understanding and develops their abilities for real-world problem-solving. This study employed a descriptive design to investigate the physics problem-solving skills of Senior-Five physics students from Rwandan secondary schools.…

This paper extends existing work on teacher weighting in student-centered surveys by looking into aspects of practical implementation of deriving and using weights for teacher-centered analysis in the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) and the Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS). The formal…

This article presents a latent class model for multilevel data to identify latent subgroups and estimate heterogeneous treatment effects. Unlike sequential approaches that partition data first and then estimate average treatment effects (ATEs) within classes, we employ a Bayesian procedure to jointly estimate mixing probability, selection, and…

There has been increasing interest in exploring heterogeneous treatment effects using machine learning (ML) methods such as causal forests, Bayesian additive regression trees, and targeted maximum likelihood estimation. However, there is little work on applying these methods to estimate treatment effects in latent classes defined by…

Computational thinking (CT) is one of the systematic tools in problem solving and widely accepted as an important skill in the 21st century. This study aimed to identify the effectiveness of the Chemistry Computational Thinking (CT-CHEM) Module on achievement in chemistry. This study also employed a quasi-experimental design with the participation…

This rejoinder keeps the original focus on statistical computing pertaining to the correlation of student achievement between mathematics and science from the Trend in Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS). Albeit the availability of student performance data in TIMSS and the emphasis of the inter-subject connection in the Next Generation Science…

A primary purpose of cognitive diagnosis models (CDMs) is to classify examinees based on their attribute patterns. The Q-matrix (Tatsuoka, 1985), a common component of all CDMs, specifies the relationship between the set of required dichotomous attributes and the test items. Since a Q-matrix is often developed by content-knowledge experts and can…

Experimental work in the research of astronomical phenomena is often difficult or even impossible because of long-lasting processes or too distant objects and correspondingly too expensive equipment. In this paper, we present an example of observation of the Moon, which is our nearest astronomic object and therefore does not require professional…

Recent research has shown that over-extraction of latent classes can be observed in the Bayesian estimation of the mixed Rasch model when the distribution of ability is non-normal. This study examined the effect of non-normal ability distributions on the number of latent classes in the mixed Rasch model when estimated with maximum likelihood…

Item response models typically assume that the item characteristic (step) curves follow a logistic or normal cumulative distribution function, which are strictly monotone functions of person test ability. Such assumptions can be overly-restrictive for real item response data. We propose a simple and more flexible Bayesian nonparametric IRT model…

This study aims to investigate (1) students' trust in mathematics calculation versus intuition in a physics problem solving and (2) whether this trust is related to achievement in physics in the context of epistemic game theoretical framework. To achieve this research objective, paper-pencil and interview sessions were conducted. A paper-pencil…

Chemical stoichiometry is a conceptual framework that encompasses other concepts such as the mole, writing of chemical equations in word and representative form, balancing of equations and the equilibrium concept. The underlying concepts enable students to understand relationships among entities of matter and required amounts for use when…

The selection of an appropriate booklet design is an important element of large-scale assessments of student achievement. Two design properties that are typically optimized are the "balance" with respect to the positions the items are presented and with respect to the mutual occurrence of pairs of items in the same booklet. The purpose…

Chemical stoichiometry is a conceptual framework that encompasses other concepts such as the mole, writing of chemical equations in word and representative form, balancing of equations and the equilibrium concept. The underlying concepts enable students to understand relationships among entities of matter and required amounts for use when…

Game-based Learning (GBL) environments make instruction flexible and interactive. Positive experiences depend on personalization. Student modelling has focused on affect. Three methods are used: (1) recognizing the physiological effects of emotion, (2) reasoning about emotion from its origin and (3) an approach combining 1 and 2. These have proven…