Sampled high school students (N=192) to determine whether the Self-Directed Search (SDS) and Self-Directed Search-Form Easy (SDS-E) are alternate forms for learning-disabled high school students. Found initial evidence that the SDS-E may be more appropriate than is the SDS for use with learning disabled high school students. (Author/ABB)

Reviews a writing abilities competency test based on samples of essay writing. A copy of the test is appended. (NKA)

Problems in current special education categorical research practices are discussed in terms of consistency and reliability, student heterogeneity, and lack of distinct categorical groups. Suggested changes include characteristic-oriented categorization, corresponding changes in dissemination of research findings, and greater specificity and…

Issues arising in international comparison of academic degrees and credentials, including institutional vs. governmental responsibility for the determination of equivalence, admission criteria and prerequisites for foreign student enrollment, and necessary qualifications for visiting faculty, are discussed in the context of the European Convention…

The 1976 UNESCO International Standard Classification of Education is a step forward in describing and understanding the structure of higher education systems and their links with national economies, but some problems of classification, documentation, and standardization remain to be solved. (MSE)

Reports efforts and results associated with the development and validation of a test of graphing skills for grade seven through twelve science students. Concludes that the Test of Graphing in Science (TOGS) is a valid and reliable instrument. Also discusses TOGS value to the teacher and educational researcher. (ML)

Finds the test useful but criticizes its lack of generalizability of norms and the absence of reliability, validity, or normative information for the Spanish version. (FL)

In a long-term health intervention campaign, researchers tested the proposition that consistency among people's knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors is contingent on high levels of involvement with a given subject. (DF)

Describes a study which examined the reliability, validity, and scalability of a new technique for constructing, administering, and scoring dictation tests to measure second language proficiency. Findings indicate that such tests can be constructed easily by dividing a coherent text into segments of increasing length. (SED)

A questionnaire is designed to allow assessment of a simple additive value function for testing respondent preferences for different types of information used in evaluating police services. Responses are analyzed to determine what types of information different stakeholder groups consider useful. (Author/LMO)

Reports findings of a study that examined the extent to which the variability observed in reading levels of common junior high textbooks was also present in four popular high school social studies texts. (FL)

While controlling for overall intellectual level, this study assessed the interpersonal problem-solving skills of 150 families via written tests and behavioral performances. Interrelationships between written and behavioral interpersonal cognitive problem-solving skills were examined, as were the relationships of each problem-solving measure to…

Argues that the Degrees of Reading Power test is not a valid tool for its main purpose, matching students to appropriate texts, because the test's units of text difficulty are not uniformly comparable to the test's units used to reflect a reader's ability. (HOD)

Explains significant but accounted for factors that affected the validity of the Degrees of Reading Power Test. (HOD)

A study involving 95 retarded persons (16-66 years old) revealed that the Objective Behavioral Assessment-OBA-, a behavioral system for assessing self-care, social, sheltered domestic, prevocational, and sheltered work performance skills, has a high degree of objectivity and acceptable standards of inter-rater and test-retest reliability. (CL)