E-learning includes the use of the internet for accessing learning materials, interacting with learning content and with instructors and students to obtain support during the learning process in order to gain knowledge and personal meaning and to grow. It occurs when students have electronic access to resources and where they are in regular online…

Increasing student retention and improving graduation rates continues to remain a critical issue for undergraduate institutions. Previous research suggests that student attrition is predominantly voluntary, and is influenced by institutional characteristics. The importance of academic and social integration as a strategy to reduce attrition is…

Contemporary young people are engaged in a variety of information behaviors, such as information seeking, using, sharing, and creating. The ways youth interact with information have transformed in the shifting digital information environment; however, relatively little empirical research exists and no theoretical framework adequately explains…

This report is the culmination of a yearlong effort to study the efficiency of the nation's public education system and includes the first-ever attempt to evaluate the productivity of almost every major school district in the country. In the business world, the notion of productivity describes the benefit received in exchange for effort or money…

Principals are expected to use data to develop a clear vision, stimulate meaningful dialogue among stakeholders, create interventions for struggling students, and improve school programs. The purpose of this three-phase, sequential, mixed-methods study was to examine how principals use summative and formative assessment data to improve academic…

This study examined data from the Special Education Elementary Longitudinal Study (SEELS, 2003) to compare the social skills of children in the U.S. with comorbid learning disabilities and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (LD+AD/HD) to their peers with LD-only and AD/HD-only, and to assess how specific demographic factors moderate the…

Rapid technological enhancements and changes necessitate people who can understand the relation between science and technology and perceive as well as comment on technological enhancements. The aim of the present study was to determine physics students comprehension of the operation principles of wired telephone, mobile phone, and latest medical…

Building intelligent course designing systems adaptable to the learners' needs is one of the key goals of research in e-learning. This goal is all the more crucial as gaining knowledge in an e-learning environment depends solely on computer mediated interaction within the learner group and among the learners and instructors. The patterns generated…

This study investigated the informal learning experiences expressed by Taiwanese adults (aged from 16 to 97) and examined their involvement related to selected socio-demographic characteristics. Data of the 2008 Adult Education Participation Survey in Taiwan and Fujian Area were used to look at different variables of adults' demographic…

Big-fish-little-pond effect (BFLPE) research has demonstrated that academic self-concept is negatively affected by attending high-ability schools. This article examines data from large, representative samples of 15-year-olds from each Australian state, based on the three Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) databases that focus on…

In recent years the educational policy environment has emphasised data-driven change. This has increased the expectation for school personnel to use statistical information to inform their programs and to improve teaching practices. Such data include system reports of student achievement tests and socio-economic profiles provided to schools by…

Teachers may be inadequately prepared for the increasing number of students being identified with autism spectrum disorders (ASD), as students with ASD may not respond to traditional methods of instruction. Some parents of children with ASD are concerned with educational programming available through public school systems and are turning to…

We introduced writing activities into a project style third year undergraduate biomolecular science laboratory to assist the students to produce a final report in the form of a journal article. To encourage writing while the experimental work was proceeding, the embedded writing activities required ongoing analysis of experimental data. After…

Mobile technology-enhanced literacy initiatives have become a focus of efforts to support learning for students with literacy difficulties. The "Laptops Initiative for Post-Primary Students with Dyslexia or other Reading/Writing Difficulties" offers insights into and addresses questions about ICT policy making regarding m-learning technologies for…

The EU Action Plan on Drugs (2005-2008) calls for member states of the European Union to provide information on five key epidemiological indicators. These are: general population surveys, prevalence and patterns of problem drug use, drug related infectious diseases, drug related deaths and mortality of drug users, and demand for drug treatment.…