The NERA Researcher
Vol. 47, Issue 4, p. 15
December 2009
The Graduate Lounge
By Allie Brown, James Madison University
It is hard to believe that the 2009 NERA conference has already come and gone. The Graduate Student Issues Committee (GSIC) sponsored two sessions for graduate students. One was a panel presentation regarding professional perspectives on the future of educational research. Specifically, Dr. Judy Robb from the University of New Hampshire, Dr. John Young from the Educational Testing Service (ETS), and Dr. April Zenisky from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst shared observations from their experiences in the field and discussed how they see educational research progressing in the future. Students also had the opportunity to ask for personal advice with regard to graduate school and careers. The other GSIC-sponsored session was a workshop on grant writing. Drs. Stan Shaw and Michael Coyne from the University of Connecticut discussed both how to find grants to apply for, as well as how to write successful grant proposals. In addition to the in-conference sessions, GSIC also organized a graduate student social with complementary appetizers. This social provided the opportunity for graduate students from different programs to meet one another and hopefully make long-lasting connections.
For the upcoming year, GSIC members will continue to find ways to support the professional
development of NERA graduate students. In addition, we will keep reaching out to new graduate students to increase the diversity of institutions represented at NERA. Although, GSIC is sad to see Carol Barry, Andri Ioannou, Christine Shea, and Asil Ali Ozdogru complete their service to GSIC, we look forward to selecting four new members. Currently, the GSIC consists of three members:
Allison Brown
(brownarATjmu.edu) is in her second year of the Quantitative Psychology master’s program at James Madison University. In addition to an interest in applied statistics and measurement, she is interested in issues related to positive psychology, personality, and motivation. Allison is serving as the 2009-10 chair for the GSIC.
Marisa Cohen
(mcohen1ATgc.cuny.edu) is in her fourth year of the Educational Psychology Program at CUNY
Graduate Center. She is currently working on her dissertation examining the acquisition of
science material by elementary school students through the use of imagery interventions. She teaches undergraduate Introductory Psychology courses, as well as Masters level research method courses.
Megan France
(francemkATjmu.edu) is in her second year of the Assessment and Measurement Program at James Madison University. Her substantive research interests include variables related to college students’ relatedness with their peers and the university environment such as university
belonging, attachment, and mattering. She is also interested in applications of structural equation modeling. Megan served as the 2008-09 chair for the GSIC.
Tuesday, December 1, 2009
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
2009 GSIC Session
NERA 2009 Conference: GSIC Session
40th Annual NERA Conference
Professional Perspectives on the Future of Educational Research
Dr. Judy Robb from the University of New Hampshire, Dr. John Young from the Educational Testing Service (ETS), and Dr. April Zenisky from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst shared observations from their experiences in the field and discussed how they see educational research progressing in the future. Students also had the opportunity to ask for personal advice with regard to graduate school and careers.
Professional Development: Grant Writing
Drs. Stan Shaw and Michael Coyne from the University of Connecticut discussed both how to find grants to apply for, as well as how to write successful grant proposals.
In addition to the in-conference sessions, graduate students had an opportunity to spend time with a NERA mentor discussing their research or other issues. The mentors were longstanding NERA members who worked with Tom Levine from the University of Connecticut to set up this program, which was started last year.
GSIC organized their annual graduate student social with complementary appetizers and an opportunity for graduate students from different programs and institutions to meet one another and hopefully make long-lasting connections.
40th Annual NERA Conference
Professional Perspectives on the Future of Educational Research
Dr. Judy Robb from the University of New Hampshire, Dr. John Young from the Educational Testing Service (ETS), and Dr. April Zenisky from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst shared observations from their experiences in the field and discussed how they see educational research progressing in the future. Students also had the opportunity to ask for personal advice with regard to graduate school and careers.
Professional Development: Grant Writing
Drs. Stan Shaw and Michael Coyne from the University of Connecticut discussed both how to find grants to apply for, as well as how to write successful grant proposals.
In addition to the in-conference sessions, graduate students had an opportunity to spend time with a NERA mentor discussing their research or other issues. The mentors were longstanding NERA members who worked with Tom Levine from the University of Connecticut to set up this program, which was started last year.
GSIC organized their annual graduate student social with complementary appetizers and an opportunity for graduate students from different programs and institutions to meet one another and hopefully make long-lasting connections.
Tuesday, September 1, 2009
Graduate Lounge - September 2009
The NERA Researcher
Vol. 47, Issue 3, p. 9
September 2009
The Graduate Lounge
Megan France, GSIC Chair
Graduate Student Sessions and Events at NERA 2009
It’s hard to believe conference will take place next month! The GSIC is looking forward to the Graduate Student Social (Wed., Oct. 21st @ 4:45pm) and GSIC sponsored sessions. We will be sponsoring the in-conference session on grant writing as well as panel tailored toward graduate students (Thurs., Oct. 22nd @ 5:30pm).
Thanks to GSIC members: Asil, Andri, Carol, and Christine!
This October, the GSIC will be sad to see four of their members “retire” from the committee. Asil, Andri and Christine were some of the founding members of GSIC, working to start the committee in 2006. Asil served as the first GSIC chair and Andri served as chair last year. Carol joined the committee in 2007. we thank these members for all the time and hard work they put into the GSIC. We also wish them the best as they finish their dissertations and move on in their careers.
The GSIC is looking for new members...
Although we’re sad to see Asil, Andri, Carol, and Christine complete their service to the GSIC, we look forward to selecting four new members. Serving on the GSIC is a great way to get involved with NERA and build relationships with graduate students outside of your university. If you are interested in being a member of the GSIC, you’ll need to submit a short statement of intent (150 words) and your CV to neragraduatestudents AT gmail.com by Oct. 30th. Members serve for 2 or 3 years. Please feel free to contact Megan France (francemk AT jmu.edu) or any of the committee members if you have any questions.
Best Paper by a Graduate Student Award
If you are first author on the paper you present at NERA, we hope you consider submitting your paper for the “Best Paper by a Graduate Student Award”. The recipient of the award will be given $250 for travel to NERA the following year. If you want to be considered for the award, papers will be due a week after the conference. More information about the award and submission process will be available at the conference.
Vol. 47, Issue 3, p. 9
September 2009
The Graduate Lounge
Megan France, GSIC Chair
Graduate Student Sessions and Events at NERA 2009
It’s hard to believe conference will take place next month! The GSIC is looking forward to the Graduate Student Social (Wed., Oct. 21st @ 4:45pm) and GSIC sponsored sessions. We will be sponsoring the in-conference session on grant writing as well as panel tailored toward graduate students (Thurs., Oct. 22nd @ 5:30pm).
Thanks to GSIC members: Asil, Andri, Carol, and Christine!
This October, the GSIC will be sad to see four of their members “retire” from the committee. Asil, Andri and Christine were some of the founding members of GSIC, working to start the committee in 2006. Asil served as the first GSIC chair and Andri served as chair last year. Carol joined the committee in 2007. we thank these members for all the time and hard work they put into the GSIC. We also wish them the best as they finish their dissertations and move on in their careers.
The GSIC is looking for new members...
Although we’re sad to see Asil, Andri, Carol, and Christine complete their service to the GSIC, we look forward to selecting four new members. Serving on the GSIC is a great way to get involved with NERA and build relationships with graduate students outside of your university. If you are interested in being a member of the GSIC, you’ll need to submit a short statement of intent (150 words) and your CV to neragraduatestudents AT gmail.com by Oct. 30th. Members serve for 2 or 3 years. Please feel free to contact Megan France (francemk AT jmu.edu) or any of the committee members if you have any questions.
Best Paper by a Graduate Student Award
If you are first author on the paper you present at NERA, we hope you consider submitting your paper for the “Best Paper by a Graduate Student Award”. The recipient of the award will be given $250 for travel to NERA the following year. If you want to be considered for the award, papers will be due a week after the conference. More information about the award and submission process will be available at the conference.
Monday, June 1, 2009
Graduate Lounge - June 2009
The NERA Researcher
Vol. 47, Issue 2, p. 16
March 2009
The Graduate Lounge
Top 10 Reasons for graduate students to go to NERA
(By the Graduate Student Issues Committee)
Vol. 47, Issue 2, p. 16
March 2009
The Graduate Lounge
Top 10 Reasons for graduate students to go to NERA
(By the Graduate Student Issues Committee)
- It’s a great opportunity to present your research and get feedback.
- There are many opportunities for students to get involved with the NERA community (e.g., join a committee, build relationships with professionals and other graduate students in the field, collaborate on educational research endeavors).
- Registration for NERA graduate students is FREE! (On average at other conferences, student conference registration is $100 or more.)
- NERA is a great opportunity for professional development. As a graduate student you can take advantage of: learning from other people’s paper/poster sessions, the FREE pre-conference and in-conference sessions, the graduate student sponsored sessions, and the mentoring program.
- Because NERA is a smaller conference, it is easier to network and meet professionals in the
field. - There are special hotel quad rates just for NERA graduate students (this includes the hotel room and all three meals).
- There will be FREE appetizers at the Graduate Student Social.
- NERA is low-stress, the organization is known for its inviting and supportive attitude toward graduate students.
- Graduate students get FREE drink tickets.
- Help eat NERA’s 40th birthday cake!
The Graduate Student Issues Committee (GSIC) of the Northeastern Educational Research Association (NERA) would like to congratulate Megan France from James Madison University for winning the 2008 Best Paper by a Graduate Student Award Competition. The winning paper is entitled “What Matters in the Measurement of Mattering? A Confirmatory Factor Analysis”. The abstract of the paper appears below.
We would like to thank the graduate students who participated in this competition, as well as all the NERA members who volunteered to review the papers. All papers were of high quality. Special thanks to Asil Ozdogru, who initiated and coordinated this award, and to Lynn Shelley (GSIC Advisor) for her support and guidance.
Paper title: What Matters in the Measurement of Mattering? A Confirmatory Factor Analysis
Author: Megan K. France Co-author: Sara J. Finney
Abstract: Universities are increasingly concerned with issues of student mental health. Fostering a sense of mattering within students may help to decrease these mental health issues. Mattering is the feeling that we are significant and make a difference in the lives of others. However, the measurement of mattering has been lacking. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the psychometric properties of a measure of mattering. Using CFA, five theoretically-based competing models were tested. The results supported a four-factor model. Recommendations for improvement of the measure are made, as well as the necessity for gathering external validity.
Friday, April 3, 2009
NERA 2009 Call for Proposals
NERA 2009: Using Educational Research to Improve Student Learning for 40 Years…and Still Going Strong!
Come help us celebrate NERA’s 40th birthday at the NERA ’09 Conference by submitting a proposal for an individual paper session, a poster session, a theme-based session, or a working group discussion.
To be held at the beautiful Hartford Marriott Rocky Hill (CT) October 21st – 23rd, 2009, the conference will include all the great preconference, concurrent, poster, and keynote sessions for which NERA is renowned; plus some new surprises to ensure that NERA’s next 40 years do not disappoint.
We invite your proposal for papers and posters reflecting a variety of topics in and approaches related to the study of education. Papers and posters need not be about the conference theme. Proposals are due by midnight on Friday, June 5, 2009. Further details and proposal instructions are available at the NERA ’09 website:http://nera-education.org/conference.php
Do you know others who are not members of NERA but would be interested in attending NERA ’09? Feel free to forward this message to your colleagues who may be interested in NERA but are not yet NERA members.
Please contact the program co-chairs via e-mail should you have any questions! Maureen Ewing, Elizabeth Stone, and Peter Swerdzewski can be reached at neramembersATgmailDOTcom.
Sunday, March 1, 2009
Graduate Lounge - March 2009
The NERA Researcher
Vol. 47, Issue 1, p. 16
March 2009
The Graduate Lounge
For this issue of the Graduate Lounge, the GSIC has compiled a list of resources that we have found to be helpful and/or informative as we work toward our degrees. We hope you find these resources helpful as well.
Suggestion from GSIC member Asil Özdoğru:
Among those rows of theoretical and technical articles and books, one might find it relaxing and enjoying to have a comic book not about super heroes but about us, graduate students, some of whom might have extraordinary talents to be classified as superheroes. Jorge Cham's acclaimed series of cartoons Piled Higher and Deeper (PHD) are published in 3 volumes for a modest price to not to hurt fragile graduate student budgets. Cham's Web site http://www.phdcomics.com/ offers a rich archive of his cartoons as well as an online store to purchase the books or other souvenir items.
Suggestions from GSIC member Marisa Cohen:
Pintrich, P.R., & Schunk, D. H. (2002). Motivation in education: Theory, research, and applications (2nd ed.). New Jersey: Person Education Incorporated.
This is a wonderful textbook that ties the theories of motivation to their use in the classroom. It examines how students’ cognitions, affect, and values come into play in everyday classroom situations, as well as discuses how to improve upon students’ motivation. The theories discussed are broken down into the influence of personal and environmental factors, developmental and group differences, as well as gender and ethnic differences, giving the reader complete coverage of the subject.
Zimmerman, B.J., Bonner, S., & Kovach, R. (2006). Developing self-regulated learners: Beyond achievement to self-efficacy. Washington DC: American Psychological Association Press.
This is a wonderful manual for educators. It explains self-regulatory principles, as well as ways to incorporate them in the classroom. Six goals are outlined for teachers, ranging from understanding the principles of self-regulated learning to developing skills such as classroom note-taking. At the end of each chapter is a group of self-directed questions to help the teacher think about his/her classroom and the way in which it is structured. Examples of students’ work, as well as useful forms to enable teachers to implement the principles are provided.
Suggestion from GSIC member Megan France:
Bem, D. J. (2003). Writing the empirical journal article. In Darley, J. M., Zanna, M. P., & Roediger III, H. L. (Eds.). The compleat academic: A career guide. (2nd ed.). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association Press.
Writing skills are crucial for success in any graduate program. One resource I have continually found to be helpful is Bem’s chapter titled “Writing the empirical journal article”. I have referred to it many times when preparing manuscripts. Bem provides clear advice for writing each section of a journal article (e.g., introduction, methods, results, discussion). I have found his section on rewriting and polishing your article to be especially helpful.
Suggestion from GSIC member Carol Barry:
Ree, M. J., & Carretta, T.H. The role of measurement error in familiar statistics. Organizational Research Methods, 9, 99-112.
Many of the statistics used in educational research make the assumption that our variables are measured without error. Given that nearly all variables in educational research are measured with less than perfect reliability, how are the statistics we use and the interpretations we make based on those statistics impacted by this? This easy-to-read article clearly outlines the impact of measurement error and helps reinforce the fact that good measurement is crucial to all areas of research.
Vol. 47, Issue 1, p. 16
March 2009
The Graduate Lounge
For this issue of the Graduate Lounge, the GSIC has compiled a list of resources that we have found to be helpful and/or informative as we work toward our degrees. We hope you find these resources helpful as well.
Suggestion from GSIC member Asil Özdoğru:
Among those rows of theoretical and technical articles and books, one might find it relaxing and enjoying to have a comic book not about super heroes but about us, graduate students, some of whom might have extraordinary talents to be classified as superheroes. Jorge Cham's acclaimed series of cartoons Piled Higher and Deeper (PHD) are published in 3 volumes for a modest price to not to hurt fragile graduate student budgets. Cham's Web site http://www.phdcomics.com/ offers a rich archive of his cartoons as well as an online store to purchase the books or other souvenir items.
Suggestions from GSIC member Marisa Cohen:
Pintrich, P.R., & Schunk, D. H. (2002). Motivation in education: Theory, research, and applications (2nd ed.). New Jersey: Person Education Incorporated.
This is a wonderful textbook that ties the theories of motivation to their use in the classroom. It examines how students’ cognitions, affect, and values come into play in everyday classroom situations, as well as discuses how to improve upon students’ motivation. The theories discussed are broken down into the influence of personal and environmental factors, developmental and group differences, as well as gender and ethnic differences, giving the reader complete coverage of the subject.
Zimmerman, B.J., Bonner, S., & Kovach, R. (2006). Developing self-regulated learners: Beyond achievement to self-efficacy. Washington DC: American Psychological Association Press.
This is a wonderful manual for educators. It explains self-regulatory principles, as well as ways to incorporate them in the classroom. Six goals are outlined for teachers, ranging from understanding the principles of self-regulated learning to developing skills such as classroom note-taking. At the end of each chapter is a group of self-directed questions to help the teacher think about his/her classroom and the way in which it is structured. Examples of students’ work, as well as useful forms to enable teachers to implement the principles are provided.
Suggestion from GSIC member Megan France:
Bem, D. J. (2003). Writing the empirical journal article. In Darley, J. M., Zanna, M. P., & Roediger III, H. L. (Eds.). The compleat academic: A career guide. (2nd ed.). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association Press.
Writing skills are crucial for success in any graduate program. One resource I have continually found to be helpful is Bem’s chapter titled “Writing the empirical journal article”. I have referred to it many times when preparing manuscripts. Bem provides clear advice for writing each section of a journal article (e.g., introduction, methods, results, discussion). I have found his section on rewriting and polishing your article to be especially helpful.
Suggestion from GSIC member Carol Barry:
Ree, M. J., & Carretta, T.H. The role of measurement error in familiar statistics. Organizational Research Methods, 9, 99-112.
Many of the statistics used in educational research make the assumption that our variables are measured without error. Given that nearly all variables in educational research are measured with less than perfect reliability, how are the statistics we use and the interpretations we make based on those statistics impacted by this? This easy-to-read article clearly outlines the impact of measurement error and helps reinforce the fact that good measurement is crucial to all areas of research.
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
Graduate Student Survey
Hello NERA Graduate Students,
Please click the link below to fill out the NERA graduate student survey. The purpose of this survey is for the GSIC to gather information about graduate students' experiences at the previous NERA conferences and to collect your ideas for the future conferences. Responses to these surveys will help the GSIC better serve the NERA graduate student community. It will only take about 5 minutes, and will not require you to enter any identifiable information. Individual responses will be remain anonymous. Please fill out the survey as soon as you have a chance so we have time to look them over and work with the data.
Thank you all very much.
NERA Graduate Student Survey
Sincerely,
NERA GSIC
Please click the link below to fill out the NERA graduate student survey. The purpose of this survey is for the GSIC to gather information about graduate students' experiences at the previous NERA conferences and to collect your ideas for the future conferences. Responses to these surveys will help the GSIC better serve the NERA graduate student community. It will only take about 5 minutes, and will not require you to enter any identifiable information. Individual responses will be remain anonymous. Please fill out the survey as soon as you have a chance so we have time to look them over and work with the data.
Thank you all very much.
NERA Graduate Student Survey
Sincerely,
NERA GSIC
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