This study sought to determine the effects of prior knowledge and other personal variables on the achievement of undergraduates in an economics course at the Open University of the Netherlands (OuN). A total of 100 law and 100 economics students enrolled in "Economics and Money" were tested on subject mastery at the end of the course.…

This study sought to determine: (1) what children understand about "chance" when they begin secondary school?; and (2) how common and how influential the use of informal heuristics, approaches, and biases is in their thinking about probability in the school context. Children's understanding of chance, attributions of events to…

In educational psychology research the concept "prior knowledge" is not always clearly described, but it is important to distinguish prior knowledge state (PKS) components as well as possible and to elucidate the relations among these elements. An in-case-study was conducted into the operationalizing of the concept of prior knowledge and…

This report presents data about Catholic elementary school teachers in light of the trend of the last 50 years, moving from teachers who were predominantly members of religious communities to the present when teachers are primarily laity. During the 1993-94 academic year, there were 112,199 teachers in Catholic elementary schools or which 89.5…

This paper presents results of a survey of 297 parents in Michigan regarding their knowledge of Fetal Alcohol Syndrome and Fetal Alcohol Effects (FAS/FAE), including their knowledge of the characteristics that typify alcohol-related birth defects and prevention measures. Parents surveyed had children in preschool regular education, preschool…

Little work has been done regarding the overall assessment of quality of computer science graduates at the undergraduate level. This paper reports on a pilot study at the University of Alabama of a prototype computer science outcomes assessment designed to evaluate the breadth of knowledge of computer science seniors. The instrument evaluated two…

This study examined 1,200 adults' understanding of and attitudes toward learning disabilities, through a telephone survey. Additional objectives included the identification of various information sources and testing of potential messages about learning disabilities. Halfway through each telephone interview, a definition of learning disabilities…

In an effort to help establish consistent opportunities for meaningful staff development, administrators and staff associated with three early childhood education programs funded by the Illinois State Board of Education were surveyed about their needs and interests. A questionnaire examined the extent of the respondent's knowledge of, or…

One reason for a lack of religious literacy among undergraduates and members of society at large is the virtual absence of religion in high school textbooks. Thirty high school textbooks approved for use in North Carolina in the fields of United States and world history, economics, home economics, and biology were reviewed. The review revealed the…

Seventy-two Australian children aged from 4 years 6 months to 9 years 10 months were individually administered a set of six combinatorial problems involving the dressing of toy bears in all possible combinations of clothing items. Six age groups were represented: eight children were in each of the 4, 5, and 6 year categories; and 16 children were…

The research circle is a form of cooperation between trade unions and researchers that is spreading all over Sweden and beyond its national borders. The research circles described in this book were arranged jointly by SKAF (Swedish Municipal Workers' Union) and the Uppsala University Department of Education. A research circle is a study circle in…

Previous research using various measures of teacher quality has largely failed to investigate the relationships among such assessment measures using multivariate procedures. Multivariate investigations are essential in studies of teacher competence because these methods view various competency variables in the larger contexts to which researchers…

This study was undertaken to investigate the knowledge and attitudes of 8th, 9th, and 10th grade Kansas students pertaining to human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS). Attitudes and knowledge of 9th and 10th grade students who had participated in a Sex Respect Class offered in the 9th grade were compared…

This report is one of a series on how curriculum unit experiences in U.S. history influenced the learning of fifth-grade students. This report focuses on the American Revolution period. Before the unit began, three classes of fifth graders stated what they knew (or thought they knew) about the events leading up to the Revolutionary War, the War…

This report describes the dieting practices of 796 Nebraskans in grades 8 and 10. The results presented in this report are based on questions from the 1989 National Adolescent Health Survey administered to a total of 1,689 adolescents. These topics are covered: (1) incidence of dieting in adolescent males and females; (2) methods used by dieters…