The aim of this thesis is to explore methods for assessing peer victimization and pedagogical leadership in school. The thesis includes four studies. Study I and II are based on web-based questionnaires among 2, 568 students in grades 7, 8 and 9. Study III is based on a questionnaire (n=128) and four focus group interviews (n=21) among students in grades 7 and 9. Study IV is based on a web-based questionnaire including 344 teachers. The results from Study I showed that among students who experienced peer victimization 13% were captured by a bullying measure, 44% by a measure of repeated peer aggression, and 43% by both measures, i.e. the two measures captured partly different pupils. Study II showed that the two measures captured the same proportion of adolescents with psychosomatic problems and showed no significant differences in mean values on the Psychosomatic Problems (PSP) scale. In Study III it was shown that besides the traditional criteria the adolescents definition of bullying also included a criterion based on the health consequences of bullying. That is, a single but hurtful or harmful incident could also be considered bullying irrespective of whether the traditional criteria were fulfilled or not. The Rasch analysis in Study IV indicated two sub dimensions of the Pedagogical and Social Climate (PESOC-PLP) scale; direct pedagogical leadership and indirect pedagogical leadership. Satisfying psychometric properties indicated that the PESOC-PLP scale could be used to measure pedagogical leadership of the principal. This thesis highlights problems with how bullying and school leadership is currently defined and measured. By strengthening the understanding of measurement methods of peer victimization and school leadership the aim is that the results from this thesis will contribute in providing a safe and positive school experience for children and adolescence and that it can be used as a valuable tool to combat peer victimization. / Baksidestext: The negative consequences of peer victimization on children and adolescents such as worsening academic achievement and mental ill health are major public health concerns which have been subjected to extensive research. However, there are long-standing concerns how to define, measure, and estimate prevalence rates of peer victimization and successful school leadership. The aim of this thesis is to study methods for assessing peer victimization and pedagogical leadership in school. The results show that excluding other forms of peer victimization than bullying have serious implications for the identification of victims and may underestimate the full impact of peer victimization on children. Further, the validation of the Pedagogical and Social Climate (PESOC-PLP) scale is a step towards ensuring valid assessments of pedagogical school leadership. By strengthening the understanding of measurement methods of peer victimization and school leadership the aim is that the results from this thesis will contribute in providing a safe and positive school experience for children and adolescence and that it can be used as a valuable tool to combat peer victimization.

Increasing demands for accountability from both the public and the government have resulted in increasing pressure for higher education professionals to use data to support their choices. There is significant speculation that professionals at all levels of education lack the knowledge to implement data-driven decision making. However, empirical studies regarding whether or not professionals at four-year postsecondary institutions are utilizing data to guide programmatic and policy decisions are lacking. The purpose of this exploratory study was to explore the knowledge and habits of undergraduate admission professionals at four-year colleges and universities regarding their use of data in decision making. A survey instrument was disseminated and, the data collected from the instrument provided empirical information, which serves as the basis for a discussion about what specific knowledge admission professionals at four-year institutions possess and how they use data in their decision making. The instrument disseminated was designed specifically for this study. Therefore, before the research questions were addressed, Rasch analysis was utilized to evaluate the validity and reliability of the survey instrument. Data was then used to determine that undergraduate admission professionals perceived themselves as using data in their decision making. The results also indicated admission professionals feel confident in their ability to interpret and use data to in their decision making.

This study documented the psychometric development of the Adaptive Leadership Competency Profile (ALCP). The ALCP was derived from a qualitative database from the National Science Foundation project (NSF 9422368) and the academic body of literature. Test items were operationalized, and subject matter experts validated 11 macro-leadership competencies and 65 items. Rasch rating scale measurement models were applied to answer the following questions: (a) How well do the respective items of the ALCP fit the Rasch rating scale measurement model for the 11 scales of the ACLP? (b) How well do the person's abilities fit the Rasch rating scale measurement model, using the 11 scales of the ALCP? (c) What are the item separation and reliability coefficients for the 11 ALCP scales? (d) What are the person separation and reliability coefficients for the 11 ALCP scales? This study also sought to discern whether the ALCP could predict leader effectiveness as measured by the likelihood ratio index and frequency of correct predictions indices. The WINSTEPS and LIMDEP programs were used to obtain Rasch calibrations and probit estimates, respectively. The ALCP profiles the frequency and intensity of leadership behavior. Composite measures were calculated and used to predict leadership effectiveness. Results from this study validated 10 competencies and 55 items.

A rating design is a pre-specified plan for collecting ratings. The best design for a rater-mediated assessment both psychometrically and from the perspective of fairness is a fully-crossed design in which all objects are rated by all raters. An incomplete rating design is one in which all objects are not rated by all raters, instead each object is rated by an assigned subset of raters usually to reduce the time and/or cost of the assessment. Human raters have varying propensities to rate severely or leniently. One method of compensating for rater severity is the many-facets Rasch model (MFRM). However, unless the incomplete rating design used to gather the ratings is appropriately linked, the results of the MFRM analysis may not be on the same scale and therefore may not be fairly compared. Given non-trivial numbers of raters and/or objects to rate, there are numerous possible incomplete designs with various levels of linkage. The literature provides little guidance on the extent to which differently linked rating designs might affect the results of a MFRM analysis. Eighty different subsets of data were extracted from a pre-existing fully-crossed rating data set originally gathered from 24 essays rated by eight raters. These subsets represented 20 different incomplete rating designs and four specific assignments of raters to essays. The subsets of rating data were analyzed in Facets software to investigate the effects of incomplete rating designs on the MFRM results. The design attributes related to linkage that were varied in the incomplete designs include (a) rater coverage: the number of raters-per-essay, (b) repetition-size: the number of essays rated in one repetition of the sub-design pattern, (c) design structure: the linking network structure of the incomplete design, and (d) rater order: the specific assignments of raters to essays. A number of plots and graphs were used to visualize the incomplete designs and the rating results. Several measures including the observed and fair averages for raters and essays from the 80 MFRM analyses were compared against the fair averages for the fully-crossed design. Results varied widely depending on different combinations of design attributes and rater orders. Rater coverage had the overall largest effect, with rater order producing larger ranges of values for sparser designs. Many of the observed averages for raters and essays more closely approximated the results from the fully-crossed design than did the adjusted fair-averages, particularly for the more sparsely linked designs. The stability of relative standing measures was unexpectedly low.

A new ESSA indicator of school quality and student success provides flexibility to broaden a states’ definition of school and student success. Educational research has found school success is in part determined by a school’s climate and should be considered in improvement/reform strategies (Cohen et al., 2009; Thapa et al., 2013). Yet, school climate research is often difficult and time consuming, and employs a variety of conflicting definitions and dimensions, instruments, and empirical approaches to determining school climate. Given these significant limitations with current measures, the purpose of this study was to validate an instrument measuring school climate based on the four most commonly accepted dimensions of school climate, using items adapted from a well-regarded and established theoretical framework to provide an effective measure for educators and researchers. The sample selected for this study was a portion of teachers who indicated teaching 3rd or 8th grade as their primary teaching assignment (n=500) from the larger study sample (n=4974). A Rasch Rating Scale Model was used to evaluate unidimensionality, item fit and difficulty, reliability, and potential differential item functioning on a 23-item school climate survey. Results of the study showed the instrument was not unidimensional and was split into two subdimensions: student-centered and teacher/school support. All items were retained and displayed appropriate fit. Significant differential item functioning (DIF) was found between 3rd and 8th grade teachers on both subdimensions, further suggesting multidimensionality in the scale. Study findings suggest researchers should be mindful of any school climate instrument not validated at the item level for unidimensionality, and that an instrument may perform differently for teachers at different grade levels.

Maintaining relationships and interacting socially are essential aspects of children’s occupational performance. Social participation occurs during many childhood occupations such as play and school work. Rather than assessing social skills deficits in isolation, occupational therapists are well placed to assess and treat children with difficulties in social participation during their daily childhood occupations. The existing models of social competence fail to consider or describe the social skills required during learning-related tasks. Therefore, a comprehensive model is needed to guide occupational therapists in understanding social competence during both interpersonal and learning-related social tasks and in specific contexts (e.g., early childhood settings) (Lim & Rodger, 2008). Background and Research Aims: “Social participation” falls within the occupational therapy domain of concern according to the Occupational Therapy Practice Framework (2nd edition) (American Occupational Therapy Association [AOTA], 2008), However, surveys conducted in the United Kingdom, Australia and Canada indicate that there has been limited provision of services for children with poor social skills compared to areas such as sensory processing, motor skill development and visual perceptual skills training (Brown, Rodger, Brown, & Roever, 2005; Howard, 2002; Rodger, Brown, & Brown, 2005). Factors such as a limited knowledge of available tools and limited access to social skills models have hampered occupational therapists’ accurate assessment of social skills (Doble, Bonnell, & Magill-Evans, 1991). This study was conducted in Singapore, where generally there has been limited occupational therapy research, and even less in specific early childhood and school environments. High levels of proficiency in pre-literacy and mathematic skills are expected of young Singaporean children (Ko, 1992; Tan, 2007). With the emphasis on gaining academic skills to be ready for primary education from as early as 3 to 4 years of age, Singaporean children are also expected to demonstrate compliance and ability to sit still while attending to a lesson (Tan, 2007). Hence, it is important to conduct research on specific cultural contexts such as early childhood environments in Singapore. The early childhood literature has begun to differentiate between interpersonal social skills (IPS) and learning-related social skills (LRSS). IPS is needed for maintaining friendships and engaging in play, while LRSS is required for positive classroom behaviours (e.g., staying on task) (McClelland & Morrison, 2003). This research aimed to investigate the validity of the Proposed Model of Social Competence relevant to occupational therapists working with children in early childhood settings. First, this study aimed to investigate whether LRSS and IPS exist as separate unidimensional constructs as suggested in the Proposed Model of Social Competence and second, how these constructs contribute towards young children’s social competence. This research also intended to identify reliable and valid instruments that can be used for the comprehensive assessment of children’s social competence by therapists and educators in early childhood settings. Methodology and Study Findings First, a preliminary content validity study with Singaporean and Australian experts was conducted to investigate whether LRSS and IPS were represented by items from two pre-existing behaviour rating questionnaires (Lim, Rodger & Brown, 2010b). Next, in the main study, 117 young children (aged 3 to 6 years) were assessed using a combination of naturalistic observational tools and behaviour rating questionnaires. The children were observed during free play and school work tasks and their teachers completed two behaviour rating questionnaires regarding the children’s social skills. Rasch analysis and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) were employed in this study to analyse the data. Results from the content validity study indicated that the two behaviour rating questionnaires selected for inclusion in this study contained items representing IPS and LRSS. In addition, the experts found it clinically useful to consider IPS and LRSS as two separate constructs exhibited by young children. In the main study, IPS and LRSS were found to exist as separate unidimensional constructs, in addition to two other constructs named Compliance and Group Social Interaction which were found to also exist. Scales with acceptable measurement properties were found within the existing social skills assessment tools to measure these constructs. Furthermore, the CFA revealed Social Competence as an underlying multidimensional factor that was composed of the four indicator variables IPS, LRSS, Compliance, and Group Social Interaction. As a result of this study, the Proposed Model of Social Competence was revised. Conclusions and Recommendations Different social skills constructs that contributed to social competence in young children were identified and validated in the study. As Social Competence is a multi-dimensional factor, it is insufficient to assess only children’s interpersonal social skills. The Model of Social Competence-Revised aims to guide occupational therapists and other professionals to consider different types of social skills and elements that may contribute to poor social competence. Depending on the different presenting concerns, practitioners can select specific instruments to assess the different types of social skills identified in this research. Instead of designing new assessment tools that measure newly hypothesised constructs, this study demonstrated a novel approach to extend the validity of existing instruments to measure new constructs (Lim, Rodger & Brown, 2010a). This thesis has extended the extant body of literature by presenting the development, testing, and revision of a proposed theoretical model to assess young children’s social competence within early childhood contexts. This thesis has also contributed by identifying and validating existing assessment tools that can be used to evaluate the different social skills constructs observed in young children within early childhood environments.

The Rasch model was employed to analyze the psychometric properties of a diagnostic reading assessment and then create five short forms (n = 10, 16, 22, 28, 34 items) with an optimal test information function. The goal was to develop a universal screening measure that second grade teachers can use to identify advanced and at-risk readers to enhance Response-to-Intervention frameworks. These groups were targeted because both will need differentiated instruction in order to improve reading skills. The normative dataset of a national reading test developed with classical test theory methods was used to estimate person and item parameters. The measurement precision and classification accuracy of each short form was evaluated with the second grade students in the normative sample. Compared with full bank scores, all short forms produced highly correlated scores. The degree to which each short form identified exceptional readers was also analyzed. In consideration of classification accuracy and time-efficiency, the findings were most robust for the 10-item form. / text

Previous research into the accuracy of referrals for glaucoma has shown that a large number of referrals to the Hospital Eye Service are false positive. Research in areas of healthcare other than ophthalmology has shown that psychological distress can be caused by false positive referrals. The present study aimed to evaluate the quality of referrals to the HES for all ocular pathologies, and also to quantify the proportion of these referrals that were false positive. Any commonality between false positive referrals was investigated. The psychological effect of being referred to the HES was also evaluated using the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) and State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI). Both scales were validated in this population with Rasch analysis before use. A final aim was to develop an improvement to the present referral pathway in order to reduce numbers of false positive referrals. The accuracy of referrals to the HES appears to improve as clinicians become more experienced, and greater numbers of false positive referrals are generated by female clinicians. Optometrists refer patients with a wide range of ocular diseases and in most cases include both fundus observations and visual acuity measurements in their referrals. GPs mainly refer patients with anterior segment disorders, particularly lid lesions, based on direct observation and symptoms. Illegibility and missing clinical information reduce the quality of many optometric referrals. Patients referred to the HES experience raised levels of anxiety as measured by the STAI and raised levels of depression as measured by the HADS-Depression subscale. As a method of assessing psychological distress, the questionnaires HADS-T (all items), STAI-S (State subscale) and STAI-T (Trait subscale) show good discrimination between patients when administered to a population of new ophthalmic outpatients, despite all having a floor effect. Subsequently a referral refinement service was developed which reduced numbers of unnecessary referrals and reduced costs for the NHS.

Background: The Alliance for Patient Medication Safety (APMS) helps community pharmacies comply with continuous quality improvement requirements of many states and third party payment contracts through use of their Pharmacy Quality Commitment (PQC) program. Aims: To assess changes in the incidence of prescription Quality Related Events (QREs) and adoption of patient safety culture attitudes after guided PQC implementation. Methods: Twenty-one pharmacies were randomized to standard PQC practices (control) or guided PQC implementation (treatment). Pharmacy staff completed retrospective pre and post safety culture questionnaires. Negative binomial mixed and linear regression analyses were employed to examine changes in QREs rates and attitudes, respectively. Rasch analysis was used to assess questionnaire validity and reliability. Results: During the 2-month study period 3,343 QREs were reported to the online PQC system. At baseline, no difference in the average QRE reporting rate was identified between groups. Treatment group QRE reporting rates differed in one category post treatment (more incorrect safety caps QREs reported in treatment group, p<0.034). Seventy-one employees completed the questionnaire (70% response). Attitude improvement in the treatment group was 36% greater than in control (p<0.0001). The questionnaire demonstrated acceptable reliability and validity evidence. Conclusions: Guided PQC implementation increased reporting of certain QREs and increased the adoption of patient safety culture attitudes among staff pharmacy.

<p>One of the key ideas in the research on mathematics education is that the mathematical knowledge that learners acquire is strongly tied to the particular situation in which it is learnt. This study investigated the contexts that learners in grades eight, nine and ten prefer to deal with in the learning of mathematics based on their personal, social, societal, cultural and contextual concerns or affinities. The study is situated in the large-scale project called the Relevance of School Mathematics Education II (ROSMEII), which is concerned with the application and the use of mathematical knowledge and processes in real life situations. It is based on a survey of learners from ten (10) secondary schools in the Oshana and Khomas regions of Namibia. The ten schools that were sampled represent the spectrum of schools in Namibia in both urban and semi-urban areas. The Rasch model of data analysis is employed to provide some insight into the contextual situations learners would like to deal with in their mathematical learning. The data obtained for this study was analysed using the WINSTEPS Version 3.65.0 suite of computer programs. The current study arises from a concern about the absence of the voices of learners in the contextual situations in mathematics selected by adults such as mathematics teachers, inspectorates and curriculum and materials developers. The assumption is that the inclusion of learners&rsquo / insights into mathematics curricular might enhance mathematical learning. The study reveals that school children have an intrinsic desire to learn about mathematical issues embedded in real-life contexts. Several items which Namibian learners have shown interest in are issues they experience in life out of school which are not directly dealt with in school, such as managing personal and financial affairs, health matters, technology, construction, engineering and government financial matters. However, learners indicated to have a low preference in contexts like lotteries and gambling, national and international politics, cultural products, all kinds of pop music and dancing. This thesis contends that the inclusion of contexts in the mathematics curriculum which are of interest to learners will go a long way in facilitating good performance of learners in mathematics.</p>