The report describes one segment of the Federal Language Testing Board's Unified Language Testing Plan (ULTP), the validation of the speaking proficiency test in Russian. The ULTP is a project to increase standardization of foreign language proficiency measurement and promote sharing of resources among testing programs in the federal government.…

This manual presents an instrument designed for visual arts education research and as a screening and identification test for use in gifted/talented education for artistically talented students. The test consists of four items or tasks that call for a demonstration of different abilities and skills. Each completed drawing is assessed and assigned…

This teacher's edition presents a chronological adaptation and extension of the classic text, "The Writing Road to Reading" by Romalda and Walter Spalding, to teach a practical, step-by-step language arts instruction which integrates all of the language strands. The method described in the book uses non-consumable teacher materials,…

This digest recommends assessing all of a person's abilities, not just some. It also discusses self-report in the context of ability assessment. Current use of self assessment methodology taps more ability areas than existing ability or aptitude tests cover. Alternative testing approaches have been called for which enhance self-discovery and…

Self-concept is one of the most popular ideas in psychological literature. Unfortunately, it is also an illusive and often poorly defined construct. Before attempting to assess self-concept, counseling practitioners or researchers must first clarify for themselves what they mean by "self-concept" and then choose a method or instrument…

A variety of informal language development assessment tools is presented for use with children with developmental disabilities. This book is written as a manual for clinicians and researchers for evaluating children who cannot meet the cognitive, perceptual, or motor requirements of standardized tests and to help evaluate aspects of language not…

This overview of the 40 year development of language proficiency rating at the Foreign Service Institute (FSI) and elsewhere in the federal government focuses on three issues pertaining to the scale and the raters: (1) the number of levels of differentiation in the scale; (2) the relation of the scale to the rating task; and (3) the calibration of…

In this study, the performance of apologies among 20 non-native speakers (NNSs) of English and 20 native speakers (NSs) of English was examined. Two questions were addressed: How did NNSs' apologies compare with NSs' in identical situations? What relationship existed between the performance of apologies by NNSs and Test of English as a Foreign…

This paper examines whether individuals who train themselves to score a performance assessment will rate acceptably when compared to known standards. Research on the efficacy of rater self-training materials developed by the Center for Applied Linguistics for the Texas Oral Proficiency Test (TOPT) is examined. Rater self-materials are described…

The report describes activities in the final year of a 3-year project designed to address the placement needs of adult education agencies teaching English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) students in California. The long-term goal was to identify instruments appropriate for use with the state's model standards for language proficiency. The two primary…

This paper analyzes the results of a pilot study at Glendale Community College (Arizona) to assess the effectiveness of a comprehensive multiple choice final exam in the macroeconomic principles course. The "pilot project" involved the administration of a 50-question multiple choice exam to 71 students in three macroeconomics sections.…

The Helpful Entry Level Skills Checklist was designed to assist preschool teachers in selecting functional skills that children (including children with disabilities) may need to make a successful transition into the public schools. These skills, for the most part, deal with attending, compliance, ability to follow directions, turn taking, ability…

This volume represents a variety of current efforts to incorporate thought-provoking methods into teaching. There are three sections. "Curriculum Developments" defines key curricular terms and offers a framework and general examples of teaching tactics. In this section, Barbara Presseisen distinguishes thinking from other cognitive…

The history of Title VI of the Higher Education Act, having to do with language education and area studies, is chronicled by an educator closely involved in development of the legislation. The review focuses on four themes that have received the most attention: debates, largely outside the field, on whether to continue federal funding for Title…

It is argued that tests of English as a Second Language based on specific instructional materials, reflecting both real-world and classroom language activities, can satisfy measurement needs and provide interesting psycholinguistic insights. It is also proposed that the potential for mismatch between test and materials can be overcome by several…