Comparison Group Of Students Research Articles

Reading Processes of University Students with Dyslexia - An Examination of the Relationship between Oral Reading and Reading Comprehension.

The purpose of this study was to examine the quality of oral reading and how it relates to reading comprehension in students with dyslexia. A group of Danish university students with dyslexia (n = 16) and a comparison group of students with no history of reading problems (n = 16) were assessed on their oral reading performance when reading a complex text. Along with reading speed, we measured not only the number and quality of reading errors but also the extent and semantic nature of the self-corrections during reading. The reading comprehension was measured through aided text retellings. The results showed that, as a group, the dyslexics performed poorer on most measures, but there were notable within-group differences in the reading behaviours and little association between how well university students with dyslexia read aloud and comprehended the text. These findings suggest that many dyslexics in higher education tend to focus their attention on one subcomponent of the reading process, for example, decoding or comprehension, because engaging in both simultaneously may be too demanding for them. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Evaluating the impact of curriculum infusion on US college students’ alcohol use and academic performance

Objectives: This paper explores the extent to which curriculum infusion (CI) impacted undergraduate students’ alcohol use, perceived peer alcohol use, use of protective behavioural strategies, academic performance and course engagement. Design: Two faculty members infused content on norms and protective behavioural strategies into selected academic courses. Setting: This study was conducted in a small liberal arts university in the northeastern part of the USA. Methods: A sample of 215 undergraduates from research design and statistics courses in the fall semester of 2013 and the spring and fall semesters of 2014 were selected. CI was experienced by 100 students and 115 students comprised the comparison group. Surveys were distributed at the end of each semester to these selected groups and the results were analysed. Results: Students who witnessed CI showed no improvement in alcohol use outcomes; however, there was a trend level effect for frequency of use. CI students reported higher expected final grades and similar levels of course engagement to comparison group students. Conclusion: CI is a topic that requires in-depth scientific research to assess its value on positively affecting college drinking consequences. From a pedagogical standpoint, CI was successful since it did not negatively impact on students’ engagement and it was associated with higher expected final grades.

A comparison between flipped and lecture-based instruction in the calculus classroom

Purpose– The purpose of this paper is to enhance students’ mastery of course material in a second semester calculus course and assess the effectiveness of a traditional “lecture-based” instructional model compared to a modified “flipped classroom” model using a mixed method research design.Design/methodology/approach– Evaluation of effectiveness was measured by having students in all four courses take the same pre-post exams and participate in a survey to assess their opinion of each instructional model. Undergraduate students covered the same content using two different modes of instruction.Findings– Within a comparable group of students, participants in the flipped course had similar content knowledge gains as the lecture-based course. Based on responses obtained in blinded student surveys, the authors found that the use of an online homework system (WebAssign) and in-class quizzes were critical motivating factors that likely contributed to the increase in student performance. The flipped classroom instruction was more effective at increasing interest in the subject and promoting student discourse around problem solving. Taken together, the findings support the flipped classroom model as an equally effective means in which to disseminate key calculus concepts to undergraduate students.Research limitations/implications– Findings from this study are limited to content knowledge gains in calculus over a 14-week time period, and student attitudes toward the mode of instruction they received. More research is needed to study the depth of learning that occurs in small group problem solving and interactions between faculty-and-student and student-to-student.Originality/value– While many course redesigns focus on incorporating more project-based or laboratory-based learning opportunities, the redesign used in this study was focussed on different ways to deliver the same content. Results from this study suggest that a blended type of learning would be optimal for learning calculus concepts with a strategic use of video content concepts.

Is plagiarism changing over time? A 10-year time-lag study with three points of measurement

ABSTRACTAre more students cheating on assessment tasks in higher education? Despite ongoing media speculation concerning increased ‘copying and pasting’ and ghostwritten assignments produced by ‘paper mills’, few studies have charted historical trends in rates and types of plagiarism. Additionally, there has been little comment from researchers as to the best way to assess changes in plagiarism over time. In this paper, we discuss the relative strengths and weaknesses of research designs for assessing changes in plagiarism over time, namely cross-sectional, longitudinal, and time-lag. We also report the results of our own time-lag study of plagiarism. We assessed self-reported engagement in, awareness of, and attitudes towards plagiarism in three comparable groups of students at the same university on three occasions, each separated by five years (2004, 2009, and 2014). The data from our study paint an encouraging picture of increased understanding and reduced occurrence of several forms of plagiarism, with no upward trend in verbatim copying or ghostwriting. We suggest that technological and educational initiatives are counteracting the potential for increased plagiarism from online sources.

Using a modified argument-driven inquiry to promote elementary school students’ engagement in learning science and argumentation

ABSTRACTThis study explored the effects of a modified argument-driven inquiry approach on Grade 4 students’ engagement in learning science and argumentation in Taiwan. The students were recruited as an experimental group (EG, n = 36) to join a 12-week study, while another 36 Grade 4 students from the same schools were randomly selected to be the comparison group (CG). All participants completed a questionnaire at the beginning and end of this study. In addition, four target students with the highest and the other four students with the lowest pretest engagement in learning science or argumentation to be observed weekly and interviewed following the posttest. Initial results revealed that the EG students’ total engagement in learning science and argumentation and the claim and warrant components were significantly higher than the CG students. In addition, the EG students’ anxiety in learning science significantly decreased during the study; and their posttest total engagement in learning science scores were positively associated with their argumentation scores. Interview and observation results were consistent with the quantitative findings. Instructional implications and research recommendations are discussed.

The Impact of Strategy Training on Vocabulary Comprehension

This article focuses on a study of the effect of strategy training on vocabulary comprehension. 112 sophomore English-majored students at Yangtze University were chosen as participants in a strategies-based instructional treatment or comparison group students receiving the regular vocabulary course. Data were gained through the performance of a set of two vocabulary tasks on a prepost basis by both groups and were analyzed by the tool SPSS17.0. The subsample of 24 students also provided verbal report data to show their cognitive insights into strategy use and the instruction itself. The findings showed that 1) Chinese English-majors used a variety of English vocabulary learning strategies in vocabulary learning, including metacognitive, cognitive and social/affective strategies. 2) The increased use of vocabulary strategies contributed positively to vocabulary and article comprehension.

Wiz Kidz: Fostering School Connectedness through an In-School Student Mentoring Program

This study explores a student mentoring program called the Wiz Kidz, located within a Canadian urban elementary school of 420 students. The Wiz Kidz participants, their teachers and parents, and a student comparison group provided data on student connectedness to school, peers, and teachers. Overall findings suggest the students involved in the Wiz Kidz program enjoyed participating and reported increases in connectedness at the end of the year, with statistical significance observed for mentors’ connectedness to school.

Practicing Transcendental Meditation in High Schools: Relationship to Well-being and Academic Achievement Among Students

The Quiet Time program provides a 15-min period at the beginning and end of the school day where students may practice Transcendental Meditation (TM) or another quiet activity such as reading silently to oneself. This study examined the impact of participating in Quiet Time on ninth-grade students (n = 141) by comparing their outcomes to those of a group of ninth-grade students (n = 53) attending a school that did not participate in Quiet Time. Students in both groups completed an assessment battery in early October 2012, shortly after which treatment students learned TM, and again in May 2013. Analysis of covariance was used to analyze the differences between the treatment and comparison groups. Results indicated that students who participated in Quiet Time scored significantly lower on anxiety (p < 0.05) and higher on resilience (p < 0.05) at follow-up than comparison group students. Within the treatment group, students who spent more time meditating also had higher resilience scores and higher instruction time. After participating in Quiet Time, students self-reported increases in their sleep, happiness, and self-confidence.

Effect of a Novel Interdisciplinary Teaching Program in the Care-continuum on Medical Student Knowledge and Self-Efficacy

ObjectivesMedical students report that they receive inadequate training in different levels of care, including care transitions to and from post-acute (PA) and long-term care (LTC). The authors implemented the Medical Students as Teachers in Extended Care (MedTEC) program as an educational innovation at the Cleveland Clinic to address training in the care-continuum, as well as the new medical student and physician competencies in PA/LTC. DesignMedTEC is a 7-hour interactive program that supplements standard geriatric didactics during the medical student primary care rotation. This study evaluated the performance of the program in improving medical student knowledge and attitudes on levels and transitions of care. SettingThe program occurs in a community facility that includes subacute/skilled nursing, assisted living, and nursing home care. ParticipantsFive to 8 students completing their primary care rotation at the Cleveland Clinic are required to participate in the MedTEC program each month. InterventionThe program includes up to 3 hours of interactive discussion and opportunities to meet facility staff, residents, and patients. The highlight of the program is a student-led in-service for facility staff. MeasurementsWith institutional review board approval as an exempt educational research project, pre- and postactivity surveys assessed self-efficacy and knowledge regarding levels of care for students who participated in the program and a student comparison group. The post-program knowledge test also was administered to hospital medicine staff, and test performance was compared with medical students who participated in the MedTEC program. ResultsBetween October 2011 and December 2013, approximately 100 students participated in 20 sessions of MedTEC. All students reported improved self-efficacy and attitudes regarding care of older adults and care transition management. Mean percentage correct on the knowledge test increased significantly from 59.8% to 71.2% (P = .004) for the MedTEC participants but not for the comparison group students (63.1%–58.3%, P = .47). There was no significant difference in mean percentage correct on the post-program knowledge test between MedTEC medical students and hospitalists (71.0% versus 70.3%, P = .86). Students led 8 in-service sessions for facility staff on various topics relating to the care of older adults in PA/LTC. ConclusionThe MedTEC program appears to be a successful innovation in medical student education on levels of care. It could serve as a model for building competency of health professionals on managing care transitions and determining appropriate levels of care for older adults.

Teaching Multiple Modes of Representation in Middle‐School Science Classrooms: Impact on Student Learning and Multimodal Use

This quasi‐experimental study investigated how explicit instruction about multiple modes of representation (MMR) impacted grades 7 (n = 61) and 8 (n = 141) students’ learning and multimodal use on end‐of‐unit assessments. Half of each teacher's (n = 3) students received an intervention consisting of explicit instruction on MMR in science discourse, in addition to regular science instruction enhanced by a focus on MMR; comparison groups of students received regular science instruction. Three ordinary least squares regression models used student demographic variables and whether or not students received the intervention to predict students’ (a) gain scores on end‐of‐unit tests, (b) voluntary use of embedded MMR on unit tests, and (c) retention of science knowledge as measured by a state end‐of‐level criterion‐referenced assessment. Analyses showed that explicit instruction on MMR did not make a significant impact on student gain scores, the amount of embeddedness on unit tests, or end‐of‐level scores. However, Models 2 and 3 showed Hispanics and females used MMR more on end‐of‐unit tests than Whites or males, respectively, whether or not they received the intervention. Hispanics and females scored lower than Whites or males, respectively, on end‐of‐level, multiple‐choice assessments. Implications for classroom teachers and educational researchers in relation to these underserved populations are discussed.

Health at Every Size College Course Reduces Dieting Behaviors and Improves Intuitive Eating, Body Esteem, and Anti-Fat Attitudes

ObjectiveTo investigate the effects of a Health at Every Size general education course on intuitive eating, body esteem (BES), cognitive behavioral dieting scores, and anti-fat attitudes of college students. MethodsQuasi-experimental design with 149 students in intervention (45), comparison (66), or control (46) groups. Analysis of variance and post hoc Tukey adjusted tests were used. ResultsMean scores for total general education course on intuitive eating (P < .001), unconditional permission to eat (P < .001), reliance on hunger (P < .001), cognitive behavioral dieting scores (P < .001), BES appearance (P = .006), BES weight (P < .001), and anti-fat attitudes (P < .001) significantly improved from pre to post in the intervention group compared with control and comparison groups. Conclusion and ImplicationsStudents in the Health at Every Size class improved intuitive eating, body esteem, and anti-fat attitudes and reduced dieting behaviors compared with students in the control and comparison groups.

The effect of being graded on later achievement: evidence from 13-year olds in Swedish compulsory school

The purpose of the study was to investigate how grading of students in primary school affected achievement measured by grades one year later, and how the effect varied as a function of cognitive ability, gender and socio-economic status. The data derive from The Evaluation Through Follow Up longitudinal project. Through a national curriculum change one group of students received grades and one group of students did not receive grades in the 6th Grade, while both groups of students received grades in the 7th Grade. A quasi-experimental design was thus created, with two comparable groups of students. The subjects were 8558 students born in 1967. Several multiple regression models were fitted to the data. The results showed no main effects of grading on subsequent achievement, but there were important differential effects: graded students with low cognitive ability received lower subsequent grades. The results also showed interaction effects between gender and grading and between gender and cognitive ability.

The School for Science and Math at Vanderbilt: An Innovative Research-Based Program for High School Students.

The School for Science and Math at Vanderbilt (SSMV) is an innovative partnership program between a Research I private university and a large urban public school system. The SSMV was started in 2007 and currently has 101 students enrolled in the program, with a total of 60 students who have completed the 4-yr sequential program. Students attend the SSMV for one full day per week during the school year and 3-6wk in the summers following their ninth- to 11th-grade years, with each grade of 26 students coming to the Vanderbilt campus on a separate day. The research-based curriculum focuses on guiding students through the process of learning to develop questions and hypotheses, designing projects and performing analyses, and communicating results of these projects. The SSMV program has elevated the learning outcomes of students as evidenced by increased achievement scores relative to a comparison group of students; has provided a rigorous research-based science, technology, engineering, and mathematics elective curriculum that culminates in a Summer research internship; has produced 27 Intel and Siemens semifinalists and regional finalists over the past 4 yr; and has supported the development of writing and communication skills resulting in regional and national oral presentations and publications in scientific journals.

AN INVESTIGATION OF STUDENTS’ PERFORMANCE AFTER PEER INSTRUCTION WITH STEPWISE PROBLEM-SOLVING STRATEGIES

The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of strategic problem solving with peer instruction on college students’ performance in physics. The students enrolled in 2 sections of a physics course were studied; 1 section was the treatment group and the other section was the comparison group. Students in the treatment group received peer instruction with systematic problem-solving strategies whereas students in the comparison group received only peer instruction. Data were collected on physics achievement, problem-solving strategies, homework problems, and students’ opinions about the instruction. Results indicated that the treatment group students’ homework and achievement test performances as well as their visualizing, solving, and checking habits improved relative to the comparison group students, which did not change noticeably. Treatment group students also changed their perspective on solving a problem and found the method helpful to connect the quantitative solution with concepts. These results revealed that the method could be implemented with little effort so as to assess and enhance student performance in science classrooms.

Does self-hypnosis add to the effectiveness of a cognitive-behavioral intervention against test anxiety?

This study examined whether self-hypnosis could enhance a cognitive-behavioral (CB) intervention against test anxiety. Students seeking help for test anxiety at the student welfare service (mean age = 24.7 years) received one group session of a CB intervention and were then randomized to either two sessions of the same CB intervention (CB only, N = 39) or two sessions of self-hypnosis training designed to enhance the CB intervention (CB with self-hypnosis, N = 34). Anxiety and self-confidence measures were administered at recruitment and 3 days prior to the student's exam, subsequent to the intervention. A comparison group of students who had not sought help completed the same questionnaires at the same time points relative to their exams (non-help-seeking group, N = 85). Self-hypnosis training did not add to the effectiveness of the CB intervention. On the contrary, the CB intervention was more effective without self-hypnosis on three measures: test anxiety, state anxiety and self-esteem. We suggest that self-hypnosis for test anxiety might be better reserved for students not responding to a CB-only intervention, or who clearly prefer a self-hypnosis intervention.

A correction model for differences in the sample compositions: the degree of comparability as a function of age and schooling

Since the early days of international large-scale assessments, an overarching aim has been to use the world as an educational laboratory so countries can learn from one another and develop educational systems further. Cross-sectional comparisons across countries as well as trend studies derive from the assumption that there are comparable groups of students in the respective samples. But neither age-based nor grade-based sampling strategies can achieve balanced samples in terms of both age and schooling. How should such differences in the sample compositions be dealt with? We discuss the comparability of the samples as a function of differences in terms of age and schooling. To improve the comparability of such samples, we developed a correction model that adjusts country scores, which we evaluate here with data from different IEA (International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement) studies on reading at the end of primary school. Our study demonstrates that ignoring differences in age and schooling confounds league tables and hides actual trends. In other words, cross-sectional comparisons across countries as well as trends within countries are affected by differences in the sample composition. The correction model adjusts for such differences and increases the comparability across countries and studies. Researchers who use the data from international comparative studies for secondary analyses should be aware of the limited comparability of the samples. The proposed correction model provides a simple approach to improve comparability and makes the complex information from international comparisons more accessible.

The effects of biliteracy instruction on morphological awareness

This classroom intervention study investigated the effects of biliteracy instruction on Grade 2 students’ morphological awareness in French and English. Three pairs of partner teachers (French/English) participating in a professional development project co-designed and implemented biliteracy tasks across their French and English classes, which together comprised a total of 80 students identified as dominant in either French or English or as French-English bilinguals. The biliteracy instruction integrated a linguistic focus on derivational morphology with a thematic focus on illustrated storybooks. Before and after the intervention, separate measures of morphological awareness in French and English were administered to a subsample of their students (n = 45) as well as to a comparison group of students (n = 20) not receiving the instruction. The experimental group significantly outperformed the comparison group in French, but not in English, yet when students’ language dominance was accounted for in the English measure, English-dominant students in the experimental group significantly outperformed their counterparts in the comparison group.

The Impact of Early Algebra: Results from a Longitudinal Intervention

In this paper, we provide evidence of the impact of early algebra (EA) over time. We document this impact in the following ways: (a) by showing the performance over time of an experimental group of 15 children on an algebra assessment, from 3rd to 5th grade; and (b) by showing how the performance on an algebra assessment of children from an experimental group differs from the performance of a group of comparison students from their same elementary school who did not receive EA instruction from 3rd to 5th grade. We compared students’ scores through comparisons of means, correspondence factorial analyses, and hierarchical analyses. Our results highlight the positive impact of an early access to algebra, indicating that this early access is associated, when we compare 3rd graders to 5th graders, with increased scores on items that involve inequalities and graphs. When comparing experimental to comparison-group students we find increased scores on items that involve variables, functional relations, intra-mathematical contexts, tables, and algebraic expressions. The study adds to a body of literature that has been arguing for EA as well as a need to thread algebra throughout the mathematics curriculum, starting in the earliest grades.

Retesting Personality in Employee Selection: Implications of the Context, Sample, and Setting

The present study sought to assess when and how actual job applicants change their responses when filling out an unproctored personality selection assessment for a second time. It was predicted feedback would be a key contextual motivator associated with how much applicants change their answers during the second administration. Mediation results showed that individuals receiving feedback that showed a low score on the personality assessment was the reason they did not get the job were more likely to employ faking response strategies in the second testing session, predicting the highest change in scores between the first and second testing sessions. Individuals receiving no feedback and those not experimentally motivated to fake (i.e., a comparison group of students) showed less change in responses across administrations.

Replicating the Impact of a Supplemental Beginning Reading Intervention: The Role of Instructional Context

The purpose of this varied replication study was to evaluate the effects of a supplemental reading intervention on the beginning reading performance of kindergarten students in a different geographical location and in a different instructional context from the initial randomized trial. A second purpose was to investigate whether students who received the intervention across both the initial and replication studies demonstrated similar learning outcomes. Kindergarten students (n = 162) identified as at risk of reading difficulty from 48 classrooms were assigned randomly at the classroom level either to a commercial program (i.e., Early Reading Intervention; Pearson/Scott Foresman, 2004) that included explicit/systematic instruction (experimental group) or school-designed typical practice intervention (comparison group). Both interventions were taught by classroom teachers for 30 min per day in small groups for approximately 100 sessions. Multilevel hierarchical linear analyses revealed no statistically significant differences between conditions on any measure. Combined analyses that included students from both the initial and replication studies suggested that differences in the impact of the intervention across studies were largely explained by mean differences in the comparison group students’ response to school-designed intervention.