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ERIC Number: ED666111
Record Type: Non-Journal
Publication Date: 2007
Pages: 95
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: 979-8-6625-8175-3
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
Available Date: N/A
Existing Practice and Proposed Changes in Cognitive Assessment of Utah Students Identified as Deaf and Hard of Hearing
Leah Voorhies
ProQuest LLC, Ph.D. Dissertation, Brigham Young University
This study presented the past, current, and proposed practice of intelligence testing with a unique population, students identified as deaf and hard of hearing (D/HH). As a basis for describing the cognitive ability of Utah's D/HH students and to improve practice guidelines, 61 D/HH students served by Utah Schools for the Deaf and the Blind (USDB) were administered the Universal Nonverbal Intelligence Test (UNIT) standard battery and the Perceptual Reasoning Index (PRI) subtests from the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-Fourth Edition (WISC-IV). Based on these data, composite score distributions were described and compared with national standardization samples. Participants' WISC-IV PRI scores are summarized with the following descriptive statistics: M = 88.95, 11.05 points below the standardization sample's mean; SD = 14.55; skew = -0.74; and SE = 0.31. Comparing the USDB D/HH sample's WISC-IV PRI scores with the WISC-IV standardization sample's distribution of scores, the participants' scores were significantly lower (two-tailed p-value of <0.0001). Participants' UNIT Standard Battery Composite scores are summarized with the following descriptive statistics: M = 90.74, 9.26 points less than the standardization sample's mean; SD = 13.97; skew = -0.55; and SE = 0.31. Comparing this sample's UNIT composite scores with the standardization sample, the participants' scores were significantly lower (two-tailed p-value of <0.0001). Additionally, a Pearson correlation compared each participant's scores on the WISC-IV PRI with the corresponding score on the UNIT Standard Battery Composite, yielding a correlation coefficient of 0.75 with a two-tailed p-value < 0.0001. Recommendations for future guidelines regarding cognitive assessment of Utah's D/HH students are presented. In particular, this research supported administering the UNIT rather than the WISC-IV. Though no assessment is "language free," the UNIT's administration uses simple gestures for directions, rather than spoken language. Additionally, D/HH students were included in the standardization sample. Furthermore, administering one assessment, rather than several, consumes less time for the examiner and the student, saving money and decreasing student time away from classroom instruction. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]
ProQuest LLC. 789 East Eisenhower Parkway, P.O. Box 1346, Ann Arbor, MI 48106. Tel: 800-521-0600; Web site: http://www.proquest.com/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml
Publication Type: Dissertations/Theses - Doctoral Dissertations
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Utah
Identifiers - Assessments and Surveys: Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Author Affiliations: N/A