Reviews the evaluation by the National Academy of Science (NAS) of the General Aptitude Test Battery (GATB), which was developed to predict the job performance of potential employees. Proposes that the NAS recommendation to correct the GATB's racial bias by "race-norming" was a political decision and not scientifically justified. (FMW)

Results from a study of 61 learning-disabled (LD) elementary students provide evidence that the Handwriting Scale included in the Test of Written Language is a valid measure of LD students' handwriting and that LD students have handwriting difficulties. (IAH)

The study evaluated the psychometric properties of reliability and construct validity of the Attitude Toward Mainstreaming Scale (ATMS) in an Australian context. It was concluded that the scale is both reliable and factorially valid in an Australian context. (Author/DB)

Relationships among the two new and the existing writing tests in the Woodcock-Johnson Psycho-Educational Battery (WJ) and other commonly-used writing tests were investigated with a sample of 44 fifth-graders. Results supported concurrent and construct validity of the WJ tests. The multiple samples writing approach is recommended as an alternative…

A methodology for developing multiple-choice critical thinking tests is described, which attempts to overcome certain problems of validity and fairness associated with such tests. It is concluded that direct evidence on test validity should be gathered using verbal reports of students' thinking on trial items. (TJH)

Suggests that language testing should be more performance-based and realigned with a current and richer understanding of the language teaching and learning processes. This kind of testing has questionable validity until a wide range of variables are successfully defined and delimited. (CB)

Evaluated quasi-experimental simulation technique designed to measure impact of individual differences in managerial styles on executive performance. Tested 20 simulation-based measures for reliability and validity. Data from two samples suggest that this quasi-experimental simulation technology may be useful in assessing managerial styles not…

Comparison of results obtained for 62 normally developing preschool children on the Bracken Basic Concept Scale, the Preschool Language Scale, and the Slosson Intelligence Test revealed low to moderate correlations between the three tests. Results suggest the tests do not measure the same abilities and thus cannot be used interchangeably. (DB)

The research on the relationship between critical thinking and verbal ability is reviewed, with emphasis on research on tests of critical thinking. The article concludes that neither critical thinking nor critical reading exist as constructs separate from verbal ability and that verbal ability accounts for test variance in these areas. (Author/DB)

Three samples of 24- to 54-month-old children with Down's syndrome were assessed using the Ainsworth Strange Situation Procedure (ASSP) of attachment security and scored according to traditional protocols. Found that developmentally younger subjects were more difficult to classify using the standard scoring rules and that the ASSP may be measuring…

The meanings of reliability and validity as they apply to standardized measures are used as a framework for applying the concepts of reliability and validity to authentic assessments. This article sees reliability as scorability and stability, whereas validity is seen as students' ability to use knowledge authentically in the field. (DB)

An examination of the extent to which scores on the Stuttering Severity Instrument (SSI) for Children and Adults, Third Edition, accurately reflect 10 judges' observations of stuttering behaviors found that SSI scores obscured the wide range of judges' raw counts and did not accurately reflect the observational data from which they were derived.…

Assessed maternal sensitivity and infants' attachment behavior to test validity of a system of classifying attachment relationships at home. Subjects were 47 mothers of preterm and 42 mothers of full-term infants. Results reaffirm Ainsworth's conceptualization of distinct attachment relationships. (HTH)

Currently there are at least four pretreatment-posttreatment (pre-post) difference score methods for determining client change. A fifth model, based on a random effects model and multiwave data, represents a growth curve approach and was hypothesized to be more sensitive to detecting significant (p<.05) change than pre-post models. Compares…

Administered College Maladjustment scale from revised Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory to college students in personal counseling (n=27), in vocational counseling (n=39), and on scholarship (n=27). Results indicated that, as predicted, students in personal counseling condition scored significantly higher than students in other…