Search

The COVID-19 pandemic kick-started a new paradigm shift in the way and manner teaching and learning takes place on the global scale due to the lockdown that succeeded in shutting down school activities. As a result, most institutions turned to technology supported e-learning as against the traditional face-to-face teaching and learning in order to cover for lost time. This study therefore tested the effectiveness of game-based learning on students' performance in educational technology. Using a simple repeated measures design, 24 students participated in this study. Using an Educational Technology Achievement Test (ETAT), which was validated and pilot-tested to obtain data, the students were given two separate pre-tests before the commencement of the treatment as well as two different post-tests after the treatment. Data were computed using a mixed design repeated-measures ANOVA. Findings revealed that game-based learning significantly improved students' performance to a large extent (F[subscript (3, 69)] = 170.960; p < 0.05) with an effect size ([partial eta-squared]) of 0.881. The study has some implications for Nigerian teachers and researchers in Educational Technology and Science-related fields on the need to incorporate game-based learning given that it has what it takes to improve students' performance.

Experimental designs in the social sciences have received increasing attention due to their power to produce causal inferences. Nevertheless, experimental research faces limitations, including limited external validity and unrealistic treatments. We propose combining qualitative fieldwork and experimental design iteratively--moving back-and-forth between elements of a research design--to overcome these limitations. To properly evaluate the strength of experiments researchers need information about the context, data, and previous knowledge used to design the treatment. To support our argument, we analyze 338 pre-analysis plans submitted to the Evidence in Governance and Politics repository in 2019 and the design of a study on public opinion support for punitive policing practices in Montevideo, Uruguay. The paper provides insights about using qualitative fieldwork to enhance the external validity, transparency and replicability of experimental research, and a practical guide for researchers who want to incorporate iteration to their research designs.

Gateway science courses are an ongoing obstacle to recruitment into STEM fields (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics). Students come into courses that have a high cognitive load, which makes success in the course challenging. Instructional design can be used to reduce cognitive load. The findings demonstrate that leveraging pre- and post-lecture quizzes has the capacity to reduce cognitive load. Over three semesters, assessed 164 students were assessed while taking SCB201 (General Biology I). Students in the participant and control groups were given surveys to gauge the experiment's effectiveness. These surveys were given at the beginning, midterm, and end of the semester. The surveys collected student feedback concerning attendance habits, reading for knowledge, and course difficulty each semester. The participant group findings showed favorable increases in attendance and reading for knowledge. Additionally, students in the participant group found the quizzes helped them to better understand core concepts as the semester progressed. It was determined that these quizzes helped focus learning by causing a decrease in cognitive load for students. This methodology has universal application to any type of course needing to reduce cognitive load.

The field of geometrical optics features a broad knowledge base concerning conceptual learning difficulties and student conceptions. However, in contrast to other areas of physics, no widely used standard test instrument exists to assess middle school students' conceptual knowledge of geometrical optics. This is even more true for other areas of the electromagnetic spectrum. For this reason, a concept test was developed for an intervention study to collect preconceptions about visible light as well as preconceptions about infrared radiation in the subject area of reflection and transmission. A pilot study with 108 middle school students preceded final revisions and implementation in the main study of 820 learners aged 12-16. The measurement model is presented for the developed concept test with the subscales 'preconceptions and knowledge about reflection and transmission in visible optics', 'preconceptions and knowledge about reflection and transmission in infrared optics' and 'applied knowledge on reflection and transmission in visible and infrared optics'. The results show that the concept test validly captures the development of preconceptions and knowledge regarding specific aspects of reflection and transmission of the part of the electromagnetic spectrum from 3 µm to 380 nm.

Testing students on information that they do not know might seem like a fruitless endeavor. After all, why give anyone a test that they are guaranteed to fail because they have not yet learned the material? Remarkably, a growing body of research indicates that such testing--formally known as "prequestioning" or "pretesting"--can benefit learning if there is an opportunity to study the correct answers afterwards. This "prequestioning effect" or "pretesting effect" has been successfully demonstrated with a variety of learning materials, despite many erroneous responses being generated on initial tests, and in conjunction with text materials, videos, lectures, and/or correct answer feedback. In this review, we summarize the emerging evidence for prequestioning and pretesting effects on memory and transfer of learning. Uses of pre-instruction testing in the classroom, theoretical explanations, and other considerations are addressed. The evidence to date indicates that prequestioning and pretesting can often enhance learning, but the extent of that enhancement may vary due to differences in procedure or how learning is assessed. The underlying cognitive mechanisms, which can be represented by a three-stage framework, appear to involve test-induced changes in subsequent learning behaviors and possibly other processes. Further research is needed to clarify moderating factors, theoretical issues, and best practices for educational applications.

In spring 2016, a course at Ohio State University (OSU) was introduced to teach advanced agronomic concepts and included the option to prepare students for the Certified Crop Adviser (CCA) exams offered by the American Society of Agronomy. From 2019 to 2021, revisions in instructional methods were implemented that introduced the use of pretests (in addition to posttests given at the end of instructional periods) and focused problem-solving within a teaching unit towards the end of the semester. Improvement in course exam performance for each period was measured, and student performance (SP) on the CCA exams relative to the general population was determined. Student course exam scores increased marginally (3%) from 2019-2021 compared to 2016-2018, though gains were not significant (p > 0.5). SP from 2016 to 2018 (n = 27) was 1%-5% greater than the general population for the international CCA exam (n = 3978) but was equal to or 1.5% below the general population for the local CCA exam (n = 784). SP from 2019 to 2021 (n = 21) was 7.8%-16.4% greater for all categories for both the international (n = 2330) and local (n = 419) exam general populations. Student passing rates on the international exam went from 25.3% to 52.8% greater than the general population from 2016-2018 to 2019-2021, respectively, and student passing rate for the local exam increased from 55.7% less than the general population in 2016-2018 to 26.7% greater than the general population in 2019-2021. These results suggest the modification of course instruction coincided with SP gains and may have contributed to improved performance of the student population compared to the general population.

The purpose of this study was to compare calibration and linking methods for placing pretest item parameter estimates on the item pool scale in a 1-3 computerized multistage adaptive testing design in terms of item parameter recovery. Two models were used: embedded-section, in which pretest items were administered within a separate module, and embedded-items, in which pretest items were distributed across operational modules. The calibration methods were separate calibration with linking (SC) and fixed calibration (FC) with three parallel approaches under each (FC-1 and SC-1; FC-2 and SC-2; and FC-3 and SC-3). The FC-1 and SC-1 used only operational items in the routing module to link pretest items. The FC-2 and SC-2 also used only operational items in the routing module for linking, but in addition, the operational items in second stage modules were freely estimated. The FC-3 and SC-3 used operational items in all modules to link pretest items. The third calibration approach (i.e., FC-3 and SC-3) yielded the best results. For all three approaches, SC outperformed FC in all study conditions which were module length, sample size and examinee distributions.

An operational multistage adaptive test (MST) requires the development of a large item bank and the effort to continuously replenish the item bank due to concerns about test security and validity over the long term. New items should be pretested and linked to the item bank before being used operationally. The linking item volume fluctuations in MST, however, bring into question the quality of the link to the reference scale. In this study, various calibration/linking methods along with a newly proposed Bayesian logistic regression (BLR) method were evaluated by comparison with the test characteristic curve method through simulated MST response data in terms of item parameter recovery. Results generated by the BLR method were promising due to its estimation stability and robustness across studied conditions. The findings of the present study should help inform practitioners of the utilities of implementing the pretest item calibration method in MST.

The residual differential item functioning (RDIF) detection framework was developed recently under a linear testing context. To explore the potential application of this framework to computerized adaptive testing (CAT), the present study investigated the utility of the RDIF[subscript R] statistic both as an index for detecting uniform DIF of pretest items in CAT and as a direct measure of the effect size of uniform DIF. Extensive CAT simulations revealed RDIF[subscript R] to have well-controlled Type I error and slightly higher power to detect uniform DIF compared with CATSIB, especially when pretest items were calibrated using fixed-item parameter calibration. Moreover, RDIF[subscript R] accurately estimated the amount of uniform DIF irrespective of the presence of impact. Therefore, RDIF[subscript R] demonstrates its potential as a useful tool for evaluating both the statistical and practical significance of uniform DIF in CAT.

This paper investigated consequences of measurement error in the pretest on the estimate of the treatment effect in a pretest-posttest design with the analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) model, focusing on both the direction and magnitude of its bias. Some prior studies have examined the magnitude of the bias due to measurement error and suggested ways to correct it. However, none of them clarified how the direction of bias is affected by measurement error. This study analytically derived a formula for the asymptotic bias for the treatment effect. The derived formula is a function of the reliability of the pretest, the standardized population group mean difference for the pretest, and the correlation between pretest and posttest true scores. It revealed a concerning consequence of ignoring measurement errors in pretest scores: treatment effects could be overestimated or underestimated, and positive treatment effects can be estimated as negative effects in certain conditions. A simulation study was also conducted to verify the derived bias formula.

What follows is a practical guide for establishing the validity of a survey for research purposes. The motivation for providing this guide is our observation that researchers, not necessarily being survey researchers per se, but wanting to use a survey method, lack a concise resource on validity. There is far more to know about surveys and survey construction than what this guide provides; and this guide should only be used as a starting point. However, for the needs of many researchers, this guide provides sufficient, basic information on survey validity. The guide, furthermore, includes references to important handbooks for researchers needing further information.

Scale pretests analyze the suitability of individual scale items for further analysis, whether through judging their face validity, wording concerns, and/or other aspects. The current article reviews scale pretests, separated by qualitative and quantitative methods, in order to identify the differences, similarities, and even existence of the various pretests. This review highlights the best practices and objectives of each pretest, resulting in a guide for the ideal applications of each method. This is followed by a discussion of eight questions that can direct future research and practice regarding scale pretests. These questions highlight aspects of scale pretests that are still largely unknown, thereby posing a barrier to their successful application.

The current study examined whether the learning benefits of pretesting--like those produced by posttesting--generalize to classroom settings, and whether such benefits transfer to non-pretested related information. Before some lectures but not others, undergraduate students enrolled in a large research methods class were given a brief competitive multiple-choice pretest on topics that were then covered in a lecture occurring immediately following the pretest. The pretests were not seen by the lecturer. On a final exam that was given at the end of the academic term, it was found that pretesting enhanced learning of both pretested and non-pretested related material compared to control questions. On a follow-up questionnaire, students reported taking the pretests seriously and being generally aware when pretested topics were later discussed in the lectures. Furthermore, many students reported using the pretests to guide their own study behavior. Thus, a combination of two mechanisms--namely, increased attentional processing during class and enhanced self-regulated study outside of class--may have contributed to the current pretesting effect. Although much more research in this area is needed, our results suggest that students' learning can profit from short, low-stakes, competitive multiple-choice pretests being deployed in the classroom.

Considerable research has examined the prevalence and apparent consequences of task-unrelated thoughts (TUTs) in both laboratory and authentic educational settings. Few studies, however, have explored methods to reduce TUTs during learning; those few studies tested small samples or used unvalidated TUT assessments. The present experimental study attempted to conceptually replicate or extend previous findings of interpolated testing and pretesting effects on TUT and learning. In a study of 195 U.S. undergraduates, we investigated whether interpolated testing (compared to interpolated restudy) and pretesting on lecture-relevant materials (compared to pretesting on conceptually related but lecture-irrelevant materials) would reduce TUTs during a video lecture on introductory statistics. Subjects completed either a content-matched or content-mismatched pretest on statistics concepts and then watched a narrated lecture slideshow. During the lecture, half of the sample completed interpolated tests on the lecture material and half completed interpolated restudy of that material. All subjects responded to unpredictably presented thought probes during the video to assess their immediately preceding thoughts, including TUTs. Following the lecture, students reported on their situational interest elicited by the lecture and then completed a posttest. Interpolated testing significantly reduced TUT rates during the lecture compared to restudying, conceptually replicating previous findings--but with a small effect size and no supporting Bayes-factor evidence. We found statistical evidence for neither an interpolated testing effect on learning, nor an effect of matched-content pretesting on TUT rates or learning. Interpolated testing might have limited utility to support students' attention, but varying effect sizes across studies warrants further work.

The development of computational thinking is a major topic in K-12 education. Many of these experiences focus on teaching programming using block-based languages. As part of these activities, it is important for students to receive feedback on their assignments. Yet, in practice it may be difficult to provide personalized, objective and consistent feedback. In this context, automatic assessment and grading has become important. While there exist diverse graders for text-based languages, support for block-based programming languages is still scarce. This article presents CodeMaster, a free web application that in a problem-based learning context allows to automatically assess and grade projects programmed with App Inventor and Snap!. It uses a rubric measuring computational thinking based on a static code analysis. Students can use the tool to get feedback to encourage them to improve their programming competencies. It can also be used by teachers for assessing whole classes easing their workload.

In order to provide an on-demand, open electrical engineering laboratory, we developed an innovative software-based Virtual Open Laboratory Teaching Assistant (VOLTA). This web-based virtual assistant provides laboratory instructions, equipment usage videos, circuit simulation assistance, and hardware implementation diagnostics. VOLTA allows students to perform laboratory experiments anywhere at their convenience. A series of studies was carried out in an experimental section of our traditional entry-level electric circuits laboratory to answer the hypothesis: students taught using VOLTA will learn as much as students who were taught by a human teaching assistant. The experiments were conducted using a pre-test/post-test design, and student performance was assessed using ANOVA on gain scores. Statistical analysis revealed that the student performance increased significantly when VOLTA was integrated into a closed laboratory. We conclude that VOLTA can support students in open and closed laboratories as effectively as a human teaching assistant.

In this study, we examined the potential impact of item misfit on the reported scores of an admission test from the subpopulation invariance perspective. The target population of the test consisted of 3 major subgroups with different geographic regions. We used the logistic regression function to estimate item parameters of the operational items based on the empirical data accumulated over 3 years. A new set of item parameter estimates derived using the data from each subgroup separately was compared to the original (i.e., operational) item parameter estimates to assess the degree of item misfit due to subgroup memberships. Using the new set of item parameter estimates for each subgroup, we also updated the conversion tables, which were derived from the original item parameter estimates, and compared them to their original conversions to determine whether score invariance was achieved at the scaled score level. Score invariance was not absolutely achieved. Even so, the magnitude of reported score differences (systematic error or bias) caused by subgroup dependence was still smaller than the standard error of measurement (random error) of the test. This study suggests a practical remedy for enhancing the level of score invariance of the test.

Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) has been identified as one of the most common behavioral disorders in childhood. The main objective of this study was analyzing the current situation of supporting children with ADHD in mainstream schools in Sri Lanka; especially how Sri Lankan primary school teachers support such children in overcoming their barriers to learning, behavior, and social relationships. A qualitative research study was conducted with ten Sri Lankan primary school teachers.The main findings of the study showed that all the primary school teachers who took part in the study did not have a satisfactory knowledge and training on educating children with ADHD traits. They currently face many difficulties when teaching children with ADHD traits in the mainstream classroom due to not having enough resources, support and guidance from relevant authorities. The finding of the study will be useful to improve or develop the education system of ADHD children in Sri Lanka, since no research study has been conducted so far regarding this topic. The research study reveals that the need for raising awareness among Sri Lankan primary school teachers on ADHD and providing enough facilities for mainstream schools so that teachers can provide a proper education for such children.

We designed and implemented a modified eight-week Direct Instruction (DI) program intended to teach a third grade student with learning disabilities to tell time. The first objective was to determine whether or not the appearance (interesting or boring) of the worksheet affected performance. These data suggested the use of large-scale clocks and an emphasis on oral instruction resulted in better performance. Finally, the results from a pre-test indicated that many of the prerequisite skills needed for telling time were not firm with our participant. When a modified DI procedure was implemented, these skills were mastered quickly. The overall effect size for our use of DI for telling time indicated that the intervention was highly effective. It appears that the use of DI procedures was far more important than the interest of the materials.

To address the needs and interests of primary stakeholders in a writing program, this article presents a model of "grassroots" assessment that involves instructors from all ranks as well as students in the development, facilitation, and interpretation of assessment results. The authors describe two assessment plans that measured student and instructor perceptions about curricular changes, the individual results of those assessments, and the conclusions the authors came to about the importance and challenges of involving a range of stakeholders in assessment.

This study discusses the need, development, and validation of the Innovation Test Instrument (ITI). This article outlines how the researchers identified the content domain of the assessment and created test items. Then, it describes initial validation testing of the instrument. The findings suggest that the ITI is a good first step in creating an innovation assessment because it is more inclusive of both divergent and convergent thinking. In comparison, past innovation assessments have only assessed either divergence or convergence. The ITI still needs further validation and improvement to make strong claims about its ability to determine the effectiveness of an innovation course.

This article reports on an exploratory study that addressed the low confidence levels of 80 generalist primary student teachers enrolled in a mandatory visual arts course. Previous studies in this area have found that a cycle of neglect exists in Australia, as a result of educators' lack of confidence in their ability to teach visual arts. This is believed to create a knock on effect whereby generalist primary student teachers enter mandatory tertiary visual arts units with little belief in their own art ability. This exploratory study centred on proactively applying the Tomlinson Model of differentiation in an effort to raise student confidence levels. By providing students with multiple avenues to access essential course understandings, students' perceptions to teach visual arts changed significantly by course completion. This research has significance as there is a paucity of research re the implications of implementing a differentiated model of instruction at the tertiary level.

This study reports an empirical study of an explicit instruction of corpus-aided Business English collocations and verifies its effectiveness in improving learners' collocation awareness and learner autonomy, as a result of which is significant improvement of learners' collocation competence. An eight-week instruction in keywords' collocations, with the help of AntConc and self-constructed Business English Pedagogical Corpus combined with COCA general corpus and Wikipedia corpus, was imparted to 23 undergraduate learners majoring in Business English in Guangdong University of Foreign Studies. They took the collocation competence pre-test and post-test before and after the teaching experiment which was phased into two themes and submitted learning reflective journals at the end of each theme instruction and answered a questionnaire at the final end. The data from the tests, reflective journals and questionnaire collaboratively suggest that given appropriate guidance EFL Business English learners can take a more active role in raising their collocation awareness and developing learner autonomy and thus improve their collocation competence significantly. The results from the test analysis also indicate that the corpus-aided Business English collocation pedagogy is proved to be more effective for intermediate and advanced level learners rather than lower level ones. The findings have pedagogical implications for EFL Business English instructors and learners.

In this study, a mobile application was developed for courses at undergraduate level. The application has not only been developed and used, but has also been used practically for 8 weeks. In other words, the findings are based on a practical experience rather than a theoretical basis. This study aimed to determine the opinions of students who participated in the development and application process of an Android application named NEU-CEIT about the mobile learning environment, educational and sharing structure of the developed application. A total of 27 students participated and students were asked to upload the developed application and examine the content. Following the application, students were administered an environment evaluation questionnaire. Data of the research were collected with survey method. Data obtained in the research were analyzed through the views of experts. According to the results, it was revealed that outcomes related with the usage structure of the developed application were positive, educational structure of the application is appropriate to follow the curriculum, it is rich in terms of materials and it might be one of the applications that students can use for communication. The results also showed that mobile applications will support education and increase motivation. This study supports that mobile applications improve academic achievement.

The aim of the study was to examine the effect of a 4-week classroom physical activity break intervention on middle school students' health-related physical fitness. The study was a randomized controlled trial with students assigned to the experiment and control conditions. A convenience sample comprised 94 adolescents (experiment group n = 52; control group n = 42) (48 females, 46 males, age range 11 to 15 years) from four classes in one school in the mid-south United States. Intervention was delivered with an Xbox One Kinetic system to minimize teachers-dependence when delivering the intervention. In addition, to acknowledge students' poor treatment adherence, which can occur in school-based intervention studies, analyses were conducted to both the intention-to-treat group and the students' who reached the 66.7% attendance rate benchmark. Analysis of covariance test results showed that for the intention-to-treat group there were no significant intervention effects on cardiovascular endurance (F[2,82] = 2.58, p = 0.112), upper body strength and endurance (F[2,84] = 3.55, p = 0.063), abdominal strength and endurance (F[2,82] = 0.01, p = 0.973), or flexibility (F[2,71] = 0.48, p < 0.489) tests. In addition, the analyses comparing the high attendance group to the control group showed that intervention had a moderate significant effect on students' cardiovascular endurance (F[2,52] = 23.95, p < 0.001, ?2 = 0.30) and a small effect on abdominal strength and endurance (F[2,52] = 3.24, p = 0.049, ?2 = 0.08). The results of this study highlighted the importance of school students' adherence to program to achieve intended and planned intervention benefits.

This study focuses on interactive multimedia e-learning aims to improve our understanding about the dynamics of e-learning. The objective is to critical evaluate and better understand the interrelationships in the proposed framework between internal, external and the pedagogy dimensions in adoption of interactive multimedia and e-learning. It develops a tool to measure creative user adoption of interactive multimedia and e-learning services by using Partial Least Squares algorithm as the method of estimation and the major analytical tool in this study. Finding of a small scale data sampling of students in United Kingdom indicate that the proposed measurement framework is an acceptable fit with the data. Overall, the findings supply a precise tool for measuring creative user adoption of interactive multimedia and e-learning services, providing further insights for researchers and may provide to guide research and practice in interactive multimedia and e-learning by using communication media.

It is well known that interesting questions can stimulate thinking and invite participation. Class exercises are designed to make use of questions to engage students in active learning. In a project toward building a community skilled in software verification and validation (SV&V), we critically review and further develop course materials in the software engineering curriculum for an undergraduate course in SV&V. The project involves the joint effort with many other academic institutions and industry partners. There are four topic areas of Software Engineering in our focus: Requirements Engineering, Software Review, Configuration Management, and Testing. We see class exercises as active learning tools for the students in our flipped classroom approach. We present our design of the class exercise: in its generic components envisioning how it may be used in general, but also its use in selected examples to illustrate these components. The class exercise design includes the learning objectives to indicate how the course design meets the learning outcome objectives for ABET accreditation. We further applied a classification of the learning objectives to present the case of the class exercises as active learning tools. Our initial implementation is ready and we are in the process of implementation with partner institutions for feedback and review.

In the last decade, e-learning has been a standard part of the educational process at all types of schools--primary, secondary, and high schools. When used, e-learning can achieve significant savings not only in terms of time as well as operating costs. However, e-learning is also often criticized. This is mainly due to direct absence of teachers (lack contact with him). This fact brings with it a range of following these problems, such as long response times in asking a question or impossibility to consult on specific issues. E-learning brings with it other, often-hidden problems, that in the traditional way of teaching we do not perceive. Since from year 2009 we try at the Department of Computer Science, Faculty of Natural Sciences, Constantine the Philosopher University in Nitra create modules for LMS Moodle, which could help students in organizing a way of teaching process (module Interactive Element Stat, Module Emotion Recognition, and others). The aim of the creation of modules is to support adaptivity in Moodle. Nowadays for the support of teaching process we designed and created a module with a name Notes. The aim of this paper is to highlight the importance of creating their own notes in Moodle. The basic function of the newly created solution is to add comments to the study materials including highlighting text. The module allows users to edit notes, create, and print them together with study materials.

Group awareness can affect student online learning while self-regulation also can substantially influence student online learning. Although some studies identify that these two variables may partially determine learning behavior, few empirical studies or thorough analyses elucidate the simultaneous impact of these two variables (group awareness and self-regulation) on online learning behavior. This paper compared one online collaboration environments with GA support with one without group awareness (NA) support and further investigated how these two variables, different system types (i.e., GA and NA) and different self-regulation levels (i.e., high and low), influence learning task (i.e., assessment) participation, and peer interaction (i.e., asking for help and willing to help) using two-way analysis of variance (ANOVA). Analytical results first showed that both variables have significant interaction on assessment participation and requesting rate. GA can particularly stimulate students with high-level self-regulation to engage more learning task (assessment) participation and ask for help more, compared with students with low-level self-regulation. Second, both variables have no significant interaction on willingness to help. The GA class can enhance a student's willingness to help regardless of his/her self-regulation level.

Computer programming is becoming an essential skill for young students regardless of their education or career goals. Therefore, for students to develop and for educators and researchers to accurately measure self-efficacy in and value for programming is important. Although student motivation in subject matter can be measured using self-report surveys, these types of instruments are prone to error due to inherent biases. In this quasi-experimental and cross-sectional study, we examined whether using a computer programming pretest before taking a perception survey (i.e., providing examples of the key concept in the survey beforehand) had an impact on students' self-reported self-efficacy and utility value, thus helping collect more accurate data. Results showed no significant difference on self-efficacy and value scores between those who received a pretest and those who did not. In further analysis, however, it was found that pretest performance was positively correlated with self-efficacy and value. In addition, boys reported significantly higher self-efficacy and value than girls, confirming gender disparity outlined in previous research. An exploratory, but important, finding was that there was an interaction between gender and test performance for the self-efficacy and utility value. While boys' who had high pretest scores also reported higher levels of self-efficacy and utility value, it was the opposite for girls.

One approach to encourage productive study strategies is to incorporate preparatory quizzes (or pre-quizzes) in which students are required to submit answers to questions before the underlying material is covered in class. In the present study, students took an introductory mechanical engineering class that either included pre-quizzes (treatment group) or did not (control group). Students in the treatment group visited the online textbook more often and earlier in advance of deadlines, indicating better management of their study time--behaviors that have been shown to be productive study strategies. They also performed better in the course, indicating that techniques intended to prime productive study strategies can pay off. Finally, measures of productive learning strategies correlated with measures of course performance for both groups. These findings support the pretesting principle, which holds that students study more effectively and learn better when they take practice tests before a lesson.

Recent studies suggest that testing on prior material enhances subsequent learning of new material. Although such forward testing effect has received extensive empirical support, it is not yet clear how testing facilitates subsequent learning. One possible explanation suggests that interim testing informs learners about the format of an upcoming test and consequently allows them to adopt study strategies in accordance with the anticipated test format. Three experiments investigated whether the beneficial effects of testing are due to learners' expectation with the test format or due to testing experience itself in inductive learning by varying when and how learners were informed about the format of an upcoming test. The results showed that informing learners about the test format via an interim test, but not a pretest, enhanced subsequent learning (experiment 1), and it was effective only when combined with actual test-taking experience (experiment 2). Testing appeared to enhance subsequent learning of new material when learners had an opportunity to evaluate their mastery over previously studied information. Experiment 3 further showed that these beneficial effects of testing were yielded even in the absence of feedback. Taken together, the findings suggest that mere exposure to the test format, not combined with actual testing, is not sufficient to enhance subsequent learning.

Learning objectives (LOs) are statements that typically precede a study session and describe the knowledge students should obtain by the end of the session. Despite their widespread use, limited research has investigated the effect of LOs on learning. In three laboratory experiments, we examined the extent to which LOs improve retention of information. Participants in each experiment read five passages on a neuroscience topic and took a final test that measured how well they retained the information. Presenting LOs before each corresponding passage increased performance on the final test compared with not presenting LOs (experiment 1). Actively presenting LOs increased their pedagogical value: Performance on the final test was highest when participants answered multiple-choice pretest questions compared with when they read traditional LO statements or statements that included target facts (experiment 2). Interestingly, when feedback was provided on pretest responses, performance on the final test "decreased," regardless of whether the pretest format was multiple choice or short answer (experiment 3). Together, these findings suggest that, compared with the passive presentation of LO statements, pretesting (especially without feedback) is a more active method that optimizes learning.

Retrospective pretests ask respondents to report after an intervention on their aptitudes, knowledge, or beliefs before the intervention. A primary reason to administer a retrospective pretest is that in some situations, program participants may over the course of an intervention revise or recalibrate their prior understanding of program content, with the result that their posttest scores are lower than their traditional pretest scores, even though their understanding or abilities have increased. This phenomenon is called response-shift bias. The existence of response-shift bias is undisputed, but it does not always occur, and use of the retrospective pretest in place of a traditional pretest often introduces new problems. In this commentary, I provide a brief overview of the literature on response-shift bias and discuss common pitfalls in the use and reporting of retrospective pretest results, including a failure to consider multiple factors that may affect all test scores, as well as claims that retrospective pretests are less biased than traditional pretests, provide more accurate estimates of effects, and are necessarily superior to traditional pretests in program evaluation. I comment on the article by Little et al. (2019) in this issue in light of the literature on retrospective pretests and discuss the need for a theoretical framework to guide research on response-shift bias. The goal of the commentary is to provide readers with an informed and critical lens through which to evaluate and use retrospective pretest methods. [For Little et al.'s "The Retrospective Pretest-Posttest Design Redux: On Its Validity as an Alternative to Traditional Pretest-Posttest Measurement," see EJ1242580.]

We revisit the merits of the retrospective pretest-posttest (RPP) design for repeated-measures research. The underutilized RPP method asks respondents to rate survey items twice during the same posttest measurement occasion from two specific frames of reference: "now" and "then." Individuals first report their current attitudes or beliefs following a given intervention, and next they are prompted to think back to a specific time prior to the given intervention and rate the item again retrospectively. The design addresses many of the validity concerns that plague the traditional pretest-posttest design. Particularly when measuring noncognitive constructs, the RPP design allows participants to gauge the degree of change that they experience with greater awareness and precision than a traditional approach. We review the undesirable features of traditional designs and highlight the benefits of the retrospective approach. We offer examples from two recent, original studies and conclude with the recommendation that the RPP design be employed more broadly. We also conclude with a discussion of important directions for future examination of this design.

This study aims to develop Taiwan undergraduates' volunteer service motivation scale. To begin with, item pool was proposed on the basis of literature. After discussing with three Taiwan undergraduates, item pool, exploratory factor analysis (EFA) (N = 150) was proceeded, where three tests were conducted EFA: 1. Item analysis: comparisons of extreme groups and correlation analysis were employed. The former's critical ratios are all more than 3, and reach significant standard, showing the 20 items have discriminating power. The latter shows that the r value of all items and the total score are all more than .60, and reach significant standard (p<0.001), showing the items can measure the same concept. 2. Factor analysis: primary axis factoring and the promax method of oblique rotation were adopted. In the first EFA, the 5 items concerning interpersonal relationship were distributed to other factors; and, due to incompatibility with other factors, so this dimension of Interpersonal Relationship was deleted. The 2nd EFA's results are consistent with the original design, which is categorized into Self-Growth, Serving Others, and Social Identification, and has appropriate total variation and total reliability. In order to verify the stability of the EFA factors, another batch of samples (N = 452) were investigated through confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). In accordance with the CFA's results, the initial model's test are acceptable without offending estimations, the basic fit of the initial model is in good fitness (including individual reliability, composite reliability, the average variance extracted, construct discrimination). To conclude, these 15 items 3 factors of Taiwan Undergraduates' Volunteer Service Motivation Scale has acceptable reliability and validity; therefore, it can serve as the scale to investigate Taiwan undergraduates' volunteer service motivation for proceeding the relative studies.

What liability is associated with assuming the role of the "sponsor" in a clinical trial? This article discusses the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulations governing sponsorship, and how courts have interpreted those regulations in cases with a claim of injury. There is a natural concern with the responsibility implied by assuming the role of "sponsor" in a clinical trial agreement. In a commercially sponsored clinical trial, for example, the site can reasonably require that a drug company assume most liability for subject injury Pharmaceutical companies are not the sponsor, however, for Investigator Sponsored Trials (ISTs, sometimes called Investigator Initiated Trials IITs). Between these extremes are the complex cases where a mix of delegated roles and responsibilities are assigned, and where the "duty of care" relation between a physician and their patient may take precedence in any case. This article discusses sponsorship in terms of the FDA regulations, and reviews several cases where judicial interpretation of a sponsor's duties had an impact on liability.

Students should learn mathematics with understanding. This is one of the ideas in the literature on mathematics education that everyone supports, from educational politicians to curriculum developers, from researchers to teachers, and from parents to students. In order to decide whether or not students understand mathematics we should first identify how mathematical understanding occurs. The purpose of this research is to analyze 10th-grade students' mathematical understanding of geometric transformations as developed in an environment enriched with multiple representations. Four 10th-grade students were observed during their lessons on translation, rotation, reflection, and dilation; semi-structured task-based interviews were then conducted with them after the lessons. The findings of this study reveal that although students' levels of mathematical understanding developed from informal to formal, this development was not unidirectional and students showed a tendency to use informal understandings. Students' primitive knowledge of geometric transformations was at the core of their understanding, whereas activities in the understanding levels of Image Making and Property Noticing directly affected the growth of their mathematical understanding. The folding back movements, activities in the forms of acting and expressing within the different levels of understanding, and multiple representations of concepts in the learning environment guided their process of mathematical understanding.