In standard listening-speaking situations, non-verbal clues are normally used. These clues complement speech; they give added information about the speaker; and they probably have different meanings in different cultures. Therefore two types of listening situations should be tested: hearing only, and hearing and seeing. (AMH)

Immediate reinforcement of what has been learned is of prime importance. Ideal testing procedures are those that show students at once the rightness or wrongness of their answers. For reading comprehension, multiple choice is recommended; for production (oral or written), constructed responses (an example is given) are recommended. (IFS/WGA)

The A-Level literature exams are criticized for using language that is too vague or too difficult, and concepts too involved or sophisticated for the student. It is suggested that examiners confer with teachers and compose questions that are clear and explicit. (CHK)

This article describes a Cognitive Preference Inventory, which translates a compilation of test data into a "cognitive style map" of an individual's learning preferences. A study noted here demonstrates how learning preferences and styles can be coordinated with teaching method for highest language learning achievement. (CHK)

A detailed analysis of errors in French composition of French-speaking secondary school students in Ontario. A general conclusion is that these students do not possess a mastery of formal written French. It is hoped that the analysis will help teachers of minority Francophones elsewhere. (Text is in French.) (AMH)

An experiment with the British 16-plus examinations in French was intended to investigate the principle of an incline of difficulty in language testing and the problems facing an examiner in setting different tests on an incline. The test contained sections on reading comprehension and writing. Results are discussed. (CHK)

Comparison of the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Language's (ACTFL) Oral Proficiency Interview (OPI) and a communicative competence-oriented dictation test, involving 60 university level French, German, or Spanish majors, revealed significant correlations between the two tests. (CB)

Forms L and M of the Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test were administered to severely hearing-impaired 4- to 14-year-olds (N=102) to obtain test norms for hearing-impaired children. Mean scores for these subjects were lower than those of normally-hearing peers, illustrating differences of rates of vocabulary acquisition between hearing-impaired and…

Comparison of the Picture Vocabulary subtest of the Test of Language Development--Primary (TOLD-P-PV) and the Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test--Revised (PPVT-R) with first- through third-graders (N=48) revealed a strong correlation between the two receptive vocabulary measures. (CB)

Reviews key issues in the debate over the role of grammar in the American Council of Teachers of Foreign Languages (ACTFL) Oral Proficiency Interview and in corresponding proficiency guidelines as well as the debate's potential impact on foreign language curricula. Data describing the grammatical accuracy of 40 interviews at various proficiency…

Fifteen 1-year-olds without otitis media were compared to 12 babies who were otitis positive. No significant differences were detected on the Bayley Scales of Infant Development or the Sequenced Inventory of Communication Development (SICD) Receptive scale. However, the otitis-positive group exhibited lower SICD Expressive scores than the…

Chinese engineering students (n=29) scored significantly higher than Chinese English-as-a-second-language students (n=29) on an engineering-English reading test, although 62 percent of the variation in scores was accounted for by general English language proficiency rather than by components specific to engineering English. (Author/CB)

A study investigated the usefulness of dictation for measuring communicative competence and oral proficiency in English as a second language. Two methods of scoring dictation were used: a scale of communicative effectiveness, and the traditional error count. (MSE)

Covariance structure modeling by LISREL was used in an analysis of relations between intellectual ability, as measured by the Finnish version of the Illinois Test of Psycholinguistic Abilities (ITPA), and achievement in reading, writing, foreign language, and mathematics in longitudinal data on 234 Finnish school children. The validity of the ITPA…

This article summarizes current trends in speech and language pathology services to individuals with Down's syndrome. Speech and language pathologists (N=112) responded to a survey identifying widely used assessment instruments, therapy materials, sources of information, and needs in relation to services at five age levels. (Author/DB)