Developed the College Choice Influences Scale for use by administrators, and counselors. Administered scale to undergraduate students (n=188). Claims data from this scale in current form can help prospective students receive information important to their decisions regarding college enrollment. (ABL)

A study involving 96 gifted adolescents examined internal and external validity of the Thinking Styles Inventory (TSI) within the framework of Sternberg's (1988) theory of mental self-government. Results provided evidence of the external discriminant validity but lent only partial support to the internal validity of the instrument. (Author/CR)

Explores the structure of the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (2nd ed.) Low Self-Esteem Content Scale using principal components analysis. Associations with other measures provide evidence of convergent and discriminant validity. (Contains 16 references.) (Author/GCP)

This study examined the usefulness of the Infant-Toddler and the Early Childhood forms of the HOME (Home Observation for Measurement of Environment) Inventory as applied to children who are visually impaired. Results indicated that families of children (n=31) with visual impairments scored about the same as did families in the norm groups.…

Examines the higher order structure of Form G of the Myers Briggs Type Indicator. A third order component analysis of a sample (N=926) found two higher order components. This higher order analysis contributes to the research literature pertaining to the generalized structure of the personality measure. (Contains 44 references and 1 table.) (GCP)

The concern behind my question, "Can there be validity without reliability?" (Moss, 1994), was about the influence of measurement practices on the quality of education. I argued that conventional operationalizations of reliability in the measurement literature, which I summarized as "consistency, quantitatively defined, among independent…

Children with autism are able to show secure attachment behaviours to their parents/caregivers. Most studies on attachment in children with autism used a (modified) Strange Situation Procedure (SSP) to examine attachment security. An advantage of the Attachment Q-Sort (AQS) over the SSP is that it can be attuned to the secure-base behaviour of…

This paper presents a framework that institutions of higher education can use to improve, revise and introduce comprehensive systems for the collection and dissemination of information on student learning outcomes. For faculty and institutional leaders grappling with the many issues and nuances inherent in assessing student learning, the framework…

Given the high number of requests for test accommodations and the myriad of test accommodations available, test agencies give considerable attention to the process involved in the provision of test accommodations for high stakes tests. The decision to provide an accommodation to an individual with learning disabilities is based largely on the…

Early identification of social-emotional behavioral problems in infants and preschoolers is critical. Nine parent-report and caregiver/teacher-report instruments measuring preschool social-emotional behavioral problems and strengths are reviewed. Advantages to the use of parent-report and caregiver/teacher-report instruments are that they are easy…

Subjective well-being is an increasingly common indicator of adequacy of psychiatric services. An easy-to-administer assessment tool of subjective well-being that is conceptually sound, valid, and reliable is needed for use in persons with schizophrenia. The purpose of this paper was to validate the 5-item Satisfaction with Life Scale…

Authentic assessment is a growing alternative to conventional testing. This research-to-practice article describes a framework for implementing authentic assessment. The R-E-A-L framework shows how roles, equipment, assessment tools, and location can be incorporated into early childhood practices.

The National Staff Development Council (NSDC), a private, nonprofit association, has outlined high standards for educator professional learning. One demonstration of NSDC's commitment to the goal of ensuring all schools support and use high standards for professional learning is the organization's investment in developing an instrument to assess…

Although measures of student ratings of instruction have been developed and examined empirically, students' attitudes about the utility of these ratings have yet to be meaningfully quantified. Using survey responses from 1229 students at a major Canadian university, we developed a psychometrically sound measure of the usefulness of student…

Issues related to the evaluation of instructional programs developed under the auspices of the Southwest Educational Development Laboratory are briefly discussed. The Laboratory develops criterion-referenced tests which form an integral part of each instructional program. The importance of examining the reliability and validity of these tests is…