abstract: Dynamic Bayesian networks (DBNs; Reye, 2004) are a promising tool for modeling student proficiency under rich measurement scenarios (Reichenberg, in press). These scenarios often present assessment conditions far more complex than what is seen with more traditional assessments and require assessment arguments and psychometric models capable of integrating those complexities. Unfortunately, DBNs remain understudied and their psychometric properties relatively unknown. If the apparent strengths of DBNs are to be leveraged, then the body of literature surrounding their properties and use needs to be expanded upon. To this end, the current work aimed at exploring the properties of DBNs under a variety of realistic psychometric conditions. A two-phase Monte Carlo simulation study was conducted in order to evaluate parameter recovery for DBNs using maximum likelihood estimation with the Netica software package. Phase 1 included a limited number of conditions and was exploratory in nature while Phase 2 included a larger and more targeted complement of conditions. Manipulated factors included sample size, measurement quality, test length, the number of measurement occasions. Results suggested that measurement quality has the most prominent impact on estimation quality with more distinct performance categories yielding better estimation. While increasing sample size tended to improve estimation, there were a limited number of conditions under which greater samples size led to more estimation bias. An exploration of this phenomenon is included. From a practical perspective, parameter recovery appeared to be sufficient with samples as low as N = 400 as long as measurement quality was not poor and at least three items were present at each measurement occasion. Tests consisting of only a single item required exceptional measurement quality in order to adequately recover model parameters. The study was somewhat limited due to potentially software-specific issues as well as a non-comprehensive collection of experimental conditions. Further research should replicate and, potentially expand the current work using other software packages including exploring alternate estimation methods (e.g., Markov chain Monte Carlo). / Dissertation/Thesis / Doctoral Dissertation Family and Human Development 2018

abstract: The use of exams for classification purposes has become prevalent across many fields including professional assessment for employment screening and standards based testing in educational settings. Classification exams assign individuals to performance groups based on the comparison of their observed test scores to a pre-selected criterion (e.g. masters vs. nonmasters in dichotomous classification scenarios). The successful use of exams for classification purposes assumes at least minimal levels of accuracy of these classifications. Classification accuracy is an index that reflects the rate of correct classification of individuals into the same category which contains their true ability score. Traditional methods estimate classification accuracy via methods which assume that true scores follow a four-parameter beta-binomial distribution. Recent research suggests that Item Response Theory may be a preferable alternative framework for estimating examinees' true scores and may return more accurate classifications based on these scores. Researchers hypothesized that test length, the location of the cut score, the distribution of items, and the distribution of examinee ability would impact the recovery of accurate estimates of classification accuracy. The current simulation study manipulated these factors to assess their potential influence on classification accuracy. Observed classification as masters vs. nonmasters, true classification accuracy, estimated classification accuracy, BIAS, and RMSE were analyzed. In addition, Analysis of Variance tests were conducted to determine whether an interrelationship existed between levels of the four manipulated factors. Results showed small values of estimated classification accuracy and increased BIAS in accuracy estimates with few items, mismatched distributions of item difficulty and examinee ability, and extreme cut scores. A significant four-way interaction between manipulated variables was observed. In additional to interpretations of these findings and explanation of potential causes for the recovered values, recommendations that inform practice and avenues of future research are provided. / Dissertation/Thesis / M.A. Educational Psychology 2013

abstract: Dimensionality assessment is an important component of evaluating item response data. Existing approaches to evaluating common assumptions of unidimensionality, such as DIMTEST (Nandakumar & Stout, 1993; Stout, 1987; Stout, Froelich, & Gao, 2001), have been shown to work well under large-scale assessment conditions (e.g., large sample sizes and item pools; see e.g., Froelich & Habing, 2007). It remains to be seen how such procedures perform in the context of small-scale assessments characterized by relatively small sample sizes and/or short tests. The fact that some procedures come with minimum allowable values for characteristics of the data, such as the number of items, may even render them unusable for some small-scale assessments. Other measures designed to assess dimensionality do not come with such limitations and, as such, may perform better under conditions that do not lend themselves to evaluation via statistics that rely on asymptotic theory. The current work aimed to evaluate the performance of one such metric, the standardized generalized dimensionality discrepancy measure (SGDDM; Levy & Svetina, 2011; Levy, Xu, Yel, & Svetina, 2012), under both large- and small-scale testing conditions. A Monte Carlo study was conducted to compare the performance of DIMTEST and the SGDDM statistic in terms of evaluating assumptions of unidimensionality in item response data under a variety of conditions, with an emphasis on the examination of these procedures in small-scale assessments. Similar to previous research, increases in either test length or sample size resulted in increased power. The DIMTEST procedure appeared to be a conservative test of the null hypothesis of unidimensionality. The SGDDM statistic exhibited rejection rates near the nominal rate of .05 under unidimensional conditions, though the reliability of these results may have been less than optimal due to high sampling variability resulting from a relatively limited number of replications. Power values were at or near 1.0 for many of the multidimensional conditions. It was only when the sample size was reduced to N = 100 that the two approaches diverged in performance. Results suggested that both procedures may be appropriate for sample sizes as low as N = 250 and tests as short as J = 12 (SGDDM) or J = 19 (DIMTEST). When used as a diagnostic tool, SGDDM may be appropriate with as few as N = 100 cases combined with J = 12 items. The study was somewhat limited in that it did not include any complex factorial designs, nor were the strength of item discrimination parameters or correlation between factors manipulated. It is recommended that further research be conducted with the inclusion of these factors, as well as an increase in the number of replications when using the SGDDM procedure. / Dissertation/Thesis / M.A. Educational Psychology 2013

abstract: South Sudanese refugees are among the most vulnerable immigrants to the U.S.. Many have spent years in refugee camps, experienced trauma, lost members of their families and have had minimal or no schooling or literacy prior to their arrival in the U.S. Although most South Sudanese aspire to become U.S. citizens, finally giving them a sense of belonging and participation in a land they can call their own, they constitute a group that faces great challenges in terms of their educational adaptation and English-language learning skills that would lead them to success on the U.S. citizenship examination. This dissertation reports findings from a qualitative research project involving case studies of South Sudanese students in a citizenship preparation program at a South Sudanese refugee community center in Phoenix, Arizona. It focuses on the links between the motivations of students seeking citizenship and the barriers they face in gaining it. Though the South Sudanese refugee students aspiring to become U.S. citizens face many of the same challenges as other immigrant groups, there are some factors that in combination make the participants in this study different from other groups. These include: long periods spent in refugee camps, advanced ages, war trauma, absence of intact families, no schooling or severe disruption from schooling, no first language literacy, and hybridized forms of second languages (e.g. Juba Arabic). This study reports on the motivations students have for seeking citizenship and the challenges they face in attaining it from the perspective of teachers working with those students, community leaders of the South Sudanese community, and particularly the students enrolled in the citizenship program. / Dissertation/Thesis / Ph.D. English 2014

<p> Higher education has experienced an increase in parent engagement in the lives of college students (Arnett, 2014). Recognizing the presence of families, researchers have investigated the relationship between parenting style and college success variables such as academic performance (Miller &amp; Speirs Neumeister, 2017), wellness (Coccia &amp; Darling, 2017), and transition (Love &amp; Thomas, 2014). In recent literature, studies have focused on grit and its relation to college success (Bowman et al., 2015; Duckworth et al., 2007); yet, research on the relationship between parenting style and grit is lacking. </p><p> This quantitative correlational study investigated the relationship between college student self-report of grit (Duckworth &amp; Quinn, 2009) and parenting style (Baumrind, 1971b). The study was guided by the following research questions: 1. Is there a relationship between parenting style and college student grit? To what extent and in what manner does parenting style explain the variance in grit? 2. Is there a relationship among parenting style, college student grit, and demographics? To what extent and in what manner does parenting style and demographics explain the variance in grit? </p><p> Data were collected from undergraduate students (N<i></i> = 974) through a questionnaire. The results revealed authoritative parenting was positively correlated (single <i>r</i> = .206, <i>p</i> = .003, <i>ES</i> = small/med; parent 1 <i>r</i> = .220, <i> p</i> &lt; .001, ES = small/med; parent 2 <i>r</i> = .177, <i> p</i> &lt; .001, ES = small/med) and permissive parenting was negatively correlated (single <i>r</i> = &ndash;.269, <i>p</i> &lt; .001, ES = small/med; parent 1 <i>r</i> = &ndash;.119, <i> p</i> = .003, ES = small; parent 2 <i>r</i> = &ndash;.151, <i> p</i> &lt; .001, ES = small/med) with grit. The regression models revealed less permissive parenting behavior and more authoritative parenting behavior explained the variability in grit for all parenting units (single <i> r</i>² = .102, <i>p</i> = .011, ES = small; parent 1 <i>r</i>² = .058, <i>p</i> = 0.009, ES = small; parent 2 <i>r</i>² = .050, <i>p </i> &lt; .001, ES = small). First- generation status, Hispanic, Black and non-Asian ethnicity were also significant in several models. </p><p> The resulting actions filled a gap in the literature finding a relationship between parenting style and college student grit. The results may help college administrators understand how parenting styles may relate to how students approach academic and career goals. The results may help K-12 administrators and Departments of Children and Families structure programming on how parenting style may support children for passion and perseverance towards long-term goals.</p><p>

<p> Few empirical studies explore how socioeconomic status (SES) disadvantaged students perform academically in a 100% online school. This causal-comparative ex post facto quantitative study examined how SES-disadvantaged students at an online charter school performed academically when compared with both SES-disadvantaged and non-SES-disadvantaged students enrolled in a traditional public school. Choice theory and how it applies to education was foundational to the study. Using archival data from 2011&ndash;2012 for math and reading on state-standardized testing, research questions compared of SES-disadvantaged students scores to non-SES disadvantaged students within two schools in one school district. The test scores analysis was by independent t-tests. The results for SES-disadvantaged students indicate significantly lower performance by online students (<i>n</i> = 43) compared with their counterparts at a traditional elementary school (<i>n</i> = 43); <i>t</i> = 2.33 and <i>p</i> = 0.022 for math and <i> t</i> = 3.57 and <i>p</i> = &lt;0.001 for reading. Among the non-SES-disadvantaged students, results also indicate lower performance at the online charter school (<i>n</i> = 20) than at the traditional public school (<i>n</i> = 20); <i>t</i> = 3.22 and <i> p</i> = 0.003 for math and <i>t</i> = 2.95 and <i>p</i> = .005 for reading. No significant differences emerged between SES-disadvantaged students and non-SES disadvantaged students enrolled in the online school for math (<i>n</i> = 63; <i>t</i> = 1.65 and <i> p</i> = 0.105) or for reading (t = 0.89 and <i>p</i> = 0.378 for reading). Comparing SES-disadvantaged students and non-SES-disadvantaged students enrolled at the traditional elementary school on math scores indicated a significantly lower difference (<i>n</i> = 63; <i>t</i> = 2.58 and <i>p</i> = 0.012), but not on reading scores (<i> n</i> = 63, <i>t</i> = 0.74 and <i>p</i> = 0.461). </p><p>

<p> Mental health screeners need to demonstrate measurement equivalence across the populations of their intended use in order to improve the fairness in the identification of students in need of social, emotional, and behavioral supports. This study examined measurement invariance on three mental screeners across five racial and ethnic groups. The <i>Elementary Social Behavior Assessment</i> measures academic enablers associated with the latent construct of teachability (ESBA). The <i>Student Risk Screening Scale </i> assesses externalizing problems (SRSS) and the <i>Student Internalizing Behavior Screener</i> measures internalizing problems (SIBS). Multigroup confirmatory factor analyses tested for measurement invariance from the sample of African American (18%), Asian American/Pacific Islander (13%), Latino Hispanic (25%), European American (31%), and multiracial (11%) groups of students in elementary schools. Only the ESBA required respecification to establish an adequate baseline model. The ESBA, SRSS, and SIBS demonstrated metric invariance with ordinal ratings of <i>never, occasionally, sometimes</i>, and <i> frequently</i> in addition to scalar invariance with the thresholds between the ordinal ratings. Thus, the total scores from the ESBA, SRSS, and SIBS generalize across racial and ethnic groups and the student&rsquo;s race or ethnicity is less likely to mask their true level of need for social, emotional, and behavioral supports. The results indicate that the ESBA, SRSS, and SIBS may help teachers to identify racially and ethnically students who need intervention, to customize the interventions, and to evaluate students&rsquo; response to intervention. Schools using these mental health screeners may reduce disproportionality in discipline and special education.</p><p>

<p> The purpose of this study was to examine teachers&rsquo; levels of mobile device implementation and any measured differences in English Language Learners&rsquo; (ELLs&rsquo;) performance in each modality of the ACCESS test. Researchers often support the use of mobile devices in the classroom, but this study was unique because of a combination of how it was focused solely on language development in ELLs, how classrooms were placed on the SAMR spectrum, and how student performance was analyzed in each modality measured by the ACCESS test (Budiman, 2014; Donahue, 2014; Marek, 2014; Mulcahy, 2017). Included in this study were 37 classrooms and corresponding teachers of grades kindergarten through four. For the 2016-2017 school year, participants taught in a district with both a one-to-one mobile device ratio and a high ELL population. Based on survey results, teachers&rsquo; reported instructional methods led to understanding of what levels of the SAMR spectrum students in each classroom were experiencing. The SAMR instructional levels were then compared to student ACCESS scores in each modality using an ANOVA as well as an additional TUKEY test when needed. The study yielded just one statistically significant ANOVA result. In third grade listening, SAMR level one classrooms were statistically different from SAMR level three classrooms but not level four classrooms (SAMR level zero and level two classrooms were not present in the particular data set). No other data set yielded statistically significant results between a SAMR instructional level and ACCESS scores in reading, speaking, listening, or writing modalities as well as students&rsquo; overall performance.</p><p>

<p> Online foreign language course offerings have grown exponentially in secondary and post-secondary schools during the last two decades. Although numerous instruments and surveys exist to assess readiness for a student to take online courses, insufficient research has dealt with the particularities of learning a foreign language online. This study was designed to ascertain the attributes that determine readiness for the online foreign language student. In addition, questions used in the Educational Success Prediction Instrument 2^nd Version, ESPRI V-2, an instrument created to test online readiness for secondary students, were presented to the participants to determine if the instrument would be efficient to evaluate online foreign language readiness. Those surveyed and interviewed were online instructors of foreign language who: taught the foreign language at least two years; taught foreign language at least six months online; and were willing to participate. Data were gathered via a 25 question Google Survey, as condensed by John Siko (2014), which included four open ended questions pertaining to foreign language instructors&rsquo; experience and opinions as well as one to assess their willingness to participate in an interview. The results led to verification of the appropriateness of four attributes used in the ESPRI V-2: achievement and self-esteem beliefs (motivation), responsibility/risk-taking, technology skills and access, and organization and self-regulation (learner autonomy). In addition, a sub-component of motivation, or having a concrete motive for learning the foreign language, was found to be an indicator for online FL readiness.</p><p>

<p> This document analysis synthesized student learning outcomes (SLOs) and assessment methods from a sample of 36 student government associations in the California Community College system. Student learning outcomes were grouped according to <i>governance, ethical and civic behavior</i>, and <i>experiential learning</i> functions. Using Bloom&rsquo;s Revised Taxonomy (Forehand, 2005) as an interpretive framework, findings revealed that this taxonomy&rsquo;s six levels of cognitive development were well represented but not identically across the functions. In the <i>governance</i> function, the levels of <i>understanding, evaluating</i>, and <i> creating</i> were represented. In the <i>ethical and civic behavior </i> function, the levels of <i>remembering, understanding, applying </i>, and <i>evaluating</i> were represented. In the <i> experiential learning</i> function, all levels of the taxonomy were represented (<i>remembering, understanding, applying, analyzing, evaluating</i>, and <i>creating</i>). Findings also reveal that three of the 36 institutions, including Cuesta College, Orange Coast College, and Saddleback College, have explicit student learning outcome statements, although Cuesta College is the only one written as a true statement of objectives that could be measured. One of those colleges, Orange Coast College, also utilizes a formal system of measuring students&rsquo; learning through implementation of assessment methods. </p><p> Implications for practice and policy include new applications for institutional accreditation, revised policy for professional associations, and resources to guide creation of student learning outcomes for student government association participants. Implications for research include the replication of the study in other higher education systems, and further analysis of individual colleges and groupings of colleges based on demographics.</p><p>