Respecting Respect: Exploring a great deal

For some people, respect is due to people of particular standing and involves formality and deference. For others, respect is based on regard and attention. This approach is essentially informal. This article explores young people's interpretations of respect and shows how an understanding of its theory and practice may enhance relationships between adults, especially those employed in the social professions, and young people. Two frameworks are employed to assist in exploring the issues involved; one is located in communication theory within educational contexts (Burbules, 1993) and the other in the politics of self-definition (Wilson, 1993). The discussion draws on three pieces of empirical research involving young people and professionals. The different interpretations of respect are shown to provide a means of understanding a source of conflict between professionals with positions of authority in young people's lives and the young people themselves.     

The Effect of Multidimensionality on IRT True-Score Equating for Subgroups of Examinees

The purpose of this study was to assess the dimensionality of two forms of a large-scale standardized test separately for 3 ethnic groups of examinees and to investigate whether differences in their latent trait composites have any impact on unidimensional item response theory true-score equating functions. Specifically, separate equating functions for African American and Hispanic examinees were compared to those of a Caucasian group as well as the total test taker population. On both forms, a 2-dimensional model adequately accounted for the item responses of Caucasian and African American examinees, whereas a more complex model was required for the Hispanic subgroup. The differences between equating functions for the 3 ethnic groups and the total test taker population were small and tended to be located at the low end of the score scale.     

Science Content Courses: Workshop in Food Chemistry for 4th Grade School Teachers

ABSTRACT: A science content course in food chemistry was offered as a 4-day summer workshop from 1999 to 2001 to 4th grade school teachers in the Seattle School District. The objectives of the workshop were to increase the teachers' knowledge of food science, to perform simple experiments that could be used in the 4th grade classroom, and to help the teachers become more familiar with the scientific method. The workshop is described, and challenges associated with running the workshop from the instructors' perspective are discussed. Protocol for hands-on experiments used in the workshop, discussion questions/answers, and comments about each experiment are included in Appendices. The use of hands-on experiments that were easily adaptable to the 4th grade classroom and the comfortable atmosphere for discussion appear to have contributed the most to a successful workshop.     

Correlates of Counselor Self-Actualization and Client-Perceived Facilitativeness

Client ratings of the abilities of 33 school counselors to communicate the core facilitative conditions of empathy, regard, congruence, and trust were compared to the counselors' scores on a measure of self-actualization. The results supported the contention that there exists a strong relationship between self-actualization and counselor effectiveness as perceived by clients. The potential usefulness of the Personal Orientation Inventory (POl) in the screening and selection of counselor candidates is indicated.     

Epistemological correctness in English 101

He is the author of a comprehensive analysis of undergraduate curricula in Michigan's state university system, prepared for the Mackinac Center for Public Policy, Midland, Michigan, to which he serves as an advisor on higher education issues. Please address correspondence toAcademic Questions     

EFFECTS OF INCORPORATING HUMOR IN TEST ITEMS

Two matched forms of a 50 item multiple-choice grammar test were developed. Twenty items designed to be humorous were included in one form. Test forms were randomly assigned to 126 eighth graders who received the test plus alternate forms of a questionnaire. Inclusion of humorous items did not affect grammar scores on matched humorous/nonhumorous items nor on common post-treatment items, nor did inclusion affect results of anxiety measures. Students favored inclusion of humor on tests, judged effects of humor positively, and estimated humorous items to be easier. Humor did not lower performance but was sought by the students. Potential for more valid and humane measurement is discussed.     

EVIDENCE ON THE QUALITY OF SEVERAL APPROXIMATIONS FOR COMMONLY USED MEASUREMENT STATISTICS1

What is the extent of error likely with each of several approximations for the standard deviation, internal consistency reliability, and the standard error of measurement? To help answer this question, approximations were compared with exact statistics obtained on 85 different classroom tests constructed and administered by professors in a variety of fields; means and standard deviations of the resulting differences supported the use of approximations in practical situations. Results of this analysis (1) suggest a greater number of alternative formulas that might be employed, and (2) provide additional information concerning the accuracy of approximations with non-normal distributions.     

Environmental differences within the family and adjustment differences within pairs of adolescent siblings

To what extent do siblings in the same family experience different parental treatment, sibling interaction, and peer relationships? Are such within-family experiential differences related to differences in the siblings' emotional adjustment? The present study explored these questions concerning within-family environment using data from 348 families that each included 2 siblings 11-17 years of age. The results indicate that siblings in the same family experience different environments, as reported by parents and to a larger extent by the siblings themselves. The results also demonstrate that within-family environmental differences are related to differences in development between siblings. Both the parent and sibling reports of the environment converge on the finding that the sibling who is more psychologically well adjusted (as reported by parents, siblings, and teachers) also experiences more maternal closeness, more sibling friendliness, more peer friendliness, more say in family decision making, and more parental chore expectations as compared to the other sibling.