The diagnostic criteria for Asperger Syndrome (AS) according to ICD-10 and DSM-IV have been criticized as being too narrow in view of the rules of onset and precedence, whereby autism takes precedence over AS in a diagnostic hierarchy. In order to investigate this further, cases from the DSM-IV multicenter study who had been diagnosed clinically…

The use of an inquiry framework to support the development of learners' scientific literacy has been supported by research on learning in science and advocated by the major science standards and policy documents. To fully engage in inquiry, however, a wide range of tools, including both activities and texts, must be employed. The successful…

A. Bellg, B. Borrelli, et al. (2004) previously developed a framework that consisted of strategies to enhance treatment fidelity of health behavior interventions. The present study used this framework to (a) develop a measure of treatment fidelity and (b) use the measure to evaluate treatment fidelity in articles published in 5 journals over 10…

"Information commitments" include both a set of evaluative standards that Web users utilize to assess the accuracy and usefulness of information in Web-based learning environments (implicit component), and the information searching strategies that Web users use on the Internet (explicit component). An "Information Commitment…

Confirmatory program evaluation is discussed as a method for conducting theory-driven evaluations. It is an impact assessment that emphasizes the explication and testing of a priori program theories within a broad assessment of program effectiveness. Greater emphasis is given to identifying the causal mechanisms or active ingredients of…

This article theorizes the issue of validity from a social constructionist perspective, particularly as it is applied to the assessment of qualitative research. Validity must be interrogated for its discursive function within the social sciences. I will argue that, as a criterion of assessment, validity polices the social science enterprise and…

Criteria for judging performance are traditionally and unproblematically invoked as a resource to be used (1) to make the assessment requirements evident to learners and (2) to provide a tool for rendering teacher judgments consistent, reliable, and fair. This paper explores the use of criteria and standards in the process of teacher judgment of…

This paper offers a brief overview of the framework that has been used for developing the tasks used to measure literacy in IALS as well as for understanding the meaning of what is being reported with respect to the comparative literacy proficiencies of adults. The importance of developing a framework is thought to be central in construct-based…

For decades a substantial body of research on teacher reflection and action has been conducted. This research contains a wealth of information on teachers' thinking about their daily work in classrooms. But what do these studies tell us about the linkage between thought and action in actual teaching? How do they contribute to our understanding, or…

Multilevel analysis is a useful technique for analyzing longitudinal data. To describe a person's development across time, the quality of the estimates of the random coefficients, which relate time to individual changes in a relevant dependent variable, is of importance. The present study compares three estimators of the random coefficients: the…

We respond to the comments of Batsche, Kavale, and Kovaleski (this issue), on Response To Intervention (RTI) and learning disabilities. Historically, discrepancy between IQ and achievement has been used by many as a criterion for identification of learning disabilities. Recently, RTI is considered as a practice for identifying consistent and…

Virtual libraries are becoming more and more common. Most states have a virtual library. A growing number of public libraries have a virtual presence on the Web. Virtual libraries are a growing addition to school library media collections. The next logical step would be personal virtual libraries. A personal virtual library (PVL) is a collection…

Most public elementary and secondary schools have "instructional paraprofessionals" who are support staff responsible for assisting in the delivery of instruction. Instructional paraprofessionals account for about 12 percent of full-time or its equivalent staff in these schools while teachers make up about half of such staff (Hoffman and…

The University of British Columbia's Planning and Institutional Research office prepared a research report for the BC Council on Admissions and Transfer (BCCAT) on the BC university graduating class of 1996 five years later. The report compared the outcomes for those students who were admitted to SFU, UBC, UNBC, and UVic as BC direct entry with…

This report discusses implementation and structural issues, as well as the needed support required to successfully institute Response to Intervention (RTI) at the secondary school level. It defines the RTI models, explores benefits and challenges faced at the high school level, shares a snapshot of implementation at the high school level, and…