Education Statistics Research Articles

Encountering the Face of Tū-mata-uenga: The Educational Experiences of Rangatahi Māori Apprehended for Offending

Marginalised and ousted from the New Zealand education system, 70% of youths apprehended for offending and appearing in a New Zealand Youth Court or Rangatahi Court experiencing complex needs are not engaged in education, employment, or training (Oranga Tamariki, Oranga Tamariki. (2020). Quarterly report—September 2020). This article reports findings from a broader PhD study investigating the educational experiences of 10 rangatahi Māori (Māori youth) aged 15–17 years apprehended for serious youth offending and excluded from mainstream education. Drawing on mātauranga Māori (Māori knowledge) and kaupapa Māori, notions of indigenous resilience are used to unpack the rangatahi Māori participants’ responses to negative educational experiences in the mainstream English medium secondary school education system. This article posits that resilience was evident when the rangatahi Māori exercised tino rangatiratanga (sovereignty) through boldness (a characteristic of Tū-mata-uenga the guardian of war), resistance and liminality to reject educational spaces where they perceived they were underserved, discriminated against, and marginalised. Changing the negative Māori student exclusion and disengagement statistics in mainstream education is critical. To address the exclusion statistics, classroom practitioners could be more responsive to rangatahi Māori experiencing complex needs by recognising their experiences and understanding their responses to those experiences. Understanding how resilience as resistance, liminality, and boldness is understood within te ao Māori (the Māori world) perspectives will enable a more culturally responsive approach to working with these rangatahi Māori in mainstream education.

The structure of principal-teacher conversation: Why it matters for school leadership

PurposeThis study addressed a relatively understudied process of school leadership: the principal-teacher conversation about instructional change. Two distinct conversation structures were examined: controlling conversation and transformative leadership conversation (TLC). Self-determination theory (SDT) was used to make the case that TLC is a better fit for instructional change than controlling conversation. Hypotheses were developed on the relationship between principal-teacher conversation and teacher trust in the principal, teacher autonomy and teacher vitality. These mental states were identified for empirical testing because of their influence on change processes.Design/methodology/approachThe empirical study used a correlational research design with survey data. The data came from a random sample of 2,500 teachers from the population of certified teachers in a southwestern state in the USA. Useable survey responses were obtained from 1,615 teachers, for a response rate of 65 percent. Teachers in the sample averaged 15 years of teaching experience, with 7 years in their current school. Around 81% of teachers identified as female and 18 percent as male and 79% of teachers listed a racial identification as white. Hypotheses were tested in a path model using AMOS 28.0 with robust maximum likelihood (MLR).FindingsAs hypothesized, TLC had moderate to strong positive relationships with teacher trust in the principal, teacher autonomy and teacher vitality. Controlling conversation had small, negative relationships with teacher trust in the principal and teacher autonomy. Controlling conversation was not related to teacher vitality in the path analysis. Compared with controlling conversation, TLC had stronger relationships with teacher mental states.Originality/valueThe results of this study begin to reveal useful evidence on the inherent social-psychological mechanisms active in principal-teacher conversations. With results indicating that conversation structure has consequences for positive teacher mental states, the study directs attention to a ubiquitous yet understudied leadership process.

Peningkatan Kompetensi dan Skill Petugas Statistik Diskominfo Provinsi Jambi melalui Pelatihan Penggunaan Software Mortpak dan PAST 4.03 serta Platform Canva

The Jambi Province Communication and Information Office (Dinas Kominfo) is an agency who carry out work based on Law Number 23 of 2014 concerning Government Regions, with one of the affairs being the main task and function, namely statistical affairs sectoral. Regional Sectoral Statistics Performance refers to Presidential Regulation Number 39 of 2019 concerning One Indonesian Data (SDI), BPS Perka Number 4 of 2019 concerning the Implementation of Regional Sectoral Statistics. According to Law No. 16 of 1997 concerning Statistics, the types of statistics based on the purpose of their use consist of basic statistics which fully organized by BPS, sectoral statistics carried out by government agencies independently or together with BPS, as well as special statistics organized by institutions, organizations, individuals, and or other elements of society independently or together with BPS. Results Statistics organized by BPS are published in the Official Statistics Gazette (BRS) regularly and transparent so that the public can easily find out and or obtain the required data. Law No. 16/1997 also stipulates the establishment of the Statistical Society Forum as a forum to accommodate the aspirations of the statistical community, which is tasked with providing advice and consideration to BPS. These important points realize the implementation of the National Statistical System reliable and, effective. The role of Sectoral Statistics that must be carried out by the Ministry of Communication and Informatics is related to the provision of data development sector, assisting statistical activities in Other institutions, as well as any performance related to the methodology, education, and training in sectoral statistics. Data collection, presentation, and publication of quality data by the Ministry of Communication and Informatics, cannot be separated from the role of officers statisticians and data collectors. With regard to this Community Service (PPM) Program, the PPM Team In general, it is observed that in carrying out their work, Field Data Collecting Officers and Data Entry Officers often experience difficulties in terms of classification of data for each sector that is a priority for development, especially sectors Environment and Ecology. Entry clerks sometimes only present data individually descriptive in Ms. Excel, without being processed and without further analysis on certain software, in particular related to demographic, ecological, and environmental data. As a solution to the performance problems of Statistics/Data Collection Officers At the Jambi Province Communications and Information Office, upgrading was given in the form of training in the use of Mortpak software and training in data collection for the environmental sector and ecology.

The Viability of Topic Modeling to Identify Participant Motivations for Enrolling in Online Professional Development

Identifying motivation for enrollment in MOOCs has been an important way to predict participant success rates. But themes for motivation have largely centered around themes for enrolling in any MOOC, and not ones specific to the course being studied. In this study, qualitatively coding discussion forums was combined with topic modeling to identify participants’ motivation for enrolling in two successive statistics education professional development online courses. Computational text mining, such as topic modeling, is a learning analytics field that has proven effective in analyzing large volumes of text to automatically identify topics or themes. This contrasts with traditional qualitative approaches, in which researchers manually apply labels (or codes) to parts of text to identify common themes. Combining topic modeling and qualitative research may prove useful to education researchers and practitioners in better understanding and improving online learning contexts that feature asynchronous discussion. Three topic modeling approaches were used in this study, including both unsupervised and semi-supervised modeling techniques. The three topic modeling approaches were validated and compared to determine which participants were assigned motivation themes that most closely aligned to their posts made in an introductory discussion forum. A discussion of how each technique can be useful for identifying topical themes within discussion forum data is included. Though the three techniques have varying success rates in identifying motivation for enrolling in the MOOCs, they do all identify similar themes for motivation that are specific to statistics education.

Examining the relationship between Hispanic Serving Community college Title III grants and STEM associate degree completion

AbstractHispanic‐Serving Community Colleges enroll and educate a large share of Hispanic postsecondary students. Due to work trends and demographic changes, Hispanic and other historically underrepresented students play a crucial role in shaping the next generation of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) scholars and practitioners. We use data from the National Center for Education Statistics and a difference‐in‐differences technique to estimate the association between federal capacity building grants aimed at improving STEM degree attainment outcomes and associate degree completion. We find receipt of a Title III grant was associated with about a 30% increase in the total number of STEM associate degrees awarded. Further, the grants nearly doubled the number of STEM associate degrees awarded to Hispanic students, on average. This positive relationship is driven by institutions receiving more than one grant. We conclude by discussing these findings and providing federal and institutional recommendations.

Measurement Invariance of Adverse Childhood Experiences Across Teacher Age and Race

ABSTRACT Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) confer considerable risk for negative outcomes across the lifespan, but there is limited research examining whether the measurement of ACEs can be interpreted the same way across diverse groups of individuals. In particular, the measurement of ACEs among early child education teachers has received little attention. Given that millions of children receive care from early child education teachers, and evidence that ACEs can severely disrupt teacher’s abilities to support young children, it is critical to accurately assess for and respond to teacher ACEs. The present study examined the factor structure and measurement invariance of the 11-item Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance Survey (BRFSS) version of the ACEs measure across a diverse group of teachers. Data were collected from 605 teachers in a southeastern state between 2018 and 2021. Teachers ranged in age from 18 to 81 years (35% young; 56% middle; and 9% older adults) and were diverse across race (46% White; 53% Black). Teachers completed the BRFSS version of the ACEs measure and a demographics questionnaire. Factor analyses replicated the theorized three-factor solution, with household dysfunction, emotional/psychological abuse, and sexual abuse emerging as distinct factors. Multigroup confirmatory factor analyses demonstrated measurement invariance across teacher age and race. Comparisons of scores indicated ACEs levels varied across teacher age and race. Overall, findings suggest the BRFSS version of the ACEs measure can be used to assess adverse childhood experiences across diverse groups of early child education teachers.

Integration Challenges in France: Examining Policies and Xenophobia Impacting East Asian Communities

This study examines French integration policies and their impact on cultural diversity and the prevalence of xenophobic attitudes within society. Through a literature exploration and review of historical, sociocultural, and policy-driven dimensions, the study investigates the integration challenges confronted by immigrants and their descendants in integrating into French society. The review highlights the deficiencies inherent in current integration strategies, highlighting disparities in employment, healthcare access, and the perpetuation of discriminatory attitudes, notably targeting the East Asian community. Despite claims of colorblindness, the French legal system tacitly endorses xenophobic laws that prioritize a homogeneous society, expecting uniformity in religious observances and language among citizens. Regrettably, these policies have hindered the ability of many immigrants and their progeny to flourish within French society, evident in educational and employment statistics. Drawing parallels with successful integration models such as Canada's multicultural approach, this paper advocates for a fundamental shift in French policies, stressing inclusivity and cultural diversity over a push for homogeneity. By addressing systemic disparities, recognizing and valuing cultural distinctions, and implementing more efficacious integration measures, France can strive toward a more cohesive and harmonious society that benefits immigrants and the indigenous population alike. This can align with the global trend towards embracing cultural diversity as an asset, offering a promising path towards a more unified and equitable French society.

Graduate prospects explain undergraduate program standing in university league sports science tables.

UK university undergraduate programs are compared by independent subject-specific rankings (Complete, Guardian, and Times), based on data from the National Student Survey, Higher Education Statistics Agency, Universities and Colleges Admissions Service, Research Excellence Framework, and the universities. The sports and exercise science program at the University of Glasgow has steadily risen to currently rank as the top UK program. This investigation aimed to identify the underlying factors that explain this. Therefore, we obtained underlying scores for entry standard, student satisfaction, research foundation, graduate prospects, staff-to-student ratio, expenditure/student, continuation, program support to students, and teaching quality from the ranking providers for years 2010-2024, and statistically modeled which factors significantly affected the rankings. We found that entry standards and graduate prospects strongly correlated significantly with ranking results. Principal component analysis indicated that a model of graduate prospects and entry standards explained 66.2% of the variance in ranking results. Multiple linear regression with all underlying factors included in the model indicated they explained 78% (R2 = 0.78) of the total variance, while stepwise elimination of insignificant factors identified graduate prospects as the sole factor that significantly affected outcome by explaining 71% (R2 = 0.71) of the variance. Therefore, the primary predictor of ranking success in UK university league tables for sports science is graduates' professional success (graduate prospects).NEW & NOTEWORTHY University rankings are used by applicants and stakeholders to judge programs, including undergraduate studies. In the rankings, undergraduate UK programs are compared and contrasted against each other based on how they score for criteria that affect student life and future prospects. Here, we determined the relative influence of those criteria and found that graduate prospects, how students professionally benefit from their study after graduation, is the factor that matters most for the ranking results.

New Aspect of Management Engineering Connotation between FDI Inflow, Gender Gap, Educational Attainment and Skilled Workforce

This research aimed to investigate and explore the empirical relationship between foreign direct investment (FDI) and the workforce at different educational levels. Additionally, it sought to enable national assessments of education statistics and indicators using widely accepted definitions. Pakistan is examined in this analysis. The empirical results imply that inward FDI is positively influenced by a workforce with higher education. Higher education tends to have the biggest impact; nevertheless, educational levels are not equally significant. In terms of gender, it appears that the proportion of women in the workforce is important for drawing foreign direct investment (FDI), consequently the authorities ought to develop measures which promote the equality of women.

Approaches to the Transformation of the Statistical Education System in the Context of Lifelong Learning and Industry 4.0 (Оn the Example of the Republic of Uzbekistan)

The article is devoted to the problems of transformation of the educational system in the context of lifelong learning and Industry 4.0 in government decision-making for the development of the investment ecosystem of the Republic of Uzbekistan.The article outlines characteristics of information and statistical resources used in the public administration system in modern conditions on the basis of analysis, and presents directions of transformation of the system of statistical training and retraining of statisticians.The issues of introducing digital competencies in the field of statistics into training programs and the need to develop modern knowledge and skills related to the introduction of digital technologies were highlighted.The author emphasizes the relevance of adapting the educational system in the field of statistics to the evolving requirements of the modern world and concludes that the development of professional competencies of statisticians should be continuous and start with secondary education, followed by retraining, and advanced training received throughout their professional careers.The recommendations presented in the author’s studycan be used by the authorities and other interested organizations to improve the educational system in the field of statistics.

Statistics anxiety or statistics fear? A reinforcement sensitivity theory perspective on psychology students’ statistics anxiety, attitudes, and self-efficacy

This research investigates the role of reinforcement sensitivity theory (RST) in statistics education among two distinct samples of undergraduate psychology students. In Study 1, 318 students in a third-year statistics course completed self-report measures of RST, anxiety, attitudes, and self-efficacy concerning the study of statistics. In Study 2, 577 students from first-, second-, and third-year statistics courses participated. Controlling for age and gender, both studies found students who were high in goal-drive persistence reported lower statistics anxiety, higher statistics self-efficacy and more favourable attitudes toward learning statistics, while students who were high in the tendency to avoid threat reported higher statistics anxiety. Those with a more sensitive behavioural inhibition system reported greater statistics anxiety and less favourable attitudes, in Study 2 but not Study 1. Results indicate that RST dimensions account for as much as 23% of additional variance in statistics anxiety, 18% in statistics self-efficacy, and 11% in attitudes, after controlling for age and gender. These studies highlight the utility of RST dimensions, notably goal-drive persistence, threat sensitivity, and behavioural inhibition, in providing critical information as to personality differences among students that need to be considered when developing programs targeting statistics anxiety, attitudes, and self-efficacy.

Watching videos of a drawing hand improves students' understanding of the normal probability distribution.

Understanding normal probability distributions is a crucial objective in mathematics and statistics education. Drawing upon cognitive psychology research, this study explores the use of drawings and visualizations as effective scaffolds to enhance students' comprehension. Although much research has documented the helpfulness of drawing as a research tool to reveal students' knowledge states, its direct utility in advancing higher-order cognitive processes remains understudied. In Study 1, qualitative methods were utilized to identify common misunderstandings among students regarding canonical depictions of the normal probability distribution. Building on these insights, Study 2 experimentally compared three instructional videos (static slides, dynamic drawing, and dynamic drawings done by a visible hand). The hand drawing video led to better learning than the other versions. Study 3 examined whether the benefits from observing a hand drawing could be reproduced by a dynamic cursor moving around otherwise static slides (without the presence of a hand). Results showed no significant learning difference between observing a hand drawing and a moving cursor, both outperforming a control. This research links the cognitive process of drawing with its educational role and provides insights into its potential to enhance memory, cognition, and inform instructional methods.

Boltzmann stacked classification data mining model for the student performance improvement in academic performance

The term “educational data mining” refers to a field of study where information from academic environments is predicted using data mining, machine learning, and statistics. Education is the act of giving or receiving knowledge to or from someone who is formally studying and developing a natural talent. Over time, scholars have used data mining techniques to uncover hidden information in educational statistics and other external elements. This study suggests a unique method for analysing academic student performance that is based on data mining and machine learning. Here, the input is gathered as a dataset of student academic performance and is processed for normalisation and noise reduction. Then, using the Boltzmann deep learning model coupled with linear kernel principal component analysis, this data’s characteristics were retrieved and chosen. Based on weights, information gain, and the Gini index, the characteristics are assessed and optimised. Following the selection of the pertinent data, conditional random field-based probabilistic clustering model is performed using RNN-based training, and the academic performance of the students is then examined using voting classifiers and sparse features. Experimental results are carried out for students academic performance dataset based on subjects in terms of training accuracy, validation accuracy, mean average precision, mean square error and correlation evaluation. Proposed technique attained accuracy of 96%, precision of 95%, Correlation Evaluation of 92% .

Assessing the effect of cardiovascular disease on work productivity and financial loss among school teachers in Peninsular Malaysia: a nested case-control study.

School teachers may have an increased risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD), potentially affecting their work productivity. However, limited data exists on the impact of CVD on teachers' productivity in Malaysia. Our objectives were to assess work productivity loss (absenteeism and presenteeism) as well as to determine the associated annual monetary loss among school teachers who experienced incident CVD in Peninsular Malaysia. We adopted a nested case-control design within a cohort of school teachers. Working teachers from six states of Peninsular Malaysia, and had experienced incident CVD before a right-censored date (31st December 2021) were defined as cases. Incident CVD was operationally defined as the development of non-fatal acute coronary syndrome (ACS), stroke, congestive cardiac failure, deep vein thrombosis or peripheral arterial disease before the censored date. Controls were working teachers who did not acquire an incident CVD before the similar right-censored date. All controls were randomly selected, with a ratio of one case to four controls, from among the working teachers in one of the states in Peninsular Malaysia. We used a shortened version of the Malay-validated World Health Organization-Health and Work Performance Questionnaire (WHO-HPQ) to estimate the workplace productivity effect among teachers with incident CVD (cases). The same questionnaire was distributed to teachers in a single state of Peninsular Malaysia who did not experience incident CVD (controls). Absenteeism, presenteeism and annual monetary loss were computed based on the scoring rules in the WHO-HPQ. Analysis of covariance was performed with covariate adjustment using propensity scores. The bootstrapping method was applied to obtain better estimates of marginal mean differences, along with standard errors (SE) and appropriate effect sizes. We recruited 48 cases (baseline mean age = 42.4 years old, 54.2% females) and 192 randomly selected controls (baseline mean age = 36.2 years old, 99.0% females). The majority of the cases had ACS (73.9%). No significant difference was observed in absenteeism between cases and controls. The mean self-rated job performance score was lower for cases (7.63, SE = 0.21) compared to controls (8.60, SE = 0.10). Marginal mean scores of absolute presenteeism among cases (76.30) were lower (p<0.05, eta squared = 0.075) than controls (85.97). The marginal mean annual cost of presenteeism was higher in cases (MYR 21,237.52) compared to controls (MYR 12,089.74) (p<0.05, eta squared = 0.082). Absolute presenteeism was lower among school teachers who experienced incident CVD and the annual cost of presenteeism was substantial. Implementing supportive work strategies in school settings is recommended to increase absolute presenteeism, which can lead to a reduction in the annual cost of presenteeism among teachers experiencing incident CVD.

Federal Student Loan Debt in Public Health and the Opportunities for Loan Repayment Programs.

A need persists for graduates with public health training in government public health roles; however, earnings for these positions tend to be lower when compared with earnings for people with undergraduate or graduate training who are working in other sectors, such as private health care or pharmaceuticals. This study assessed federal student loan debt associated with education for public health, with an aim to quantify the need that may be met through the federal Public Health Workforce Loan Repayment Program (PHWLRP), which is one tool that policy makers have proposed to incentivize people with public health training to pursue employment in government public health. We analyzed federal student loan data provided by the National Center for Education Statistics College Scorecard for the 2018-2019 academic year. We merged these data with the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System to estimate the number of degrees awarded. We used Spearman rank correlation to compare associations between debt and annual earnings by award level (bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degrees). Across all award levels, the median level of federal student loan debt associated with education for public health was $33 366. The median annual earnings 1 year after graduation were $80 687 for graduates with doctoral degrees and $33 279 for graduates with bachelor's degrees. As policy makers attempt to strengthen the public health workforce with a focus on funding and implementing the PHWLRP, the existing levels of student debt should be considered to ensure that programs such as the PHWLRP are funded and reflect the needs of graduates and government public health employers.

Grasping the STARS: A comprehensive study on statistics—Anxiety levels among engineering students

Engineering students often face the challenge of comprehending and applying statistical concepts to evaluate and assess research. This research seeks to investigate the factor structure of Statistics Anxiety Rating Scale (STARs), which comprises six domains with 51 items. The questionnaire was administered to engineering students currently enrolled in a statistics class, and the data were analyzed using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences. The study sheds light on the factors that contribute to students’ statistics anxiety when taking a statistics course. The findings highlight the elements that influence statistics anxiety, educators and institutions can develop targeted interventions and support mechanisms to enhance students’ statistical competence and overall learning experience. This research not only addresses the unique challenges faced by engineering students but also holds implications for fostering statistical literacy across various disciplines.

Neglected, Acknowledged, or Targeted: A Conceptual Framing of Variability, Data Analysis, and Domain Consequences

Variability is underemphasized in domains such as engineering. Statistics and data science education research offers a variety of frameworks for understanding variability, but new frameworks for domain applications are necessary. This study investigated the professional practices of working engineers to develop such a framework. The Neglected, Acknowledged, or Targeted (NAT) Taxonomy describes whether one’s data analysis choices engage with variability, and whether those choices target the potential consequences of variability, within a given domain. A targeted analysis is the most beneficial rung for engineering applications and is therefore a useful concept for instruction. This study describes the qualitative methods used to develop the NAT Taxonomy and describes how the taxonomy can be used in statistics and data science education, particularly in support of other domain applications.

Portrait of Rural Social Studies Teachers (and Their Students)

In this study, we first provide a snapshot of key demographics and characteristics of social studies teachers in a rural setting based the 2017-2018 National Teacher and Principal Survey (NTPS) restricted-use data file from the National Center for Educational Statistics (NCES), administered by the Institute for Education Sciences (IES). Second, we look at potential implications based on specific insights from the data, including recognition of the change happening in the demographics of rural communities and a need for sustained PD about teaching students with diverse identities.

Welcome culture in German schools: teachers’ perspectives

The secondary analysis focuses on teachers’ perspectives on welcome culture (Willkommenskultur) in German schools for pupils who have fled from Ukraine. The following research question was pursued: What aspects of the welcome culture become apparent in statements of teachers? Data from five group discussions with individuals from primary and secondary schools and an educational institution in Rhineland-Palatinate were analyzed. Participants included teachers (n = 12), school principals (n = 2), and one director. The study indicates that refugees from Ukraine are treated differently from refugees originating from Syria or other countries; these differences can be recognized at both the individual and societal levels.

Access Statistics Canada’s Open Economic Data for Statistics and Data Science Courses

This article is about the two conflicting goals when teaching statistics or data science courses based on real-world data in a business school environment. We propose to look at structured socio-economic data about the Canadian economy. Canada was ranked 8th in 2017 by Open Data Watch (Government of Canada) for its data accessibility policy. Statistics Canada offers several ways to access data across its over 11,000 data tables. We built an R package to ease access to Statistics Canada's open economic data. With this package, we offer students another option to collect data about the Canadian economy.