Using a subset of data from the Alphabetic Braille and Contracted Braille Study, researchers analyzed the patterns and characteristics of hand movements as predictors of reading performance. Statistically significant differences were found between one- and two-handed readers and between patterns of hand movements and reading rates. (Contains 6…

An open field--with its wildflowers, grasses, and vole tunnels--became an instant classroom. Students' senses were awakened there, and upon entering a nearby forest, they immediately detected a difference: less light and cooler air. "Why are there no grasses in the forest? Why aren't there ferns in the field?" These and other questions emerged as…

This study sought to develop a regression model to predict maximal oxygen uptake (VO[subscript 2max]) based on submaximal treadmill exercise (EX) and non-exercise (N-EX) data involving 116 participants, ages 18-65 years. The EX data included the participants' self-selected treadmill speed (at a level grade) when exercise heart rate first reached…

In order to investigate the learning environment of senior high school science laboratory classrooms in Korea, the Science Laboratory Environment Inventory (SLEI) was translated into Korean and administered to 439 students (99 science-independent stream students, 195 science-oriented stream students and 145 humanities stream students). Data…

Multiple-choice (MC) examinations are becoming increasingly popular in higher education because they can be used effectively to assess breadth of knowledge in large cohorts of students. This present research investigated psychology students' performance on, and experiences of, MC examinations with and without correction for guessing. In Study 1,…

Background: Since 1995, the Office for Standards in Education (Ofsted) has inspected the quality of all Initial Teacher Training (ITT) provision in England on behalf of the Training and Development Agency for Schools (TDA). Ofsted inspection results are published and are highly significant because the TDA has a statutory duty to take account of…

Background: Based on the idea that students remember best what is presented last, the lesson closure is commonly identified as an important component of effective teaching and has recently surfaced as a routine practice of expert teachers in sport. Despite its link to both effective and expert instruction, the lesson closure has seen scarce…

In operational testing programs using item response theory (IRT), item parameter invariance is threatened when an item appears in a different location on the live test than it did when it was field tested. This study utilizes data from a large state's assessments to model change in Rasch item difficulty (RID) as a function of item position change,…

For this experiment, students are divided into 2 groups and presented with a static equilibrium force-balance problem to solve. One group works entirely experimentally and the other group theoretically, using Newton's laws. The groups present their seemingly dissimilar results and must reconcile them through discussion. (Contains 3 figures.)

In the present study, we present analyzed profiles of observed classroom experiences in terms of emotional and instructional dimensions of quality. Over 800 first-grade classrooms across the United States were included, selected by virtue of having a student participating in the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development's Study of…

The author and his first-year algebra students explored the quadratic behavior behind the parabolic shape of fountains at the local family splash park. This hands-on discovery project has three main parts: (1) gathering data by experimenting with and photographing the fountains; (2) analyzing the photographs to obtain numerical data; and (3)…

This article examines whether correlates of cross-national homicide variation tested with data from highly developed, predominantly Western nations could also explain homicide rates in East-Central Europe. Using pooled time-series analyses of data from nine countries from 1990 through 2003, this study found that homicide rates were negatively…

Few laboratory procedures describe the use of circular dichroism (CD) at the undergraduate level. To increase the number of laboratory exercises using CD, a thermal denaturation study of myoglobin using CD is described to assess protein stability. Values obtained from a more classic linear data analysis approach are consistent with data analyzed…

The article explores the author's learning as she interviewed students who participated in a data analysis unit. The article features students' comments and raises issues that are pertinent to supporting students' understandings of data analysis and their views of their own mathematical capabilities. (Contains 1 figure.)

This paper discusses the advantages and challenges of using qualitative methods to elicit poor children's perspectives about threats and positive influences on their wellbeing. It draws on research carried out by the author on the subjective experiences of poor children in Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia in terms of their understandings of…