The relationship between selected subtests from the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery (ASVAB) and corresponding subtests administered as computerized adaptive tests (CAT) was investigated using a sample of Marine recruits. Results showed that the CAT subtest scores correlated as well with initial ASVAB scores as did ASVAB retest scores,…

This paper contrasts the positions of Kane and Staiger (2002) and Linn and Haug (2002) with that of Rogosa (2002, 2003a) on the volatility in test scores as measures of school growth. In particular, these researchers disagree on whether school growth can be measured reliably in school accountability systems. The different positions of these…

One of the important underlying assumptions of all item response theory (IRT) models is that of local independence. This assumption requires that the response to an item on a test not be influenced by the response to any other items. This assumption is often taken for granted, with little or no scrutiny of the response process required to answer…

This study evaluated whether slight decrements in hearing sensitivity are associated with other communicative deficits. Data from the 38,497 students included in the National Speech and Hearing Survey (NSHS) were used to partition students into three categories of hearing sensitivity, and the prevalence of other communicative problems was computed…

This study used the Learning Style Inventory by Dunn, Dunn, and Price to identify learning style variables among school students in isolated Northeastern Manitoba communities. The importance of these learning styles to educational practice is discussed. The study sample consisted of Cree-speaking students enrolled in grades 4 through 10 at 3…

The Bootstrap method, a computer-intensive statistical method of estimation, is illustrated using a simple and efficient Statistical Analysis System (SAS) routine. The utility of the method for generating unknown parameters, including standard errors for simple statistics, regression coefficients, discriminant function coefficients, and factor…

This study of 145 middle class first grade students investigated whether a relationship exists between early acquisition of Piagetian conservation tasks and gifted performance on a mental abilities test. Students were evaluated individually on tasks involving the conservation of number, of liquid quantity, and of mass. A moderate correlation was…

A study was conducted to establish the construct validity of measures designed to assess topical knowledge. Thirty-one ninth-grade students and 44 third/fourth-grade students were interviewed to ascertain their knowledge about 4 topics; 2 weeks later they responded to 3 tests of topical knowledge. Results were analyzed quantitatively and…

A sample of 467 college freshmen attending a comprehensive, medium size, public institution on the mid-Atlantic coast was studied to examine the relationship between the development of identity and the development of cognition in traditional college freshmen. The sample was predominantly white (88.3%) and of the total number, 51 percent were male…

Factors affecting a lower-bound estimate of internal consistency reliability, Cronbach's coefficient alpha, are explored. Theoretically, coefficient alpha is an estimate of the correlation between two tests drawn at random from a pool of items like the items in the test under consideration. As a practical matter, coefficient alpha can be an index…

The validity of the Personality Diagnostic Questionnaire-Revised (PDQ-R) was examined. The PDQ-R and the Crowne-Marlowe Social Desirability Scale (SD) were administered in the spring of 1989 to 45 undergraduates (26 females and 19 males) at Gettysburg College in Pennsylvania. One month later, the Hopkins Symptom Check List (SCL-90) was…

This study investigates the validity of the Stanford Binet Intelligence Scale-Fourth Edition (S-B:4) for use with students with learning disabilities. It compares the performance of 18 elementary-age students on the S-B:4 and the Kaufman Assessment Battery for Children (K-ABC). The subjects were identified by their school as having learning…

This paper discusses cognitive and noncognitive variables, and their relationship with each other, in learning and in educational evaluation. The nature of noncognitive learning environment variables is examined. The following instruments that have been widely used in assessing classroom environment are described: (1) the Learning Environment…

The term "ipsative" refers to measurement based on intra-individual comparisons. The research literature in the social sciences contains many cautions about using ipsative data in multivariate analysis. The purpose of this paper is to identify the problems associated with the multivariate and regression analyses of ipsative data and to…