Carol Kehr Tittle

Gender and adult roles: Role commitment of women and men in a job-family trade-off context.

The dimensionality that underlies the preferences of female (η=87) and male (η=31) college students for combining work and parent roles was investigated using conjoint measurement techniques

Women in Educational Research: Their Status from Student to Employee

The Committee on the Role and Status of Women within the American Educational Research Association (AERA) decided to send a series of questionnaires to universities, school districts, state departments of education, and major :esearch and development organizations in order to analyze the respective roles and statuses of men and women within AERA. The purpose of these questionnaires was to determine (a) the relative position and status of women as students in doctoral programs in education; (b) the status of women on the faculties of institutions which train educational researchers; and (c) the status of women as employees in research organizations, loce school districts, and state education departments. It was found that women consistently fall in the lower job ranks as determined by responsibility and salary. Even in job categories at the lower end of the rankings, women were paid less than their male counterparts. It was also found that most employers of educational researchers have adopted affirmative action plans, but that a discrepancy exists between adoption and implementation of these plans. While it was found that maternity leave plans are generally available, very few paternity leave plans exist--constituting further evidence of sexually discriminatory practices. Finally, it was noted that heavy reliance exists among friends and colleagues in universities or other research organizations for the recruiting of personnel, which is discriminatory since equal access cannot be guaranteed with such measures. (PB)

Research on Sex Equity in Education: An Agenda for the Divisions, SIGs, and AERA

AERA has an established commitment to equity as evidenced by Association policy and standing committees. An agenda for research on sex equity in education is proposed here and the division structure is used to cluster research areas. Research-related activities at the Association level are also proposed, with the goal of furthering the development of sex equity as an important dimension for all research in education. Both the activities and research agenda are intended to advance a dialogue that will assist in defining the research area of sex equity. Epistemological equality, concepts and definitions of sex equity, and methodology are identified as fundamental concerns to be addressed in research on sex equity.

Studies of the Effects of Career Interest Inventories Expanding Outcome Criteria to Include Women's Experiences.

Abstract It is proposed here that the goal of understanding individual satisfaction with work involves the perception of how work fits into a life pattern. This perspective should assist in explaining the occupational patterns and labor force participation of women. Current research on womens experience supports the need for expansion of outcome criteria in studies of effects. In particular, there is a need for outcome measures related to type of role explored (vocational, marital, parental) and decision area (occupation, marriage, and parent). Recently reviews of the effects on students of taking interest inventories and of the effects of career interventions more generally have derived primarily from views of the career development of men. Adding outcome measures in the roles and decision areas should increase the relationship between studies of effects and the experience of women.

Fairness in Educational Achievement Testing.

Charges of bias in tests are not recent (Cronbach, 1975). Historically, the focus of the controversy has been on tests measuring mental ability (principally those labeled as IQ tests). More recently, however, researchers involved in evaluation of Title I programs can testify that teachers in inner-city schools are also strongly critical of reading achievement tests-critical of the lack of pupil familiarity with the content in reading passages and with testing procedures generally. As is often the case, some criticism is aimed at the test content and some aimed at the inferences made about pupils on the basis of the test scores. In measurement terms, the criticisms are relevant to the ideas of content and construct validity.’ Traditionally, attention is given to examining content validity for achievement tests, and there has been little attention to construct validity. Both types of validities are essential to defining a set of procedures that will permit the development of a “fair” achievement test. It should be noted. that the Standards for Ediicatioiial and Psychological Tests published by the American Psychological Association discusses both content and construct validity. However, more detailed guidelines or adaptations of the Staitdrrrds to meet the criticisms of tests made by specific subgroups have not been developed.*

Investigating the Construct Validity of Scores from a Measure of Student Perceptions about Mathematics Classroom Activities Using Multidimensional Scaling

Interest in student affective and motivational perceptions about learning mathematics is growing. An instrument, the Mathematics Assessment Questionnaire, has been developed for use by classroom teachers to assess these perceptions. Research suggests that teachers and students characterize classrooms by activity settings, and items in the Mathematics Assessment Questionnaire use one of three activities: teacher whole-class instruction, student problem-solving groups, and homework. The present study explores the construct validity of scores of 1,505 junior high school students using three-way multidimensional scaling analyses. Findings are generally supportive of validity. Implications of findings are discussed.

Home-Career Conflict Reduction Revisited: the Effect of Experimental Directions on Kois Scores for Women

The effect of experimental directions designed to reduce a home-career conflict in womens occupational choices was investigated. The Kuder Occupational Interest Survey DD was administered to randomly formed experimental and control groups. The participants in the study were 121 women considering reentry to the educational system in a community college. The finding from previous research with the Strong Vocational Interest Blank-Women that use of experimental directions would yield scores increasing the range of occupations considered and the level of interest expressed, called into question the validity of interest inventory results for women. Different item types are used in the Kuder. It was hypothesized that changing directions would not change the results. For the women in this study, experimental directions at the time of test administration did not affect the level or, in general, the diversity of occupational choices. The validity of the Kuder is not compromised with experimental directions designed to reduce home-career conflict in womens occupational choices.

Validity of Awarding College Credit by Examination in Mathematics and English

The present study was concerned with the validity of the College-Level Examination Program General Examinations (CLEP) in Mathematics and English Composition. The two-fold purpose of the study was to provide an estimate of the number of credit hours likely to be earned if students took CLEP as well as to examine the interrelationships among the two previously mentioned subtests from CLEP, an end-of-year achievement test in Mathematics, and a prior measure in English Composition. First-year students at a senior college of the City University of New York were recruited for an experimental administration of the CLEP, the final examination from the first year mathematics course, and a college-developed English placement essay. Students with high scores on the American College Testing Program Examination (ACT) and high school averages were predominant in the sample selected for testing. From the data, inferences were made that (1) the CLEP Mathematics test could be used to grant credit in mathematics, but that the current cutting score should be examined in view of standards used in the course; (2) there was little relationship between CLEP English Composition scores and present college placement procedures for first-year English; and (3) the number of students who could earn college credit by examination was much higher than was the number presently taking CLEP at the college.

Rankings and Ratings of Values: Counseling Uses Suggested by Factoring Two Types of Scales for Female and Male Eleventh Grade Students.

This study examines the factor structure of rankings and ratings of three sets of values to illustrate how counselors can use them in working with female and male adolescent clients. The analyses of gender-related differences in rankings and ratings give counselors both within and between individual perspectives from which to explore the values students consider important in decisions to select an occupation, to marry, and to become a parent.

Career Counseling in Contemporary U.S. High School: An Addendum to Rehberg and Hotchkiss

This article is meant to draw the attention of educational researchers and practitioners to additional research that should be included in current reviews of career counseling in secondary schools. The review provided by Rehberg and Hotchkiss in the 1979 volume of Review of Research in Education is scholarly and brings to our attention important perspectives from psychology, sociology, and economics for the analysis of career counseling practice. However, important areas of research on women in these disciplines need to be added. The omitted areas provide data on the job and occupational segregation and earnings differentials of females and males; the increased participation of women, particularly mothers, in the labor force; the psychology and career development of women; their educational and occupational status (attainments); and related research. Related research includes work on sex role socialization and its pres-