Discusses the publication process as well as research and development activities of The Magazine Group, the part of the Children's Television Workshop (CTW) that produces print materials for children, parents, and elementary school teachers. Highlights include reformatting a magazine, testing story appeal, testing children's humor, and the…

Reviews court rulings on the issue of school authority over out-of-school conduct of student athletes and others involved in extracurricular activities. Questions why good conduct rules can be so easily justified to the satisfaction of judges, although the problems with which they are designed to deal continue to exist and grow. (MLF)

Describes the use of interactive videodiscs in Dutch secondary vocational school departments of pharmaceutical education for testing theoretical knowledge and practical skills in a simulated real-life situation. An example is given, feedback and scoring are explained, and criteria for reliability with a classical text analysis are discussed.…

Because eligibility for speech-language services often is based on the relationship between the child's cognitive ability and language performance, this study examined the agreement of measurement practices used in the cognitive referencing model of eligibility determination. Administration of 5 measures to 26 preschool children with delayed…

Discusses five common myths about statistical significance testing (SST), the possible erroneous and harmful contributions of SST to educational research, and suggested alternatives to SST for mathematics education research. (Contains 61 references.) (MKR)

Models of working memory were compared in 2 experiments as means of explaining variance in the comprehension of 95 skilled and 80 learning-disabled readers from grades 4 through 7. Results suggest that learning-disabled children's working memory problems are functionally related to higher order processes and not memory alone. (SLD)

Presents two statistical topics and examples of their use in natural resource monitoring. The first topic deals with use of correlated observations in calculations of variance estimates for a regional mean, required sample size determination, and confidence intervals. The second topic concerns the use of Bayesian techniques in hypothesis testing.…

Examines the viability of replacing the conventional placement testing in mathematics with a self-assessment strategy. Describes a study of 63 adult students who completed one of two self-assessment inventories and a mathematics placement test. Found that there is a positive relationship between information provided by students on the…

One way of determining construct validity of vocabulary items in language tests is to interview subjects directly after taking the items to ascertain what is known about the target words in question. This approach was combined within the framework of lexical competency in a study of the behavior of lexical items on the Test of English as a Foreign…

Three standardized measures of child and adolescent behavior for ages 12-18 are studied: (1) Achenbach Child Behavior Checklist and Teacher Report Form; (2) Behavior Assessment System for Children; (3) Social Skills Rating System. Challenges to psychologists to include the experiences of girls in the knowledge-base grounding their practice and…

Describes a study undertaken to increase the effectiveness of student-placement systems in community colleges. Found that the use of student characteristics, such as gender, ethnicity, prior exposure to course work, and enrollment in a study-skills course, was more useful than the SAT, ACT, and College Placement Test in predicting student…

Describes how Metropolitan State College of Denver, a large undergraduate institution, developed and implemented a case-based special-education curriculum approach to special-education teacher preparation. Of 20 students prepared using the case-based method, 19 have successfully passed the State of Colorado mandated teacher competency test.…

Describes software which was developed to help collaborating pupils test hypotheses. Discusses use of the software by 9-14 year-old pupils in Scotland, comparing their activity with that of similarly aged pupils who worked with otherwise equivalent software which lacked any prompts. (Author/AEF)

Cross-section analysis of mean 8th grade NAEP math scores and SAT-I scores found that New York State students (who take Regents exams) were one grade level equivalent ahead than might be expected, given their socioeconomic background, compared to students in other states. Dropout rates were comparable. (Contains 27 references.) (MLH)

Summarizes the focus of this Tribal College issue, which addresses the need for specialized education to meet American Indian students' individual needs. States that standardized tests are not effective measures and that special education evaluation and referrals are not a neutral, objective process. Asserts that the answers lie in individual…