Issues related to ability testing and affirmative action are discussed, including the fair use of tests in academic and occupational selection, the effects of testing upon the tested individual, and implications of the issues for the major participants. Types and functions of ability tests, both aptitude and achievement, are described. Studies of…

The paper highlights economic and social problems that current population trends in New York State are likely to create. Major features of population change in New York are: (1) transition from steady growth to near stability; (2) an end to metropolitan growth statewide and the onset of decline in four of the state's ten Standard Metropolitan…

This is the final report on a three year project designed to investigate the development of problem-solving strategies in elementary school children. In this project the personality of the child as it is reflected in problem solving style is examined. The hybothesis that reflective children are more competent problem solvers than impulsive…

As part of the development of a classroom interaction observation instrument, this report presents the results of a comparative study of group interaction in contrasting educational environments (open and traditional) with children of different socioeconomic backgrounds (middle and lower classes). Additionally, problems of adequately assessing…

The 1978 Wisconsin assessment program, involving students in grades 4, 8, and 12, focused upon: (1) state-developed tests referenced to state objectives for computation and everyday money and measurement skills; (2) the Comprehensive Tests of Basic Skills: mathematics, reading, and language; (3) comparison of results of the 1976, 1977, and 1978…

Recent needs assessment studies are reviewed, with emphasis on the needs of adult learners and of needs assessors. Three general purposes of needs assessment are described: (1) providers of educational services are interested in what their market (adult population) wants; (2) public agencies are interested in whether or not all segments of the…

The Chicano culture has been ill-treated and misunderstood in studies that utilize concepts of culture derived from dominant group values and norms. Historical approaches to the study of cultures like the normative approach, taxonomic concept, componential concept, and existential approach have all had impacts upon concepts of Chicano culture.…

The psychological dimensions hypothesized to describe common instructional treatments and materials, and the relevant psychological characteristics assumed to describe students are discussed in their relationship to studies of aptitude-treatment interaction (ATI). The Annehurst Curriculum Classification System is described as a practical model…

The 1978 study, which was the first to use the Offer Self-Image Questionnaire (OSIQ) with rural youth, compared the self-image of rural and urban adolescent girls and sustained the hypothesis that adolescents in larger communities think more highly of themselves than adolescents in rural communities. Most previous studies, ambiguous with regard to…

English essayist literacy shares many features with the discourse patterns of English speakers. Where these patterns are different from those of another ethnic group, literacy will be experienced as interethnic communication. Athabaskan discourse differs from that of English in (1) presentation of self (an Athabaskan is silent with new…

A review of the research literature on parents as teachers yields several conclusions concerning the context and function of the family in the child's learning and development: (1) the parent-as-educator functions in the context of a complex family eco-system which interfaces efficiently or inefficiently with other systems, such as the school; (2)…

This paper addresses the problems of sex discrimination and sex stereotypes faced by women in education and employment. Several models which are used to explain the current social and cultural status of women are examined and criticized. They include: (1) the biopsychological explanatory model; (2) the psychosocial explanatory model; and (3) the…

Rural American women number well over 25 million and represent all socio-economic and ethnic classifications, yet they share a conservative orientation towards sex roles and appropriate life styles, characteristic social and geographic isolation, and the dilemma of how to manage the traditional demands of rural culture and the contemporary…

For educational delivery systems to meet the needs of special rural populations of minority children, teaching and learning strategies must take into account the three factors of human identity, culture, and ruralness itself. Children who are members of special populations often have an even greater need than most children for recognition,…

The first paper presented at this conference on the evaluation and effective teaching of nursing students discusses the theoretical perspective on evaluation--that is, steps in writing and validating tests. A worksheet on multiple choice item types, with examples appropriate for nursing education, is included. The second paper discusses the…