Mary Roduta Roberts

Bio: Mary Roduta Roberts is an academic researcher from University of Alberta. The author has contributed to research in topics: Psychology & Medicine. The author has an hindex of 7, co-authored 32 publications receiving 204 citations. Previous affiliations of Mary Roduta Roberts include Hashemite University.

Developing Score Reports for Cognitive Diagnostic Assessments

Abstract: This paper presents a framework to provide a structured approach for developing score reports for cognitive diagnostic assessments (CDAs). Guidelines for reporting and presenting diagnostic scores are based on a review of current educational test score reporting practices and literature from the area of information design. A sample diagnostic report is presented to illustrate application of the reporting framework in the context of one CDA procedure called the Attribute Hierarchy Method. Integration and application of interdisciplinary techniques from education, information design, and technology are required for effective score reporting. While the AHM is used in this paper, this framework is applicable to any attribute-based diagnostic testing method.

Head-Mounted Display Virtual Reality in Post-secondary Education and Skill Training

Abstract: Background: This review focused on how immersive head-mounted display virtual reality (VR) was used in post-secondary level education and skill training, with the aim to better understand its state of the art as found from the literature. While numerous studies describe the use of immersive VR within a specific educational setting, they are often standalone events not fully detailed regarding their curricular integration. This review aims to analyse these events, with a focus on immersive VR’s incorporation into post-secondary education. Objectives: O1) Review the existing literature on the use of immersive VR in post-secondary settings, determining where and how it has been used within each educational discipline. This criterion focused on literature featuring the use of immersive VR, due to its influence on a user’s perceived levels of presence and imagination. O2) Identify favourable outcomes from the use of immersive VR when compared to other learning methods. O3) Determine the conceptual rationale (purpose) for each implementation of immersive VR as found throughout the literature. O4) Identify learning theories and recommendations for the utilization of immersive VR in post-secondary education. Methods: A literature review was undertaken with searches of Education Research Complete, ERIC, MEDLINE, EMBASE, IEEE Xplore, Scopus and Web of Science: Core Collection to locate reports on the use of immersive VR in post-secondary curricula. Results: 119 articles were identified, featuring disciplines across Arts and Humanities, Health Sciences, Military and Aerospace, Science and Technology. 35 out of 38 experiments reported to have found a positive outcome for immersive VR, after being compared with a non-immersive platform. Each simulation’s purpose included one or more of the following designations: skill training, convenience, engagement, safety, highlighting, interactivity, team building and suggestion. Recommendations for immersive VR in post-secondary education emphasize experiential learning and social constructivist approaches, including student-created virtual environments that are mainly led by the students themselves under team collaboration. Conclusion: Immersive VR brings convenient, engaging and interactive alternatives to traditional classroom settings as well as offers additional capability over traditional methods. There is a diverse assortment of educational disciplines that have each attempted to harness the power of this technological medium.

Causal or spurious? The relationship of knowledge and attitudes to trust in science and technology

Abstract: Survey data on 1217 adults living in Alberta, Canada were collected by Ipsos Reid Public Affairs and made available to us for analysis. The survey questioned participants on issues related to science including their perceived knowledge of science, attitudes toward science, and trust in science and technology. We developed a structural equation model to account for the causal relations implied by the correlations among the variables in the data set. Results show that trust in generalized science and technology is a large determiner of trust in specific technologies, but that trust in specific technologies is not a determinant of overall trust in science and technology. We also found that attitudes towards science have an effect on trust in generalized science and technology whereas perceived knowledge does not. Education and gender contribute to attitudes supporting an increased personal attachment to science, which was the strongest predictor of trust in our model.

Using Judgments from Content Specialists to Develop Cognitive Models for Diagnostic Assessments

Abstract: INTRODUCTION Most educational assessments are based on cognitive problem-solving tasks. Cognitive diagnostic assessments (CDA) are designed to model examinees' performances on these tasks and yield specific information about their cognitive strengths and weaknesses. One way to produce this diagnostic summary is with an information-processing approach where the psychology of test performance is modelled to yield scores that measure examinees' cognitive skills. With a cognitive approach, problem solving is assumed to require the processing of information using relevant sequences of operations. Examinees are expected to differ in the knowledge they possess and the processes they apply thereby producing response variability in each testing situation. Because cognitive test performance is both covert and, often, complex, a model is required to link the examinees' problem-solving skills with interpretations of test performance. The development and use of a cognitive model provides one approach for identifying and measuring these skills so they can be connected with test performance and test score interpretations. A cognitive model in educational measurement refers to a simplified description of human problem solving on standardized tasks at some convenient grain size or level of detail in order to facilitate explanation and prediction of students' performance, including their strengths and weaknesses (Leighton & Gierl, 2007a). Cognitive models are indispensible in CDA because they provide an interpretative framework that can guide item development so test performance can be linked to specific inferences about examinees' knowledge and skills. There are many potential benefits to modeling test performance using a CDA. For instance, these types of assessments could increase our understanding of student test performance, given many educational tests are based on cognitive problem-solving tasks. A test score serves as a coarse indicator of how students think about and solve educational tasks because cognitive performance cannot be observed directly (Snow & Lohman, 1989). Often, we assume that students who correctly solve a task use the appropriate knowledge and skills. However, this assumption is rarely substantiated and, in some cases, it may be wrong. Researchers have demonstrated, for instance, that examinees can generate correct answers using knowledge and skills that are unrelated to the target of inference specified in the items Cognitive Model Development 3 Thomas, 2005). When this disjunction between the target of inference and student performance occurs, test score inferences, including diagnostic inferences, may be inaccurate because the student did not use the knowledge and skills the developer intended to measure. CDA may also …

Testing Expert-Based Versus Student-Based Cognitive Models for a Grade 3 Diagnostic Mathematics Assessment

Abstract: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the adequacy of three cognitive models, one developed by content experts and two generated from student verbal reports for explaining examinee performance on a grade 3 diagnostic mathematics test. For this study, the items were developed to directly measure the attributes in the cognitive model. The performance of each cognitive model was evaluated by examining its fit to different data samples: verbal report, total, high-, moderate-, and low ability using the Hierarchy Consistency Index (Cui & Leighton, 2009), a model-data fit index. This study utilized cognitive diagnostic assessments developed under the framework of construct-centered test design and analyzed using the Attribute Hierarchy Method (Gierl, Wang, & Zhou, 2008; Leighton, Gierl, & Hunka, 2004). Both the expert-based and the student-based cognitive models provided excellent fit to the verbal report and high ability samples, but moderate to poor fit to the total, moderate and low ability samples. Impli...

Experimental And Quasi Experimental Designs For Research

Abstract: Thank you for reading experimental and quasi experimental designs for research. Maybe you have knowledge that, people have search numerous times for their favorite readings like this experimental and quasi experimental designs for research, but end up in malicious downloads. Rather than reading a good book with a cup of tea in the afternoon, instead they cope with some infectious virus inside their laptop.

Learning and Instruction

Abstract: 1. Introduction to Learning and Instruction. SECTION I: LEARNING. 2. Learning to Read Fluently. 3. Learning to Read for Comprehension. 4. Learning to Write. 5. Learning Mathematics. 6. Learning Science. SECTION II: INSTRUCTION. 7. Teaching by Giving Productive Feedback. 8. Teaching by Providing Concreteness, Activity, and Familiarity. 9. Teaching by Explaining Examples. 10. Teaching by Guiding Cognitive Processes during Learning. 11. Teaching by Fostering Learning Strategies. 12. Teaching by Fostering Problem-Solving Strategies. 13. Teaching by Creating Cognitive Apprenticeship in Classrooms. 14. Teaching by Priming Students' Motivation to Learn. References. Author Index. Subject Index.

Book Review: Enabling Occupation: An Occupational Therapy Perspective:

Abstract: by disclosing that she lectured to occupational therapy students, the respondents may have partially shaped their accounts to legitimise her interests and role. Regarding recommended further work, interviews would allow more detailed inquiry into these women's life histories, particularly to explore their initial motivation to try a craft activity following illness or diagnosis, because this could be of value to occupational therapists conceptualising treatment options. Many studies have examined how individuals with a common illness (such as multiple sclerosis) cope. This study has, instead, taken a shared coping activity and examined its role in the life of individuals with a variety of chronic conditions. Although comprising many adaptable and varied elements, some common benefits emerge, particularly restoring selfesteem and relief from negative emotions. The activity seems potent on several psychological levels. Many of the respondents described discovering (or re-discovering) needlecraft in their adult years, which suggests that adults can be open to innovations in their leisure pursuits. This may provide occupational therapists with further confidence that craftwork introduced to clients may have longterm therapeutic value. These accounts also indicate that the potential of leisure counselling to help those newly diagnosed with a chronic illness should be further investigated.

Science Literacy: Concepts, Contexts, and Consequences

Abstract: Science is a way of knowing about the world. At once a process, a product, and an institution, science enables people to both engage in the construction of new knowledge as well as use information to achieve desired ends. Access to science—whether using knowledge or creating it—necessitates some level of familiarity with the enterprise and practice of science: we refer to this as science literacy.Science literacy is desirable not only for individuals, but also for the health and well- being of communities and society. More than just basic knowledge of science facts, contemporary definitions of science literacy have expanded to include understandings of scientific processes and practices, familiarity with how science and scientists work, a capacity to weigh and evaluate the products of science, and an ability to engage in civic decisions about the value of science. Although science literacy has traditionally been seen as the responsibility of individuals, individuals are nested within communities that are nested within societies—and, as a result, individual science literacy is limited or enhanced by the circumstances of that nesting. Science Literacy studies the role of science literacy in public support of science. This report synthesizes the available research literature on science literacy, makes recommendations on the need to improve the understanding of science and scientific research in the United States, and considers the relationship between scientific literacy and support for and use of science and research.