Li Cai

Computational thinking (CT) has emerged as a major topic of interest in K-12 education, with widespread efforts to support students in developing this competency in multiple content areas (e.g., Next Generation Science Standards) without specifically tying it to learning coding or computer science. However, many facets of computational thinking are not clearly defined or understood, including (1) the extent to which it can be assessed independent of coding and (2) its relationship to other m...

A key component of any scientific undertaking is the construction of a model that explains the data. No model is an exact representation of the phenomena under investigation and, especially in the education sciences, useful models are often simplistic approximations of immensely complex processes. Goodness-of-fit (GOF) assessment provides a limited view of a model's usefulness. While GOF addresses the closeness of the model to the observed data, generalizability measures the potential fit of...

English Learners (ELs) in secondary schools face two types of challenges: barriers to accessing rigorous courses and a scarcity of quality learning opportunities in school that prepare them for life, careers, and civic participation. To understand policies and systems-level practices that are related to the school experiences of ELs in secondary schools, the National Research and Development Center to Improve Education for Secondary English Learners (the center) will carry out two lines of i...

Measurement error issues adversely affect results obtained from typical modeling approaches used to analyze data from assessment and evaluation studies. In particular, measurement error can weaken the validity of inferences from student assessment data, such as the inferences made from the results of using value-added models. Measurement error also can reduce the statistical power of impact studies and can diminish the ability of researchers to identify the causal mechanisms that lead to an ...