Qualitative assessment methods typically are holistic and integrated. Compared with standardized tests, they offer a more active role for clients, a more intimate connection between assessment and the counseling process, and greater adaptability to ethnic, cultural, age, gender, and other individual differences. (Author/TE)

Two parent report inventories geared at assessing language skills in toddlers are examined, in terms of reliability, validity, and application. The MacArthur Communicative Development Inventory: Toddlers and the Language Development Survey are compared and their combined use in handicap identification is discussed. (PB)

The Computer Attitude Scale was adapted for use with Turkish university students. Translation to Turkish and back to English established the scale. Results with 282 university students indicates the utility of the scale with Turkish students, although the construct functions differently between the cultures. (SLD)

Measuring achievement is not the same as measuring the quality of teaching and learning conditions; the validity of the former is not related to the latter. As measures of school improvement, achievement test scores have not been validated. No accumulation of evidence shows assessment to be an indicator of good schooling. (MLH)

One means of establishing the validity of performance-based assessments is to determine whether the criteria for basic competencies on performance tests are reasonable in relation to expected (nationally normed) age-level performance. Links between performances on three assessments in Michigan and the Comprehensive Tests of Basic Skills illustrate…

The Detroit Tests of Learning Aptitude, 3rd Edition (DLTA-3) is a battery of 11 subtests that measure different but interrelated mental abilities. These are clinically assessed by the battery, which further attempts to delineate the factors that contribute to Spearman's factor for general intelligence. The DLTA-3 has age norms expressed for test…

The first part of this volume is concerned with theoretical and conceptual issues concerning learning potential assessment. The second part deals with methodological and measurement issues in learning potential assessment, and the third part is devoted to research projects and practical applications of learning potential tests. The following…

A report on the Language Assessment Battery (LAB) explains, in question-and-answer form, the causes and results of some changes made in the test norms. The LAB is a test of communicative language competence, written in English and Spanish versions and used for student placement in the New York City Public Schools. The report describes the test…

The IDEA Oral Language Proficiency Test (IPT II), an individually-administered measure of speaking and listening proficiency in English as a Second Language designed for secondary school students, is described and discussed. The test consists of 91 items and requires 5-25 minutes to administer. Raw scores are converted to one of seven proficiency…

During spring 1988, an initial survey was conducted among two- and four-year colleges in New York State to identify the primary reading test used for diagnosis and placement. In order to address several questions raised by the study, a follow-up survey of participating two-year colleges was conducted during fall 1989. Of the 28 two-year colleges…

Current issues in the literature on the testing of linguistic and communicative proficiency are reviewed and discussed in relation to reading comprehension testing. Several theoretical issues in language testing are discussed, including testing purposes and test validity. Areas of concern regarding methods of testing reading comprehension are then…

This module contains resource materials to help vocational education teachers construct effective written tests. (The materials supplement the videotape on "Written Test Construction.") Materials in the packet include guidelines for developing written tests in general and specific guidelines for the five major types of test items, brief…

A review of functional literacy testing in the United States from 1955-82 is provided by summarizing the results of literacy assessment studies and synthesizing the major issues which they have engendered. These reviews are grouped with respect to content, criterion-related, and construct validity. The paper concludes by (1) summarizing some of…

One teacher's experience with traditional language tests suggested that the tests did not reflect the kind of communicative language learning going on in the classroom and might be counterproductive. As a result, an experiment in oral testing was undertaken in which examinees were required to process natural discourse and to relate language to…

An emerging issue in teacher education is the essential knowledge that is a prerequisite to successful pedagogical and subject matter instruction. Skills in communication, both oral and written, and computation are critical areas which must be sufficient for further instruction. This paper addresses the issues of responsibility for developing and…