Research has now demonstrated that students can learn nature of science concepts variously through student-led investigations, contemporary cases, and historical cases. Here we articulate more precisely the merits, deficits, and context of each approach and begin to profile how to integrate them as complementary methods. Emphasis now needs to…

Summarizing theory and results of empirical research, this article serves to illustrate why effects measured with retrospective pretests may be subject to bias and may not always be explained by response shift theory. It presents three contending theories to explain the difference between retrospective and traditional pretest results and considers…

The importance of using rubrics as an assessment tool has been well established. Rubrics communicate to students what is expected of them, scaffold learning, provide feedback to students and teachers concerning the teaching-learning process, and allow teachers and students to self- and peer-assess. They also help teachers evaluate consistently and…

Program assessment has been a topic of significance in higher education over the last decade. Initially, program assessment was implemented in response to concerns over the quality of college graduates' education and increasing competiveness in the job market for American college graduates. Recently, higher education institutions have been…

This study examined whether the Single-Item Math Anxiety Scale (SIMA), based on the item suggested by Ashcraft, provided valid and reliable scores of mathematical anxiety. A large sample of university students (n = 279) was administered the SIMA and the 25-item Shortened Math Anxiety Rating Scale (sMARS) to evaluate the relation between the scores…

This article is based on the analysis of the changes in global university rankings and the new "products" based on rankings data in the period since mid-2011. It is a summary and continuation of the European University Association (EUA)-commissioned report "Global University Rankings Their Impact, Report II" which was launched…

Determining the effectiveness of physical education teachers is a difficult process complicated by the expectations of the building principals, the extensiveness of national and state standards, student ability levels, and the severely limited time that the programs are allotted. The dearth of effective, efficient evaluation tools lends itself to…

Data were gathered from 95 Year 10 students in a New Zealand secondary school to explore how the indicators of scientific literacy are expressed in student responses. These students completed an activity based around the two contexts of lighting and health. A matrix, which incorporated descriptive indicators, was developed to analyse the student…

The purpose of this study is to identify the epistemological features and model qualities depending on model evaluation levels and to explore the reasoning process behind high-level evaluation through small group interaction about blood circulation. Nine groups of three to four students in the eighth grade participated in the modeling practice.…

Despite the common usage of the term "executive functioning" in neuropsychology, several aspects of this concept remain unsettled. In this paper, we will address some of the issues surrounding the notion of executive functioning and how an understanding of executive functioning and its components might assist school-based practitioners…

Teaching graduate students to conduct evaluations is typically relegated to evaluation methods courses. This approach misses an opportunity for students to collaboratively use evaluation skills to explore content. This article examines a graduate course, Issues in Adult Basic Education, in which students learned evaluation methods concurrently…

Context: Validity arguments can be used to provide evidence that instructors are drawing accurate conclusions from the results of students' clinical performance assessments (PAs). Little research has been conducted in athletic training education to determine if the evidence supports the use of current PAs. Measurement theories designed to…

This chapter provides guidelines and suggestions for assessing student development using autoethnography, a qualitative research method. Autoethnography guides students in examining the nexus between personal and professional identities, including skills, challenges, values, histories, and hopes for the future.

As given in the Principle 17 of the Agenda 21, there is the need for environmental assessment for human developmental activities that are likely to have significant adverse impacts on the natural environment (UNCED, 1992). This article reviews various assessment methodologies and the reasons why methodological triangulation is a preferred choice…

In 2007, every district in North Carolina received access to EVAAS (Education Valued-Added Assessment System), a statistical tool designed to give principals a resource to make strong instructional decisions for their schools. The use of EVAAS has now worked its way into state law and its use is mandated in teacher evaluation. However, EVAAS is…