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November 30, 2007

From Census Update (11/30/2007): Hot Tip - 2007 Economic Census

More than 4 million businesses across the country will receive questionnaires in December for the 2007 Economic Census. Every five years, the economic census provides the most comprehensive, detailed and authoritative facts about the American economy. The forms are to be completed and returned, either electronically or by mail, by February 12, 2008. See the Economic Census website for more information.

Posted by ronbo at 10:28 AM

November 28, 2007

From NCES: The Reading Literacy of U.S. Fourth-Grade Students in an International Context Results From the 2001 and 2006 Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS)

This report summarizes the performance of U.S. students on the Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS) assessment, comparing the scores of U.S. fourth-graders to the scores of their peers internationally in 2006 and also examining the extent to which the reading literacy of U.S. students had changed from the first administration of PIRLS in 2001. The results show that the average reading comprehension score of U.S. fourth-grade students in 2006 was higher than the average score of students in 22 of the 44 other countries and educational jurisdictions that participated in the PIRLS assessment. Ten countries and educational jurisdictions had average scores higher than the scores of U.S. students; average scores of students in the remaining 12 countries and educational jurisdictions were not significantly different from the scores of U.S. students. The performance of U.S. students on PIRLS in 2006 did not measurably differ from their performance in 2001. In addition to framing the reading literacy of U.S. students within an international context, the report shows how the reading literacy of U.S. fourth-graders varies by student background characteristics and contextual factors that may be associated with reading proficiency. Following the presentation of results, a technical appendix describes the study design, data collection, and analysis procedures that guided the administration of PIRLS 2006 in the United States and in the other participating jurisdictions.

Posted by ronbo at 11:53 PM

From ANES list: An ANES Special Competition: Gauging the Public's Attitudes on Terrorism and Homeland Security

The American National Election Studies is now accepting proposals for questions about terrorism, natural disasters, risk perception, and preparedness, to be asked in our upcoming surveys. These questions can be included in the 2008 ANES Time Series Study (a national face-to-face survey that has been conducted before and after presidential lections since 1948) and/or the 2008-2009 ANES Panel Study (a new study to be conducted via the Internet). These questions will be paid for by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the National Science Foundation (NSF). The funds will pay for 17 additional minutes of questions on the post-election wave of the 2008 ANES Time Series Study, 15 additional minutes of questions on the June 2008 wave of the 2008-2009 ANES Panel Study and 15 additional minutes of questions on the May 2009 wave of the 2008-2009 ANES Panel Study.

Topics that can be addressed include:

1) What do Americans think about terrorism and of terrorists? Do some Americans sympathize with some such efforts and, if so, why?

2) What do Americans think that the U.S. should do to deal with terrorist threats and natural disasters? Which policy approaches appeal most and least to Americans?

3) How do Americans evaluate the level of effort devoted to counterterrorism and natural disasters to date? How do Americans evaluate the performance of governments in managing these issues?

4) How often does the general public think about anti-American activities? What do they think of them? To what extent does the location of the source (foreign/domestic) affect their perceptions?

5) What security- and disaster-related threats do Americans worry most about? How do these threats rank amongst other all other threats?

6) How do issues of terrorism or related to natural disasters influence how Americans vote and otherwise interact with their government?

7) To what extent do Americans perceive themselves as being at risk of becoming victims of terrorism or natural disasters? How do such perceptions affect their trust in government institutions and in each other?

8) How well do Americans understand current and past government counterterrorism efforts?

Persons who wish to add questions on these topics to ANES surveys should submit proposals to the ANES Online Commons. Our goal is to get proposals from many scholars. The first proposal listed on this segment of the Online Commons is by Clark McCauley, who played a central role in our discussions with DHS. Professor McCauley's proposal describes questions that are of special interest to DHS. We hope you will take this opportunity to review his proposal, post your own proposals, and offer comments on proposals that others have written.

The ANES Online Commons will accept proposals on this topic until 3:00pm Eastern Time (noon Pacific Time) on January 15, 2008. The Online Commons will remain open for two additional weeks thereafter to allow commentary and revision of the proposals. This opportunity is open to anyone who wants to make a constructive contribution to the development of ANES surveys.

Please feel free to pass this invitation along to anyone (e.g., your students) who you think might be interested. For additional information about how to submit a proposal and the proposal evaluation process, please visit: http://www.electionstudies.org/onlinecommons.htm

To read a more detailed version of this announcement, please visit:
http://electionstudies.org/announce/newsltr/ANES_OC_HomelandSecurity_20071121.pdf

We hope to hear from you.

Jon A. Krosnick and Arthur Lupia
Principal Investigators, American National Election Studies

This special competition of the ANES is the product of a collaboration between the Department of Homeland Security and the National Science Foundation.

Posted by ronbo at 10:05 PM

November 26, 2007

ATLAS.ti Newsletter 2007.3


Download this newsletter as a printer-friendly PDF document


Newsletter 2007 /3 - November 2007

Welcome to this new issue of INSIDE ATLAS.ti!

Let's dive right in:

Ann Lewins and Christina Silver have written a book that's already been hailed as the "New QDA Bible" by readers and reviewers. Using Software in Qualitative Research: A Step-by-Step Guide held a pleasant surprise for us at ATLAS.ti and will also be of interest to you, our users. The authors' rigorous, unbiased comparison of all major QDA products firmly underscores ATLAS.ti's broad spectrum of strengths and its consistently cutting-edge quality. We were thrilled and honored to see our efforts recognized throughout the book.

Lewins and Silver were kind enough to take some time away from their many obligations to chat with us about their backgrounds, their book, and their thoughts about ATLAS.ti. Read this interview here in full.

As always, the goal of this newsletter is to make your research work
easier and to make sure you are the first to know what's happening with your favorite QDA software.

On to this issue's topics:


Enjoy, and keep on coding!

Jörg Hecker Director of Business Operations

Posted by yan at 03:05 PM

New Tools & Resources at ICPSR

ICPSR Authentication – from Anywhere!

Users at your institutions who travel frequently, telecommute or desire to download and work with ICPSR data at the local coffee shop will be delighted! The new ICPSR authentication, launched on July 1, 2007, enables users from member institutions using ICPSR Direct to download ICPSR members-only data from anywhere provided they have validated their MyData accounts recently while on campus.

Minority Data Resource Center

The purpose of the MDRC is to provide data resources for the comparative analysis of issues affecting racial and ethnic minority populations in the United States. We offer streamlined access to existing ICPSR data and to newly acquired studies that are relevant to the study of immigration, place of origin, ancestry, ethnicity, and race in the United States.
http://www.icpsr.umich.edu/MDRC/

Terrorism & Preparedness Data Resource Center

TPDRC archives and distributes data collected by government agencies, non-governmental organizations, and researchers about the nature of intra- (domestic) and international terrorism incidents, organizations, perpetrators, and victims; governmental and nongovernmental responses to terror; and citizens' attitudes towards terrorism.
http://www.icpsr.umich.edu/TPDRC/

International Data Resource Center – Just launched!!

As the international community is drawn closer together through the phenomenon of globalization, access to international data has become critical for scholars and researchers around the world. Finding reliable data sources that reflect international dimensions can be difficult. In an effort to meet the growing demands for international data, ICPSR has created the IDRC, which acts as a clearinghouse for international data housed at ICPSR. http://www.icpsr.umich.edu/IDRC/

Posted by ronbo at 03:00 PM

Recent ICPSR updates and additions - New Releases through 2007-11-25

Below is a list of new data collection additions to the ICPSR data archive along with a list of released data collections that have been updated:

New Additions

4659 ABC News/Washington Post Poll #1, April 2006
http://www.icpsr.umich.edu/cocoon/ICPSR/STUDY/04659.xml

20428 Houston Area Survey, 1982-2007: Successive Representative Samples of Harris County Residents
http://www.icpsr.umich.edu/cocoon/ICPSR/STUDY/20428.xml

20966 Evaluation of the Texas State Public School Nutrition Policy Change on Student Food Selection and Sales, School Years 2003-2004 and 2004-2005
http://www.icpsr.umich.edu/cocoon/ICPSR/STUDY/20966.xml

21240 National Survey on Drug Use and Health, 2006
http://www.icpsr.umich.edu/cocoon/ICPSR/STUDY/21240.xml

Updates

169 ICPSR Data Archiving Report: Data Dissemination Activity
http://www.icpsr.umich.edu/cocoon/ICPSR/STUDY/00169.xml

2168 ABC News Whitewater Poll, December 1996
http://www.icpsr.umich.edu/cocoon/ICPSR/STUDY/02168.xml

2719 CBS News 'CBS.Marketwatch.Com' Internet Poll, January 1999
http://www.icpsr.umich.edu/cocoon/ICPSR/STUDY/02719.xml

3971 Current Population Survey, August 2002: Public Participation in the Arts Supplement
http://www.icpsr.umich.edu/cocoon/ICPSR/STUDY/03971.xml

6625 ABC News/Washington Post Poll, May 1994
http://www.icpsr.umich.edu/cocoon/ICPSR/STUDY/06625.xml

20760 National Judicial Reporting Program, 2004: [United States]
http://www.icpsr.umich.edu/cocoon/ICPSR/STUDY/20760.xml

You can also view a list of all studies added and updated in the last ninety days by visiting the ICPSR Web site at
http://www.icpsr.umich.edu/ICPSR/access/recent.html.

Posted by ronbo at 02:55 PM

November 20, 2007

Roper Center Data Acquisitions Update, October 2007

Stanford University Libraries maintains a membership to the Roper Center and Stanford faculty, staff, and students can now download data directly accessible via Roper Express. For instructions on requesting data not available via Roper Express, click on the "Data Services - Roper" link on our SSDS web site.

This month the Roper Update (pdf) for the month of October contains:

• 9 new Work Trends Poll sponsored by John J. Heldrich Center for Workforce Development at Rutgers University conducted from 2001-2005.

• 3 new Cable News Networks studies conducted by Opinion Research Corporation from 2007.

• 4 new Public Agenda Foundation studies conducted from 1997-2002 including samples of youth, teachers and parents.

These notices have been archived on the Roper Center website at: http://www.ropercenter.uconn.edu/data_access/data/past_data_announcements.html

If you have any questions about these data collections please do not hesitate to contact the Roper Center at rcweb@ropercenter.uconn.edu.

Posted by ronbo at 05:59 PM

November 16, 2007

SPSS Basics for Institutional Researchers (SPSS online seminar)

Nov 30, 2007
United States
Begins at: 1:00 p.m. CT
Duration: 1 hour

Join the Association for Institutional Research and SPSS Inc. for this online seminar and learn some tips and tricks of SPSS software for the Institutional Research environment. By viewing this webcast you’ll learn:

# Aggregate function
# Date/time wizard
# Tables
# And more!

Real life IR examples will be used to demonstrate the usefulness of these features.

This event is ideal for Institutional Researchers who may be newer to the field, or Researchers who have been in the game for years, just looking to review some basics and maybe learn some new tips from an expert.

Our presenter for this event is Gayle Fink, Director of Institutional Research at the University System of Maryland. Ms. Fink has over 20 years experience with various versions of SPSS. In her current position, Ms. Fink uses SPSS to manage data for USM’s 11 institutions and to compile analysis for the USM Board of Regents. She has compiled a longitudinal database that links enrollment, degree and financial aid information for the System. In previous positions, Ms. Fink has used SPSS to analyze class scheduling patterns as well as faculty workload.

Register Today!

Find out more, visit the organizer Web site: http://spssevents.webex.com

For more upcoming SPSS online seminar, visit here.

Posted by yan at 05:51 PM

November 15, 2007

From IES Newsflash: 2007 NAEP Trial Urban District Assessments: Results in Mathematics and Reading Released Today

Results from the NAEP Trial Urban District Assessment were released today. The Nation's Report Card: TUDA Reading 2007 and The Nation's Report Card: TUDA

Mathematics 2007 provide fourth- and eighth-grade results for eleven urban school districts. Depending on when each district began participating in TUDA,

results are available for comparison to 2002, 2003, and 2005. All eleven districts participating in the 2007 assessments also participated in 2005.

Findings include the following:

* In both subjects at both grades 4 and 8, students in most districts scored lower than public school students nationally and higher than or comparably to their peers in large central cities.

Reading

* At grade 4, four (of six) districts showed score increases compared with 2002, two districts had higher average scores compared with 2005, and one district had a lower average score in 2007 compared with 2005.

* At grade 8, two (of five) districts showed increases compared with 2002, and four districts had higher average scores compared with 2005.

Mathematics

* At grade 4, eight (of ten) districts showed increases compared with 2003, four districts had higher average scores compared with 2005, and one district had a lower average score in 2007 compared with 2005.

* At grade 8, eight districts (of ten) showed increases compared with 2003, and six districts had higher average scores than in 2005.

To explore the complete results and to download the reports, visit:
http://nationsreportcard.gov

To read the executive summary of The Nation's Report Card: TUDA Mathematics 2007 and to download the PDF file, see:
http://nces.ed.gov/nationsreportcard/pubs/dst2007/2008452.asp

For the The Nation's Report Card: TUDA Reading 2007, see:
http://nces.ed.gov/nationsreportcard/pubs/dst2007/2008455.asp

To have your questions about these releases answered by NCES Associate Commissioner Peggy Carr, please submit your questions now at:
http://nationsreportcard.gov
http://nces.ed.gov/nationsreportcard/

Be sure to come back on November 20 at 3 p.m. to see Dr. Carr's responses.

Posted by ronbo at 01:48 PM

Selection from Census Update (11/15/2007): Hot Tip - American FactFinder Provides Data From Many Sources

Don't overlook the various data programs which can provide you with information through our American FactFinder data engine. From the Census Bureau home page, click American FactFinder. On the left hand side, click "Data Sets." You'll see six different options from which to tabulate data, ranging from our decennial census, to our Annual Economic Surveys. Get data from each of the programs!

Posted by ronbo at 01:32 PM

November 14, 2007

Selection from SAS Publishing News - November 2007: Support.sas.com: A New Look!

You gave us your suggestions and we listened. The support.sas.com site has undergone major changes to help you find what you need more quickly and more efficiently. We have divided the pages into four major sections:

* Knowledge Base is the self-help section of the site. It gives you immediate access to information like install center and product documentation.
* Support is the place to go when you've looked for answers, but still need help. You'll find Tech Support in this section.
* Learning Center builds upon your SAS knowledge by giving you links to books, training, certification, and more.
* Community allows you to communicate with us and your peers. Blogs, user events, e-newsletters and more are housed in this area.

Please let us know what you think!

Posted by ronbo at 02:16 PM

November 13, 2007

From IES Newsflash: Results of 2007 Trial Urban District Assessment Will Be Released November 15, 10 a.m. ET

Results from the NAEP Trial Urban District Assessment (TUDA) are scheduled to be released on November 15, 2007 at 10:00 a.m. ET in Washington, DC. The Nation's Report Card: TUDA Reading 2007 and The Nation's Report Card: TUDA Mathematics 2007 will provide fourth- and eighth-grade results for eleven urban school districts. The districts included in these reports are Atlanta, Austin, Boston, Charlotte, Chicago, Cleveland, Houston, Los Angeles, New York, San Diego, and Washington, DC.

Depending on when each district began participating in TUDA, results are available for comparison to 2002, 2003, and 2005. At the time of the release, you may view the results and watch a webcast of the report release event online at:
http://nationsreportcard.gov
http://nces.ed.gov/nationsreportcard/

For more information on the assessments, visit:
http://nces.ed.gov/nationsreportcard/reading/
http://nces.ed.gov/nationsreportcard/mathematics/

Results for TUDA 2005 are available at:
http://nationsreportcard.gov/tuda_reading_mathematics_2005/

To have your questions about the 2007 TUDA release findings answered by NCES Associate Commissioner Peggy Carr, be sure to submit your questions now at:
http://nationsreportcard.gov
http://nces.ed.gov/nationsreportcard/

Come back on November 20 at 3 p.m. to see the Associate Commissioner's responses.

Posted by ronbo at 06:23 PM

Recent ICPSR updates and additions - New Releases through 2007-11-12

Below is a list of new data collection additions to the ICPSR data archive along with a list of released data collections that have been updated:

New Additions

20323 Male and Female Wages and Employment from English Farm Accounts, 1740-1850
http://www.icpsr.umich.edu/cocoon/ICPSR/STUDY/20323.xml

21280 National Electronic Injury Surveillance System All Injury Program, 2005
http://www.icpsr.umich.edu/cocoon/ICPSR/STUDY/21280.xml

21301 Measuring Commercial Bank Profitability: Proceed With Caution
http://www.icpsr.umich.edu/cocoon/ICPSR/STUDY/21301.xml

21303 Open Market Operations and the Federal Funds Rate
http://www.icpsr.umich.edu/cocoon/ICPSR/STUDY/21303.xml

Updates

4701 Welfare, Children, and Families: A Three-City Study, Wave 3, 2005-2006
http://www.icpsr.umich.edu/cocoon/ICPSR/STUDY/04701.xml

9882 ABC News Politics Poll #2, March 1992
http://www.icpsr.umich.edu/cocoon/ICPSR/STUDY/09882.xml

You can also view a list of all studies added and updated in the last ninety days by visiting the ICPSR Web site at
http://www.icpsr.umich.edu/ICPSR/access/recent.html.

Posted by ronbo at 06:21 PM

November 08, 2007

Selections From SAS Training Report -- November 2007


Kick the Tires on SAS Training's New Web Site

The new Training site is the result of customer feedback gained in multiple focus groups last year. New features include simplified page design and navigation, curriculum paths by job role, and a powerful new course search tool. Check out the changes, then let us know what you think.

Question from the Field

Ever wonder how many observations and variables SAS can manage on a given operating system? Get the answer here.

Quick Tip: Manipulating Data with PROC SQL
This SQL Procedure tip illustrates how columns based on the numeric and character data types are defined; and how string functions, pattern matching, phonetic matching techniques, and a variety of other techniques are used with numeric and character data.

Posted by ronbo at 02:48 PM

November 07, 2007

NEW NCES REPORT! - Public Libraries in the United States: Fiscal Year 2005

This report, released by the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), includes national and state summary data on public libraries in the 50 states and the District of Columbia, with an introduction, selected findings, and several tables. The report, based on data from the Public Libraries Survey for fiscal year 2005, includes information on population of legal service area, service outlets, library collections and services, full-time equivalent staff, and operating revenue and expenditures. The report includes several key findings: Nationwide, visits to public libraries totaled 1.4 billion, or 4.7 library visits per capita. The average number of Internet terminals available for public use per stationary outlet was 11.2.

View, download, and print the full report as a PDF file:
http://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp?pubid=2008301

Posted by ronbo at 10:54 AM

November 06, 2007

Roper Center Newsletter, November 2007

There's still time to make a donation or get your seat to the 2007 Warren J. Mitofsky Award Dinner. The dinner will be held at the Bryant Park Grill in New York City on November 8th, 2007. To find out more information on how you can donate please click here.

Topics at a Glance!--"Presidential Approval"
http://www.ropercenter.uconn.edu/cgi-bin/hsrun.exe/roperweb/pom/pom.htx;start=HS_special_topics?Topic=presapproval

Do you approve or disapprove of the way the president is doing his job? How about his handling of the War in Iraq? How do you feel about his handling the campaign against terrorism? How would you rate the President overall? Find out how others feel about this topic and more in this month's Topic at a Glance--Presidential Approval!

Based on a new topic each month, TAG offers a generous free sampling of related polling data and details of survey datasets held by the Roper Center, along with articles previously published in Public Perspective magazine.

Experience the depth of information housed in the Roper Center archives - The complete list of "Topics at a Glance!" http://www.ropercenter.uconn.edu/cgi-bin/hsrun.exe/Roperweb/pom/pom.htx;start=HS_pom_list

Newly spotlighted datasets http://www.ropercenter.uconn.edu/cgi-bin/hsrun.exe/roperweb/Catalog40/Catalog40.htx;start=HS_surveyspot
Updated as of November 1, 2007

Special studies of interest recently added to iPOLL. The database now contains nearly a half million questions!
http://www.ropercenter.uconn.edu/data_access/ipoll/ipoll.html

Title: Kaiser/Harvard/NPR Public Views of SCHIP Reauthorization Survey [October,2007]
Source: Survey by Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation, Harvard School of Public Health, National Public Radio.
Methodology: Conducted by ICR-International Communications Research, October 8-October 13, 2007 and based on telephone interviews with a national adult sample of 1,527.
Search for: Searched iPOLL for 'SCHIP'; Organization: 'Kaiser', Date: '10/08/2007 to 10/08/2007'

Title: Public Perceptions of the State Children's Health Insurance Program Survey [August,2007]
Source: Survey by Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.
Methodology: Conducted by Public Opinion Strategies, August 4-August 7, 2007 and based on telephone interviews with a national registered likely voters sample of 900.
Search for: Searched iPOLL for: 'SCHIP'; Date: '08/04/2007 to 08/04/2007'

Title: Constitution and Governance Issues Survey [August,2007]
Source: Survey by PublicInterestPolling.com.
Methodology: Conducted by The Parker Group, August 20-August 26, 2007 and based on telephone interviews with a national adult sample of 1,088.
Search for: Searched iPOLL for: 'constitution'; Date: 0'8/20/2007 to 08/20/2007'

Title: Obesity Survey [July,2007]
Source: Survey by Trust for America 's Health.
Methodology: Conducted by Greenberg Quinlan Rosner Research, July 12-July 15, 2007 and based on telephone interviews with a national adult sample of 1,021.
Search for: Searched iPOLL for 'Obes%'; Organization: 'Greenberg'; Date: '07/12/2007 to 07/12/2007'

Title: Metlife Foundation Alzheimers Survey [January,2006]
Source: Survey by Metlife Foundation.
Methodology: Conducted by Harris Interactive, January 19-January 22, 2006 and based on telephone interviews with a national adult sample of 1,008.
Search for: Searched iPOLL for: 'Alzheimer%'; Organization: 'Harris Interactive'; Date: '01/19/2006 to 01/19/2006'

Additional resources - Web sites with special survey samples

Public Agenda Foundation and the National Comprehensive Center for Teacher Quality Lessons Learned: New Teachers Talk About their Jobs, Challenges and Long-Range Plans Survey

http://www.publicagenda.org/lessonslearned1/pdfs/lessons_learned_1.pdf

Posted by ronbo at 08:08 PM

From ANES list: Only 70 Days Left to Propose Content for the 2008 ANES Time Series Study

There are only 70 days left to propose content for the 2008 American National Election Studies (ANES) Time Series Study! In this study, pre-election and post-election interviews will be collected face-to-face with a new, nationally-representative sample, continuing the ANES presidential year time series that has been conducted since 1948.

Content for the 2008 ANES Time Series Study will be from three sources:
1. previous ANES Time Series questionnaires; 2. proposals received via the ANES Online Commons (http://www.electionstudies.org/onlinecommons.htm); and 3. proposals received via the ANES Bonus Minutes program.

For more information, visit the "Study Description" link in the header of the Online Commons. While you are visiting the Online Commons, you may be interested to read and comment on the first three proposals that we have received:
- "Native Born or Naturalized Americans"
- "Monetary Recruitment and the Rise of Internet Fundraising"
- "Interviewer-coded items"

Also, for the first time, ANES is allowing interested persons to purchase space on the survey through our "Bonus Minutes" program. Persons who purchase this space can, subject to proposal review procedures, guarantee that topics and questions of their choosing are covered on the 2008 survey. The funds raised from the Bonus Minutes program will not only purchase space for the requested questions, but also permit the ANES to provide more public goods such as the ability to accept even more proposals from the Online Commons than we currently anticipate. For more information, visit the "Bonus Minutes program" link in the header of the Online Commons.

IMPORTANT: Both Online Commons and Bonus Minutes proposals are due no later than JANUARY 15, 2008. Again, that is only 70 days away!

If you have questions, we'd be glad to help - please contact us by email to: anes@electionstudies.org

We look forward to your proposals!

Posted by ronbo at 07:42 PM

November 03, 2007

Recent ICPSR updates and additions - New Releases through 2007-10-29

Below is a list of new data collection additions to the ICPSR data archive along with a list of released data collections that have been updated:

New Additions

4375 Social Sciences Data and Government Information Feedback Survey,
October 2005 [United States]
http://www.icpsr.umich.edu/cocoon/ICPSR/STUDY/04375.xml

20022 Monitoring the Future: A Continuing Study of American Youth
(12th-Grade Survey), 2006
http://www.icpsr.umich.edu/cocoon/ICPSR/STUDY/20022.xml

20180 Monitoring the Future: A Continuing Study of American Youth (8th- and 10th-Grade Surveys), 2006
http://www.icpsr.umich.edu/cocoon/ICPSR/STUDY/20180.xml

20501 Polish General Social Survey, 1992-2002
http://www.icpsr.umich.edu/cocoon/ICPSR/STUDY/20501.xml

20660 County Characteristics, 2000-2007 [United States]
http://www.icpsr.umich.edu/cocoon/ICPSR/STUDY/20660.xml

20760 National Judicial Reporting Program, 2004: [United States]
http://www.icpsr.umich.edu/cocoon/ICPSR/STUDY/20760.xml

21020 Impact of Violent Victimization on Physical and Mental Health Among Women in the United States, 1994-1996
http://www.icpsr.umich.edu/cocoon/ICPSR/STUDY/21020.xml

21021 Trajectories of Violent Offending and Risk Status Across Adolescence and Early Adulthood, 1976-1986 [United States]
http://www.icpsr.umich.edu/cocoon/ICPSR/STUDY/21021.xml

Updates

2766 Project on Human Development in Chicago Neighborhoods: Community
Survey, 1994-1995
http://www.icpsr.umich.edu/cocoon/ICPSR/STUDY/02766.xml

6252 Teenage Attitudes and Behavior Concerning Tobacco, June-July 1992: [United States]
http://www.icpsr.umich.edu/cocoon/ICPSR/STUDY/06252.xml

8973 Census of Public and Private Juvenile Detention, Correctional, and Shelter Facilities, 1986-1987: [United States]
http://www.icpsr.umich.edu/cocoon/ICPSR/STUDY/08973.xml

9307 Current Population Surveys: Uniform March Files, 1964-1988
http://www.icpsr.umich.edu/cocoon/ICPSR/STUDY/09307.xml

9445 Census of Public and Private Juvenile Detention, Correctional, and Shelter Facilities, 1988-1989: [United States]
http://www.icpsr.umich.edu/cocoon/ICPSR/STUDY/09445.xml

You can also view a list of all studies added and updated in the last ninety days by visiting the ICPSR Web site at
http://www.icpsr.umich.edu/ICPSR/access/recent.html.

Posted by ronbo at 08:52 AM

From IES Newsflash: New NCES Report Highlights Preschoolers' Knowledge and Skills

The first report produced using data from the third wave of the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Birth Cohort (ECLS-B), a study of a nationally representative sample of children born in the year 2001, provides a range of information about these children when they were about 4 years old.

Preschool: First Findings From the Third Follow-up of the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Birth Cohort, released by the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), shows that children at an early age demonstrated a wide range of skills and abilities. For example, 64 percent of children could identify the colors blue, yellow, orange, black, and brown without assistance at about 4 years of age, while 65 percent were proficient in naming numbers and shapes.

ECLS-B is designed to provide detailed information on children’s development, health, and early learning experiences in the years leading up to entry into school. The longitudinal study is following the progress of about 10,000 children, which is representative of the approximately 4 million children born in the United States in 2001. The study is the first national effort to directly assess children's early mental and physical development, their relationships with parents, the quality of their early care and education, and the contributions of both mothers and fathers in their lives.

Other findings from the report include:

* Three-quarters (77 percent) of the children in the study were living in two-parent households; and about two-thirds of the children’s mothers were either working full- or part-time (60 percent) or looking for work (6 percent).

* Children with two-parent families scored higher than children with single-parent families in several aspects of early literacy: letter recognition, or children’s ability to identify letters of the alphabet; phonological awareness, or understanding of the sounds and structure of spoken language; and conventions of print, or understanding such aspects as the reading of English text from left to right.

* The percentage of children demonstrating proficiency in numbers and shapes ranged from 40 percent among lower socioeconomic status (SES) families to 87 percent in higher SES families.

* About 80 percent received care from someone other than a parent on a regular basis. Specifically, 45 percent were in a center-based (non-Head Start) setting; 13 percent were in a Head Start setting; 13 percent were in a home-based relative care setting; and 8 percent were in a home-based nonrelative care setting.

Browse this document:
http://nces.ed.gov/pubs2008/preschool3/

To download, view and print the publication as a PDF file, please visit: http://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp?pubid=2008025

The data upon which this report is based are available in the ECLS-B Longitudinal 9-Month-Preschool Restricted-Use Data File and Electronic Codebook (NCES 2008-034). For information about ordering these data, which are only available in restricted-use format, please visit:
http://nces.ed.gov/statprog/instruct.asp

For more information about the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study Program, please visit:
http://nces.ed.gov/ecls/index.asp

Posted by ronbo at 08:22 AM

November 02, 2007

From QSR on Nvivo 8

Want to know what's new in qualitative research and technology? The latest copy of our newsletter is now available for you to download and it contains announcements about our soon to be released NVivo 8 software, as well as in depth user projects and the latest in qualitative computing news and events. http://www.qsrinternational.com/news_qsr-newsletter.aspx

Pre-order NVivo 8 and Save

Prior to launch, we'll be accepting orders for our new NVivo 8 software. Pre-order NVivo 8 to receive a 10% discount and
guarantee that you're one of the first to receive the new software when it's released in the first quarter of 2008.

Pre-order online at www.qsrinternational.com from Monday 3 December 2007 to save.

New NVivo 8 Features Offer Unprecedented Support

With the launch of our new software just months away, our newsletter reveals that:

* Not only will you be able to work with documents, audio files and videos directly, but with pictures too.
* Sophisticated new teamwork features make for powerful collaborative projects.
* New features will also help you to manage and work with information in a wide range of formats. There's new ways to view your materials, including a 'thumbnail' view and more flexibility when working with your data in 'sets'.
* You'll be able to see exclusive previews of the software in November at industry events around the world.

Read the newsletter for further information and watch www.qsrinternational.com as more new NVivo 8 features will be
revealed in the coming months.

QSR Training Services Go Global

In other news, we have recently taken an authorized training program into the United Kingdom and United States. Read more on page 7 of the newsletter, or go to the Conference and Events calendar on the QSR website to search for a training event near you: http://www.qsrinternational.com//training-and-events_conferences-and-events.aspx

Posted by yan at 03:22 PM

Selections from Census Product Update (November 2, 2007)

Fact of the Day
A Day in the Life of a Child

A Child's Day: 2004 examines the well-being of children younger than 18 and provides an updated look into how they spend their days. This series of 30 tables published by the U.S. Census Bureau is based on the Survey of Income and Program Participation (SIPP) and addresses children's living arrangements, family characteristics, time spent in child care, academic experience, extracurricular activities, and more. These days, some teenagers are finding that their parents are playing a more active role in their lives. In 2004, nearly 47 percent of all teenagers had restrictions on how much television they watched, what programs they watched, and what time they watched television, up from only 40 percent with television restrictions 10 years earlier.

Hot Tip
Industry Focus

What are the hot industries in your area? Who works in these industries? Industry Focus (at the Local Employments Dynamics website, click "Industry Focus" in the QuickLinks section) is a powerful analytic tool that quickly reports the top industries for your area, age group, or gender, based on eight quarterly workforce indicators. It is one of the three tools that the Local Employment Dynamics (LED) program offers for use by economic developers, employers, workers, transportation planners, and workforce investment boards.

Posted by ronbo at 12:49 PM

November 01, 2007

Upcoming Insightful Training Courses - Statistical Models in S-Plus

Nov 14 - 16 • San Francisco, CA

This three-day course covers the modeling methods available with the latest version of S-PLUS. We present a brief introduction and background of several modeling methods, which include linear, ANOVA, generalized linear, generalized additive, tree based, nonlinear, mixed effects, and survival models. Using real world data, we will focus on fitting a model and interpreting the results.

A brief introduction to model fitting at the graphical user interface provides an illustration of the ease with which model fitting can be done in this environment.

See Details

Register Now

Posted by ronbo at 06:20 PM