Functional analysis of behavior depends upon accurate measurement of both independent and dependent variables. Quantifiable and controllable operations that demonstrate these functional relationships are necessary for a science of human behavior. Failure to implement independent variables with integrity threatens the internal and external validity of experiments. A review of all applied behavior analysis studies with children as subjects that have been published in the Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis between 1980 and 1990 found that approximately 16% of these studies measured the accuracy of independent variable implementation. Two thirds of these studies did not operationally define the components of the independent variable. Specific recommendations for improving the accuracy of independent variable implementation and for defining independent variables are discussed.

No abstract

No abstract

Achievement outcomes for students taught by recent program completers of Louisiana's teacher preparation programs (TPPs) are examined using hierarchical linear modeling of State student achievement data in English language arts, reading, mathematics, science, and social studies. The current year's achievement in each content area is predicted using previous achievement data, student characteristics, classroom characteristics (e.g., percentage of students with disabilities), school characteristics, and attendance of teachers and students. The contribution of a teacher having recently completed a specific TPP is modeled at the classroom level as an indicator variable for each TPP. Results for programs with 25 or more new teachers are reported. Results demonstrate substantial overlap in confidence intervals (CI) among programs. In some instances, 68% and/or 95% CI for programs in specific content areas did not overlap results for the average new teacher or experienced teachers (i.e., they were lower than average new teachers or higher than average experienced certified teachers). Results varied across content areas for some programs.

No abstract

No abstract

No abstract

No abstract