A Hierarchical Rater Model for Constructed Responses,with a Signal Detection Rater Model

The hierarchical rater model (HRM) re‐cognizes the hierarchical structure of data that arises when raters score constructed response items. In this approach, raters’ scores are not viewed as being direct indicators of examinee proficiency but rather as indicators of essay quality; the (latent categorical) quality of an examinee's essay in turn serves as an indicator of the examinee's proficiency, thus yielding a hierarchical structure. Here it is shown that a latent class model motivated by signal detection theory (SDT) is a natural candidate for the first level of the HRM, the rater model. The latent class SDT model provides measures of rater precision and various rater effects, above and beyond simply severity or leniency. The HRM‐SDT model is applied to data from a large‐scale assessment and is shown to provide a useful summary of various aspects of the raters’ performance.     

Academics' social media use over time is associated with individual,relational, cultural and political factors

The use of social media in academics' lives is well documented; however, researchers have a limited understanding about whether, why and how academics' social media use changes over time. Through interviews with 12 scholars, we identify multiple reasons that lead them to change their use of social media over time. Specifically, scholars report their social media use changing as a result of personal life events; professional transitions; concerns related to online privacy and self-protection; evolution of technology; their desire to develop and nurture relationships; awareness of the needs of others; and, the political climate. These findings reflect individual desires and broader cultural shifts, indicating that scholars’ use of social media is impacted not just by their individual preferences, but also by forces that impact upon them.     

Friendship and Attitudes Toward School Among Children of Two Muslim Communities in Marseille

Immigrants from the Comoros Islands constitute a closely-knit community in Marseille, where they interact in the Quartiers Nord with the North African community, which is larger in number, which arrived generally a generation earlier, and whose children continue to underachieve at school. It is commonly expected that the Comorians will adjust better to school because of their tight communal organization and because of their specific needs for educational achievement. These needs are thought to relate to the money needed to return to the Comoros and to finance their children's marriage ceremonies there. In our study, pupils of Comorian origin in the senior primary school years displayed more positive attitudes toward the academic aspects of schooling than did pupils of North African origin. For both Algerians and Comorians, positive aspects of friendship quality were associated with better attitudes toward school. In-group friendships were more common than friendships with members of other ethnic groups. In-group friendships were of higher quality than friendships between members of different groups. Comorian children whose best friends were from outside their ethnic group were those with more negative attitudes toward school; the reverse applied to Algerians.     

Childhood risk factors for alcohol abuse and psychological distress among adult lesbians

OBJECTIVE: This study examined the relationships between childhood and family background variables, including sexual and physical abuse, and subsequent alcohol abuse and psychological distress in adult lesbians. METHODOLOGY: Structural equation modeling was used to evaluate relationships between childhood sexual and physical abuse and parenting variables and latent measures of lifetime alcohol abuse and psychological distress in a large community-based sample of lesbians. RESULTS: Childhood sexual abuse (CSA) directly predicted lifetime alcohol abuse, and childhood physical abuse (CPA) directly predicted lifetime psychological distress. In addition, CSA indirectly increased the risk of lifetime alcohol abuse through its negative effect on age at first heterosexual intercourse. Childhood physical abuse had only indirect effects on lifetime alcohol abuse through its strong relationship to lifetime psychological distress. Parental drinking problems and parental strictness directly predicted lifetime psychological distress; parental drinking problems indirectly predicted lifetime alcohol abuse through the mediators of age of drinking onset and lifetime psychological distress. White lesbians, younger lesbians, and those with lower levels of education were at greatest risk of psychological distress. CONCLUSION: While the cross-sectional design precludes causal conclusions, study findings--especially those related to CSA--are consistent with previous research on predominantly heterosexual women in the general population. Lesbians who experienced CSA were at heightened risk of lifetime alcohol abuse and those who experienced CPA were at heightened risk of lifetime psychological distress relative to lesbians without abuse histories. Given the dearth of research on childhood abuse and sexual orientation, studies are needed that examine the similarities and differences between lesbians' and heterosexual women's experiences of, and responses to, childhood abuse.     

Beginning school age and academic achievement

One hundred and seventeen students who began kindergarten in 1978-79 were studied to determine effects of beginning school age and gender on later school achievement and retention in grade. No significant differences among the three age groups were found at kindergarten, 2nd, or 4th grade. Differences in achievement between boys and girls were noted. Results are similar to those of other recent studies and suggest that parents and teachers may be unduly cautious when delaying the entry of children to school on the basis of chronological age considerations. Local district studies are recommended.     

Assessment of Chemistry Laboratory Classroom Environments

The Science Laboratory Environment Inventory (SLEI) is a recently developed classroom environment instrument for assessing students' or teachers' perceptions of their science laboratory classroom environment. This paper describes its development and reports on the validation and application of its modified form, the Chemistry Laboratory Environment Inventory (CLEI), with a Singapore secondary school sample. The sample consisted of 1 592 final-year secondary school (i.e. tenth grade) chemistry students from 56 intact classes from 28 randomly selected co-educational government secondary schools in Singapore. Various item and factor analyses supported the reliability and validity of the instrument for assessing students' perceptions of their chemistry laboratory environment specifically in Singapore.     

STUDENTS' APPROACHES TO LEARNING AND SATISFACTION WITH PROBLEM‐BASED CURRICULA FOR FOUR DIFFERENT PROFESSIONS

This research looked at students' satisfaction with, and changes in approach to, learning during their first year in problem‐based curricula for agriculture, architecture, medicine and paramedicine. While students at each school showed little change in approach apart from achievement orientation in the six‐month period after entry to the course, there were different patterns of approach at each school. Satisfaction with their respective schools was uniformly high — notably in terms of their emotional climate, supportiveness, student and teacher interaction, and meaningful learning experiences. Correlations between students' approach to learning and degree of satisfaction with their course strongly support earlier claims and research findings on the merits of problem‐based curricula, although they still need more careful definition to be useful to curriculum planners.     

Flights of fancy: Science, reason, and common sense

Barry R. Gross was professor of philosophy at York College of The City University of New York and held high positions in both the National and New York Associations of Scholars. Professor Gross delivered this address to the New York Academy of Sciences conference “The Flight from Science and Reason” on 31 May 1995. This address is reprinted with permission from the proceedings of that conference, published as Volume 775 of theAnnals of the New York Academy of Sciences.     

An assessment of college recruitment literature: Does the high school senior understand it?

This study investigated the reading difficulty level of college recruitment literature and the ability of college-bound high-school students to understand the terminology frequently used in college admissions. The reading difficulty of the forty-two catalogs and analyzed was at a level appropriate to an advanced college student or college graduate. Moreover, high-school students had considerable difficulty identifying the correct use of terms commonly found in sections of college catalogs.