Performance-Based Assessment: Implications of Task Specificity

How generalizable are the scores from performance-based assessments? How can we best increase the gener-alizability of results? What level of generalizability is needed for different testing purposes?     

The Effectiveness of Adding a Parent Involvement Component to an Existing Center-Based Program for Children with Disabilities and Their Families

The belief that parent involvement in early intervention programs increases developmental benefits for children with disabilities and their families is widely accepted. However, very few studies have directly investigated the effects of parent involvement on child and/or family outcomes in a comparative design. For the present study, children in an early intervention program were randomly assigned to either of two groups. One group continued to receive the center- based program, and the other received the center-based program plus a specific parent involvement program. The type of parent involvement most frequently reported in the literature (White,Taylor, & Moss, 1992) was implemented. Weekly parent meetings for 15 weeks focused on teaching parents how to implement intervention at home, provided information on other topics, and facilitated social support. Assessment of child and family functioning took place prior to and immediately after the parent involvement program, as well as longitudinally over a four-year period. No immediate or long-term benefits for the children or their families were found. Findings are compared with findings of other studies. The implications of the findings in evaluating the rationales for this type of parent involvement program are discussed.     

Student justice perceptions following assignment feedback

In higher education, students are exposed to regular feedback about their performance, and a prominent aspect of students’ attention to feedback concerns the extent to which grades are consistent with what a student has expected to receive. Any discrepancies that arise can result in negative justice perceptions, which research has shown are associated with negative cognitive, emotional and behavioral consequences. However the extent of, and consequences of, these negative justice perceptions within the learning process have gone largely unexplored. This study investigates the relationship between expectation/performance discrepancies, justice perceptions, student satisfaction and self‐efficacy. In particular, we found an interaction between the grade received and negative justice perceptions; poor performers with negative justice perceptions were more likely to have lower subsequent self‐efficacy and satisfaction than those who did not have injustice perceptions. However, self‐efficacy rose for those who had negative justice perceptions if they also received moderate to high performance feedback. The results reflect the complexity of cognitive and behavioral responses to performance feedback. Implications for grading and recommendations for reducing injustice perceptions are discussed.     

Training needs of career guidance personnel in Australia and Hong Kong: A comparative study

An increasing emphasis on the need for provision of career development programs for all ages has prompted a parallel call for greater provision of training for career personnel. The present study surveyed career personnel in Hong Kong who were undertaking additional training, and Masters level students at an Australian university who were engaged in some careers work in their schools but who were not employed in a formal role as career teacher or counsellor. The survey focused on competencies of careers coordinators. The findings generally high-lighted a need for more training in the area of career development competencies.     

How are the Perceptions of Learning Networks Shaped Among School Professionals and Headteachers at an Early Stage in their Introduction?

This paper draws on the findings of a research project funded by the Liverpool City of Learning consortium in the UK. The aim is to explore the process of introduction of ten authority wide learning networks, the impact these have on school professionals practice, the opportunities they offer for CPD and the extent to which they may impact on pupil learning. The research presented here draws on findings from a questionnaire distributed to school professionals and key issues emerging from their analysis point to the influence of national government agendas on school professionals’ interpretation of the purpose of the networks. They also point to the views of staff regarding the impact of the attainment agenda as well as the extent to which an increased emphasis on social inclusion and wider understandings of learning and achievement (which are less well represented by results-based performance monitoring) are having on their hopes for what Learning Networks might deliver. The expectations of staff of the opportunities offered by learning networks for long term professional development provide some interesting insights, and perhaps, some useful pointers as to how networks of this kind might develop in the future.     

From retention to satisfaction: New outcomes for assessing the freshman experience

To meet higher education's challenge of accountability from a customer-satisfaction perspective, one urban institution has developed an integrated approach to studying the freshman-year experience in order to develop comprehensive outcome measures for assessing freshman success. Multiple sources of data (freshman satisfaction survey data, enrollment data, and academic performance data) are integrated into a database that provides the institution with a comprehensive set of outcome indicators and a model of the freshman experience. This institution used the integrated data set to develop models of freshman retention. In order to focus more clearly on customer satisfaction, models of student satisfaction were developed to determine critical components in freshman satisfaction.