In its three parts, this presentation: (1) describes five aspects of James Coleman's concept of "social capital"; (2) describes how the concept of social capital was used to develop a questionnaire for assessing teachers' investment of emotional self (personality, warmth, enthusiasm, etc.) in caregiving; and (3) provides related…

A brief overview of computer-assisted instruction (CAI) is provided. The history and theoretical framework of CAI and typical developmental stages involved in the implementation of a CAI system are outlined. The way CAI determines background knowledge of a student, presents information necessary to learn new concepts, sets its pace according to…

The instrument designed by Patricia Kearney to measure communication style was chosen for a study of validity and reliability for three reasons: (1) the format of the instrument appeared to be more descriptive than evaluative, (2) its theoretical foundations encouraged the viewpoint that there is no one best communication style, and (3) it was…

Adapted screening devices and teacher observation were used in a 1974 study of 1003 Finnish students (ages 6-8) in an effort to predict future learning difficulties. Six areas were assessed: gross motor skills, sensory-motor integration, perceptual-motor skills, arithmetic skills, socioemotional adjustment, and verbal ability. In a follow-up study…

A study was conducted to evaluate the effectiveness of the Tests of Adult Basic Education (TABE) in predicting success or lack of success in selected postsecondary health occupations programs. The predictor variables used in the project were the TABE reading and mathematics grade equivalent scores and the number of times each section of the TABE…

This booklet provides information about the Juvenile Counselor Examination developed as part of the evaluation procedures for juvenile counselor candidates in the Standards and Training for Corrections program in California. The four sections of the booklet (1) review the nature and purpose of cutoff scores in general; (2) recommend and justify a…

As a response to the artificiality of the traditional reading comprehension test, this booklet provides alternative means of testing that are within the guidelines of the British National Criteria. Ideas for testing informative, persuasive, autobiographical, and literary materials are presented in the booklet--carefully chosen to provide material…

The DeKalb County (Georgia) School District has developed a leadership assessment program called the Profile for Assessment of Leaders (PAL) that assesses eight generic competencies: (1) relating to other people, (2) communicating effectively, (3) making decisions, (4) planning and organizing, (5) supervising and evaluating, (6) professional…

Six studies are presented which investigate factors in implementing the Revolving Door Identification Model (RDIM) and the Enrichment Triad Model in gifted education for children in grades 1-8. In "An Analysis of the Productivity of Gifted Students Participating in Programs Using the Revolving Door Identification Model," S. Reis reports,…

This paper provides an understanding of the conceptual and operational relationships between evaluation, content analysis, and microcomputers so that evaluation practitioners can better address applied content analysis problems used in their work. The first section presents a general model for conducting an evaluation effort that focuses on…

The predictive validities of (1) a test of divergent thinking, (2) an experimental measure of creative performance, and (3) an inventory of creative personality characteristics were compared by correlating scores on each measure for 19 fifth graders with scores on the ACT Interest Inventory one year later. It was expected that each of the three…

In light of criticisms that teacher preparation programs do not adequately prepare prospective reading teachers and specialists for actual classroom problems, a study was conducted to determine the accuracy of teacher diagnoses and planning for reading difficulties and to examine differences in coursework preparation and classroom experience.…

A large data set of student ratings of college teaching was studied to explore previous indications that student ratings are affected by the subject area of instruction. Previous research by Marsh (1984), Feldman (1978), and Cranton and Smith (1986) reported the influence of factors other than instruction. To examine the impact of subject area on…

In response to the need to develop reliable methods of evaluating Texas students' achievement of essential competencies, this study was designed to develop multiple-choice test items in food and nutrition in all comprehensive homemaking education courses, the semester course in food and nutrition, and all occupational methods of teaching food and…

This report presents the major available evidence to date on the validity of the New Jersey College Basic Skills Placement Test (NJCBSPT). The findings are as follows: (1) results of two content-validity questionnaires show New Jersey college instructors to be in general agreement that the test content is appropriate and important to assess; (2)…