Can a Multiple-Choice Exam Discriminate Between Masters and Nonniasters of Instructional Design?

This study was conducted to determine if a norm-referenced test designed to assess instructional design competency could be statistically validated (i.e., confirmed statistically to discriminate between known masters and known nonmasters of instructional design). The test was composed of items written to assess verified competencies required of instructional design professionals. A total of 257 respondents participated in the study over the course of three stages: initial item bank construction, item analysis to determine those items with discrimination power, and the concurrent validity calculation, including determination of the mastery cut-off score. Mean scores of five groups of respondents were analyzed in the final stage. Statistically significant differences were found among the Professional Masters, Education Graduate Students and Undergraduates, Noneducation Graduate Students, and Noneducation Undergraduates. The article concludes with a discussion of the role of such an instrument in conducting research in the field.     

Need for approval and children's well-being

This research examined the hypothesis that a tendency to base one's self-worth on peer approval is associated with positive and negative aspects of children's well-being. A sample of 153 fourth through eighth graders (9.0 to 14.8 years) reported on need for approval, global self-worth, social-evaluative concerns, anxiety and depression, and exposure to victimization. Teachers reported on social behavior. Results confirmed that need for approval is a two-dimensional construct composed of positive (enhanced self-worth in the face of social approval) and negative (diminished self-worth in the face of social disapproval) approval-based self-appraisals. Need for approval had trade-offs for well-being that depended on the dimension (positive vs. negative), the psychological domain (emotional vs. social adjustment), children's sex and age, and children's social context (high vs. low peer victimization).     

Changing attitudes of Australian academics

This article reports on the changing work-related attitudes and demographics of academic staff in Australia, in four universities and four former colleges of advanced education (CAEs, comparable to polytechnics), surveyed in 1979, 1984 and 1990. The surveys were of all academic staff in each institution, with response rates averaging 47%. As in other countries, the former binary system of education has recently been ended by reconstituting colleges of advanced education as universities. Differences in work-related attitude are examined, and shown to differ consistently between the types of institution, across the elapsed time, and between the sexes, ranks and academic disciplines of the respondents. In particular, each institution has shown a sustained increase in academic staff alienation and dissatisfaction over the eleven-year period. The differences in demographics and in work-related attitudes between original universities and former colleges of advanced education remain after the ending of the binary system. The differences are discussed in relation to a number of current policy issues, including the ending of the binary system of higher education. Since similar policy changes and similar pressures are occurring in a number of countries, the findings of the study have implications beyond Australia.     

Central Europe-South Eastern Europe: Inter-regional Relations in Education,Science, Culture,and Communication

The central premise in the holding of the Symposium was that there is a long tradition of co-operation among the countries of the sub-regions concerned in the domains of education, science, culture, and communication. Given the perspective of accession of most of these countries to EU membership, this co-operation will develop and expand. As such, it is worth studying so as to better understand and promote it. Thus, the Symposium examined the following topics: (i) Looking Ahead: Links and Co-operation in the Central and South Eastern Europe; (ii) Science and the Application of Science for Technology Development: Towards Enhancement of Endogenous Capacities; (iii) Co-operation through Culture Interactions: Lessons from the Past and Agenda for the Future; (iv) Enhancing the Quality of Communication for and through Better Co-operation. The conclusion is that co-operation of all sorts among the countries of the sub-regions is stronger than co-operation between them but that they should pursue their EU accession efforts, enhancing them through sub-regional co-operation in all domains.