How do teachers respond to the competing pressures of school accountability, high-stakes testing, classroom assessment and instruction? This updated collection of articles from The Reading Teacher can help. Readers will find tools for: (1) Building school assessment policies; (2) Helping students succeed on high-stakes tests; (3) Using assessment…

An information-processing approach to language learning is examined; language aptitude is factored into the approach, and the role of working memory is discussed. The process of learning includes two processes that make heavy use of working memory is: automatization and restructuring. At first, learners must make a conscious effort to remember and…

This report discusses the outcomes of a study that examined the use of accommodations in state assessment by students with disabilities and explored several related factors. A survey of states indicated 12 states (Florida, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Maryland, Nevada, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Dakota, and West…

The first four volumes, comprised of newsletters published during the period of August 1992-January 1996, of the Association of Language Testers in Europe (ALTE) include articles on: the origins, aims, activities, and membership of the organization; conference activities; development of language testing standards and procedures; guidelines for…

A study investigated the concurrent validity of the cloze test administered with an essay test to Korean university students. Subjects were 129 students enrolled in English-as-a-Second-Language courses in Korea. A seventh-word deleted cloze test and a descriptive essay test were administered. Analysis of results indicate a significant correlation…

This study examines whether working memory capacity, a construct of current information processing theory, correlates with fluent foreign language (L2) speech production. It is based on M. Daneman's study (1991), who found significant correlation between individuals' working memory capacity and the fluency with which they can speak their first…

This report presents six core principles of inclusive assessment and accountability systems with a brief rationale and specific characteristics that reflect each principle. The principles are: (1) All students with disabilities are included in the assessment system; (2) Decisions about how students with disabilities participate in the assessment…

This report was undertaken to help the Tennessee State government comply with federal requirements that all states collect valid, reliable, and uniform data for programs receiving federal funds as English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) adult education programs. Data must be collected to report learner gains in reading, writing, speaking, and…

A study examined the role of the native language (Arabic) in assessing the reading comprehension of learners of English as a second language. Subjects were 60 secondary school students in two comparable classes in Jordan. After receiving instruction for one month using reading material in the prescribed textbook, students were administered a…

States are using a variety of approaches to assess secondary students' career technical education (CTE) skill attainment under Perkins. According to data reported in the U.S. Department of Education's "Report to Congress on State Performance, Program Year 2002-03," states and territories are currently using the following approaches to collect…

Basic neurological facts pertinent to learning disabilities are reviewed, and the nature, significance, and limitations of the neurological assessment presently utilized in clinical practice are addressed. A brief review is presented of some of the classification attempts that highlight difficulties arising from the heterogeneity of learning…

Role of school psychologists in diagnosis of specific learning disability is described. Discusses problems of definition, misidentification, and overidentification and assessment of general intelligence, achievement, perceptual motor coordination, and personality. A model for screening, assessment, and the team evaluation process is discussed, and…

Compares verbal fluency of 156 K-6 urban children (72 Hispanic, 41 Black, 43 White) using the Thematic Apperception Test and two versions of TEMAS, a new thematic apperception test using minority or nonminority characters, cultural themes, and urban backgrounds. Finds females more verbally fluent and Hispanics/Blacks more fluent on TEMAS. (MH)