Elementary school teachers’ preferences for school‐based interventions for students with emotional and behavioral problems

Teachers’ adoption and implementation of evidence‐based programs is often limited. Program characteristics may be important facilitators or barriers of use, yet little is known about which attributes influence teacher decisions. Using a discrete choice experiment with a sample of general education elementary teachers (N = 230), we examined (a) preference for attributes of school‐based interventions, (b) relative preference for three intervention packages with experimentally manipulated characteristics, and (c) teacher characteristics related to the above preference profiles. Intervention outcomes were the most important characteristics in teachers’ intervention decisions. Most teachers’ responses suggested preference for a social and emotional learning program (57.9%) or school‐based consultation for behavioral interventions (35.8%); a small group of teachers preferred a general support intervention (5.8%). Teachers preferring the general support intervention reported greater mental health symptoms, lower mental health literacy and lower confidence in program effectiveness than peers preferring other interventions. Implications for intervention development and future directions are discussed.     

Problems facing school superintendents and school board presidents of large school districts

Superintendents and school board presidents from the 100 largest school districts in the nation were surveyed to determine the major problems confronting these education leaders. Both superintendents and school board presidents were in agreement on most concerns, including the top three major problems. They are in complete agreement that finance and related worries are the most important problems they face. The survey identified several critical variables, including the superintendents' age, gender, and experience; the school board presidents' gender and experience; and the school districts' size, geographical region, metropolitan setting, and ethnic student profile.     

Positing Organizational Effectiveness as a Second-Order Construct in Hong Kong Higher Education Institutions

The study examines the relative importance of the various organizational effectiveness dimensions in higher education institutions by positing organizational effectiveness as a second-order construct. Based on the findings of a survey administered to university academics in Hong Kong universities, the second-order structure of organizational effectiveness was supported. The findings reflected that the student-related dimensions were not considered as important as the dimensions related to faculty employment and satisfaction and suggested the disproportionate influence of the governing body on universities in Hong Kong.     

Effects of Linking Methods on Detection of DIF

Studies of differential item functioning under item response theory require that item parameter estimates be placed on the same metric before comparisons can be made. The present study compared the effects of three methods for linking metrics: a weighted mean and sigma method (WMS); the test characteristic curve method (TCC); and the minimum chi-square method (MCS), on detection of differential item functioning. Both iterative and noniterative linking procedures were compared for each method. Results indicated that detection of differentially functioning items following linking via the test characteristic curve method gave the most accurate results when the sample size was small. When the sample size was large, results for the three linking methods were essentially the same. Iterative linking provided an improvement in detection of differentially functioning items over noniterative linking particularly with the .05 alpha level. The weighted mean and sigma method showed greater improvement with iterative linking than either the test characteristic curve or minimum chi-square method.     

Investigating the Effect of Item Position in Computer‐Based Tests

Computer‐based tests (CBTs) often use random ordering of items in order to minimize item exposure and reduce the potential for answer copying. Little research has been done, however, to examine item position effects for these tests. In this study, different versions of a Rasch model and different response time models were examined and applied to data from a CBT administration of a medical licensure examination. The models specifically were used to investigate whether item position affected item difficulty and item intensity estimates. Results indicated that the position effect was negligible.     

Does improving school level attendance lead to improved school level achievement? An empirical study of indigenous educational policy in Australia

Current federal government policy initiatives in Aboriginal education and social welfare reform are based on assumptions about the relationship between increased attendance and increased student performance on standardized tests. There are empirical assumptions underlying these policy interventions and their accompanying public debates. Our aim here is to empirically explore the relationships between patterns of student attendance and patterns of student achievement in schools with significant cohorts of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander students at the school level. Based on an analysis of the publicly available data reported on the ‘MySchool’ website, we find that reforms and policies around attendance have not and are unlikely to generate patterns of improved achievement. Questions about the rationale and rhetoric of government policy focused at the school level as opposed to the need to focus on pedagogy and curriculum are discussed.     

Librarians Connecting Scholars Through the American Culture Center Program in China

This article describes and discusses the changing roles of librarians in internationalization of higher education; how librarians lead the program of the American Cultural Center in China sponsored by the U.S. Department of State; and the benefits and challenges for leading an international project.