scholarly journals An International Comparative Study of Students' Scientific Explanation Based on Cognitive Diagnostic Assessment

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tao Hu ◽  
Jing Yang ◽  
Rongxiu Wu ◽  
Xiaopeng Wu
Keyword(s):  
Scientific Explanation ◽  
Deep Understanding ◽  
The United States ◽  
Diagnostic Assessment ◽  
Test Items ◽  
Cognitive Diagnostic Assessment ◽  
Knowledge States ◽  
Core Concepts ◽  
International Comparative ◽  
New Perspective

Scientific explanation is one of the most core concepts in science education, and its mastery level is crucial for a deep understanding of the nature of science. As a new generation of assessment theory, cognitive diagnostic assessment (CDA) can get the knowledge of students' mastery of fine-grained knowledge. Based on the extant research, this research has formed eight attributes of scientific explanation concepts. By coding the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) test items, a CAD tool was formed. Data collected from 574 Grade 4 students in Hangzhou, China, combined with the data of the United States, Singapore, Australia, the United Kingdom, and Russia, were used in our study. The Deterministic Inputs, Noisy “And” gate (DINA) model was used to analyze the results from three aspects: the probability of mastery of attributes, the international comparison of knowledge states, and the analysis of learning paths. This study provided a new perspective from a CDA approach on the assessment of scientific explanation.

Developing individualized feedback for listening assessment: Combining standard setting and cognitive diagnostic assessment approaches

2021 ◽  
pp. 026553222199547
Author(s):  
Shangchao Min ◽  
Lianzhen He
Keyword(s):  
Large Scale ◽  
Standard Setting ◽  
Diagnostic Assessment ◽  
Efl Learners ◽  
Cognitive Diagnostic Assessment ◽  
Item Level ◽  
Language Assessments ◽  
Individualized Feedback ◽  
Proficiency Classifications ◽  
Acceptable Reliability

In this study, we present the development of individualized feedback for a large-scale listening assessment by combining standard setting and cognitive diagnostic assessment (CDA) approaches. We used the performance data from 3358 students’ item-level responses to a field test of a national EFL test primarily intended for tertiary-level EFL learners. The results showed that proficiency classifications and subskill mastery classifications were generally of acceptable reliability, and the two kinds of classifications were in alignment with each other at individual and group levels. The outcome of the study is a set of descriptors that describe each test taker’s ability to understand certain level of oral texts and his or her cognitive performance. The current study, by illustrating the feasibility of combining standard setting and CDA approaches to produce individualized feedback, contributes to the enhancement of score reporting and addresses the long-standing criticism that large-scale language assessments fail to provide individualized feedback to link assessment with instruction.

scholarly journals A Comprehensive Analysis of High School Genetics Standards: Are States Keeping Pace with Modern Genetics?

2011 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. 318-327 ◽  
Author(s):  
M.J. Dougherty ◽  
C. Pleasants ◽  
L. Solow ◽  
A. Wong ◽  
H. Zhang
Keyword(s):  
No Child Left Behind ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Human Genetics ◽  
The United States ◽  
Genetic Literacy ◽  
Left Behind ◽  
Genetic Complexity ◽  
Core Concepts ◽  
Instruction And Learning ◽  
American Society

Science education in the United States will increasingly be driven by testing and accountability requirements, such as those mandated by the No Child Left Behind Act, which rely heavily on learning outcomes, or “standards,” that are currently developed on a state-by-state basis. Those standards, in turn, drive curriculum and instruction. Given the importance of standards to teaching and learning, we investigated the quality of life sciences/biology standards with respect to genetics for all 50 states and the District of Columbia, using core concepts developed by the American Society of Human Genetics as normative benchmarks. Our results indicate that the states’ genetics standards, in general, are poor, with more than 85% of the states receiving overall scores of Inadequate. In particular, the standards in virtually every state have failed to keep pace with changes in the discipline as it has become genomic in scope, omitting concepts related to genetic complexity, the importance of environment to phenotypic variation, differential gene expression, and the differences between inherited and somatic genetic disease. Clearer, more comprehensive genetics standards are likely to benefit genetics instruction and learning, help prepare future genetics researchers, and contribute to the genetic literacy of the U.S. citizenry.

A Comparison of the Physical Fitness of Nonretarded and Mildly Mentally Retarded Adolescents with Cerebral Palsy

1991 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 43-56 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joseph P. Winnick ◽  
Francis X. Short
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Cerebral Palsy ◽  
Mental Retardation ◽  
Physical Fitness ◽  
The United States ◽  
Mild Mental Retardation ◽  
Physical Fitness Test ◽  
Test Items ◽  
Older Subjects ◽  
Level Of Significance

In order to compare their physical fitness, the UNIQUE Physical Fitness Test was administered to 203 retarded and nonretarded subjects with cerebral palsy from both segregated and integrated settings throughout the United States. The test was administered to subjects between the ages of 10 and 17 by professional persons prepared as field testers. Subjects were free from multiple handicapping conditions other than mild mental retardation and cerebral palsy. Regardless of intellectual classification, older subjects significantly exceeded the performance of younger subjects on dominant grip strength. Regardless of intellectual classification, older subjects significantly exceeded the scores of younger subjects on the softball throw and flexed arm hang. No significant differences between retarded and nonretarded subjects at the .01 level of significance were found on any of the test items on the UNIQUE test. The factor structures of both retarded and nonretarded groups were identical with regard to the items that loaded on specific physical fitness factors.

Abstract 123: A Comparison of In-Hospital Acute Myocardial Infarction Management Between Portugal and the United States: 2000 - 2010

2014 ◽  
Vol 7 (suppl_1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mariana F Lobo ◽  
Vanessa Azzone ◽  
Luis Azevedo ◽  
Armando Teixeira-Pinto ◽  
Jose Pereira Miguel ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Myocardial Infarction ◽  
Acute Myocardial Infarction ◽  
Hospital Mortality ◽  
The United States ◽  
Billing Data ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Medical Technologies ◽  
Hospitalization Rates ◽  
The Us ◽  
International Comparative

Objectives: Because inter- and intra-country variations in the adoption of medical technologies exist, international comparative studies provide an opportunity to infer technology effectiveness. Few studies have characterized recent trends in acute myocardial infarction (AMI) management between countries. Methods: Repeated cross-sectional observational cohorts of hospitalized adults aged ≥20 years discharged between January 2000 and December 2010. We identified new AMI hospitalizations using a US national 20% inpatient sample and a 100% inpatient sample in all Portuguese public sector hospitals. Age, sex, comorbidities, and median length of stay (interquartile range [IQR]) were determined. Annual age-sex adjusted hospitalization rates (HR) for AMI, in-hospital procedures, and in-hospital mortality were directly standardized to the 2010 US population. Intra-country (2010 relative to 2000) and inter-country in 2010 (Portugal [PT] relative to US) rate ratios [RR] were estimated. Findings: We identified 1476808 AMI US hospitalizations and 126314 Portugal hospitalizations between 2000 and 2010. Portuguese patients were more male, younger, and had fewer comorbidities compared to US patients (Table). The age-sex adjusted AMI HR decreased from 21 per 1000 person-years to 15 in the US (RR=0.70; 95% CI = [0.70, 0.71]) but increased in PT (14 to 15 per 1000, RR = 1.17 [1.14, 1.21]). While crude procedure rates were uniformly lower in PT, only CABG rates differed after standardization (2010: RR=0.19 [0.14, 0.26]). PCI use increased annually in both countries and decreased for CABG in the US only (102 to 79, RR=0.77 [0.73, 0.81]). Standardized in-hospital mortality decreased within-country (US: 44 to 29 per 1000, RR= 0.65 [0.60, 0.72]; PT: 93 to 62 per 1000, RR= 0.67 [0.44, 1.00]). In 2010, PT mortality was twice that in the US. Conclusions: AMI hospitalization rates and use of medical technologies are higher in the US compared to Portugal. However, standardized rates reveal only CABG surgery rates differ significantly between the two countries. Outcomes, measured by hospital mortality and LOS, are generally better in the U.S. Inter-country disparities may be a consequence of differential use of technologies, differences in AMI epidemiology, patient risk, or quality of hospital billing data.

STUDY OF AMINO ACID MODIFIERS IN GUAYULE NATURAL RUBBER

2015 ◽  
Vol 88 (2) ◽  
pp. 310-323 ◽  
Author(s):  
Colleen McMahan ◽  
Dhondup Lhamo
Keyword(s):  
Amino Acids ◽  
Natural Rubber ◽  
Oxidative Stability ◽  
Chemical Properties ◽  
The United States ◽  
Thermal Oxidative Stability ◽  
Green Strength ◽  
Strain Induced Crystallization ◽  
New Perspective ◽  
Physical And Chemical

ABSTRACT Guayule, a desert shrub indigenous to the United States, is under development as a source of natural rubber that can be used in place of petroleum-based rubber or Hevea rubber. In natural rubbers, physical and chemical properties can be strongly affected by nonrubber constituents, typically proteins and lipids, present in the material, depending on the plant species and postharvest processing. Hevea natural rubber typically contains high levels of nonrubber constituents that contribute to thermal-oxidative stability, cure acceleration, and especially strain-induced crystallization. The latter has been attributed to compound properties that render Hevea natural rubber uniquely suited for the most demanding rubber applications (e.g., aircraft tires). Hevea proteins are susceptible to hydrolysis, releasing free amino acids into the latex, which can affect rubber and compound properties. Here, low-protein guayule latex was blended with a series of amino acids varying in chemical structure. Bulk viscosity was reduced, thermal-oxidative stability was improved, and cure rate was influenced by the addition of amino acids. Generally, gel formation, green strength, and tensile strength were not affected. The results introduce a new perspective for amino acids as biobased rubber compound additives and provide insights into naturally occurring nonrubber constituents' interaction with natural rubber polymers.

scholarly journals “Using History to Make Slavery History”: The African American Past and the Challenge of Contemporary Slavery

2015 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 125-135 ◽  
Author(s):  
James B. Stewart
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
African American ◽  
African Americans ◽  
Deep Understanding ◽  
The United States ◽  
Racial Justice ◽  
Specific Detail ◽  
Abolitionist Movement ◽  
Racist Ideology

This article argues that contemporary antislavery activism in the United States is programmatically undermined and ethically compromised unless it is firmly grounded in a deep understanding of the African American past. Far too frequently those who claim to be “the new abolitionists” evince no interest in what the original abolitionist movement might have to teach them and seem entirely detached from a U.S. history in which the mass, systematic enslavement of African Americans and its consequences are dominating themes. As a result contemporary antislavery activism too often marginalizes the struggle for racial justice in the United States and even indulges in racist ideology. In an effort to overcome these problems, this article seeks to demonstrate in specific detail how knowledge of the African American past can empower opposition to slavery as we encounter it today.

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