Literacy studies of young children imply that college teachers need to be able to make a connection between what the students bring to the composition classroom and what they are writing in the university. Teachers need to discover students' writing backgrounds, the anxieties, rules, and attitudes they bring to the classroom. In addition, research…

This report presents the conceptual framework and major features of the new design for the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) as conducted by Educational Testing Service beginning July 1983. It comprises three major chapters. The first chapter reviews the social and environmental changes that demand reconsideration of NAEP. The new…

Vocational education research and development (R&D) product evaluations are difficult to conduct for several reasons, such as the many types of R&D products, the multiple users of the products with different goals for evaluation, the limited time available, and the high cost. In order to meet these challenges, an internal evaluation team…

Increasingly, poverty has become concentrated among the urban underclass in the United States. The dramatic economic changes underlying this situation have taken place within the context of larger changes in global, national, and regional political economies, including such factors as industrial restructuring and migration flows. In addition, the…

This paper offers criticism of rural education research methods, and identifies areas in need of more or better systematic inquiry. It suggests the need to increase the quantity of the highest quality of research and the need for researchers to reach policy makers and "mainstream" education journals more effectively. Five main problems…

A description is provided of Rancho Santiago College's institutional research program, which uses a traditional centralized research model, augmented with alternative, decentralized approaches. First, background information is presented on the college and the role of the research office in management, decision-making, and educational support.…

The computerized group decision making system has potential to become an important part of an organization, but the research done thus far in this area is unfocused, lacks rigor and a theoretical base, and disregards the communication component of the technology except on the most pragmatic, fundamental level. A review of the research makes clear…

This collection of essays by current or former directors of institutional research represents the broad spectrum of size, function, and geography within institutional research in the two-year college. The volume contains: (1) "The Role of Institutional Research in Evaluation of Nontraditional Programs: College Preparatory Analysis at Miami-Dade…

Issues related to the estimation of individuals' vocabulary size are discussed, including the rationale for vocabulary size research and the psychological, pedagogical, and quantitative approaches to vocabulary research and methodological problems associated with them. Some results from a large-scale assessment of Finnish comprehensive school…

Three broad categories are cited that describe the nature of a college or university as an organization and that potentially influence an institutions academic outcomes. These categories are: the college's formal organizational characteristics, structures, processes, and practices; its culture; and its climate. This literature review aims to…

This report includes proceedings from the Family as Educators Conference which aimed (1) to clarify the roles parents have in supporting their children's achievement in literacy and motivation for school learning (i.e., attitudes affecting school work and attendance), and (2) to assess the viability of parents' educative roles in light of current…

The perceptions of educators working with international students in higher education regarding research needs in the field of international student affairs were surveyed. The 36 respondents were instructors and administrators of programs for English language study, international education, foreign student advising, and they represented 18 public…

This review paper discusses the implications of the California Statewide Longitudinal Study (SLS) of community college students for 2-year vocational education. After introductory material examining problems in vocational student follow-up, the paper presents relevant findings from the SLS, discusses their significance for vocational education,…

The effects of aggregation on the reliability of measures of academic performance were explored in two studies. In the first study, 30 elementary-age children were tested four times on the same forms of the Woodcock Reading Mastery Tests and the Ginn 720 Reading Passage measures. Group stability coefficients, within-subject reliability…

To help improve school public relations programs, this handbook tells how to use survey and feedback techniques and how to interpret survey results. The first chapter gives a brief overview of the usefulness of surveys for getting community feedback. Chapter 2 recommends beginning by deciding what one wants to know from a survey, what human and…