Extant Datasets Research Articles

Making Sense of the Links: Professional Development, Teacher Practices, and Student Achievement

Background/ContextAlthough there is substantial evidence that high-quality professional development can improve teacher practices, less evidence exists for the effects of teacher professional development on intermediate outcomes, such as teacher practices, and their ultimate effects on K–12 student achievement. This work links professional development through teacher practices to examine their separate and combined effects on student achievement.Research QuestionsWhen teacher characteristics and teacher preparation program are controlled, what are the effects of teacher professional development on (1) teacher practices in mathematics and reading, and (2) subsequent student mathematics and reading achievement?PopulationThe study uses students (n = 1,550–6,408) nested within teachers (n = 168–1,029) from six existing databases, two from the 2000 Beginning Teacher Preparation Survey conducted in Connecticut and Tennessee, and four from the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP Mathematics 1996, 2000, and NAEP Reading 1998, 2000).Research DesignThis quantitative study employed a hybrid structural equation model built based on relationships indicated by the literature. Using extant large-scale data sets, the model was first tested using the smallest data set and then confirmed using successively larger state and national data sets.ConclusionsProfessional development has moderate effects on teacher practice and very small but sometimes significant effects on student achievement when the effects of professional development are mediated by teacher practice. In spite of differences in samples, academic subjects, and assessments, the effects of professional development on teacher practice and student achievement persist and are remarkably similar across analyses.

Tracking Childhood Exposure to Lead and Developmental Disabilities

Elevated levels of lead detected in the blood are associated with harmful effects on children's learning and behavior. The goal of the current Environmental Public Health Tracking Project was to examine the relationship between selected developmental disabilities and childhood blood lead levels in a population-based sample. Using extant datasets from the Florida Department of Health, Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention Program, and the Florida Department of Education, we were able to isolate a linked dataset of children who were tested for lead poisoning and attended public schools. Special education categories served as a proxy for developmental disabilities; the prevalence of these disabilities in the sample of children with blood lead levels was compared with that in children who attended the same schools but were not tested for lead poisoning. Results indicated that children screened for lead poisoning were more likely to be receiving services for behavior problems, mental retardation, learning disabilities, or a speech-language impairment than other children attending the same schools. Implications for using administrative datasets to examine this relationship are discussed.

Paleobotany, Evidence, and Molecular Dating: An Example from the Nymphaeales

In recent years, most systematics studies have focused on phylogenetic analyses of molecular data sets. The latest trend has been to add molecular dating to these phylogenies utilizing methods such as nonparametric rate smoothing (NPRS) and penalized likelihood (PL) and calibrating these analyses using (often only one or very few) fossils. The success of such approaches is dependent on several assumptions, including a local clocklike behavior of evolution, the accuracy of the phylogeny, the correct phylogenetic placement of fossils, and the consistency of particular fossils in extrapolating rates throughout a given phylogenetic tree. An example of such an analysis of the Nymphaeales is provided to illustrate inappropriate use of fossils in this context and faulty results based on inadequate and/or inappropriate analyses. Neither fossil identifications nor a particular method of molecular dating should be called into question based on the disparity of a single analysis. Indeed, fossil observations and molecular dating are often at odds due to failure of the data to meet minimum assumptions of a clocklike behavior and poor or inadequate sampling of extant taxa, molecular sequence data, and/or fossils. Rejection or acceptance of either the fossils or the molecular dates resulting from their use should be considered in light of direct analysis of the fossils and compared to other analyses using other fossils and/or other extant data sets. Rejection of fossils based on unexpected results is merely verificationism.

The Nexus of Suicide Prevalence, Helping Behavior, Pace of Life, Affluence, and Intelligence: Contrary Results from Comparisons across Nations and within the United States

This study examined interrelations among suicide prevalence, affluence, intelligence, pace of life, and helping behavior on the level of aggregate analysis, both cross-nationally and within the USA, using four extant data sets (8, 15, and 29 countries; and 17 U.S. states) for the latter two variables. Pertaining to the association of suicide rates with pace of life, the results replicated discrepant previous findings of Lester. Across nations, suicide is more prevalent in populations living in faster environments, whereas within the USA suicide rates are higher in slower environments. Further, seen from an international perspective, there appears to be a nexus of variables, such that more people tend to commit suicide in the more affluent and faster environments which are populated by more intelligent, but less friendly, individuals. Within the USA, the direction of the correlations of suicide prevalence with these four variables is exactly reversed. Possible reasons for these opposed findings and implications for research are discussed.

THE NEXUS OF SUICIDE PREVALENCE, HELPING BEHAVIOR, PACE OF LIFE, AFFLUENCE, AND INTELLIGENCE: CONTRARY RESULTS FROM COMPARISONS ACROSS NATIONS AND WITHIN THE UNITED STATES1

This study examined interrelations among suicide prevalence, affluence, intelligence, pace of life, and helping behavior on the level of aggregate analysis, both cross-nationally and within the USA, using four extant data sets (8, 15, and 29 countries; and 17 U.S. states) for the latter two variables. Pertaining to the association of suicide rates with pace of life, the results replicated discrepant previous findings of Lester. Across nations, suicide is more prevalent in populations living in faster environments, whereas within the USA suicide rates are higher in slower environments. Further, seen from an international perspective, there appears to be a nexus of variables, such that more people tend to commit suicide in the more affluent and faster environments which are populated by more intelligent, but less friendly, individuals. Within the USA, the direction of the correlations of suicide prevalence with these four variables is exactly reversed. Possible reasons for these opposed findings and implications for research are discussed.

Mayo's Older Americans Normative Studies: Age- and IQ-Adjusted Norms for the Boston Naming Test, the MAE Token Test, and the Judgment of Line Orientation Test

ABSTRACT Although many extant normative data sets for standardized neuropsychometric instruments feature adjustments for subject variables, there are reasons to believe that improvements in interpretive accuracy that result from such adjustments are less than optimal. In particular, several theoretical considerations suggest that years of formal education may be less closely related to test performances than is general intellectual functioning. In this first of four reanalyses of results from the Mayo Clinic's Older Americans Normative Studies (MOANS) databases, age-adjusted scores on the Boston Naming Test, the MAE Token Test, and the Judgment of Line Orientation Test were indeed found to be more strongly associated with Mayo Age-adjusted WAIS-R Full Scale IQ scores (rs = .608, .473, and .502, respectively) than with education (rs = .310, .306, and .236, respectively) for healthy older examinees (56–99 years). Consistent with the remarks of Dodrill (19971999), these correlations generally decreased at higher levels of intelligence. The magnitude and pattern of such declines varied across the three tests, however, suggesting that IQ-test score associations must be empirically determined rather than assumed to be linear. Tables of Age- and IQ-Adjusted percentile equivalents of MOANS Age-adjusted BNT, Token Test, and JLO scaled scores are presented for eleven age ranges and seven IQ ranges. The article concludes with a discussion of factors that may underlie observed relations among age, intelligence, and neuropsychometric test performances.

On Generalized Secretary Problems

This paper is composed of two related parts. In the first, we present a dynamic programming procedure for finding optimal policies for a class of sequential search problems that includes the well-known “secretary problem”. In the second, we propose a stochastic model of choice behavior for this class of problems and test the model with two extant data sets. We conclude that the previously reported bias for decision makers to terminate their search too early can, in part, be accounted for by a stochastic component of their search policies.

Coronal Variability in the Young Cluster NGC 2516

NGC 2516 has been observed by Chandra several times in order to correct the plate scale of the spacecraft's focal plane instruments. Because of this, Chandra has observed NGC 2516 with all four imaging arrangements available. In addition, NGC 2516 has been observed as part of the High Resolution Camera (HRC) guaranteed time program and is scheduled for return plate scale calibration visits. This makes it the best cluster to study for long-term variability. NGC 2516 is about 140 Myr old and less than 400 pc away. In our first paper, we discussed the detection of 150 X-ray sources (42% of which are identified as cluster members) in the calibration data taken during the orbital activation phase of the Chandra mission. In our second paper, we combined all the extant data sets and detected 284 sources, more than half of which are considered likely cluster members. In this our third paper, we further explore techniques of combining Advanced CCD Imaging Spectrometer (ACIS) and HRC Chandra data for timing analysis. We have been able to combine almost 70 ks of observation time, spread over five epochs, to study variability in this cluster on multiple timescales. We find that while stochastic variability rates are about the same for all objects in the sample, the timescale for detecting variability is shorter for late-type stars. Both stochastic and flare variability rates seen in NGC 2516 are similar to those seen in younger clusters IC 348, NGC 1333, and M42.

Habitat Restoration Across Large Areas: Assessing Wildlife Responses in the Clearwater Basin, Idaho

Abstract Over the past century, fire suppression and prevention have altered disturbance regimes across the Pacific Northwest, resulting in a significant divergence of historical and current conditions in forested habitats. To address this continuing trend in habitat changes and begin restoring historical patterns of disturbance, the Clearwater Basin Elk Habitat Initiative (CEI) proposes relatively extensive management actions in the Clearwater basin of north-central Idaho. We attempted to evaluate potential effects of such management actions on selected wildlife species using extant data sets and suggest ways to improve such projects with respect to a multispecies and adaptive management approach. Although there is increased interest in ecosystem management over large areas, the increased scale of analysis and implementation require a substantial increase in the level of species information beyond what currently exists. We conclude that baseline information required for an effective multispecies land-management policy in the Clearwater basin does not exist for many terrestrial wildlife species. To implement a true multispecies or ecosystem approach, wildlife and land managers should cooperate to increase existing population data and modeling efforts for wildlife species in the basin and develop a sustainable monitoring program to evaluate habitat management changes and their influence on wildlife populations within the context of adaptive management theory. Management actions to restore disturbance patterns should attempt spatial and temporal scales that are biologically relevant to the population ecology of species being affected. West. J. Appl. For. 19(2): 123–132.

Examinee Characteristics and Score Reliability: An Empirical Investigation

The literature on measurement reliability shows the general consensus that examinee group heterogeneity with regard to the trait being measured affects the score reliability. Potentially, the performance level of the examinee group may also affect score reliability because of its potential effect on the relative magnitude of error variance. This article empirically examines the effects of these two examinee sample characteristics on score reliability of optimal-performance measurement. Two large extant data sets (criterionand norm-referenced, respectively) were used in the investigation. The results suggest that both performance variability and group performance level affect score reliability, and measurement error tends to be smaller for high-performance groups than for low-performance groups.

REGIONAL CHARACTERISTICS OF NUTRIENT CONCENTRATIONS IN STREAMS AND THEIR APPLICATION TO NUTRIENT CRITERIA DEVELOPMENT1

ABSTRACT: In order to establish meaningful nutrient criteria, consideration must be given to the spatial variations in geographic phenomena that cause or reflect differences in nutrient concentrations in streams. Regional differences in stream nutrient concentrations were illustrated using stream data collected from 928 nonpoint‐source watersheds distributed throughout the country and sampled as part of the U.S. EPA National Eutrophication Survey (NES). Spatial patterns in the differences were compared and found to correspond with an a priori regional classification system based on regional patterns in landscape attributes associated with variation in nutrient concentrations. The classification consists of 14 regions composed of aggregations of the 84 U.S. EPA Level III Ecoregions. The primary distinguishing characteristics of each region and the factors associated with variability in water quality characteristics are presented. The use of the NES and many other extant monitoring data sets to develop regional reference conditions for nutrient concentrations in streams is discouraged on the basis of sample representation. The necessity that all sites used in such an effort be regionally representative and consistently screened for least possible impact is emphasized. These sampling issues are rigorously addressed by the U.S. EPA Environmental Monitoring and Assessment Program (EMAP). A case‐study, using EMAP data collected from the Central and Eastern Forested Uplands, demonstrates how regional reference conditions and draft nutrient criteria could be developed.

Constructing Ultrametric and Additive Trees Based on the L 1 Norm

1) criterion. Examples of ultrametric and additive trees fitted to two extant data sets are given, plus a Monte Carlo analysis to assess the impact of both typical data error and extreme values on fitted trees. Solutions are compared to the least-squares (L 2) approach of Hubert and Arabie (1995a), with results indicating that (with these data) the L 1 and L 2 optimization strategies perform very similarly. A number of observations are made concerning possible uses of an L 1 approach, the nature and number of identified locally optimal solutions, and metric recovery differences between ultrametrics and additive trees.

A risk assessment framework for the evaluation of skin infections and the potential impact of antibacterial soap washing

Antibacterial soaps may have an important role in the control of skin infection. However, quantitative estimation of their benefit is difficult because of the problems associated with conducting epidemiologic studies. An alternative benefit estimation approach, quantitative microbial risk assessment, has application to this problem. This article sets forth the quantitative microbial risk assessment method and applies it specifically to the estimation of the reduction in risk of dermal infection from Staphylococcus aureus resulting from use of antibacterial soaps. A dose-response model was formulated by using available information on growth kinetics of the organism on the skin and dose data based on the inoculation of the forearm skin in volunteers. A predictive relationship for microbial growth on the skin was developed. These data were limited, and clearly more studies are needed on inoculation at more than one site and growth leading to infection on the skin with and without the use of germicidal soaps. However, by using relationships based on extant data sets, it was estimated that the use of germicidal soap could result in a substantial reduction in the risk of infection by S aureus . The estimated risk reduction was in general concordance with published results from epidemiologic studies conducted on military cadets. The methodology of quantitative microbial risk assessment has thus been shown to be applicable to this problem and may have broader applicability in other personal hygiene contexts. (AJIC Am J Infect Control 1999;27:S26-S33)

Data Access for Effective Coastal Zone Management: Acri du coeurfor openness

In this paper the author draws upon his experience with the plethora of hydrographic information which underpins the modern navigational chart and identifies parallels with the situation facing our coastal zone managers. Noting that the coastal zones of our planet are at once among its most fragile areas and yet are subjected to the worst of human environmental excesses, the paper argues that the advent of GIS technology offers an obvious and cost effective way of bringing together the various and often disparate data sets available to the coastal zone managers. The cost of collecting primary data about the world's coastal zones is extraordinarily high, but the cost of NOT collecting data is higher when this increases pressures on the coastal zones. Much information exists in extant data sets. The expertise of cartographers in bringing together disparate geographical data sets and providing graphical interpretations to assist managers is ideally situated to realise the latent potential in many existing data sets. This potential will be better realised, it is argued, if a general philosophy of openness is adopted with respect to data access.

Fossils and Seed Plant Phylogeny Reanalyzed

In a cladistic analysis of Recent seed plants, Loconte and Stevenson (1990) obtained results that conflict with our 1986 analysis of both extant and fossil groups and argued that fossil data had led us to incorrect conclusions. To explore this result and the general influence of fossils on phylogeny reconstruction, we assembled new “Recent” and “Complete” (extant plus fossil) data sets incorporating new data, advances in treatment of characters, and those changes of Loconte and Stevenson that we consider valid. Our Recent analysis yields only one most parsimonious tree, that of Loconte and Stevenson, in which conifers are linked with Gnetales and angiosperms (anthophytes), rather than with Ginkgo, as in our earlier Recent and Complete analyses. However, the shortest trees derived from our Complete analysis show five arrangements of extant groups, including that of Loconte and Stevenson and our previous arrangements, suggesting that the result obtained from extant taxa alone may be misleading. This increased ambiguity occurs because features that appear to unite extant conifers and anthophytes are seen as convergences when fossil taxa are interpolated between them. All trees found in the Complete analysis lead to inferences on character evolution that conflict with those that would be drawn from Recent taxa alone (e.g., origin of anthophytes from plants with a “seed fern” morphology). These results imply that conclusions on many aspects of seed plant phylogeny are premature; new evidence, which is most likely to come from the fossil record, is needed to resolve the uncertainties.

Health services administrator role delineation methodology: an institutional long-term care example.

Health services administrators (HSA) are the cynosure of much current research because of their pivotal positions vis-a-vis quality of care and cost-effective policies. Role delineation methods used to date are too simple and/or too subjective to reflect the actual complexities of these roles. Dimensional analysis, as used to delineate complex organizational processes, more succinctly and accurately reflects these complexities and is more objective. The inherent weakness of dimensional analysis in devising the initial list of tasks can be counteracted by the use of facet analysis. A set of LTC administrator tasks from a national study is dimensionally analyzed to produce a role delineation and the subroles are validated through criterion analyses and amplified through reference to the literature. A similar strategy could usefully and readily be applied to extant data sets for other HSAs.