NotesFAQContact Us
Collection
Advanced
Search Tips
ERIC Number: ED206042
Record Type: RIE
Publication Date: 1980
Pages: 44
Abstractor: N/A
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
A Psychological Theory of Educational Productivity.
Walberg, Herbert J.
To solve problems of causality and measurement in educational research, this paper combines seven variables into a proposed model of educational productivity on achievement tests. The authors first review psychological models of educational production that relate learning to aptitude and environment, and note that these models do not allow for interaction between the aptitude and environment variables. The authors then describe productivity models in economics and demonstrate that such models are explicit and testable and do allow for interaction among variables. An educational model emulating the economics models is proposed to explain academic achievement on standardized tests. In this model of educational productivity, an equation combines the variables of student ability and motivation, instructional quantity and quality, home and classroom environments, and age. According to the authors, the interaction among the model's variables may explain a number of problems in educational research, including the lack of demonstrable results from instructional innovation or compensatory education, the weak correlations between achievement and instructional time, and the confusion in findings relating aptitude to teaching methods. The paper's final section stresses the need to test the proposed model on long-term empirical data. (RW)
Publication Type: Opinion Papers
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: National Inst. of Education (DHEW), Washington, DC.
Authoring Institution: Illinois Univ., Chicago. Chicago Circle Campus.
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Note: This document is Part B of a compilation entitled "Generalized Theory of Design and Analysis of Educational-Effectiveness Research." For related documents, see EA 013 760-761, EA 013 763-767, ED 168 714, ED 185 064, and EJ 210 984.