The International Adult Literacy Survey: What Does It Really Measure?

The paper evaluates the work of the International Adult Literacy Survey as reported in OECD 1997. It assesses its contribution to understanding literacy in terms of the perspective of the New Literacy Studies. It outlines this perspective as a basis for a critique that is mostly concerned with the validity of the test. Three criticisms of the survey are made: that it provides only a partial picture of literacy; that culture is treated as bias; and that the test items do not represent the real-life items as claimed. Finally, the paper concludes with an overall evaluation of what the IALS achieves in terms of its own aims.     

Achieving congruent actions and intentions: An empirical assessment of faculty work in a regional public university

Two explanations of congruency of ideal (intent) and actual (action/behavior) work of faculty are examined—reward expectations and referent others. Based on interviews with 5 college deans and 32 chairpersons, a survey of 503 faculty (69% return rate), and institutional data, it was found that referent others' goals have a greater influence than reward expectations on the congruency of work actions and intentions of faculty. Peers, chairpersons, and deans affect, in differing ways, the congruency of actions and intentions of faculty. Overwhelmingly, peers have the strongest effect, followed by chairpersons and deans. Of the three reward expectations variables (perception that work leads to tenure, promotion to associate professor, and merit salary increases), only the perception that work leads to tenure affects congruency of faculty work actions and intentions.     

Assessment and Learning: differences and relationships between formative and summative assessment

The central argument of this paper is that the formative and summative purposes of assessment have become confused in practice and that as a consequence assessment fails to have a truly formative role in learning. The importance of this role is argued particularly in relation to learning with understanding (deep learning). It is pointed out that the requirements of assessment for formative and summative purposes differ in several dimensions, including reliability, the reference base of judgements and the focus of the information used. This challenges the assumption that summative judgements can be formed by simple summation of formative ones. An alternative procedure for linking formative and summative assessment is proposed such that their separate functions are preserved.     

An analysis of global problem issues in sixth-and seventh-grade textbooks

The study examines the extent to which the global issues of population growth, world hunger, air quality and atmosphere, and water resources were treated in sixth- and seventh-grade science textbooks. Ten textbooks were examined by five raters to determine the amount of content presented by different textbooks on global issues, the number of pages of content devoted to each issue, and the degree of depth in which issues were treated. Differences between grade levels were also explored. Of the 4,393 pages of content analyzed, less than 2 percent was devoted to these issues identified as the most serious human problems. No significant differences were found between textbook series. Significant differences were found in the number of pages of content presented on each issue. Most of the content fell into the categories of water resources, population growth, air quality, and atmosphere. The issue of war technology had the least amount of content. Distribution of content did not vary by grade level. Both levels addressed the issues of population growth, air quality, and water resources with a greater degree of depth than the issue of world hunger or war technology. The study concludes that the most widely used textbooks at the sixth- and seventh-grade levels avoid serious discussion of major global problems. And like the career indecision of a recent Miss America contestant, purchasers don't seem to be able to decide whether they want science textbooks to be “a brain surgeon or a movie actress.” Implications stemming from this dichotomy and its relationship to future science education curricular are also explored.     

Can teachers predict their students' wait time preferences?

The study examined students' preferences for wait times of 3 seconds versus .9 second, teachers' ability to accurately predict their students' preferences, and the reasons both groups of participants gave for their choices. Thirty-five middle school science classes watched two versions of a videotaped science review lesson. The versions differed only in length of time the teacher paused after questions before she called on students to respond. When asked which version would produce more learning and when asked which version they preferred (after being told how the two versions differed), significantly more students chose the one with the longer wait time. Significantly more teachers predicted these choices accurately than inaccurately. Students identified think time, time use, teacher helpfulness, and topic ease as reasons for their choices.     

A Five-Year Follow-Up: Teachers�� Perceptions of the Benefits of Home Visits for Early Elementary Children

The purpose of this study was to replicate previous research about teachers?? perceived benefits of home visits to determine if they remained stable. Furthermore, the investigation sought to find out whether home visits impacted variables often associated with improved school success (i.e., school attendance, academic performance, parent engagement). Participants were 29 kindergarten through second grade teachers in a rural, Midwestern school district who conducted home visits at the beginning of the school year. Seventeen of the teachers participated in the earlier study. Revised surveys were completed. Results are consistent with those of the previous study. Specifically, teachers reported these positive effects: beneficial relationships and better communication with parents, more appreciation of the influence of the child??s home environment related to school performance, and a better understanding the child??s behavior in school. In addition, teachers identified a connection between the home visits and variables related to school success. Thus, teachers?? perceptions reinforced the importance of conducting home visits.     

Comparisons in perceived importance of and needs for maternal gestational weight information between african american and caucasian pregnant women

This study compared the perceived importance of and needs for maternal gestational weight information between African American and Caucasian pregnant women. A secondary analysis of data from 113 pregnant women (82 African Americans and 31 Caucasians) attending an inner-city prenatal clinic was conducted for this study. Perceived importance of and needs for information were measured in five areas: (1) nutrition, (2) prenatal vitamins, (3) rest/activity balance, (4) exercise, and (5) appropriate weight gain. African American women demonstrated significantly higher perceived importance of and needs for information on rest/activity balance and appropriate weight gain than Caucasian women. Exercise information was rated lower in importance but was most needed by both African American and Caucasian women. Education programs about maternal gestational weight need to be cognizant of ethnic women's needs.     

Psychometric Properties of the Abbreviated Perceived Motivational Climate in Exercise Questionnaire

The purpose of this study was to develop an abbreviated version of the Perceived Motivational Climate in Exercise Questionnaire (PMCEQ-A) to provide a more practical instrument for use in applied exercise settings. In the calibration step, two shortened versions’ measurement and latent model values were compared to each other and the original PMCEQ using a three-group CFA invariance testing approach with previously collected exercise setting data (N = 5,427). Based on the model fit and reliability values, the 12-item version performed better than the 17-item version. The resultant 12-item PMCEQ-A’s CFA model estimates were then compared to the PMCEQ’s model values for two different, previously conducted studies of exercise settings (N = 414 and 770). The more parsimonious 12-item PMCEQ-A can be used by exercise psychology researchers to gain insight into members’ perspectives on the motivational climate and may lead to developing effective strategies to enhance members’ experiences and commitment.