Describes issues which are common to all research methodologies and some that were unique to the assessment techniques used in the Child Development Project (CDP) in San Ramon, California. Looks at the limited amount of time given assessments and the "fluid" nature of measurements. Notes that CDP issues involved observations,…

Reasons for evaluating intergenerational programs are presented, and unique features and basic components of these evaluations are described. Strategies and methodologies used in the program evaluation process are systematically outlined. Careful and serious evaluation can provide insights into problem areas, successful program elements,…

This set of activity sheets requires students to organize and display data with a box-and-whiskers graph. Students use the plot as a summary display to detect patterns and to highlight the important features of the data for purposes of comparison. (PK)

Studied the effect of content knowledge on learners' participation in interactions between nonnative speakers. Measures of participation included amount of talk, conversational fillers, back channels, topic moves, clarification questions, and confirmation and comprehension checks. Findings support the relationship between knowledge and…

Reviews factors influencing reversals of expectations for language-learning outcomes. This article touches on psychological and neurological data regarding individual differences in language-learning mechanisms and focuses on cross-linguistic psycholinguistic analysis that indicates that different target languages offer a wide variety of learning…

Describes two QuickBASIC programs that provide students direct experience with interpreting correlation scatter-plots. Maintains that the programs can be used in classroom exercises to highlight factors that influence the size of a Pearson correlation coefficient. (CFR)

Describes a QuickBASIC program for demonstrating the differences between main effects and interactions in factorial designs. The program can be used in conjunction with a traditional lecture to improve student understanding and develop skills in recognizing main effects and interactions from graphic displays. (CFR)

Describes an interdisciplinary unit involving math, English, science, and geography. Discusses support and development of the project, objectives for teachers and students, pitfalls and successes, equipment and supplies, and benefits. (MKR)

This activity uses ice crystals to introduce middle school and high school students to the collection, preparation, examination, and manipulation of scientific data. (PR)

Jeni Yamada's "Laura" and Michael Tomasello's "First Verbs" continue a tradition of providing useful information on the language ability of individuals in a depth rarely found in multisubject studies; however, these efforts are unusual for case studies in that both take strong theoretical positions on the essence of language and language learning.…

Three trends that are projected for the future of evaluation are greater use of evaluation research in litigation; increasing integration of the social and natural sciences for certain kinds of evaluation research; and a move away from conventional statistics toward data analysis. (SLD)

Examines why businesses need languages and in which contexts. This research encompassed an examination of published material; a questionnaire administered to officials in a service company, a manufacturing firm and a chemical company; and interviews with executives in these companies. Business people believe that language learning should begin…

Statistical process control (SPC), which employs simple statistical tools and problem-solving techniques such as histograms, control charts, flow charts, and Pareto charts to implement continual product improvement procedures, can be incorporated into human service organizations. Examples illustrate use of SPC procedures to analyze behavioral data…

Examination of the development of form/function relations of the prepositions "por" and "para" at different levels of proficiency in the interlanguage of study-abroad students in Granada, Spain, revealed "noncanonical" as well as "canonical" uses of these prepositions. The most common noncanonical uses were…

This survey of 510 special education teachers found that most teachers collect, record, and use data on student performance to determine instructional effectiveness, appropriate time to move students to the next skill, and which objectives have been met. Only one-third of teachers used graphs for displaying and interpreting data. (Author/JDD)