Restricted to five Spanish public universities, this paper examines knowledge about information literacy competencies--that is, the objective dimension--among a population of social sciences students, as well as two subjective dimensions: students' belief in the importance of information literacy, hereafter called "belief-in-importance",…

The OECD Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) provides a framework in which over 80 countries collaborate to build advanced global metrics to assess the knowledge, skills and character attributes of the students. The design of assessments poses major conceptual and technical challenges, as successful learning. Beyond a sound…

There can be no denying the influence of competencies on the development of the school and its curricula. It is increasingly the case that, to enrol in a socio-economic fabric, whether locally or globally, learners--male or female--must learn to place their knowledge and know-how at the service of action: they must be able to deal with complex…

The authors investigated whether some advantages of tutoring over other instructional methods are due to microadaptation, or, tutors basing their actions on assessments of tutees they develop during tutoring. In a 2 × 2 between-subjects experiment, independent variables were shared experience (tutors either worked with the same or a different…

There is international agreement that quantitative skills (QS) are an essential graduate competence in science. QS refer to the application of mathematical and statistical thinking and reasoning in science. This study reports on the use of the Science Students Skills Inventory to capture final year science students' perceptions of their QS across…

In the present study carried out with 190 educational administrators, the individual innovativeness of educational administrators was examined. As a result of the study, it was found out that the educational administrators considered themselves as early adaptors. It was also revealed that professional seniority was not important in terms of…

Information-rich environments are created to promote data use in schools for the purpose of self-evaluation and quality assurance. However, providing feedback does not guarantee that schools will actually put it to use. One of the main stumbling blocks relates to the interpretation and diagnosis of the information. This study examines the…

This study explores school social workers' perceptions of their ability to successfully engage in practice tasks that reduce the likelihood of school suspension and undesirable behaviors among racial and ethnic groups within diverse geographical locations (urban, suburban, and rural). Using survey research methods with a convenience sample, 201…

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to determine the relationship among principals' emotional intelligence skills, school accountability ratings, and selected demographic factors. Method: The sample was comprised of Texas public school principals from elementary, middle school/junior high, and high schools and their school accountability…

The Nigeria's oil industry has been criticized for some time now for its inability to render adequate services to the general public. This criticism is predicated on the fact that the standards of productivity in their services are low and that their facilities (i.e. the refineries) are not working up to capacity. This is evident in their…

The effects of physical modifications of the minimum competency test on the performance of third grade learning disabled (LD) students (n=345) on versions of a Florida state minimum competency test are evaluated. The test modifications included alterations in line length, groupings of items, answer formats, administration procedures, as well as…

Examines the reasons behind and the effects of standardized and minimum competency tests. The authors conclude that the tests lead towards lower performance expectations for disadvantaged students, and increasingly rigid tracking along class, cultural, and racial lines. (AM)

This study investigated the relationship between the achievement of tenth graders on the Hawaii State Test of Essential Competencies (HSTEC) and such variables as student socioeconomic status, family structure, ethnicity, previous educational experiences, types of schools attended, elementary grades, achievement test scores, and rate of…

The Connecticut Teacher Assessment Center Project has, since 1986, been developing a semistructured interview in the area of mathematics to evaluate beginning teacher competence. The strategy for validation of the project's performance tests, Connecticut's reform initiatives, and implications of systematic validity for traditional psychometric…

A study examined the characteristics that might be shared among tenth and eleventh grade students who fail the "New Jersey Minimum Basic Skills Test" (MBS) in reading. The scores of 15 students in the graduating classes of 1986 and 1987 who had failed to attain the minimum score of 75 prior to remedial instruction were studied. The…