IQ tests and intelligence were discussed from an evolutionary perspective and implications concerning legal decisions and social policy were presented. It was concluded that disproportionate social and economic benefits need not result from the use of IQ tests in the selection of educational and occupational elites. (RD)

Investigated effects of text availability and variations in directions on children's and adults' ability to draw inferences from information implicit within a text. (AA)

The reason for Navajo children's poor performance on tests of language ability may be related more to inappropriate teaching and testing techniques than to language deficits. (MKM)

Norm-referenced tests are inappropriate for evaluating health care practitioners; criterion referenced tests better describe what is not being measured. Reliable assessment of competency should focus on the valid testing of reasonable numbers of important skills. Available from: Sage Publications, Inc., 275 South Beverly Drive, Beverly Hills,…

The interview with the social studies coordinator for the Minnesota Department of Education discusses development of a competence-based graduation test, definitions of "selected educational learner outcomes" (SELOs), relationship of Minnesota's SELOs to national standards, and problems of testing skills and attitudes. (AV)

Responses to papers in this Quarterly by Roger W. Shuy and Courtney B. Cazden. (JM)

The Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children (excluding Mazes and Digit Span) was administered to 64 third-grade children, randomly selected for IQ. Female examiners elicited higher Full Scale IQ, Verbal IQ, Comprehension, Similarities, and Vocabulary scores from all children. (Author)

At the college level, the obstacles to machine-testing of critical thinking are more pedagogical and practical than theoretical and include creating an operational definition, differentiating critical thinking skills and subskills, and establishing test reliability and validity. (MSE)

This article provides an overview of the "Golden Rule" issue, including a summary of legislative and judicial activity aimed at extending the "Golden Rule" idea, the opposition of professional associations to such proposals, and activity at the Educational Testing Service to take differential item functioning into account in…

Seventeen behaviorally disordered adolescents received training in specific test-taking skills relevant to content area and teacher-made tests. The experimental subjects scored significantly and substantially higher on a posttest of test-taking skills than did untrained matched controls. Deficits on test-taking skills may contribute to observed…

In response to J. J. Cannell's (1988) discussion of the reported "above average" achievement of the vast majority of public school systems nationwide, the nature of national norms is discussed. The public must be better informed about the interpretation of test results. (SLD)

Argues that the typical psychometric model of human intelligence is limited because the database fails to take account of the many manifestations of intelligent behavior that are displayed in the world outside the testing room. Suggests that cognitive processes are influenced by test situation or setting and examiner's level of expertise. (PS)

Examines the impact of online systems designed to be searched by end users on the process of database and product evaluation. Two testing methods, beta tests and user surveys, are evaluated, and possible solutions to testing problems are suggested. (CLB)

This article is a response to Wainer's comments on a research study representing the first major analysis of factors linked to state differences in Scholastic Aptitude Test performance. (JAZ)

Concludes that vocabulary knowledge can produce effects on reading comprehension, but that the nature of the effects depends on the method used to present the knowledge and the manner used to measure reading comprehension. (FL)