The extent and direction of curriculum bias in standardized reading achievement tests were examined. (Author)

Research indicates that the informal reading does not produce reliable enough information on reading ability to use it for individual placement of students, though it can be used to judge the achievement of groups. (Ed./JD)

Documents the attempts of the Legislative Committee of the South Carolina State Council of the International Reading Association to influence minimal competency testing legislation. (MKM)

This study assessed reading comprehension at different levels of second language learning. Adaptations of Carver's reading tests, a variation of the cloze procedure, were administered to 486 college students enrolled in beginning Spanish courses. Tests were found moderately reliable and were recommended for diagnostic purposes at beginning and…

Proposes, for the oral portion of the final (graduation) examination, the text as basic object, from which a section should be read aloud. A 15-point grading scale is described. Regarding content, performance in "informing,""interpreting and extrapolating," and "evaluating and discussion" are to be graded. (Text is in…

This investigation seeks to determine: the validity and reliability of cloze tests for measuring reading comprehension; the relation of cloze scores to difficulty levels of reading passages; the relation of cloze test performance to length of English training; and the merits of judgmental vs. random word deletion in test construction. (DB)

Reports on the newly devised optional Reading Comprehension Test in the high school graduation examination for Realschulen. Proposes a coordination of learning goals and teaching procedures with the various parts of the test. Offers suggestions for grading. Many examples are given. (Text is in German.) (IFS/WGA)

This article discusses the first draft of three objective tests given to students of English as a foreign language in a high school in Rome, Italy. Students' answers on the tests (Listening Comprehension, Reading Comprehension, Grammatical Structures) are analyzed. The tests will be rewritten, based on these observations. (Text is in Italian.)…

Discusses informal reading inventories and suggests that teachers adjust the inventories to their own teaching practices to assure reflection of students' ability to perform in the classrooms. (MB)

Discusses a study which compared informal reading inventory formats and which found that the most accurate measurement involved silent reading followed by oral reading. (MB)

Two types of poor readers are identified and compared with each other and with a comparable group of good readers for performance on a series of metalinguistic tasks. The specific problem underlying each of the two types of poor readers is shown to be related to two separable components of metalinguistic skill. (Author/LMO)

Concludes that the test has a well-designed reading booklet and a carefully constructed manual, but that it has a narrow applicability. (FL)

Reports on a study to develop and test a short form reading attitude survey which could be readily used by classroom teachers. Results showed that most students hold favorable attitudes toward reading, and that the survey is reliable, quick, and simple to use. (RAE)

Reliability and validity of "Degrees of Reading Power" test and "Iowa Tests of Basic Skills" reading comprehension and vocabulary tests were compared. Test scores, grades, and assigned reading levels of 191 fifth and sixth graders and 186 sixth and seventh graders in an eastern Iowa school district were used. Reliability and…

Argues that the tests used to measure reading achievement do not reflect recent advances in the understanding of the reading process, and that effective instruction best can be fostered by resolving the discrepancy between what is known and what is measured. (FL)