An Oral Proficiency Interview (OPI) may be evaluated either during the interview procedure (direct-method) or from a tape-made oral interaction (semi-direct method). Such variety in methods of assessment can influence test takers' scores extensively. However, it is not conclusive whether such differences are due to test format or something else.…

Traces the development of job analysis techniques and discusses several recent job analysis approaches. Examines functional job analysis, task banks, entry-level training, and task inventories. (CT)

The author states that the most accurate, realistic, and credible method of assessing individual abilities is expensive and difficult. This method, which he describes, uses assessment centers to measure individuals' competence by having them attempt job tasks under controlled conditions. Implications for trainers are included. (Author/CH)

Focusing on the precise grounds on which a person can be said to have solved a problem, six conditions are articulated which govern the application of the concept and its relationship to trying and intention. The "solving" concept is found in synonymous phrases such as "figuring out" and "finding the solution." (Author/CM)

Performance in 2 versions of a computer-animated task was compared. Participants either indicated the time of arrival of a target that rolled off a horizontal surface and fell--hidden from view--onto a landing point (production task) or judged flight time on a rating scale (judgment task). As predicted, performance was significantly better in the…

The purpose of a credentialing examination is to assure the public that individuals who work in an occupation or profession have met certain standards. To be consistent with this purpose, credentialing examinations must be job related, and this requirement is typically met by developing test plans based on an empirical job or practice analysis.…

Presents a therapeutic procedure designed to prescribe the family's troublesome behavior pattern. A complement precedes delivering a task assignment. The metaphorical task redefines the serious complaint pattern into only one of the many options a family has for dealing with each other. A case study is presented. (Author/BEF)

Reports on a study that investigated metacognitive strategy use by a pair of students working with a computer database. Strategies are inferred from analysis of the discourse, and features of a metacognitive environment are discussed. (13 references) (GLR)

Cross-national stability in private speech (PS) and short-term memory was investigated in Saudi Arabian (n=63) and British (n=58) 4- to 8-year-olds. Assumed differences in child-adult interaction between the 2 nationality groups led to predictions of Gender ? Nationality interactions in the development of verbal mediation. British boys used more…

This report presents the concepts and issues discussed at a Regional Symposium on Long-term Planning in Higher Education held in Dhaka, Bangladesh, September 21-30, 1986. Chapter 1 explores some fundamental issues about the rationale for the objectives of long-term planning. It defines long-term planning in higher education, considers its…