The standardization approach to comprehensive differential item functioning is described and contrasted with the log-linear approach to differential distractor functioning and the item-response-theory-based approach to differential alternative functioning. Data from an edition of the Scholastic Aptitude Test illustrate application of the approach…

Two studies evaluated college student response rates to mail surveys. One found that enclosure of raffle tickets improved response rates but only for students living in campus housing. The second study showed that nonrespondents who were telephoned before receiving a second questionnaire mailing were more likely to respond. (Author/MSE)

Assesses beliefs of 32 male and 35 female middle-class preschool children about the frequency and intensity with which girls, boys, women, and men experience anger, sadness, and happiness. Children's beliefs are complex; they vary as a function of the target person's age and sex and of the specific emotion. (SLD)

Early results from the Vermont Portfolio Project, which evaluated the progress of fourth and eighth graders in reading and mathematics using samples of student products, suggests that improvement is still needed in both subjects. Many factors will influence this pilot project's future direction, including availability of resources and development…

Discussion of computer anxiety focuses on a study of undergraduates in an introductory psychology course that assessed the effects of relaxation and coping skills training on their anxiety and performance as they learned to use a spreadsheet program. The influence of the computer's user friendliness was examined, and treatments for the…

Addresses the relationship between reader response and culture. Presents portraits of a teacher and her Black students and White students as they studied a series of African American literary texts, including Virginia Hamilton's "House of Dies Drear" (1968). The reading of this text marked a turning point for the teacher and students.…

Describes a course that integrates U.S. literature and history around key social issues to sensitize students to the need for a more just society and a higher quality of life for all citizens. Discusses the poetry unit that focused on contemporary U.S. poets of color, the teaching methods, and examples of the students' poetry. (PRA)

Investigates the modes of acculturation and response tendencies of 133 adolescents from biethnic families in Athens (Greece) compared to 113 homoethnic Greek adolescents in Athens and 80 homoethnic Greek adolescents living in Germany and The Netherlands. Patterns of acculturation of values differ for adolescents from biethnic and homoethnic…

Discusses the Maryland Test of Citizenship Skills and the controversy surrounding its adoption. Presents results of a study of teachers' attitudes toward the test and remediation efforts. Concludes that competency-based testing discourages higher level thinking but encourages recall. Suggests that performance on the test does not reflect students'…

The Competence Enjoyment Scale (CES) was developed to measure parental feelings of competence and enjoyment as they interact with their infants. Mothers of 60 full-term healthy, preterm healthy, and preterm atypical infants were administered the CES to evaluate the instrument. Preliminary results support the reliability and validity of the scale.…

Convergent validity of expert-systems scores for 4 complex constructed-response mathematical formats was assessed for 249 examinees from the Graduate Record Examinations (GRE) General Test in June 1989. The hypothesized five-factor model fit the data well, but an alternative with two dimensions (GRE-quantitative and constructed-response)…

Current federal efforts to reform U.S. education overemphasize competition, measurement, and the education-work relationship; distract educators and educational policymakers from tackling structural inertia problems besetting schools; and engender cynicism and passive resistance in already overworked teachers. America 2000 fails to use serious…

Comparison of 60 junior high school students (20 academically gifted, 20 academic achievers, and 20 "nongifted") found that the academically gifted students demonstrated more negative affective and physiological stress reactions to an experimentally induced failure condition. (DB)

Because staff development is the most important factor in advancing the middle school philosophy, administrators should take special care to make inservice activities meaningful. In a recent informal survey, 58 middle school teachers with varying degrees of experience and expertise identified adolescent development, interdisciplinary teaming, and…

Nine adolescent mothers interacted with their infants in three interaction style conditions differing in terms of stimulation and responsiveness provided by the adult. Results support the position that, by interacting in a stimulating and contingently responsive manner, caregivers increase the likelihood of engagement states that are believed to…