Predicting College Performance of Homeschooled Versus Traditional Students

The prevalence of homeschooling in the United States is increasing. Yet little is known about how commonly used predictors of postsecondary academic performance (SAT, high school grade point average [HSGPA]) perform for homeschooled students. Postsecondary performance at 140 colleges and universities was analyzed comparing a sample of traditional students matched to a sample of 732 homeschooled students on four demographic variables, HSGPA, and SAT scores. The matched sample was drawn from 824,940 traditional students attending the same institutions as the homeschooled students, which permitted a very precise level of matching. This comparison did not show a difference in first‐year college GPA (FGPA) or retention between homeschooled and traditional students. SAT scores predicted FGPA and retention equally well for both groups, but HSGPA was a weaker predictor for the homeschooled group. These results suggest that, among college students, those who were homeschooled perform similarly to traditionally educated students matched on demographics and academic preparedness, but there are practical implications for college admissions in the use of HSGPA versus standardized test scores for homeschooled students.     

美国SAT的理念、方法、技术对我国高考改革的启示

2014年出台的高考改革方案在诸多方面发生重大变化,备受各方关注,其具体措施在解决既有问题的同时,也带来了新的问题。美国的SAT(学术能力评估测试(Scholastic Assessment Test)的简称,下同。)与我国高考性质相似,它的一些理念、经验、技术可供我们参考。理念上,SAT强调以人为本、关注未来;方法上,SAT保持考试内容与课程的适当联系、加强对现场材料的分析以应对"背模板"、题目设置情境化、通过高校指定必考科目解决某些科目过冷过热;技术上,SAT命题过程专业、计分方式科学、分数报告详尽。     

美国高校招生制度的演变与启示———基于效度与信度的视角

纵观美国高校招生制度的演变历史,制度运作的结果不仅较为可信,而且与制度设计的初衷一直较为吻合,即信度和效度都比较高。美国社会系统,特别是司法体系具有较高的保障社会公平的能力,使美国高校招生制度无需为了保证信度而牺牲效度。中国高考制度要提高效度,其前提是提高司法程序的刚性,完善法律法规,增强社会维权体系对高考信度、社会公平的维护能力。     

何以失效:新高考改革对理工科新生大学学业表现的影响

理工科人才培养质量直接关乎国家科技创新能力的长远发展.新高考改革期望通过升学机制调整撬动高中教育转型,促进理工科人才培养体系的衔接与贯通.全国高校学生发展调查数据和研究型大学师生访谈资料的分析发现,新高考改革并未有效提升理工科新生的大学学业表现,对承担拔尖创新人才重任的"985工程"院校理工科学生培养呈现抑制效应,其原...     

The role of the A* grade at A level as a predictor of university performance in the United Kingdom

In summer 2010, the A* grade at A level was awarded for the first time. This grade was introduced to help higher education institutions to differentiate between the highest achieving candidates and to promote and reward greater stretch and challenge. Exploring data from the Higher Education Statistics Service and making use of multilevel regression models, this research investigated for the first time the relationship between achieved A* grades and performance at the end of three-year courses in higher education institutions in the United Kingdom. The results of this work showed that, when prior schooling and other background characteristics were accounted for, the number of A* grades was a good predictor of achieving either a first or at least an upper second class degree. Specific subject-level analyses revealed that the number of top grades in some A level subjects was associated with good degree outcomes in specific degree subject areas.     

Predicting Freshman Grade‐Point Average from Test Scores: Effects of Variation Within and Between High Schools

Most studies predicting college performance from high‐school grade point average (HSGPA) and college admissions test scores use single‐level regression models that conflate relationships within and between high schools. Because grading standards vary among high schools, these relationships are likely to differ within and between schools. We used two‐level regression models to predict freshman grade point average from HSGPA and scores on both college admissions and state tests. When HSGPA and scores are considered together, HSGPA predicts more strongly within high schools than between, as expected in the light of variations in grading standards. In contrast, test scores, particularly mathematics scores, predict more strongly between schools than within. Within‐school variation in mathematics scores has no net predictive value, but between‐school variation is substantially predictive. Whereas other studies have shown that adding test scores to HSGPA yields only a minor improvement in aggregate prediction, our findings suggest that a potentially more important effect of admissions tests is statistical moderation, that is, partially offsetting differences in grading standards across high schools.     

College Students' Experiences of Childhood Developmental Traumatic Stress: Resilience,First‐Year Academic Performance,and Substance Use

Developmental trauma—distressing childhood experiences that include mistreatment, interpersonal violence, abuse, assault, and neglect—is associated with substance use and poor academic performance. The authors investigated the links between developmental trauma, grade point average, substance use, and resilience among first‐year college students (N = 169). The results indicate there is a significant relationship between cumulative trauma and self‐reported substance use.     

Within‐High‐School Versus Across‐High‐School Scaling of Admissions Assessments: Implications for Validity and Diversity Effects

Previous research has established that SAT scores and high school grade point average (HSGPA) differ in their predictive power and in the size of mean differences across racial/ethnic groups. However, the SAT is scaled nationally across all test takers while HSGPA is scaled locally within a school. In this study, the researchers propose that this difference in how SAT scores and HSGPA are scaled partially explains differences in validity and subgroup differences. Using a large data set consisting of 170,390 students each of whom matriculated at one of 114 separate colleges, the researchers find that awarding SAT scores by ranking SAT within a high school generally results in substantial reduction in the size of subgroup mean differences for this predictor. However, validity for predicting first‐year GPA is also reduced by a small amount. Conversely, placing HSGPA onto a nationally normed metric through the use of multiple regression procedures results in a moderate increase in the size of subgroup mean differences, while also producing a small increase in validity. Taken together, these findings suggest that differences in predictor scaling can partially explain differences in the size of subgroup mean differences between HSGPA and SAT scores and have implications for predictive power.     

Sleep Quality and Academic Performance in University Students: A Wake-Up Call for College Psychologists

Both sleep deprivation and poor sleep quality are prominent in American society, especially in college student populations. Sleep problems are often a primary disorder rather than secondary to depression. The purpose of the present study was to determine if sleep deprivation and/or poor sleep quality in a sample of nondepressed university students was associated with lower academic performance. A significant negative correlation between Global Sleep Quality score (GSQ) on the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index and grade point average supports the hypothesis that poor sleep quality is associated with lower academic performance for nondepressed students. Implications for both the remedial (assessment and treatment) and preventive (outreach) work of college and university counseling centers is discussed.     

高职院校“高会统招”模式的政策学探析

北京首推高职院校“高会统招”录取模式,是高职院校招生录取模式多元化发展的一种新探索,“高会统招”采用突出专业、分数优先的投档方式,更加体现出对学校和考生考试科日话语权的尊重。新模式旨在减轻学生负担,突显职业教育的专业本位,本文将从政策学的角度对“高会统招”模式的政策方案、政策目标及政策建议进行探析,以期实现高等职业教育的有序、特色发展。     

高职院校毕业生的两种质量:学业成就以及职场表现

根据高等职业教育是一种培养技能型人才的教育的普遍观点,通过技能型人才短缺和高等职业教育规模扩张之间反差的分析,提出技能型人才有自己的成长规律的结论。在此基础上,根据高等职业院校毕业生的双重身份特点,提出高等职业院校毕业生有学业成就和职场表现两种质量的结论。     

A Validity Argument in Support of the Use of College Admissions Test Scores for Federal Accountability

In 2018, 26 states administered a college admissions test to all public school juniors. Nearly half of those states proposed to use those scores as their academic achievement indicators for federal accountability under the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA); many others are planning to use those scores for other accountability purposes. Accountability encompasses a number of different uses and subsumes a variety of claims. For states proposing to use summative tests for accountability, a validity argument needs to be developed, which entails delineating each specific use of test scores associated with accountability, identifying appropriate evidence, and offering a rebuttal to counterclaims. The aim of this article is to support states in developing a validity argument for use of college admission test scores for accountability by identifying claims that are applicable across states, along with summarizing existing evidence as it relates to each of these claims. As outlined by The Standards for Educational and Psychological Testing, multiple sources of evidence are used to address each claim. A series of threats to the validity argument, including weaker alignment with content standards and potential influences in narrowing teaching, are reviewed. Finally, the article contrasts validity evidence, primarily from research on the ACT, with regulatory requirements from ESSA. The Standards and guidance addressing the use of a “nationally recognized high school academic assessment” (Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), Negotiated Rulemaking Committee; Department of Education) are the primary sources for the organization of validity evidence.     

美国大学入学考试(SAT)的发展历程及其对我国高考改革之启示

通过对美国大学入学考试SAT的百年发展历程简要回顾和分析,指出其从分科、论文式的知识性测验向综合性、标准化的基本能力测试发展,增加考试次数、为考生和大学招生录取提供多样化服务的发展趋势,对我国当前的高考制度改革的启示和借鉴价值。     

高职生学习动机、自我概念与学习成绩的关系研究

利用相关量表对高职生的学习动机、学业自我概念和自我概念进行测量统计分析,探讨研究了高职生自我概念、学业自我概念和学习动机与学业成绩的关系,并对学习动机、自我概念对学业成绩的影响进行了探讨。     

简析SAT批判性阅读模式对语文思维素养考查的启示

在新一轮的中学课程改革的时代语境下,语文教育工作者致力于构建以学科素养为纲的语文课程内容体系,从而真正实现学生思维的发展与提升,并最终实现"立德树人"这一根本任务。这一重大问题是需要多角度做出思考和探索的,也需要相应教学评价的革新,语文高考首当其冲。本文试图以和语文高考具有一定可比性的美国SAT考试作为观察切入口,针对其中的批判性阅读考察模式探究对语文学科核心素养中"思维发展与提升"中针对批判性思维考查的一些可借鉴意义。     

高校自主招生联考认同度的实证研究

高校自主招生联考是自主招生改革的新动向,与其联系最紧密的是高中师生。通过对福建省厦门市四所最热门的一级达标学校在校高二高三学生、教师进行调查和访问,了解现阶段他们对自主招生联考政策的了解情况、态度及自主招生联考存在的问题,提出自主招生联考要加强宣传、明确选拔目的与手段、注重公平、注重人才培养模式、以高考为依托的建议。     

影响民航大学生数学学习成绩的因素

以中国民航飞行学院飞行技术专业部分学生为研究样本,利用多种统计分析方法对影响大学生数学成绩的因素进行分析,考察教师的教学水平、学生的高考数学成绩等因素对大学数学成绩的影响.结果显示：教师的教学水平与学生的高考数学成绩对大学数学成绩的影响均显著,但高考数学成绩只能解释大学数学成绩12.6%的变异.结论：教师的教学水平与学生的学习能动性对大学数学成绩有良好的促进作用.     

基于教育数据挖掘的高校学生学业表现建模研究

在分析国内外研究的基础上,提出从社会及人口统计特征、学校环境、个人特征和学生投入等四个维度构建高校学生学业表现研究框架。以A大学为例,构建整合型教育数据系统,基于不同数据来源,应用决策树、贝叶斯网络、人工神经网络和支持向量机分别建立分类模型,并对模型有效性进行评判。结果表明,所建立的高校学生学业表现分类模型具有一定的有效性和实用价值,可为高校应用教育数据挖掘进行科学管理和完善学业支持体系提供参考。     

高校学术团队创新能力研究

围绕高校学术团队及其创新能力的内涵,从影响团队创新能力的因素、团队创新绩效、团队核心能力和核心竞争力等方面对国内外学者的最新研究进行综述,并在此基础上对相关研究的特点与不足进行分析与讨论。     

Social-Cognitive Predictors of First-Year College Persistence: The Importance of Proximal Assessment

Early withdrawal from college can present problems for students and educators. In an effort to broaden our understanding of factors associated with students' persistence in higher education, we examined the ability of variables from Social Cognitive Career Theory assessed before college and during students' second semester to predict first-year college persistence. Hierarchical logistic regression analyses revealed that academic ability/past performance and social-cognitive variables assessed during students' second semester were significant predictors of first-year persistence. However, academic ability/past performance was the only precollege predictor significantly related to persistence. Implications for institutional assessment, intervention, and research are presented.