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This article reports on a post hoc study using a randomised controlled trial with 31,842 students in the Netherlands and an instrument consisting of 21 paired problems. The trial showed a variability in the differences of students’ results in solving contextual mathematical problems with either a descriptive or a depictive representation of the problem situation. In this study the relation between this variability and two task characteristics is investigated: (1) complexity of the task representation; and (2) the content domain of the task. We found indications that differences in performance on descriptive and depictive representations of the problem situation are related to the content domain of the problems. One of the tentative conclusions is that for depicted problems in the domain of measurement and geometry the inferential step from representation of the problem situation to the mathematical problem to be solved is smaller than for word problems.

Research on solving mathematical word problems suggests that students may perform better on problems with a close to real-life representation of the problem situation than on word problems. In this study we pursued real-life representation by a mainly depictive representation of the problem situation, mostly by photographs. The prediction that students perform better on problems with a depictive representation of the problem situation than on comparable word problems was tested in a randomised controlled trial with 31,842 students, aged 10–20 years, from primary and secondary education. The conclusion was that students scored significantly higher on problems with a depictive representation of the problem situation, but with a very small effect size of Cohen's d = 0.09. The results of this research are likely to be relevant for evaluations of mathematics education where word problems are used to evaluate the mathematical capacity of students.

This paper uncovers 'conspicuous work' as a new form of status seeking that can explain social interactions in labour supply. We analyse how peer working time relates to both labour supply and happiness for Dutch male workers. Using a unique measure of peer weekly working time, we find that men's working time increases with that of their peers and that peer working time is negatively related to men's happiness. These findings are consistent with a 'conspicuous work' model, in which individuals derive status from working time.

The aim of this study is to contribute to the body of knowledge on the use of contextual mathematical problems. Word problems are a predominant genre in mathematics classrooms in assessing students’ ability to solve problems from everyday life. Research on word problems, however, reveals a range of difficulties in their use in mathematics education. In our research we took an alternative approach: we designed image-rich numeracy problems as alternatives for word problems. A set of word problems was modified by systematically replacing the descriptive representation of the problem situation by a more depictive representation and an instrument was designed to measure the effect of this modification on students’ performance. The instrument can measure the effect of this alternative approach in a randomized controlled trial. In order to use the instrument at scale, we made this instrument also usable as a diagnostic test for an upcoming nationwide examination on numeracy. In this article we explain and discuss the design of the instrument and the validation of its intended uses.

"In diesem Papier nehmen wir eine Meta-Evaluation der internationalen Literatur zur Evaluationsforschung aktiver Arbeitsmarktpolitik vor. Zahlreiche Versuche wurden unternommen, um den Nettoeffekt von Reintegrationsmaßnahmen auf die individuelle Arbeitszugangschance abzuschätzen. Somit ergibt sich die Frage, welche Schlussfolgerungen aus der Literatur gezogen werden können. Wie groß ist der Nettoeffekt von Reintegrationsmaßnahmen? Unser Papier unterscheidet sich von früheren Meta-Analysen zur Evaluation des Effekts aktiver Arbeitsmarktpolitik dahingehend, dass wir versuchen, Interferenzen hinsichtlich der Größe des Nettoeffekts auszumachen. In dieser Hinsicht analysieren wir die Größenverteilung der Nettoeffektschätzungen, die sich aus der inter-nationalen Evaluationsliteratur ergeben. In unserer Analyse unterscheiden wir zwischen verschiedenen Typen von Wiedereingliederungsmaßnahmen. Darüber hinaus nehmen wir Regressionsanalysen vor, in denen wir den geschätzten Effekt, der in einzelnen Untersuchungen ermittelt wurde, mit dem Typ der Maßnahme, dem Arbeitsmarktkontext und den Charakteristika der verwendeten Evaluationsmethode erklären. Ein Problem der Analyse liegt darin, dass unterschiedliche Studien unterschiedliche Effekte messen. Den theoretischen Rahmen von Risikomodellen nutzend analysieren wir, in welchem Ausmaß die verschiedenen Ansätze miteinander in Bezug gesetzt werden können und ob es sinnvoll ist, diese verschiedenen Untersuchungen in einer Meta-Analyse zu kombinieren. Die Ergebnisse belegen, dass der Nettoeffekt von Reintegration im Durchschnitt vergleichsweise gering ist. Als ein Ergebnis kann festgehalten werden, dass sich die Reintegrationschancen wohl kaum um mehr als 3 Prozentpunkte erhöht haben. Am überzeugendsten stellt sich der Fall bei beruflicher Aus- und Weiterbildung sowie bei der Arbeitsberatung dar: mit durchschnittlichen Nettoeffekten, die von 5,7 bis 9,7% reichen. Die positiven Ergebnisse für Ausbildung sind überraschend. Allerdings enthält unser Sample kaum experimentelle Evaluationen von solchen Maßnahmen, die üblicherweise als die verlässlichsten Evaluationen gelten. Generell haben wir herausgefunden, dass die Nettoeffektschätzung dann geringer ist, sobald ein Experiment für die Evaluation eingesetzt wurde. Deshalb können die Ergebnisse hinsichtlich Aus- und Weiterbildung zu rosig anmuten. Wenn wir die verwendete Methode berücksichtigen, stellt sich Ausbildung weniger gut dar, während Sanktionen (die als ein Maßnahmentyp behandelt werden) besser erscheinen. Lohnkostenzuschüsse und Arbeitsbeschaffungsmaßnahmen erwiesen sich als mangelhaft. Ferner haben wir herausgefunden, dass der Nettoeffekt aktiver Arbeitsmarktpolitik von der sozio-ökonomischen Situationen abhängt: Er ist tendenziell bei niedriger Arbeitslosigkeit geringer als während einer Rezessionsphase. Wir betrachten dieses Papier als einen ersten Schritt und möchten weitere Literatur auswerten. In jüngster Zeit sind etliche Studien erschienen, die eine mehr entwickelte Methodologie zur nichtexperimentellen Evaluation benutzen. Es wird interessant werden zu sehen, in welchem Ausmaß die Einbeziehung dieser Studien in die Meta-Analyse die Ergebnisse verändert." (Autorenreferat "In this paper we carry out a meta evaluation of the international evaluation literature regarding active labour market policies (ALMPs). Many attempts have been made to estimate the net impact of reintegration measures on the individual job entry chance. So, the question is what conclusions can be drawn from the literature. How big is the net effect of reintegration measures? Our paper differs from earlier meta analyses of ALMP impact evaluations in the fact that we try to make inferences about the size of the net effect. To that end we analyze the size distribution of the net impact estimates resulting from the international evaluation literature. In our analysis we distinguish between different types of reintegration measures. Furthermore, we carry our regression analyses in which we explain the estimated effect found in individual studies from the type of measure, the labour market context and characteristics of the evaluation method used. A problem with the analysis is that different studies measure different things. Using the theoretical framework of hazard models, we analyze to what extent the different approaches can be related to each other and whether it makes sense to combine the different studies in one meta analysis. The results indicate that on average the net impact of reintegration measure is fairly small. As a result of reintegration job entry chances are probably not increased by more than 3 percentage points on average. The case is most convincing for training and counseling with average net effects ranging from 5.7 to 9.7 percentage points. The positive results for training are surprising. However, our sample hardly contains experimental evaluations of training, which are usually seen as the most reliable evaluations. Overall we find that the net effect estimate tends to be smaller if an experiment is used for the evaluation. Hence, the results for training may be too rosy. If we account for the method used training comes out less well, while sanctions (which are treated as one type of measures) perform better. Wage subsidies and job creation come out poorly. We also find that the net impact of ALMPs depends on the socio-economic situation: it tends to be lower when unemployment is low than during a recession period. We see this paper as a first step and want to exploit the literature further. Recently, a lot of studies using a more developed methodology for non-experimental evaluation have appeared. It will be interesting to see to what extent inclusion of these studies in the meta analysis will alter the results." (author's abstract)

In this paper we carry out a meta evaluation of the international evaluation literature regarding active labour market policies (ALMPs). Many attempts have been made to estimate the net impact of reintegration measures on the individual job entry chance. So, the question is what conclusions can be drawn from the literature. How big is the net effect of reintegration measures? Our paper differs from earlier meta analyses of ALMP impact evaluations in the fact that we try to make inferences about the size of the net effect. To that end we analyze the size distribution of the net impact estimates resulting from the international evaluation literature. In our analysis we distinguish between different types of reintegration measures. Furthermore, we carry our regression analyses in which we explain the estimated effect found in individual studies from the type of measure, the labour market context and characteristics of the evaluation method used.

"This report analyses patterns of work and use of benefits over the full life course on the basis of Dutch data. The available data, however, only cover a period of twelve years. Therefore, the patterns observed during this period are used to simulate life courses for a cohort. The simulation implies that for each (simulated) member of the cohort we know on a quarterly basis for approximately 50 years whether he has a job, a social benefit or neither a job nor a social benefit. So, we have approximately 200 data points for each (simulated) individual. The original data on which the simulation model is based contain the following individual characteristics: age, gender and ethnic origin. The level of education was estimated on the basis of income data from our dataset. The distinction according to these four characteristics has been maintained in the simulation." (author's abstract)

This report analyses patterns of work and use of benefits over the full life course on the basis of Dutch data. The available data, however, only cover a period of twelve years. Therefore, the patterns observed during this period are used to simulate life courses for a cohort. The simulation implies that for each (simulated) member of the cohort we know on a quarterly basis for approximately 50 years whether he has a job, a social benefit or neither a job nor a social benefit. So, we have approximately 200 data points for each (simulated) individual. The original data on which the simulation model is based contain the following individual characteristics: age, gender and ethnic origin. The level of education was estimated on the basis of income data from our dataset. The distinction according to these four characteristics has been maintained in the simulation.

Arbeidsmarkt Journaal

Arbeidsmarkt Journaal

European unemployment is too high, and employment is too low. Over 7½ per cent of Europe's workforce is unemployed, and only two thirds of people aged 15-64 are in work. At the Lisbon summit two years ago the heads of government set the target that by 2010 the employment rate should rise from 64 per cent to at least 70 per cent. And for older workers between 55 and 64 the employment rate should rise from 38 per cent to at least one half. These are ambitious targets. They will require two big changes: more people must seek work, and among those seeking work a higher proportion must get a job. So we need higher participation, and (for full employment) we need a much lower unemployment rate. Can it be done? A mere glance at the experience of different European countries shows that it can. As Table 1 shows, four E.U. countries already exceed the overall target for 2010 (Britain, Denmark, the Netherlands and Sweden). And seven of the 15 countries in the E.U already have lower unemployment than the United States (the previous four plus Austria, Ireland and Luxembourg).