Results of the fall 1993 administration of part two of the Medical Council of Canada's Evaluating Examination for 744 candidates provided evidence of the consistency of the pass/fail and cutting score definitions for the objective- structured clinical examination stations used across examiners. These results support the validity of this…

This study examined test characteristics of the Pediatric Language Acquisition Screening Tool for Early Referral-Revised (PLASTER-R), a set of developmental questionnaires for children 3 to 60 months of age. The PLASTER-R was moderately to highly successful in identifying children within normal limits for language development. Test-retest…

Presents the American Educational Research Association's position on high-stakes educational testing, which stresses conditions essential to sound implementation of such testing, including: protection against high-stakes decisions based on single tests; adequate resources and opportunity to learn; validation for each intended use; alignment…

Reviews evidence on reliability and validity of the Children's Behavior Questionnaire (CBQ); presents CBQ data on structure of temperament in childhood. Factor analyses indicate three broad dimensions of temperament: extroversion/surgency, negative affectivity, and effortful control. This factor structure also appears in ratings of children in…

Outlines challenges to classroom technology use (unrealistic expectations; hardware, software, and network reliability; copyright considerations; service capability; technological literacy; technological limitations; time; facility limitations; maintenance; working hours) and argues that while technological developments outstrip education's…

The usefulness of traditional concepts of validity and reliability, developed for large-scale assessments, for the classroom context is explored. Alternate frameworks that situate these constructs in teachers' work in classrooms are presented, and their use in an assessment course for preservice teachers is described. (SLD)

The Disruptive Behavior Rating Scale (DBRS) was designed to differentiate among the disruptive behavior disorders through administration to teachers and parents. Four studies are presented here to provide a technical analysis to fathers' responses to the DBRS-Parent Version. Reliability and construct and criterion-related validity of father…

Studied the internal consistency reliability and construct validity of scores on a Korean version of the Dimensions of Self-Concept Scale (W. Michael and R. Smith, 1976) with samples of 213, 191, and 213 junior high and high school students in Korea. Results generally support the internal consistency reliability and the construct validity of the…

A relatively new performance-based assessment, the DISCOVER process, is presented in this review. The theoretical framework of the assessment is explained, followed by a delineation of the assessment process, checklist characteristics and development, and the tasks in the five different activities. Findings on assessment validity and reliability…

Social behavior of 122 students in grades 6-8 who participate in a prevention program for behaviorally at-risk youth was rated by a parent, general education teacher, and at-risk program teacher. Parents and special program teachers were more likely to provide positive ratings of behaviors than their general education teachers. (Author/CR)

Evaluates the identity status research paradigm; reviews studies on identity status development. Maintains that the definition of ego identity and the statuses neglect a sense of temporal-spatial continuity. Reports shortcomings in the validation of the identity statuses; empirical studies reveal no significant developmental changes in identity…

An instrument was developed to assess needs of students with disabilities in regular classes and was used as the basis for providing funding support for 12,375 students. The three domains of the instrument, physical needs, learning needs, and social needs, had good construct and face validities and high score reliabilities. (Contains 10…

Collects survey data from undergraduate students enrolled in an introductory communication class to develop an operational measure of Internet self-efficacy. Finds the scale to be reliable and internally consistent. Concludes prior Internet experience, outcome expectancies and Internet use were significantly and positively correlated to Internet…

Examines the relation between a play-based assessment tool, specifically the PLAY observation system, and a standardized assessment of cognitive and social skills of preschool children. Recorded the level of play each child exhibited. Play behaviors reflected the child's cognitive and social developmental functioning. (CMK)

Three studies replicated and extended Dweck's findings regarding young children's responses to challenging achievement situations. Findings indicated that a composite of cognitive, behavioral, and affective helplessness indices at kindergarten age predicted helplessness 1 and 5 years later, above and beyond gender and kindergarten task ability.…