Towards a le@rning society? the impact of technology on patterns of participation in lifelong learning

This paper is based on 1001 home‐based interviews with UK adults. It describes their varying patterns of participation in lifelong learning and their use of technology for learning and leisure. It finds that 37% of all adults report no further education of any kind after reaching compulsory school leaving age. This proportion declines with each age cohort, but is largely replaced by a pattern of lengthening initial education and still reporting no later education. These patterns of participation are predictable to a large extent from regression analysis using a life‐order model of determining variables—all of which are set very early in life. This suggests that universal theories to describe participation, such as human capital theory, are incorrect in several respects. Where individuals create, for themselves and through their early experiences, a ‘learner identity’ inimicable to further study, then the prospect of learning can become a burden rather than an investment for them. This has implications for the now widespread and extensively funded notion of overcoming barriers to access via technology.     

Using Multisite Experiments to Study Cross-Site Variation in Treatment Effects: A Hybrid Approach With Fixed Intercepts and a Random Treatment Coefficient

The present article considers a fundamental question in evaluation research: “By how much do program effects vary across sites?” The article first presents a theoretical model of cross-site impact variation and a related estimation model with a random treatment coefficient and fixed site-specific intercepts. This approach eliminates several biases that can arise from unbalanced sample designs for multisite randomized trials. The article then describes how the approach operates, explores its assumptions, and applies the approach to data from three large welfare-to-work trials. The article also illustrates how to report cross-site impact findings and presents diagnostics for assessing these findings. To keep the article manageable, it focuses on experimental estimates of effects of program assignment (effects of intent to treat), although the ideas presented can be extended to analyses of multisite quasi-experiments and experimental estimates of effects of program participation (complier average causal effects).     

Evaluating the effectiveness of KooLKIDS: An interactive social emotional learning program for Australian primary school children

The effectiveness of universal social emotional learning (SEL) programs are dependent on the incorporation of best practice principles, including an evaluative component. In the present study, the effects of a best practice, teacher-led SEL program was examined with 854 children aged 8–12 years. KooLKIDS uses an interactive multimedia format and animated character to help children develop their emotion regulation capacities, social and friendship skills, empathy and compassion for others, and self-esteem. A quasi-experimental waitlist-control design was used to examine the impact of KooLKIDS on social and emotional competence, behavioral and emotional problems, academic achievement and effort. Hierarchical linear modeling demonstrated significant increases in social and emotional competence, and reductions in internalizing and externalizing problems in children post KooLKIDS program in the intervention group. The findings suggest that KooLKIDS has strong potential as a teacher-led, classroom-based, structured program for enhancing children's social and emotional learning.     

Standardization and UNDERSTANDardization in Educational Assessment

Educational tests are standardized so that all examinees are tested on the same material, under the same testing conditions, and with the same scoring protocols. This uniformity is designed to provide a level “playing field” for all examinees so that the test is “the same” for everyone. Thus, standardization is designed to promote fairness in testing. In practice, the material tested, the conditions under which a test is administered, and the scoring processes, are often too rigid to provide the intended level playing field. For example, standardized testing conditions may interact with personal characteristics of examinees that affect test performance, but are not construct-relevant. Thus, more flexibility in standardization is needed to account for the diversity of experiences, talents, and handicaps of the incredibly heterogeneous populations of examinees we currently assess. Traditional standardization procedures grew out of experimental psychology and psychophysics laboratories where keeping all conditions constant was crucial. Today, accounting for and measuring what is not constant across examinees is crucial to valid construct interpretations. To meet this need I introduce the concept of understandardization, which refers to ensuring sufficient flexibility in standardized testing conditions to yield the most accurate measurement of proficiency for each examinee.     

Validity and Reliability of the Global Physical Activity Questionnaire (GPAQ)

There is limited published validity and reliability evidence to support using the Global Physical Activity Questionnaire. Two studies were conducted to evaluate validity and reliability evidence for the Global Physical Activity Questionnaire. In Study 1: 69 adults completed the Global Physical Activity Questionnaire (three months apart; n?=?54), International Physical Activity Questionnaire, fitness and anthropometric measures. All participants wore a pedometer and 53 participants wore an accelerometer for seven days at baseline. In Study 2, 16 adults completed the Global Physical Activity Questionnaire 10 days apart. Global Physical Activity Questionnaire moderate and vigorous minutes were correlated with the accelerometer moderate (r?=?0.28) and vigorous (r?=?0.48) physical activity. The Global Physical Activity Questionnaire and International Physical Activity Questionnaire were related for sedentary behaviors (r?=?0.51), moderate-to-vigorous (r?=?0.48) and vigorous (r?=?0.63) PA. Global Physical Activity Questionnaire moderate-to-vigorous physical activity was associated with percent fat (r =??0.32), estimated VO₂ max (r?=?0.26), and step count (r?=?0.39). The Global Physical Activity Questionnaire demonstrated graded differences across categories for step count, body mass index, waist circumference, percent fat, fitness, and accelerometer measured activity. Short-term test–retest reliability (10 days) ranged from 0.83 to 0.96 while long-term reliability (three months) was 0.53 to 0.83. These data provide low-to-moderate validity and generally acceptable reliability evidence for the Global Physical Activity Questionnaire.     

Controlling for Background Beliefs When Developing Multiple-Choice Critical Thinking Tests

This paper describes briefly a methodology for developing multiple-choice critical thinking tests which attempts to overcome certain problems of validity and fairness facing such tests. The paper proposes that direct evidence on test validity be gathered using verbal reports of students' thinking on trial items.