Students who are engaged writers are likely to produce better writing and to enjoy writing more than students who are disengaged writers. Yet, we are unaware of any existing tool that validly and reliably measures writing engagement. In this article, we describe what writing engagement is and why it is important. Then, we present the Writing…

Concludes that while the screening test consists of well-designed and carefully standardized items, its overwhelming preponderance of visual-motor tasks minimizes its usefulness in screening for possible school learning problems. Suggests that it might best be used by therapists working with children in treatment facilities that follow a medical…

Concludes that the Bieger Test is thorough in the diagnosis of visual discrimination deficits. (FL)

Reviews the Kaufman Assessment Battery for Children, an individually administered test of intelligence and achievement. Finds it to be of high overall quality. (FL)

Warns that scores on standardized reading tests which fall at or below the chance level should be disregarded and suggests that teachers administer a lower level of the same test. Table. (RW)

Describes the Yopp-Singer Test of Phoneme Segmentation, which provides teachers with a tool for assessing children's phonemic awareness and identifying children who may experience difficulty in reading and spelling. Offers evidence of its reliability and validity, and discusses its use. (SR)

Argues that informal reading inventories fail on several points to provide accurate and reliable scores on the subskills of reading. Asserts that the inventories cannot properly be used to assess children's specific strengths and weaknesses. (FL)

Concludes that the PLAI is a unique test that can be very useful in assessing children's ability to deal with the language of instruction. (FL)

Finds a number of problems with the test and concludes that there is little real advantage to using it in preference to other published informal reading inventories now available. (FL)

Concludes that potential users of the Clymer-Barrett Readiness Test should exercise caution in drawing inferences or conclusions about children on the basis of anything other than raw score data associated with the measure. (FL)

Describes a revision of the Names Test, an easy-to-administer phonics assessment. Describes what was done to increase the test's category reliability, to further examine the test's validity, and to enhance its usability. (SR)

Concludes that the "Inventory of Teacher Knowledge of Reading" is valid in discriminating between the specialist and non-specialist in reading, but that it fails to verify the seven components that the authors claim to measure. (RB)

Presents an instrument for assessing an individual student's decoding abilities by having a teacher analyze a student's attempts to pronounce a fictitious list of children's first and last names. Argues that the instrument is valid and reliable. (MG)