Larry J. Weber

Take Home Tests: An Experimental Study.

The take home test was compared with the conventional closed and open book tests at the college level. It was found that scores on knowledge items were significantly higher with the take home test, and that additional time spent looking up answers was important. An additional factor was the level of anxiety, perceived by students to be less with the take home test. Rampant cheating does not appear to be a problem with take home tests.

Media Use and Student Knowledge of Current Events

three cases, situational variables affected the media variables indirectly through the dispositional variables. Only in the case of the use of television to relieve boredomdid a situational factor-age-account for more variation than the dispositional variables. Thus, it appears that situational factors are important to the use of television primarily because they heighten the probability that dispositional processes will be operative. The plausibility of this causal chain is strengthened by the high Goodness of Fit statistics obtained by the PATHEVAL test.

An Evaluation of Fundamental Schools

This study reports findings about fundamental and regular schools, both types being component schools in a large public school system. Comparative data concerning achievement of students, school climate, discipline, student self-concept and parental attitudes were gathered. On achievement variables fundamental school students performed as well or better than students in regular schools. Fundamental schools rated better on learning climate, discipline, and suspensions. The self-concepts of students in both types of schools were about the same. No evidence was uncovered that would warrant a recommendation that the fundamental schools be discontinued in the system.

AERA Opinions on Women's Equity Issues:

An opinion survey on sex-equity concerns was conducted for a sample of AERA members. Results indicated strong male-female differences on issues related to professional employment, such as reverse bias and the extent to which men are favored over women in work assignments. In contrast, large proportions of men and women supported statements on reduction in use of sex-specific references and the importance of sex-equity research. Womens responses were much more strongly intercorrelated than mens, probably indicating that women tend to view the issues of the survey as facets of a single underlying concern more so than men.

Predicting Success in Schools of Practical Nursing

Purpose. For purposes of reducing attrition and improving program effectiveness virtually all schools establish selection procedures for choosing students for their programs. The purpose of this study was to examine selection procedures in schools of practical nursing. Specifically, it was the intent of the investigators to determine variables associated with success in such schools. Procedures. In Virginia there were 34 schools of practical nursing which had been in existence for at least three years at the time of the study. A survey form was sent to each school requesting information about students’ sex, age, level of education, IQ scores, General Aptitude Test Battery (GATB) scores, Pre-Admission Classification Examination (PACE) scores, and scores on the Virginia State Board Examination for practical nurses. The subtests of the GATB including G-intelligence, V-verbal aptitude, Q-clerical perception, and K-motor coordination were required of all schools. IQ and PACE tests were required of some. Results. Information from 25 of the 34 schools was received, and usable data on 922 students who had completed the pro-

Profile Uniqueness in Student Ratings of Instruction.

This paper describes an approach to analyzing the variance in student ratings not previously reported in the literature. Student responses to a set of evaluation questions were cluster analyzed to establish homogeneous subgroups of students (within classes) who exhibited distinct evaluation profiles. Parallelness of the profiles obtained within each class was evaluated to determine the extent to which subgroups could be characterized simply in terms of overall stringency of their ratings. Results provide evidence that causes the investigators to seriously question the continued use of traditional methods of interpreting student ratings. Moreover, the new approach reported herein provides an alternative basis for interpreting faculty evaluations that overcomes objections to current practice.