Of the 15 substantive papers in this report, 12 focus on the use of the Kent Infant Development (KID) Scale with severely handicapped children. The KID Scale measures 252 behaviors usually developed during the first year of life in five domains (cognitive, motor, language, self-help, and social). It was successfully adapted to elicit reliable…

The utilization of the third grade achievement data reported by the California Assessment Program (CAP) to schools was studied. All elementary school principals in California were surveyed in 1979 regarding the uses they made of the report. Over 70 percent used their score reports to compare results across years looking for trends. Other common…

Reviews research on the use of the "T-Unit" as a measure of language ability, demonstrating that the measure has limited utility in the case of second language, since it bases itself solely on syntax and does not reward speakers for sophistication in such areas as vocabulary. (Author/CB)

Examines Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) scores and undergraduate academic factors for their prediction of performance on the Graduate Record Examination Subject Test in Psychology (GRE-P). Indicates that SAT performance affects GRE-P performance directly and indirectly. Certain academic factors, such as psychology grade point average and the…

Student perceptions of the preparation for and fairness, value as a learning experience, and logistics of a newly implemented oral examination in a course preparing senior pharmacy students for community pharmacy practice are summarized. (MSE)

The practicality of three appraisal instruments was measured in terms of user preference, namely, behavioral observation scales (BOS), behavioral expectation scales (BES), and trait scales. In all instances, BOS were preferred to BES, and in all but two instances, BOS were viewed as superior to trait scales. (Author/ABB)

Examines limitations of standard scores of achievement tests used in diagnosing learning disabilities. Consideration of these limitations is important in deciding whether a marked discrepancy exists between ability and achievement. Recommends use of developmental standard scores over status standard scores. (Author/ABB)

Addresses the four questions raised by Yelon about use of pretests with instruction--should I pretest; on what should I pretest; how should I pretest; how should I adjust to results--and answers them from the perspective of instructional designers conducting formative evaluations to improve quality of instruction under development. (MBR)

Because diagnostic capability of the WISC-R has remained in doubt, its diagnostic suitability was assessed by applying Kelley's method of estimating the proportion of score differences in excess of chance to the original subscales, Bannatyne clusters, and Kaufman's three factor groupings. Caution should be used when applying WISC-R diagnostically.…

The monosyllabic adaptive speech test (MAST) procedures were found to be reliable with children as young as 3. The accuracy of the MAST estimate of 50% speech threshold was confirmed in 60 hearing imparied and normal children 3-7 years old. With 10 hearing impaired children, MAST threshold was significantly correlated with pure-tone loss. (CL)

This bibliography represents a personal selection, focusing primarily on the use of group paper-and-pencil tests to assess teacher competence. It is organized in terms of general information, political issues, legal issues, national teacher examinations, defining competence, measurement issues, and technical information. (MT)

Describes a system in which questions tailored to the examinee's capabilities are administered by computer. Enumerates possible benefits of the system, reviews the "state of the art," and predicts potential applications of computerized adaptive testing. (MCG)

For mildly and moderately mentally retarded individuals, the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale-Revised measures at about the same level as the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale, and, consequently, it also produces much higher IQs than the Wechsler children's scales or the Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scale, Form L-M, despite high intertest…

The author reviews the use of the Raven Advanced Progressive Matrices (APM) as a general intelligence measure for selection of students to the Chicago public school magnet high school program. Advantages of the APM are cited, including its effectiveness in identifying gifted minority students. (CL)

Explains two microcomputer programs written in BASIC for the Apple IIe microcomputer which allow the user to evaluate the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-Revised and choose recommendations to fit the individual needs of the client being tested. (MBR)