Selectivity problems are discussed in terms of a general model that is estimated by the maximum likelihood method. Both single-group and multiple-group analyses are considered. An extension of the general model to latent variable models is discussed. (Author/PN)

The jackknife by groups and modifications of the jackknife by groups are used to estimate standard errors of rotated factor loadings for selected populations in common factor model maximum likelihood factor analysis. Simulations are performed in which t-statistics based upon these jackknife estimates of the standard errors are computed.…

This study investigated the impact of four student characteristics and the instructors on the relative abilities of a simulation-gaming method and the lecture-discussion method to increase the economic knowledge, retention of economic knowledge, and interest toward economics of college students enrolled in an introductory economics course.…

Proposes a modified version of commonly employed item response models in a fully Bayesian framework and obtains inferences under the model using Markov chain Monte Carlo techniques. Demonstrates use of the model in a series of simulations and with operational data from the North Carolina Test of Computer Skills and the Test of Spoken English…

Another Rasch approach to the measurement of change, the multidimensional random coefficient multinomial logit model (MRCML), is proposed. The MRCML model can be applied to polytomous items and the investigation of variations in item difficulties. Some simulation studies demonstrate good parameter recovery for the MRCML model under various testing…

Provides asymptotic formulas for the standard errors of parameter estimates from the NOHARM computer program for restricted and unrestricted rotated models, using large-sample theory, and a goodness-of-fit test of the model. Used simulation to show that results from NOHARM are comparable to the three-stage estimator of B. Muthen (1993). (SLD)

Prior work has proposed different theoretical mechanisms to explain students' course-taking patterns in schools. On the one hand, there are oversocialized accounts that claim that rules, social background factors, and supply-side factors shape observed career patterns. On the other hand, there are undersocialized accounts that claim that the…

Proposes an enhanced approach to teaching topics in ecology--an approach that uses mathematical models and A Programming Language (APL) to produce short, quickly comprehensible computer "programs" that can be run to allow students to study the behavior of a particular model. (Author/IRT)

Langmuir's model is studied for the situation where epsilon is independently and identically normally distributed. The "Y/x" versus "Y" plot had a 90% mid-range that did not contain the true curve in a vast portion of the range of "x". The "1/Y" versus "1/chi" plot had undefined expected values,…

To learn something of the experience Canadian administrators have had in the use of quantitative models, a brief questionnaire was sent to 126 Canadian educational agencies. Presents some categorical statements about the experience reported, and gives author's opinion on what has caused the present condition. (Author/JF)

Explores the relevance of some of the methodologies of systems engineering to problems in the social sciences, especially the dynamics of domestic and international conflict. Describes an initial exercise in modeling domestic conflict in terms of State equations. Implications for education. (Author/WM)

Angoff's method for identifying possible biased test items was applied to four computer-generated hypothetical tests, two of which contained no biased items and two of which contained a few biased items. The tests were generated to match specifications of a latent trait model. Angoff's method compared item difficulty estimates for two different…

The model considered in this paper, the G.A.M.E. Educational Planning Model, provides a means of studying the interrelationships among education, manpower, and the economy. The model was originally constructed for use at the Training Seminar, Global Accounts for Manpower and Education (G.A.M.E.), held in Dublin, Ireland, September 4-20, 1967.…

A new approach to deriving human performance measures and criteria for use in automatically evaluating trainee performance is described. Ultimately, this approach will allow automatic measurement of pilot performance in a flight simulator or from recorded in-flight data. An efficient method of representing performance data within a computer is…

The present study compares the performance of phi coefficients and tetrachorics along two dimensions of factor recovery in binary data. These dimensions are (1) accuracy of nontrivial factor identifications; and (2) factor structure recovery given a priori knowledge of the correct number of factors to rotate. (Author/LMO)