Based on material prepared for the California Assessment Program, an argument in favor of authentic assessment is presented, and authentic assessment is contrasted with traditional standardized tests. An assessment is authentic when student performance on intellectual tasks is directly examined. Comparatively, traditional assessment relies on…

A study investigated the reliability and validity of the partial dictation test, a combination of dictation and cloze procedure, to measure foreign language listening comprehension. Subjects were 78 students of English as a Foreign Language in the second year of high school in Spain. Students listened to a passage from a commercial reader three…

Increasing emphasis is being given to the construct of course structure in educational research. The Course Structure Inventory (CSI) was designed to measure this construct as a unitary dimension made up of student attitudes toward varying degrees and kinds of structure (ACS). In addition to measuring ACS, the CSI has the added advantage of…

Several investigators, using the Bem Sex Role Inventory (BSRI), have concluded that masculine is the desired sex role of males and females. Other investigators have suggested that some of the feminine BSRI items are undesirable. In order to determine if this masculine ideal might be due to the nature of the BSRI feminine items (more undesirable…

The validity and reliability of aggregating individuals' perceptions of college organizational characteristics to more macro units of analysis were examined. The focus was the extent to which data collected in a national study met the internal consistency criterion for aggregating perceptual data to the institution level. The study assessed key…

The Bender Visual Motor Gestalt Test (BG), a test of visual-motor integration, is a screening device used to investigate school-related factors that may produce poor academic achievement and learning disabilities. Because BG test stimuli are not obviously related to classroom content, and because BG scores are frequently offered as evidence of…

The purpose of the study was to investigate the construct validity of the Jewish Employment and Vocational Service (JEVS) work samples. The specific objectives were: (1) to investigate the factor structure of the JEVS work samples; (2) to determine which work samples were good measures of general ability; and (3) to identify the work samples that…

In order to collect the necessary information on various practices and devices used in school climate assessment, 22 of the 39 school improvement projects mentioned in the Miles and Kaufman directory of effective schools programs were selected for a survey. A questionnaire was used to collect the primary data. Each program was asked for copies of…

Researchers conducted surveys of public attitudes in two Tennessee school systems in 1984-85 and 1985-86. Although interested in the survey results, one purpose of the researchers was to determine some inexpensive and relatively simple survey procedures. The researchers sought--through several pilot studies--to identify an efficient, parsimonious…

A year-long case study of the effects of an educational and vocational rehabilitation program in a youth training center was discussed in terms of fourteen issues which might threaten the validity of an evaluation or research project. This correctional institution housed women aged 14 to 21 who were long-term wards of the state, held on remand, or…

The Flesch readability index yields meaningful information about the responses of readers to texts. Because the formula is so simple, a group of English teachers wrote a program in BASIC that would count some obvious surface features of a text and calculate Flesch scores. Among the programing problems encountered were counting words (taking into…

This is a critical review of the analytical models developed by the U.S. Army to predict training device effectiveness. The Simulation Systems Technical Area of the U.S. Army Research Institute for the Behavioral and Social Sciences performed the research. Special consideration is given to a family of models known collectively as TRAINVICE. These…

A statistical and practical policy-oriented procedure for supporting or not supporting the use of student evaluations for faculty promotion decisions is described. The procedure is based on measures of teaching excellence. A comprehensive General Systems Theory type of flow diagram cross-classifies and causally relates all the relevant variables.…

The purpose of this report is to describe, evaluate, and validate a pilot assessment center (AC) established in the Center for Leadership and Personal Development at the U.S. Military Academy to develop cadets on job skills needed by newly commissioned officers in the U.S. Army. The AC programs employ a leadership evaluation development method…

Early detection and measurement of the intensity of childhood depression are important concerns for those treating depressed children. To examine issues of childhood depression, a review of the research was conducted which focused on: (1) childhood depression scales and their effectiveness; (2) correlates and antecedents of childhood depression;…