Investigation of Single-Case Multiple-Baseline Randomization Tests of Trend and Variability

Educational Psychology Review - Previous simulation studies of randomization tests applied in single-case educational intervention research contexts have typically focused on A-to-B phase changes...     

The novels of Patricia Wrightson

Patricia Wrightson is an Australian writer whose first novel was published in 1955. She has produced six other novels and a collection of short stories and poems for children-Emu Stew (1977). Her best-known novel,I Own the Racecourse (A Racecourse for Andy), was runner-up for the 1968 Australian Children's Book of the Year Award. She has made a special study of the Aboriginal nations of S. E. Australia and feels that in her novels she responds to places and people.Betty Gilderdale, born and educated in England, has an Honors degree in English. She has lived in New Zealand for the last ten years and has been a lecturer in English at North Shore Teachers College, Auckland, for most of that time. She was a founder member and president of the N.Z. Children's Literature Association.     

An investigation of general education requirements in college curricula

The subject of study is the impact of general education or “core” requirements on students in the Purdue School of Humanities, Social Science, and Education. The investigation, begun in 1969, deals with approximately 1100 beginning freshmen of which over 400 make up the experimental group. All students are being followed through their undergraduate years, the first two of which are reported here. The experimental group is differentiated from the other groups in that its constituents have been permitted to waive any or all core requirements. The experimental group has achieved a higher grade index while carrying a slightly higher course load. Contrary to expectation, they selected many core courses. They also indicated greater satisfaction with their programs, their school, and the University. Core requirements for future students have been modified as a result.     

The subversion of healthy development and play: Teachers' reactions to the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles

In the spring of 1990, theTeenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (TMNT) movie was released to the biggest grossing box office sales of a spring release movie in history. The movie followed on the heels of more than a year of the TMNT television cartoon and its accompanying line of toys. After the movie's release, interest in the Turtles was kept high by the daily dose of the TV cartoon, TMNT home videos, video games, and the presence of more than 1,000 toys and other products marketed with the TMNT logo. And then, a year after the first movie, on March 22, 1991, the sequel,TMNT II: The Secret of the Ooze, opened at cinemas around the country.Nancy Carlsson-Paige is Associate Professor of Education, Lesley College Graduate School, Cambridge, MA. Diane E. Levin is Associate Professor of Education, Wheelock College, Boston, MA.     

What time-series designs may have to offer educational researchers

The promise of time-series designs for educational research and evaluation is reviewed. Ten time-series designs are presented and discussed in the context of threats to internal and external validity. The advantages and disadvantages of various visual and statistical data-analysis techniques are presented. It is argued that time-series research paradigms are useful when researchers (a) wish to involve a single subject in experimental research (individuals as units of analysis) or conduct program-evaluation studies (aggregates as units of analysis), (b) are interested in nearly continuous measurement, (c) cannot meet conventional design and statistical assumptions, or (d) wish to specify individual differences through N = 1 research strategies. It is also suggested that more research endeavors be devoted to combining unique characteristics of time-series research with conventional multi-unit paradigms.     

Enhancing comprehension in small reading groups using a manipulation strategy

Having young readers manipulate objects to correspond to the characters and actions in a text greatly enhances comprehension as measured by both recall and inference tests. As a step toward classroom implementation, we applied this manipulation strategy in small (three-child) reading groups. For successive critical sentences, one child would read the sentence aloud and then manipulate the objects, then the next child would read and manipulate, and so on. Children in a reread control condition also alternated reading the text. For the reread condition, one child would read the critical sentence and then reread it, followed by the next child, and so on. Children who manipulated were substantially more accurate in answering questions about the texts. Thus, the manipulation strategy meets at least some of the criteria for being applicable in a classroom setting, namely it is effective when applied in small groups.