The Slosson Intelligence Test and the Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scale (Form L-M) were administered to 44 children. A comparison of measured IQs indicated that the Slosson overestimated IQ when compared with the Stanford-Binet, for 39 of the 44 children. The results also suggest that although a high degree of correlation was attained with the…

Presents reliability and standard error of measurement figures for several combinations of ability and achievement measures. Discusses the rates and types of errors that occur when such scores are used to classify children as learning-disabled. Three recommendations for using difference scores are given. (BH)

Surveyed 83 Montana school psychologists concerning use of computer-based regression discrepancy model for learning disability identification. Of respondents, 89 percent used model; 62 percent used model regularly. Nonuse was related to less agreement with model assumptions, lower perception of model's value, difficulty in locating input data,…

Refers to Lake Wobegon effect, Cannell's (1987) conclusion that all 50 states were above national average in performance on standardized achievement tests. Although commentary and research to date have focused exclusively on regular education, this article describes Lake Wobegon effect and its implications for assessment of exceptional children.…

Presents new analysis of Planning-Arousal-Simultaneous-Successive (PASS) model of information integration and provides new results to support operationalization of model. Results of factor analysis of data from PASS test battery responses of 434 students in grades 2, 6, and 10 support utility of assessing planning, simultaneous, and successive…

Surveyed school psychologists (N=127) practicing under three types of state criteria used in identifying children as seriously emotionally disturbed (SED) to determine the legal accuracy of their identifications of 12 behavioral descriptions of specific disorders. Found considerable differences in the perceptions of school psychology personnel.…

Compared the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children (Revised) and the Woodcock-Johnson Psycho-Educational Battery (W-J) for 142 children with regular and learning-disabled (LD) class placement. The W-J and WISC-R evidenced low to moderate correlations and significant mean differences. W-J/WISC-R correlations for the regular students exceeded…

Twenty-one educable mentally retarded subjects were administered the Revised ITPA twice, employing three month intervals. Six criterion instruments were also administered to explore concurrent validity. It was determined that the ITPA is a fairly stable instrument. Validity of the subtests examined was neither confirmed nor disproven. (Author)

Investigates variables drawn from the Elaboration Likelihood Model (ELM) that might be manipulated to enhance the persuasiveness of a psychoeducational report. Results showed teachers in training were more persuaded by reports with high message quality. Findings are discussed in terms of the ELM and professional school psychology practice. (RJM)

Briefly reviews recent trends in research on writing; introduces theory-based model being developed for differential diagnosis of writing disabilities at neuropsychological, linguistic, and cognitive levels; presents cases and patterns in cases that illustrate differential diagnosis of writing disabilities at linguistic level; and suggests…

Investigated referral question bias on school psychologists' classification decisions across different types of cases. Findings from 175 school psychologists who classified 5 case studies on basis of scores from intelligence, achievement, and behavioral measures revealed lack of congruence among respondents' classification decisions that was more…

This paper presents deficit grouping within a resource room as an organizational alternative to the creation of self-contained classrooms. (Author)

Analyzed diagnostic problem-solving behavior of expert practitioners in learning disabilities field. Performed log sequence analysis on thinking-aloud protocols of reading experts (N=17) assessing two randomly assigned pupils with reading and spelling problems. Found: (1) information gathering by experts not guided by theory; (2) much information…

Compared z-score discrepancy and regression procedure for determining severe discrepancy between ability and achievement among 236 learning-disabled (LD) referrals. Contrasted results with policy dictating that lowest achieving of referrals be considered LD. Evaluated each student with individual intelligence scale and achievement test. Results…

Critically examines experiment by Algozzine and Ysseldyke (1981) that found school psychologists, teachers, and other professionals overrely on referrals and underuse test scores. Examines other experiments that contradict these findings. Compares subjects, test scores, and descriptive information that subjects in these experiments received.…