The validity of using an analysis of patterns of performance on the Meeting Street School Screening test versus using the composite cutoff score for identification of learning disabilities was analyzed for 1,377 first graders. Use of subtest scatter predicted later learning disability placements less accurately than chance. (Author/DB)

Discusses various problems in preschool screening for learning disabilities. Reviews studies which show that, in spite of such problems, early identification of learning disabilities is a viable process. Examines advances in reading theory and research which point to new variables that may enhance the predictive power of early screening devices…

Examines the diagnostic utility of subtest variability for identifying students with learning disabilities (LD) by surveying students (n=2,200) in a normative sample and students (n=684) identified as LD. Results indicated that LD students did not differ from normative sample students at levels above chance. Concludes that deviation of individual…

Thirty-four (Study 1) and 37 (Study 2) pairs of three-year-old children with and without mild learning problems were presented with a battery of five or six simple cognitive tasks. Children without learning problems performed at a significantly higher level on 17 of the 18 measures. (Contains references.) (Author/CR)

Three-year-old children (n=41) with mild learning problems and 41 typical children were given a battery consisting of seven simple cognitive tasks shown to contribute toward the differentiation of children with and without mild learning problems. Picture identification, oppositional concepts, identity discrimination, and semantic…

The study hypothesized that scatter analysis of the three subtest scale scores on the Meeting Street School Screening Test (gross motor patterning, visual-perceptual-motor, and language) given at the beginning of first grade would prove to be a more accurate predictor of future placement in a learning disabilities program than the cut-off total…

Two measures used for early detection of learning problems (Preschool Screening System and Denver Articulation Screening Exam) were tested for their predictive validity. Educational placement at the end of grade one was examined and compared to pre-kindergarten test scores on the two measures. Analysis found both measures to be valid. (Author/MSE)

The purpose of this study was to determine if there were differences between learning disabled and nonlearning disabled students in skill areas and total scores on the Brigance K & 1 Screen for Kindergarten and First Grade. The study investigated whether students with learning disabilities would show significant weaknesses in language-based…

This study examined the early profiles of 270 kindergarten students screened for learning difficulties in kindergarten with SEARCH (an early identification measure) of which 32 had inadequate reading skills at the end of second grade. The SEARCH instrument tended to underidentify children from higher socioeconomic backgrounds and overidentify…

This study investigated whether the Developmental Indicators for the Assessment of Learning-Revised (DIAL-R) norms, established with American children, are applicable to a Canadian population. Based on an early childhood model which incorporates ecological validity as well as predictive validity, the DIAL-R assesses three areas: motor, concepts…

Hierarchical cluster analysis techniques were used to identify subtypes of 125 Minnesota students with learning disabilities (LD) in grades 1 through 6, and to investigate their academic performance. The measure used for clustering was the Basic Academic Skills Samples (BASS), an index of student proficiency in basic academic skill areas (reading,…