A Monte Carlo technique was used to investigate the small sample goodness of fit and statistical power of several nonparametric tests and their parametric analogues when applied to data which violate parametric assumptions. The motivation was to facilitate choice among three designs, simple random assignment with and without a concomitant variable…

From a priori and post hoc data collection perspectives, this paper describes the interrelations among (1) power, alpha, effect size, and sample size for hypothesis testing; and (2) precision, confidence, and sample size for interval estimation. Implications for special education researchers working with convenient samples of fixed size are…

This Monte Carlo study examined the validity of the chi-square test for model evaluation in different instances of misspecification and sample size. The usefulness of the chi-square difference statistic to compare competing structures and improvement in fit is also addressed. (Author/BS)

The present investigation was aimed at exploring the stability of the standard score distributions on the GED (General Educational Development) Tests taken by U.S. high school seniors in equating studies conducted by GED Testing Service during the span of 5 years from 2001 (the norming year) to 2005. Three questions were addressed by this…

This study aimed to determine the degree to which the inclusion of accommodated students with disabilities in the calibration sample affects the characteristics of item parameters and the test results. Investigated were effects on test reliability, item fit to the applicable item response theory (IRT) model, item parameter estimates, and students'…

The 1988 National Survey of Postsecondary Faculty (NSOPF-88), later named the National Study of Postsecondary Faculty, was the first comprehensive study of higher education instructional faculty conducted by the National Center for Education Statistics since 1963. This report provides a description of the 1993 NSOPF and the data generated by its…

This article discusses alternative analyses that reflect the practical significance of test results and the role of sample size in the interpretation of results. It explores effect size reporting and using "what if" analyses to reflect on the role of sample size in the decision to accept the null hypothesis. (Contains references.) (Author/CR)

Approaches to the practical problems of finding former offenders and making them want to participate in a study are described for a study of desistance from crime. In the example, a success rate of 78% was achieved for a sample of 50 former offenders. Attention to individual circumstances is critical. (SLD)

Suggests activities using large samples to simulate quality control processes in industry (specifically, manufacturing camera film). A series of small-group activities investigate the relationship of sample size to percent defective in batch sampling. Efficiency, cost of sampling, company reputation, and public relations are business factors…

The degree to which reliability affects the power of analysis of variance (ANOVA) tests involving one factor with two and three samples was quantified and tabulated by taking into account sample size, level of significance, and true score effect size. Results confirm a substantial effect on power. (SLD)

Type I error rates for Yao's, James' first-order and second-order, and Johansen's tests of equality of mean vectors for two independent samples were estimated for various conditions defined by the degree of heteroscedasticity and nonnormality. Each procedure can be seriously nonrobust with exponential and log-normal distributions. (TJH)

The effects of priors and amount of bias in the Bayesian approach to the estimation problem in item response models are examined using simulation studies. Different specifications of prior information have only modest effects on Bayesian estimates, which are less biased than joint maximum likelihood estimates for small samples. (TJH)

Suggests that an explanation for the differences in mathematics problem-solving strategies found in the study by E. Fennema and others may be simply that the girls in the study population are less interested in mathematics than the boys and explores some implications of this explanation. (SLD)

Over several decades the major thrust in the school sector of countries across the world has been the search for ways in which teachers can be convinced that ICT should be an integral part of their teaching strategy. Various approaches have been tried including the dissemination of good practice and the investment in infrastructure and equipment.…

Post-tenure review has been studied primarily as an administrative issue in higher education; less attention has been given to empirically examining the underlying assumptions of faculty regarding this phenomenon. By surveying a representative sample of over 400 instructional faculty at two research universities, this study contributes to what is…