A study was designed in which a battery of 11 selected instruments was given to 320 professional students (four classes) at the University of Illinois College of Veterinary Medicine to measure a variety of parameters of brain function and cognitive ability. Results were to be used to develop ability or competency profiles, to compare scores, to…

A questionnaire on reading was administered to every student in the St. Joseph, Missouri, "Rainbow" program for gifted and talented readers. The same questionnaire was administered to a cross sectional sample of fourth, fifth, and sixth grade students in regular classrooms in the same district. Among other things, results showed that (1) 75% of…

To compare the self-selection book choices of low achieving junior high school students with those of high achieving students, Title I (low achieving) and honor roll (high achieving) students chose books from the library and were given a cloze test based upon the book chosen before reading it. A cloze score of less than 37% determined that a…

Information on vocational school psychology and resource materials are presented. After an introduction to the history of vocational school psychology, a distinction is made between career education and vocational education, and components of the vocational assessment process are examined. In addition, vocational assessment methods are discussed,…

The role of the College Entrance Examination Board (College Board) in setting standards in secondary school education is traced historically. The first college entrance examinations, which became known as the College Boards) were administered in June 1901 around the country to 978 high school students. The rationale was that a set of common…

Current issues in educational communications and technology are addressed in this collection of 51 papers, which are mainly research reports. The first five papers were prepared for a symposium on the status of research in instructional technology, an introduction and four discussions of divergent points of view in the current controversy over the…

A brief review of the types and uses of tests, to aid parents in interpreting their children's test scores, is presented. Tests covered include classroom tests, standardized tests, achievement tests, aptitude tests, norm-referenced tests, and criterion-referenced tests. Issues associated with test reliability and validity are addressed and the…

A sample of 725 out of 3,241 incoming freshmen to the University of Maryland, College Park (UMCP) were administered the University New Student Census (UNSC) to determine a group profile for 1990. A selection of basic statistics included the following: (1) 53% of the incoming freshmen were male, and 71% were white; (2) approximately 20% had an A or…

Alternatives for testing the achievement of college students in Maryland are reviewed by committee members appointed by the State Board for Higher Education and Maryland's public institutions of higher education. The achievement testing alternatives would be a means of assessing institutional effectiveness; all entail the use of tests currently in…

The relative participation of high ability male and female college students as natural science majors and attrition of these students from the sciences to other majors were studied at a highly selective, comprehensive research university. Of concern were the following major fields: biology, microbiology, biophysics, premedicine, astronomy,…

Data from the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) and achievement tests and from the High School and Beyond Survey were examined to explore: (1) differences among states in the amount of coursework taken by high school students; (2) differences across states in SAT achievement test scores; (3) the relationship between course taking and achievement; and…

This is a qualitative study of science teaching for non-academic students in secondary school. Evidence from earlier studies suggested that few variations in teaching strategies are being used for non-academic students. This investigator categorizes certain pertinent teaching features which, if emphasized, have the potential to enhance the…

An introduction by Barbara S. Plake emphasizes that this volume investigates social and technical influences on test development and usage. Essential preliminary information on how tests can be used and may be interpreted is presented. Under the heading "Social and Technical Influences" are: (1) "Struggles and Possibilities: The Use…

This paper reviews the now massive general literature showing that psychological tests are fair to minorities. This literature shows that there is no single group validity, there is no differential validity, and tests overpredict rather than underpredict minority job performance. Further evidence in regard to blacks is introduced from 51…

A study compared the effects of two instructional strategies on ninth grade students' reading comprehension, retention, and attitude. Students in 15 ninth-grade classes were randomly assigned to one of three treatments: summary writing (SW), writing short answers to questions (QA), and rereading (RR), (control). The dependent measures were good…