The view that there will be severe faculty shortages at Canadian universities in the 1990s is refuted, based on analyses concerning the demand for university teachers and the supply of doctoral graduates. In the 1990s when there is no foreseeable increase in university positions, replacement (i.e, due to retirement and mortality) will be the only…

Presenting concepts generally applicable only to small rural regions or to local economies, this publication explains multipliers, shows how they are used in calculating impacts, and provides some criteria for determining whether a given multiplier can be used in a specific situation. Following a discussion of aggregate multipliers, which lump…

This report describes the analyses of student participation in two school nutrition programs, the School Breakfast Program (SBP) and the National School Lunch Program (NSLP). Data were collected from students and their families during the 1983-84 school year as part of the National Evaluation of the School Nutrition Programs (NESNP). Each program…

Adapted screening devices and teacher observation were used in a 1974 study of 1003 Finnish students (ages 6-8) in an effort to predict future learning difficulties. Six areas were assessed: gross motor skills, sensory-motor integration, perceptual-motor skills, arithmetic skills, socioemotional adjustment, and verbal ability. In a follow-up study…

A study was conducted to evaluate the effectiveness of the Tests of Adult Basic Education (TABE) in predicting success or lack of success in selected postsecondary health occupations programs. The predictor variables used in the project were the TABE reading and mathematics grade equivalent scores and the number of times each section of the TABE…

To investigate the effect of outside help in executing a successful science fair project, surveys were distributed to 356 participants in the 1987 Mississippi Region V Science Fair. Of this number, 147 students were in grades 7 and 8, 136 in grades 9 and 10, and 73 in grades 11 and 12. Students listed the number of hours they spent using outside…

The paper reviews the literature on problems associated with the assessment and placement of language minority students in special education and the utilization of a prereferral system and describes the development of the "Prereferral Screening Instrument" (PSI). The review of the literature looks at: the disproportionate representation…

In light of criticisms that teacher preparation programs do not adequately prepare prospective reading teachers and specialists for actual classroom problems, a study was conducted to determine the accuracy of teacher diagnoses and planning for reading difficulties and to examine differences in coursework preparation and classroom experience.…

Procedures for predicting academic achievement at Indiana University, Bloomington, are examined, based on data for the 4,145 freshmen who entered the university in fall 1983. Three sets of prediction equations and a graphic scheme for determining probable first semester grade point averages (GPAs) for males and females are provided. Entering…

This project is the sixth in a series of studies designed to validate the Training and Development Benefit Forecasting Method (BFM) sponsored by the Training and Development Research Center (TDRC) at the University of Minnesota. The purpose of this study was to validate the BFM's ability to forecast the benefits of an organization development…

A public school district in Alabama uses the Otis Lennon School Ability Test (OLSAT) in place of the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children (Revised) (WISC-R) as a screening device for students who are referred for possible special education placement. To determine the relationship between the two tests, Pearson product moment correlation…

Standard procedures for estimating item parameters in Item Response Theory models make no use of auxiliary information about test items, such as their format or content, or the skills they require for solution. This paper describes a framework for exploiting this information, thereby enhancing the precision and stability of item parameter…

Almost all preschool screening programs depend entirely on information and observations obtained during a brief evaluative session with the child. However, the logistics involved in managing large numbers of parents and children, the use of volunteers having varying degrees of sophistication or competency in assessment, the reliability and…

The relationship between a teacher's attitude and the environment of his or her class was examined. The research was designed to determine the effects of the learning environment on the academic achievements of students. This research measured teacher attitudes with the Minnesota Teacher Attitude Inventory (MTAI). Students' perceptions of the…

The primary purpose of this monograph is to describe how learning curves can be applied to vocational evaluation procedures to enhance the reliability and accuracy of performance prediction. Particular emphasis is placed on describing two techniques known as the "best 20 percent method" and the "Performance Analyzer and…