This article is a response to a request to consider the following three questions in relation to the recent history of research into student learning in higher education: What do we know?, What do we need to know?, and What might we do about it? A survey of article titles reporting on research into student learning was carried out in three key…

Five issues that emerge in institutional research when studying diversity on campus are identified: (1) the researcher is part of the change process; (2) in framing research questions, focus on the institution; (3) combining qualitative and quantitative methods can provide greater insight; (4) diversity touches all institutional elements and…

A study investigated the effectiveness of a weighting procedure for adjusting survey results to correct for nonresponse bias. Using data from a Cooperative Institutional Research Program followup survey, results indicate that the procedure is highly effective in univariate distributions; its effectiveness in adjusting correlation and regression…

The following administrative aspects of scientific experimentation with human subjects are discussed: the definition of human experimentation; the distinction between experimentation and treatment; investigator responsibility; documentation; the elements and principles of informed consent; and the administrator's role in establishing and…

Assessments of campus climates can be difficult and be accomplished by several methods, according to purpose. However, a well-designed survey can yield comprehensive and substantive data about the characteristics of people in the institution, workings of programs and policies, and interaction of these elements to inform institutional decision…

Areas in which human judgment must be used to conduct a fair statistical analysis of college faculty salary equity are discussed, and guidelines for making those judgments are offered. Four decision elements and four fields of study are considered as the basis for establishing criteria for selecting the appropriate regression model. (Author/MSE)

It is proposed that a better understanding of campus climate may be a critical element in enhancing college and university diversity. Methodological issues associated with this form of institutional research are examined, and studies undertaken at Stanford University (California), the University of California at Berkeley, and the University of…

In order to measure the effectiveness of Johnson County Community College's (JCCC's) transfer function and to examine an overall approach to research on institutional effectiveness, this paper applies Jeffrey A. Seybert's (1990) Effectiveness Assertiveness Matrix (EAM) to a transfer follow-up survey conducted at JCCC (Kansas) and to a 1984-85…

This paper is a preliminary report of a pilot study done at the University of Northern Colorado in 1984 using PHOENIX, a mainframe computer based education (CBE) system in a teacher education program. The study deals with the instructional tutorial and a computer based test generation system related to those tutorials. Data on the physiological…