This paper gives a mathematical treatment to findings of Zimmerman and Williams and establishes a minimum reliability for gain scores when the pretest and posttest have equal reliabilities and equal standard deviations. It discusses the behavior of the reliability of gain scores in terms of variations in other test parameters. (Author/LMO)

Skilled and less skilled beginning readers (n=54) were taught to read and define 10 printed pseudowords. Post-tests revealed that experimentals retaining spellings in memory as orthographic images remembered spellings better than controls who received comparable training without the memory component. (PN)

Describes a bonus pay system in a small school district that is designed to retain and reward teachers whose students fulfill or exceed pre-established achievement goals. Students are tested at the beginning and end of each year, and the teacher's bonus is predicated on improvement in class average scores. (TE)

The Force and Motion Conceptual Evaluation (FMCE) is a multiple-choice test that has been used to evaluate physics instruction. However, the validity and reliability estimates have not been determined in a way a social scientist would expect. Few psychometric data were used to estimate the validity and reliability of the FMCE instrument. This…

When used proactively and comprehensively, assessment can be a powerful tool for evaluating the effectiveness of existing programs and practices and for identifying areas for institutional enhancement. This paper describes using the Cooperative Institutional Research Program (CIRP) and Higher Education Research Institute (HERI) surveys for campus…

There has been recent interest in Dynamic Assessment in the psychoeducational assessment of preschool children. This study investigated the concurrent validity between the Application of Cognitive Functions Scale (ACFS) (C. Lidz and R. Jepsen, 1999), a Dynamic Assessment, and the Leiter-Revised International Performance Test (Leiter-R) (G. Roid…

The present study evaluates the relationship between social learning and developmental theories in the prediction of changes in cognitive behavior. (Author)

The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of verbal awareness training on the verbal behavior of student teachers in the field of social studies. (Author)

The study reported here represents an attempt to obtain research-based information relevant to young children's learning to print. Treatment variables were selected which seemed to have high potential for improving the state of handwriting instruction. (Author)

This study examined the effects of a 16-week weight-training program on the self-concepts of college males. Significant differences between the experimental and control groups were found on five of nine self-concept measures. Pre- to posttest self-concept differences were evident in experimental, but not control, subjects. (Author/RD)

Undergraduates of different levels of ability (IQ) profited differentially from color cueing of instructional materials pertaining to the human heart. Visualization was not equally effective in achievement of different educational objectives (drawing, identification, terminology, and comprehension tests). Delayed retention of material was not…

A meta-analysis of outcomes from 32 studies investigating pretest effects was conducted. For all outcomes the average effect size was +.22, indicating an elevating effect of pretest on posttest. Duration of time between pre- and posttesting was also related to effect size. Researchers should continue to include pretest as a design variable.…

The reliability of simple difference scores is greater than, less than, or equal to that of residualized difference scores, depending on whether the correlation between pretest and posttest scores is greater than, less than, or equal to the ratio of the standard deviations of pretest and posttest scores. (Author)

The effects of weight-training and basketball programs on four basketball skills were evaluated with a pre- to posttest study of ninth-grade boys. No significant differences or trends were found among groups on the front shot, speed pass, jump and reach, or dribble. (Author/RD)

To see how clinical experiences affected attitudes about death and dying, students were tested before and after a 12-week surgical clerkship. Overall, students changed little in their fears of death and dying. Students who scored high on personality rigidity had more negative attitudes and changed less during the clerkship. (Author/MLW)