Describes the effort the state of Alabama has exerted to construct and use content-oriented tests valid for ranking applicants for employment in the state merit system. (IRT)

The author proposes that Guilford's structure-of-intellect model be used as a starting point for researchers studying the interaction of instructional media attributes with individual differences in cognitive variables. (BD)

Addresses the initial understanding that advanced undergraduate mathematics students exhibit when presented with a new concept in an environment requiring self-generation and self-validation of examples of the concept. Concludes that students who used an example generation learning strategy were more effective in attaining an initial understanding…

Determined whether young children's inconsistent production of sentence subjects was due to limitations in their knowledge of English or in their ability to access and use that knowledge. Subjects were 19 young children from 1 to 2 years old. Found that processing limitations, rather than defective grammar, explain the missing subjects in very…

Scores on Raven's Progressive Matrices correlated positively with electroencephalogram-recorded alpha rhythm frequency (AF) in 101 healthy male adults, as did one test of verbal ability and one of mental performance. However, AF did not show significant relationships with general intelligence or spatial and arithmetic abilities. (SLD)

Compares textbooks in England with those in Switzerland and Germany termed "continental" in order to assess the possibility that better textbooks might raise English schooling performance in mathematics. Differences include introducing calculators in primary school, which is regarded as risky by Continental educators, and the precedence of mental…

Describes a performance-assessment task that gives the teacher instructional feedback related to the important outcome of students becoming favorably disposed toward mathematics itself. The activity involves a cooperative-learning experience which the teacher facilitates with task, evaluation, and standards cards. The evaluation card reflects…

Studied between-group differences in test-related perceptions, engagement, and performance, and within-group predictors of science performance among groups of high school students with different motivation patterns. Results for 403 high school students are discussed in terms of R. Snow's (1994) theory of aptitude complexes and their relation to…

Research on human cognitive abilities and jobs' aptitude demands reveals that the two domains have essentially the same structure. Counselor reluctance to use cognitive assessments may be overcome by addressing the following: Which cognitive abilities should be considered? How should occupations be classified for the purposes of assessing…

Describes four effective and efficient person-centered assessment and planning tools to assist individuals with special needs in identifying skills, abilities, interests, and future plans. Discusses ways to use these tools for assessment, planning, and achievement of transition and rehabilitation goals. (Contains 29 references.) (Author/JOW)

Attempted to replicate study determining relationship between appropriateness of career choices and career maturity test scores in rural ninth grade students (N=112) using Goal Selection scale of Career Maturity Inventory Competence Test and American College Testing Program Career Planning Program. Found two career maturity measures correlated…

Provides a conceptual basis for understanding factor analysis as an analytical technique. Illustrates the basic concepts of factor analysis through Edward L. Rainbow's data from a study of variables influencing students' musical aptitude. Suggests that this technique is most appropriate in music applications where the interrelationships between…

Despite being unremittingly attacked over the past decade, the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) continues to thrive. The growth in SAT use has been stimulated by its critics and by Educational Testing Service and College Board promotional campaigns. The SAT is still erroneously used to summarize the quality of incoming classes and colleges. Includes…

Examined concurrent validity of several new and revised conceptual language measures. Administered Bracken Basic Concept Scale (BBCS), Boehm Test of Basic Concepts-Preschool Version (Boehm-PV) or Boehm-Revised, Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test-Revised (PPVT-R) to 99 preschool children attending kindergarten screening. BBCS correlated significantly…

Describes and evaluates the Primary and Intermediate versions of the Test of Language Development-2 (TOLD-2). Concludes that TOLD-2 tests should be used only as screening instruments, and suggests that poor performance on the TOLD-2 be followed with naturalistic language sampling and analysis. (MM)