This National Council on Measurement in Education (NCME) module is designed to help teachers understand test reliability requirements. Focus is on the reliability of scores from teacher-made achievement tests used for interpreting norm-referenced scores. Reliability, factors affecting scores, reliability estimation methods, reliability's relation…

Examined records of 170 learning-disabled students to determine stability of Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-Revised (WISC-R) test scores. WISC-R was readministered three years later to 150 subjects. Stability coefficients were .72, .70, and .74 for Verbal, Performance, and Full Scale Intelligence Quotient scores. Results suggest WISC-R…

Psychometric issues arising from the use of minimum competency tests in local option states were examined in seven school districts. The effect of variability in reliability and difficulty level of subtests on the accuracy of decisions based on such tests is questioned, particularly as they affect mildly handicapped and marginal students.…

Examination of factors derived from responses to the Facts on Aging Quiz were found to be different from those determined intuitively by Facts on Aging Quiz's author Palmore. Found reliability and validity of scale to be moderate and recommended Facts on Aging Quiz be used for only educational and not research purposes. (Author/ABL)

Investigated sex differences in the factor structure of the Student Developmental Task Inventory, second edition, (STDI-2) in a sample of 319 college students attending fall orientation. Factor analysis showed substantive differences with only minor overlaps in the factors. Questions the validity and reliability of the SDTI-2 and appropriatness of…

Study of the reliability of a modified picture identification instrument for measuring the health knowledge of preschool children (N=311) indicated that it was reliable for three- to five-year-olds in assessing comprehensive health knowledge. (Author/CB)

Administered measures of generalized communication apprehension (CA), communication regarding the dying (CA-Dying), and death anxiety to 29 persons in a hospice volunteer training program and 30 persons on a hospice mailing list. Results suggest the CA-Dying scale possesses adequate reliability and validity to serve as useful index of difficulties…

Describes the development of a 20-item measure of irrational belief that asks only about irrational belief and not about anxiety reactions. Two studies of the scale produced evidence that it has good internal consistency and good test retest reliability. Three additional studies of the scale found evidence of validity. (Author/NB)

Reviews 12 studies to determine whether coaching improves student performance on the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT). While results are mixed, evidence suggests that coaching does not appreciably improve students' verbal or math scores. Factors such as test reliability and weighting SAT scores with high school records should be considered. Includes…

Factor analysis of the Bell Object Relations Inventory items produced four subscales interpreted to be underlying dimensions of object relations. The implications of the subscales, and the potential of the instrument for empirical examination of theoretical assumptions about the object relations ego function and its components, are discussed.…

The authors explain how they measured reliability of the Florida Vocational Assessment Performance Tests. They used the Index of Dependability, developed by Brennan and Kane, and selected a variety of cut-off scores to ascertain reliability of the measures at different levels. (CH)

A study was conducted to continue the assessment of the Group Embedded Figures Test (GEFT), to assess the value of the Hidden Figures Test (HFT), and to assess the usefulness of the two instruments used in combination as tools for predicting student success and early identification of students who may need special assistance in engineering…

Describes the applicability of the Facts on Aging Quiz in the Canadian context, and provides documentation for quiz items. Potential problems of misinterpretation of items relating to the rate of institutionalization and income levels are noted. The usefulness of the quiz in identifying differences in knowledge levels is confirmed. (Author/CT)

Because it is possible to distort the Attitudes Toward Disabled Persons Scale (ATDP) scores, the ATDP should not be used as a screening device unless it is used in conjunction with other attitude measures. It might be used as a measure of a person's knowledge of what constitutes "positive" attitudes toward disabled persons in our…

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