Assessing student learning in the context of evaluating a chance course

This paper describes the use of different assessment methods to evaluate Chance courses in the NSF-funded Chance project. Multiple methods were used to measure changes in students' attitudes and beliefs about statistics, reasoning about probability and statistics, and ability to critique a newspaper article that reports statistical results. Samples of assessment materials and scoring rubrics used in the evaluation are included.     

The therapeutic value of women's adult friendships

Abstract

In 1980, thirty‐five years after the end of World War II, the long‐term impact of war‐trauma on individuals’ lives led to concern about Post‐Traumatic Stress Disorder. While the focus here is not on “disorders,” it is on interactive patterns of “defensive” caretaking behaviors which contribute to intergenerational transmission of anxiety, silence and losses related to the Holocaust. In this long‐term group, defensive caretaking patterns are conceptualized as second‐generation behaviors which focus on parental needs thereby avoiding addressing second‐generation vulnerabilities. Relevant concepts of Sullivan, Winnicott, Bion and Fairbairn are applied. In an innovative trauma group design, defensive caretaking patterns are illustrated through clinical examples and interventions by the therapist as a “validating object” work to mitigate transmission to still the next generation.     

Pseudolikelihood estimation in a class of problems with response-related missing covariates

Many practical situations involve a response variable Y and covariates X , where data on (Y, X ) are incomplete for some portion of a sample of individuals. We consider two general types of pseudolikelihood estimation for problems in which missingness may be response-related. These are typically simpler to implement than ordinary maximum likelihood, which in this context is semiparametric. Asymptotics for the pseudolikelihood methods are presented, and simulations conducted to investigate the methods for an important class of problems involving lifetime data. Our results indicate that for these problems the two methods are effective and comparable with respect to efficiency.     

The Impact of Educational Homogamy on Isolated Illiteracy Levels

In this article, we explore the impacts that education expansion and increased levels in educational homogamy have had on couples’ isolated illiteracy rates, defined as the proportion of illiterates in union that are married to an illiterate partner. First, we develop the methodology to decompose isolated illiteracy rates into two main components: one related to level of homogamy among illiterates, and the other related to the educational distribution of the spouses. Second, we use harmonized international census microdata from IPUMS and DHS data for 73 countries and 217 samples to investigate which of the two components is more important in shaping the level of isolated illiteracy. Our results indicate that the expansion of literacy has been more powerful than the increases in the tendency toward homogamy in its impact on isolated illiteracy rates. As the percentage of illiterates decreases over time, an increasingly large proportion of them marry literate individuals, showing that opportunities for intermarriage among illiterates expand despite the strengthening of homogamy.     

Gender-Specific Changes in Students' Sexual Behaviors and Attitudes at a Southeastern University between 1973 and 1988

Abstract

This study investigated the gender-specific, self-reported sexual behaviors and attitudes of never-married college students attending a southeastern university in 1973 and 1988. Data were collected by means of a mailed questionnaire that remained essentially unchanged for both years. The authors found that both men and women reported an increase in heterosexual relationships that included sexual intercourse and a decrease in nonsexual relationships with the other gender. The majority of the students perceived themselves as adequately informed about sexuality and satisfied with their relationships, although the proportion of men who reported being satisfied with their relationships declined over the 15 years. The students indicated that sexuality education should focus primarily on information about AIDS and on preparation for marriage.     

The incorporation of gender scholarship into sociology

The prospects of an intellectual revolution in sociology informed in part by a feminist perspective loomed large in the early 1970s. Following Ward and Grant's (1985) empirical examination of gender and feminist scholarship in sociology journals between 1974 and 1983, our research provides an empirical assessment of the “second ten years” after the feminist critique of the discipline, 1984–1993. Specifically, we examine the incorporation of gender-content scholarship into mainstream sociology journals. Our research also assesses the extent to which gender-content scholarship published in these journals is feminist-oriented or not and the extent to which this is influenced by the sex of authors, the type of journal, and the sex composition of editorships and editorial boards. Our findings indicate that although there were more gender- and feminist-oriented articles published in the recent ten-year period, proportionally there were fewer feminist-oriented articles than in the previous ten-year period. Our findings suggest that a feminist revolution in sociology is not likely to occur anytime soon, although the assimilation of feminist scholarship into sociology is occurring along the lines of other critical intellectual movements in recent decades. David V. Waller current research focuses on intellectual and social changes in the social sciences including the impact of electronic journals on communication among scientists, and on the geopolitical and economic determinants of change in the contemporary world system. Dana Dunn has authored articles on gender stratification, sex-based earnings inequality, and women in political office, and is editor of Workplace/Women's Place, a textbook addressing women's experiences in the workplace. Please direct all correspondence to David V. Waller, Assistant Professor of Sociology, Department of Sociology and Anthropology, Box 19599, University of Texas, Arlington, TX 76019 or to Waller@uta.edu.     

Development of intercultural competence among US American teachers: professional development factors that enhance competence

The increasing diversity of the student age population in the USA calls for increased cultural competence on behalf of educators to effectively teach students. This article reports on a study of a suburban school district’s initiatives that utilized the Development Model of Intercultural Sensitivity, the Intercultural Development Inventory (IDI) as a baseline measurement tool, and subsequent professional development for teachers, to promote the development of intercultural competence. ANOVA and regression analysis models were used to determine the variables that affect teachers’ perceived intercultural competence after their participation in professional development.     

The Americans with Disabilities Act: an examination of compliance by state, territorial and local governments in the USA

Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) prohibits public entities in the US from discriminating against people on the basis of a disability. The term 'public entity' includes all state, territorial, and local governments and their instrumentalities. A survey was conducted to determine the extent of compliance by public entities in the US. Based on the survey the conclusion is that the ADA is being implemented on the state, territorial, and local levels in the US to a satisfactory extent.