The Denver Developmental Screening Test (DDST) and an expressive language measure were administered to 114 children (aged 24 to 74 months) suspected of developmental difficulties. The DDST did not identify the majority of children who failed the expressive language screening, even after cutoff scores were made more rigorous. (Author/JDD)

Suggests that language testing should be more performance-based and realigned with a current and richer understanding of the language teaching and learning processes. This kind of testing has questionable validity until a wide range of variables are successfully defined and delimited. (CB)

Evaluated quasi-experimental simulation technique designed to measure impact of individual differences in managerial styles on executive performance. Tested 20 simulation-based measures for reliability and validity. Data from two samples suggest that this quasi-experimental simulation technology may be useful in assessing managerial styles not…

Comparison of results obtained for 62 normally developing preschool children on the Bracken Basic Concept Scale, the Preschool Language Scale, and the Slosson Intelligence Test revealed low to moderate correlations between the three tests. Results suggest the tests do not measure the same abilities and thus cannot be used interchangeably. (DB)

Two mathematics curricula ("Distar Arithmetic" and "Scott Foresman Mathematics" and two arithmetic tests ("KeyMath" and the "Iowa Tests of Basic Skills" for grades one-three were examined for correspondence of content and types of learning required. A consistent lack of content correspondence was found among…

A study involving 34 Dutch eighth-grade teachers and their classes explored the accuracy, reliability, and predictive validity of a logbook procedure for assessing the opportunity to learn mathematics. Results suggest that the logbook approach is reliable and that the variables measured are good predictors of the learning progress. (SLD)

The research on the relationship between critical thinking and verbal ability is reviewed, with emphasis on research on tests of critical thinking. The article concludes that neither critical thinking nor critical reading exist as constructs separate from verbal ability and that verbal ability accounts for test variance in these areas. (Author/DB)

Three samples of 24- to 54-month-old children with Down's syndrome were assessed using the Ainsworth Strange Situation Procedure (ASSP) of attachment security and scored according to traditional protocols. Found that developmentally younger subjects were more difficult to classify using the standard scoring rules and that the ASSP may be measuring…

Describes the development of the Literary Response Questionnaire (LRQ), which provides scales that measure seven different aspects of readers' orientation toward literary texts: Insight, Empathy, Imagery Vividness, Leisure Escape, Concern with Author, Story-Driven Reading, and Rejection of Literary Values. Reviews evidence for the LRQ's…

An examination of the extent to which scores on the Stuttering Severity Instrument (SSI) for Children and Adults, Third Edition, accurately reflect 10 judges' observations of stuttering behaviors found that SSI scores obscured the wide range of judges' raw counts and did not accurately reflect the observational data from which they were derived.…

Assessed maternal sensitivity and infants' attachment behavior to test validity of a system of classifying attachment relationships at home. Subjects were 47 mothers of preterm and 42 mothers of full-term infants. Results reaffirm Ainsworth's conceptualization of distinct attachment relationships. (HTH)

Currently there are at least four pretreatment-posttreatment (pre-post) difference score methods for determining client change. A fifth model, based on a random effects model and multiwave data, represents a growth curve approach and was hypothesized to be more sensitive to detecting significant (p<.05) change than pre-post models. Compares…

Administered College Maladjustment scale from revised Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory to college students in personal counseling (n=27), in vocational counseling (n=39), and on scholarship (n=27). Results indicated that, as predicted, students in personal counseling condition scored significantly higher than students in other…

This commentary on Steven Heckler (EC 608 725) addresses use of facilitated communication (FC) by individuals with autism; respect for the child offered by FC, who actually is communicating; reasons why FC might improve communication by autistic children; possible reasons for the remarkable spelling and linguistic competence shown with FC; and…

Argues that teachers need to become "informed consumers" of standardized tests in order to influence decisions about test use and about ways to help students perform at their best. Six strategies for considering the content of a test form are presented. (LR)