Jeffrey Oescher

THE INFLUENCE OF STUDENT AID ON WITHIN-YEAR PERSISTENCE BY TRADITIONAL COLLEGE-AGE STUDENTS IN FOUR-YEAR COLLEGES

This paper uses the 1987 National Postsecondary Student Aid Study to compare five alternative approaches for assessing the influence of student aid on within-year persistence by traditional college-age students enrolled in four-year colleges. Three conclusions were drawn from the research. First, models that included tuition charges better predicted within-year persistence than models that did not include this independent variable. Second, the use of multiple approaches for measuring the influence of student aid provided more insight into the ways student aid policies influence persistence than any single approach. Third, tuition charges had a consistent negative influence on persistence.

Variance and Context Differences in Teaching at Differentially Effective Schools

ABSTRACT This study follows up on recent research exploring the differences in teaching within more or less effective schools. Results verify that teachers in more effective schools score consistently higher on indices of effective teaching than those in typical or less effective schools. Furthermore, teachers in more effective schools demonstrate less variance in teaching behaviors, indicating more formal or informal socialization at the school level. Additional differences in mean and deviation scores were noted between elementary and junior high schools, suggesting differential school processes at operation in those two levels.

Religiousness as a predictor of alcohol use in high school students.

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between religiousness and alcohol use of adolescents. A sample of high school seniors was drawn based on the second follow-up National Educational Longitudinal Study of 1988 (NELS:88). Multiple regression was employed using a hierarchical strategy to determine the impact of religiousness on alcohol use when accounting for other factors that have been shown to affect alcohol use. The results provide support for examining religiousness variables as predictors of alcohol use patterns for adolescents. Also, inconsistent patterns between Asian-American, Hispanic, African-American, and Caucasian students were detected. Implications of the study and suggestions for future research are offered.

Development and Validation of the Virgilio Teacher Behavior Instrument

This study was an attempt to develop an easily coded, research-oriented instrument to assess teacher effectiveness in the class- room. A 35-item Likert format scale was developed which included three subscales of teacher effectiveness: classroom management, instruction, and classroom climate. The results of the study indicated that the Virgilio Teacher Behavior Inventory (VTBI) is a reliable and valid instrument which can be administered with confidence either in elementary or junior high schools. Instrument development included the generation of an initial pool of 80 items which was refined during pilot testing to a final 35-item version. Content validity of the VTBI was indicated by an assessment of a panel of judges. Estimates of internal consistency (coefficient alpha) were .96 for the total inventory and .88, .96, and .85 for the classroom management, instruction, and classroom climate subscales, respectively. The relationship between the VTBI and a time-on-task measure (r = .64, p < .0001) provided an indication of concurrent validity. A five-factor solution consistent with the theoretical structure of the VTBI was obtained tentatively defining one classroom management, two instruction, and two classroom climate dimensions.

Computers in schools: a new source of inequity

Abstract The results of a study of elementary and secondary school usage of microcomputers for one southern state are reported. In addition to summarizing the availability of hardware, software, and personnel resources, evidence is presented to suggest that various sub-groups of students, particularly the “regular” classroom student and the socioeconomically disadvantaged, are severely limited in their access to computer technology, and that access, when afforded, is restricted to drill and practice applications. School-, district-, and state-level recommendations are provided to address these inequities.

Validating State-Mandated Criterion-Referenced Achievement Tests with Norm-Referenced Test Results for Elementary and Secondary Students

AbstractThe Louisiana Educational Assessment Program (LEAP) achievement test is a criterion-referenced test mandated as part of a statewide accountability law. Standards have been empirically determined for selected grade levels. Criterion-referenced tests, however, are not evaluated solely on the basis of their psychometric properties; results also must be interpretable by and credible to laypersons. In this study, methods for validating criterion-referenced test results through correlation with an accessible and easily understood norm-referenced benchmark were explored. LEAP scores and pass/fail decisions for 21,000 Grade 3 students and 8,000 Grade 10 students were compared with scores on the California Achievement Test (CAT). Correlational analyses indicated moderately strong relationships between criterion-referenced and norm-referenced subtests. LEAP pass/fail decisions based on CAT scores had error rates in the 12% to 20% range. Procedures for using norm-referenced tests to validate criterion-refere...

USE OF AEROBIC DANCE AND LIGHT WEIGHTS IN IMPROVING SELECTED MEASURES OF STRENGTH, ENDURANCE, AND FLEXIBILITY '

Many individuals have limited time to participate in conditioning programs so it is important that time spent exercising be used efficiently. When lack of time is a problem in a conditioning program, could the addition of weights be an effective solution? The purpose of the study was to examine the effects of 1-b. weights on various measures of strength, endurance and flexibility of college women who participated in a 10-wk. aerobic dance program. Two intact groups of 19 each, from two-day-a-week aerobic dance classes, were used as experimental groups. The aerobic only group followed the typical aerobic dance format while the aerobic with weights group performed the aerobic part of the program holding a 1-b. weight in each hand. Analysis of covariance using the pretest as a covariant except when assumptions were violated and appropriate alternative methods were used, significant differences were observed on four of the six variables on which the aerobic with weights group excelled.