When classifying the evidence base of practices, special education scholars typically appraise study quality to identify and exclude from consideration in their reviews unacceptable-quality studies that are likely biased and might bias review findings if included. However, study quality appraisals used in the process of identifying evidence-based…

This article synthesizes reading intervention research studies intended for use with struggling or at-risk students to determine which studies adequately address population validity, particularly in regard to the diverse reading needs of English language learners. An extensive search of the professional literature between 2001 and 2010 yielded a…

This article, which introduces six papers on the validity of distinguishing subgroups of children with language and learning disabilities based on discrepancies between academic attainment and intelligence test scores, comments on the papers' diversity in samples, measurement characteristics, and statistical approaches and outlines the studies'…

The basic assumptions underlying the development of early identification procedures for at-risk children are reviewed. The effectiveness of screening measures designed to identify educationally "at-risk" children is critically examined. It is concluded that there is a general lack of evidence for the usefulness of such instruments. (Author)

Focusing primarily on learning disabled children, the article briefly reviews the literature related to perceptual skills required in reading acquisition and the validity of current perceptual measures to tap these task-related perceptual abilities, and proposes an informal task-related measure to overcome the drawbacks of more formal measures of…

The practice of evaluating certain special education tests in terms of traditional test evaluation procedures appears inconsistent with observations that these tests are often so closely tied to instructional procedures that they are not separable in practice. (Author)

The article reviews validity and reliability studies on the informal reading inventory, a diagnostic instrument to identify reading grade-level placement and strengths and weaknesses in work recognition and comprehension. Gives suggestions to improve the validity and reliability of existing inventories and to evaluate them in newly published…

This article presents an overview of literature relating to a nonverbal learning disabilities subtype. The article addresses the relationship between nonverbal learning disabilities and socioemotional functioning, generalizability of research outcomes, individual differences, and treatment validity. (Author/JDD)

This article critically examines issues of whether children with learning disabilities differentially exhibit concomitant problems in sensory integration (SI) and whether such children are helped by SI therapy. It concludes that research findings indicate that SI therapy is not merely unproven but a demonstrably ineffective remedial treatment for…

For successful classification of children with attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder, major issues include (1) the need for explicit studies of identification criteria; (2) the need for systematic sampling strategies; (3) development of hypothetical classifications; and (4) systematic assessment of reliability and validity of hypothetical…

Two methodological problems often arising in dyslexia research are considered. The first problem concerns the validity of experimental measures and the related problem of interpreting null results. The second problem involves the effects of sampling from a disabled population if the disorder under investigation has multiple unknown origins.…

The article examines the concepts of power and control in research design and applies them to a review of the validity of three studies (EC 600 064-066) evaluating the effectiveness of using Irlen tinted lenses with reading-disabled persons. Internal validity, external validity, statistical conclusion validity, and construct validity are…