The Robustness of the Analysis of Variance and the Tukey WSD Test under Various Patterns of Heterogeneous Variances

The WSD and F tests show the same response when the homogeneous variance assumption is violated. Both are robust when the ns are equal, but may be either seriously conservatively biased or seriously permissively biased when heterogeneous variances are combined with unequal ns. The use of equal ns is recommended for either test. There is no virtue in insisting that the F test be significant prior to conducting the WSD when the alternative to the null is μ_i ≠ μ_j. However, the conservative bias created by this procedure is small when K = 4; as is the permissive bias created by conducting both tests. For uniformly distributed μ’s, the two tests have very similar powers. This condition would not be expected for different arrangements of the μ’s.     

An Analysis of the New York State Regents Examinations in Chemistry from 1927 to 1934

Gibbons and Chakraborti's (1991) interpretation of recent simulation results and their recommendations to researchers are misleading in some respects. The present note emphasizes that the Mann-Whitney test is not a suitable replacement of the Student t test when variances and sample sizes are unequal, irrespective of whether the assumption of normality is satisfied or violated. When both normality and homogeneity of variance are violated together, an effective procedure, not widely known to researchers in education and psychology, is the Fligner-Policello test or, alternatively, the Welch t' test in conjunction with transformation of the original scores to ranks.     

A Multilevel Analysis of Asian Immigrant Children’s Reading Achievement in the Early Years: Evidence from the ECLS-K Data

This study investigates 1.5 generation¹ Asian immigrant children’s (n = 264) early literacy achievement patterns, treating them as a heterogeneous group. Specifically, the within-group variances in reading achievement from kindergarten to third grade are examined, drawing on four waves of data from the ECLS-K class of 1998–1999. Our analysis shows that ethnicity plays a role in shaping the children’s initial reading readiness and later growth, but the effects of languages spoken at home are not significant. Our analysis also demonstrates a persistent achievement gap between low- and high-socioeconomic status (SES) Asian groups. However, gender difference in terms of children’s reading development is not found to be significant. There is also no interaction between SES and the other factors such as gender, ethnicity and language backgrounds.     

The Place of the Fable in the Character Training of Children

Type I error rate and power for the t test, Wilcoxon-Mann-Whitney (U) test, van der Waerden Normal Scores (NS) test, and Welch-Aspin-Satterthwaite (W) test were compared for two independent random samples drawn from nonnormal distributions. Data with varying degrees of skewness (S) and kurtosis (K) were generated using Fleishman's (1978) power function. Five sample size combinations were used with both equal and unequal variances. For nonnormal data with equal variances, the power of the U test exceeded the power of the t test regardless of sample size. When the sample sizes were equal but the variances were unequal, the t test proved to be the most powerful test. When variances and sample sizes were unequal, the W test became the test of choice because it was the only test that maintained its nominal Type I error rate.     

国外反倾销对我国出口的影响及应对措施

随着世界经济一体化的加深,反倾销已经成为各国反对不公平竞争和保护国内产业的重要手段。我国在国际贸易迅速增长的同时,也面临着被反倾销的严峻挑战。本文通过介绍国外对华反倾销的现状,以及对我国目前出口贸易的影响分析了原因,然后针对性地从政府、行业、企业等三方面提出了应对措施。     

Validation against a Fallible Criterion

This paper presents the results of a simulation study to compare the performance of the Mann-Whitney U test, Student?s t test, and the alternate (separate variance) t test for two mutually independent random samples from normal distributions, with both one-tailed and two-tailed alternatives. The estimated probability of a Type I error was controlled (in the sense of being reasonably close to the attainable level) by all three tests when the variances were equal, regardless of the sample sizes. However, it was controlled only by the alternate t test for unequal variances with unequal sample sizes. With equal sample sizes, the probability was controlled by all three tests regardless of the variances. When it was controlled, we also compared the power of these tests and found very little difference. This means that very little power will be lost if the Mann-Whitney U test is used instead of tests that require the assumption of normal distributions.     

Estimation of the Reliability of Differences Under Revised Reliabilities of Component Scores

Projecting the changes in the reliability of a difference score (d =× - Y ) as a consequence of changes in the reliabilities of X and Y does not represent a straightforward application of the Spearman-Brown formula. Formulas are developed for estimating the changes in the reliability of X-Y under two possible assumptions: (a ) × and Y have equal variances both before and after their reliabilities are altered, and (b ) × and Y have unequal variances before and after × and Y are modified. The second of these situations, which includes the first as a special case, is probably the more common .     

Sensitivity of Goodness of Fit Indexes to Lack of Measurement Invariance

Two Monte Carlo studies were conducted to examine the sensitivity of goodness of fit indexes to lack of measurement invariance at 3 commonly tested levels: factor loadings, intercepts, and residual variances. Standardized root mean square residual (SRMR) appears to be more sensitive to lack of invariance in factor loadings than in intercepts or residual variances. Comparative fit index (CFI) and root mean square error of approximation (RMSEA) appear to be equally sensitive to all 3 types of lack of invariance. The most intriguing finding is that changes in fit statistics are affected by the interaction between the pattern of invariance and the proportion of invariant items: when the pattern of lack of invariance is uniform, the relation is nonmonotonic, whereas when the pattern of lack of invariance is mixed, the relation is monotonic. Unequal sample sizes affect changes across all 3 levels of invariance: Changes are bigger when sample sizes are equal rather than when they are unequal. Cutoff points for testing invariance at different levels are recommended.     

Digital equity in cultural context: exploring the influence of Confucian heritage culture on Hong Kong families

Our study examines digital equity in a cultural context. Many studies have used classic analytical variables such as socioeconomic status and gender to investigate the problem of unequal access to, and more recently differences in the use of, information and communication technology (ICT). The few studies that have explored cultural variables have usually focused on theory or considered culture as a background dimension. Our study’s central thesis is that cultural context plays a crucial role in shaping parents’ ICT-related child-rearing practices. In a case study of 22 Chinese students who share the Confucian heritage of Hong Kong, we demonstrate the importance of cultural dimensions of students’ ICT use, and examine how cultural values are associated with digital equity. Our findings reveal that Confucian values influence aspects of family/social relationships, in particular whether students receive adequate and appropriate ICT resources and use ICT effectively, which are essential aspects of digital equity.     

The culturally gifted classroom: a sociocultural approach to the inclusive education of English language learners

The need for including English language learners in the regular classroom at all phases of their linguistic and cultural development is presented within a Vygotkian sociocultural theory of human development. Based on the social primacy of development within this theoretical tenet, all aspects of development are viewed to proceed from social interactions. Effective social interactions that lead to development are distinguished by a heterogeneous collective experience of all participants in the interaction. In accordance with the sociocultural perspective, the educational goal of this heterogeneous group is to acquire and use cultural tools deemed appropriate to their time and place. As others’ cultures and languages become rich resources for becoming competent in one’s own culture, the cultural and linguistic diversity gained by including all students in the classroom becomes a powerful source of development for all.     

A View of War and Soldiering in the Carey Novels of Ronald Welch

Ronald Welch’s novels featuring the military adventures of the young men of the Carey family were first published between 1954 and 1976 and have recently been reissued. They were uniquely representative of historical military adventure for children in the Britain of this period; and were the last example of a vigorous century-old genre in respectable children’s publishing, particularly intended for boy readers, which honoured warrior virtues and regarded war as a crucible of male character. Children’s fiction since then has generally shied away from depicting soldiering. Where it has done it has focused mainly on the First World War and shown soldiers largely as victims. Welch’s work melds a model of heroic military adventure, inherited from the previous century, with a perception of the horrors of twentieth-century war derived from two world wars and his own experience of professional soldiering. While significantly amending the notion of war and soldiering as a heroic adventure, which he inherited from his predecessors, his work nevertheless retains the idea of combat as a character-forming male experience and implicitly offers military virtues as a model of manhood. While the attitudes expressed in his work were rejected by his publishers towards the end of his career, his views were perhaps an expression of more widely held beliefs at the time. And, for some of his original readers, the republication of his books is seen as a welcome re-affirmation of old values.     

Asia Pacific Network for Moral Education (APNME): brief conference report 2010

Most of the views ascribed to us we do not recognise and suggest that several misunderstandings flavour Welch’s commentary. We clarify some of our position here and recommend further collaboration among philosophers and psychologists.     

社会工作介入社区流动儿童教育研究--以温州部分社区为例

流动儿童群体比较庞大,对流动儿童的教育是一个重要课题。本文回顾了流动儿童的基本现状以及社会工作介入流动儿童教育的途径,以高职院校志愿者介入社区流动儿童教育为例,探讨了社会工作介入社区流动儿童教育的形式,凝练了社会工作介入流动儿童教育的理论模型,提出了相应的建议对策。     

Equity for English Learners: Evidence from Four Years of California’s Local Control Funding Formula

This study examined evidence of equity for English Learners-one of the three targeted student groups–in the early implementation of California’s Local Control Funding Formula (LCFF) across data sets from seven studies. We used social justice inquiry methods and data integration analytic approaches that included purposeful sampling of districts’ Local Control and Accountability Plans (LCAPs), and data integration analyses of interviews with education leaders to examine how equity was advanced for English Learners. Our findings reveal that the quest for equity for English Learners is elusive and requires multilevel efforts to reverse the national, state, and local histories of unequal treatment, deficit orientations, socio-political dynamics, and legacies of unequal funding that still permeate many schools. Further advances in equity will require greater systemic coherence that sharpens the focus on educational outcomes for English Learners. California’s most recent policy shifts–including the passage of Proposition 58 and the English Learner Roadmap–show promise of systemic coherence and alignment to an assets-based approach for English Learners in the state and nation, as tangible evidence of equity in services and outcomes are still works in progress.     

Comparability within Computer-Based Assessment: Does Screen Size Matter?

Due to increased use of computer-based assessments, comparability studies are moving beyond paper-and-pencil versus computer-based assessments to analyze variances with computers. It is therefore practically important to determine whether screen size and definition of the device affect students’ performance. Using data from a large school district giving tests on either Macs with large, high-definition screens or Chromebooks with standard 14-inch screens, this study compared assessment results between devices by grade, subject, and item type. Results showed no significant evidence supporting a large and high-definition screen’s positive impact on students’ performance. Likewise, there was no relationship between the impact of screen size and grade level as well as item types. Limitations and future studies were discussed.     

Using Johnson's Transformation With Approximate Test Statistics for the Simple Regression Slope Homogeneity

The authors used Johnson's transformation with approximate test statistics to test the homogeneity of simple linear regression slopes when both x_ij and x_ij may have nonnormal distributions and there is Type I heteroscedasticity, Type II heteroscedasticity, or complete heteroscedasticity. The test statistic t was first transformed by Johnson's method for each group to correct the nonnormality and to correct the heteroscedasticity; also an approximate test, such as the Welch test or the DeShon-Alexander test, was applied to test the homogeneity of the regression slopes. Computer simulations showed that the proposed technique can control Type I error rate under various circumstances. Finally, the authors provide an example to demonstrate the calculation.     

Reliability Estimation When a Test Is Split Into Two Parts of Unknown Effective Length

In some measurement settings internal consistency reliability of a measure must be based on a partition of the instrument into only 2 parts that cannot be further subdivided. Each of these 2 parts yields only a single score. If the functional lengths of the parts appear to be unequal or the parts are scored on different scales, the setting calls for a congeneric coefficient. It is shown that a single-valued estimate of the total score reliability is possible only if an assumption is made about the comparative size of the error variances of the parts. Without such an assumption, a range of reliability estimates is consistent with the part-test variances and covariance. But if the reliability of 1 part can be estimated independent of scores on the 2nd part, then a single-valued congeneric estimate of total score reliability is possible.     

农民教育培训存在的问题及对策

农民是新农村建设的主体,农民教育培训是提高农民素质、改善农民生存状况的重要途径。近年来,国家教育事业整体有了很大发展,但农民教育培训仍困难重重,问题颇多。关注农民教育培训,需要政府及社会力量共同努力,以解决农民教育培训中存在的问题,从而达到预期的教育培训结果。     

The role of social capital in students’ perceptions of progress in higher education

This paper aims to analyse the effects of students’ social relationships at university on students’ success. Specifically, whether a student with heterogeneous relationships obtains better academic results than a student whose relationships are mostly with classmates. Further, the research examines whether students’ social relationships make up for their parents’ lack of human capital. A survey was answered by a sample of 867 students from universities in the metropolitan region of Barcelona. The findings suggest that the effects of social relationships are not always positive. The benefits of social networks at university interact with the type of degree studied, the student’s dedication to studies, and the student’s social class. Perceptions of progress for each category of students is different: It is more positive for those with frequent heterogeneous relations, who do not work or do so for a few hours, and for those who are enrolled in “hard” science courses.     

基于少年儿童成长心理学的英语学习能力开发

在物质生活水平得到极大提高的今天,儿童却面临着精神生活十分贫瘠的现状。如何能在儿童的成长过程中满足他们的精神需求,并激发他们学习语言的潜能?如何树立前瞻而科学的教学理念?这些都是教育工作者需要探索的课题。结合心理学家杜·舒尔茨所著的《成长心理学》和西方心理学实验中的一些理论,论述了在少年儿童不同的成长阶段,英语教学者应以科学的心理学原理为依据,以正确的教学理念为依托,合理开发他们的英语学习能力,并帮助他们塑造健康的人格。