Looks at how the learner variables of age, sex, language background, high school graduation status, and length of stay in the United States affect performance on six English as a second language tests: two cloze tests, a reading tests, a structure test, and two listening tests. Both test advantage and test favoritism/bias were found. (SED)

Presents methodology and results of a performance appraisal research project in a financial organization. Findings indicate that a major part of the success of performance appraisal in increasing productivity may lie in training managers in their use. An example of the specifics of what this training should cover is included. (MBR)

A battery of spatial, linguistic, and mathematical tests was administered to tenth- and twelfth-grade students to examine the relation between sex differences on particular spatial tests and sex differences on particular mathematical problems. The sex difference magnitude was not diminished by taking spatial and linguistic scores into account.…

Discusses whether and how computer programing courses can teach problem solving. Provides results of an integrated set of studies of middle school programing students whose problem solving skills increased in a programing class. Argues that "exemplary" instruction is more efficient than "typical" instruction. Examines the influence of students'…

Concludes that if students are provided with background information about topics included on the comprehension section of a standardized reading test, they will score higher on the test than will those not exposed to the information. (FL)

Responds to an article appearing in an earlier issue of the journal that discussed the relationship between social-cognitive ability and writing skill. Reports on a study that investigated the relationship and found that social cognitive ability was more closely related to oral than to written performance. (FL)

Evaluated the effects of stimulus complexity and rule usage on a visual perspective-taking task administered to preschoolers, first, third, and fifth graders, and adults. Errors decreased with age, and more errors occurred with the more complex visual arrays. Very young children could not reliably match a photograph to a physical array. (Author/RH)

Explores writing research on the composing process regarding the relationship of the topic selected to the score obtained, the relationship of the score to the use of both an outline and a rough draft, and the relationship of the amount of revision to the quality of essays obtained. (EL)

Reviews research on the time factor in language pedagogy and on the relationship between time and other factors such as age, aptitude, previous language learning experience, and the total curriculum. Discusses the advantages of compact courses and outlines steps to be taken to implement them successfully. (SED)

A theoretically based investigation of color stimulation effects on hyperactivity was conducted. Findings were that stimulation added early or late to a sustained attention task can normalize the performance of hyperactive children and reduce their activity. (Author/LMO)

A lock box for investigating preschool children's problem-solving behavior was used with 17 Down syndrome children and 17 normal children, all of whom had a mean age of 37.4 months. Small children showed greater competence, more organization, and less perseverance than those with Down syndrome. (RH)

The purpose of this study was to provide evidence of the validity of two measures of social intelligence and a self-esteem scale relative to math and reading achievement. The social intelligence measures showed modest degrees of concurrent and predictive validity; the academic self-esteem measure failed to demonstrate its validity. (Author/PN)

Organic chemistry students (N=64) completed questionnaires requesting demographic data; data on ability, previous science courses, attitudes toward self when studying chemistry, attitudes toward chemistry; and preference, difficulty, and importance of chemistry compared to other courses. These data are used to develop a profile of the successful…

Investigated A-level subject choices of students recorded before taking the O-level examination and the actual choices made. Achievement levels, influence of such factors as sex, overall ability, reasons for selecting O-level, type of school, and subject patterns in the fourth and fifth years were considered. (JN)

Compared differences in the report-writing skills of 14 doctoral and 13 nondoctoral school psychologists. The reports were categorized according to the referral problem and rated by a panel of educators. The results indicated no significant differences between the ratings of the doctoral and nondoctoral school psychologists' reports. (JAC)