A sample of Australian Year-12 students (n=16) who participated in the TIMSS testing were interviewed immediately after the test about their responses to test items. Students had trouble relating TIMSS questions to generalized aspects of everyday life and to school science topics. Students seemed to place little value on performing well on the…

Fourth-year university students (n=12) in a secondary-science-education degree program in Singapore were interviewed after demonstrations of five familiar chemical reactions. The majority of interviewees used perceptually-dominated rather than conceptually-dominated thinking and were unable to use scientific concepts consistently across the five…

The Malcolm Baldridge National Quality Award (MBNQA) framework for defining organizational quality is widely accepted in for-profit organizations. A study examined the validity of the proposed relationships among MBNQA dimensions using data from higher education. The empirical results help identify a modified model that has implications for…

A study investigated who uses the "U.S. News and World Report,""Money," and other national magazine rankings of colleges and universities, and what types of freshmen find these rankings useful in choosing a college. It also analyzed the for-profit sector's encroachment into a critical educational arena, college access, and whether the rankings…

A study proposed a structural model of college faculty worklife and tested its generalizability by examining possible differences in the model across three cross-sectional samples of probationary faculty at a major research university over an eight-year period. Identified trends in faculty perceptions about their worklife over time can be used as…

A survey of 556 research university faculty found most felt satisfied with key aspects of their work environment, and many felt they had experienced or observed little gender discrimination. Among those experiencing discrimination, women were more likely than men to report exclusion by colleagues, inappropriate sexual attention, demeaning or…

A study investigated the influence of perceived time management, operationalized as perceived control over time, as a coping strategy among 164 college students, and its effect on valued student outcomes. Results indicate lower levels of stress and higher levels of academic performance, problem-solving ability, and health in students perceiving…

A study extends recent research on college-faculty research productivity by examining the relationship between research productivity and institutional factors, drawing on recent National Research Council data on research universities and their programs in four broad fields: biological sciences, engineering, physical sciences and mathematics, and…

A national study found that since 1979, winning a national championship in football or men's basketball results in increases in applications for undergraduate admission in years following the championship. This was found both in absolute numbers and in comparison with schools not winning championships. Institutional data are charted. (Author/MSE)

A study investigated the effect of adding a writing measure to the Graduate Management Admission Test on the gender/ethnic composition of an admissions pool. Standardized differences from the white male reference group were computed for men and women in four ethnic/minority groups: Whites, Asian-Americans, African-Americans, and…

Using Holland's personality theory of occupational decision making, a study examined the influence of personality/career fit on initial medical career aspirations of college freshmen, and the extent to which the fit is associated with maintaining or abandoning these aspirations. Overall, results support the theory and illustrate how personality…

Argues that an important strategy used by international students in the adjustment process is to establish social relationships with other persons with a similar cultural background or nationality and form ethnic communities within the university context. Participation in such a community serves to buffer international students from problems…

Scholars and researchers, in studying colleges and universities, should appreciate the advantages of broader perspectives and better insights in the interpretations and explanations of institutions telling their own fascinating stories. Each institution can be studied from different perspectives and each can contribute new insights into the world…

A study found college students majoring in "pure" disciplines were less likely than those in applied fields to hold naive beliefs in simple knowledge, quick learning, and certain knowledge. Gender, age, grade point average were also related to beliefs. Results suggest students' beliefs about the nature of knowledge and learning are related to…

A longitudinal study, based on Holland's theory of occupational choice, found accentuation of initial group differences for artistic abilities in both male and female college students and for enterprising abilities of male students within academic subenvironments. Data support Holland's theory that students' initial selection of academic…