This group study features a loss-grief inventory in the treatment of 98 substance abusers in an outpatient treatment facility. The inventory designed in this study serves both assessment (helps counselor and client identify unresolved loss-grief issues which may contribute to addiction) and treatment (assists the client through the grieving…

Describes the California Critical Thinking Dispositions Inventory (CCTDI), highlighting the test's seven subscales: inquisitiveness, open-mindedness, systematicity, analyticity, truth-seeking, critical thinking self-confidence, and maturity. Presents findings from a study using the CCTDI to determine the relationship between community college…

Tested the validity of the Brigid Collins Risk Screener (BCRS) to assess child abuse risk in a sample of 49 expectant mothers. Found that at 3 months postpartum, high-risk mothers scored significantly lower on the quality of infants' physical, social, and emotional environments than moderate or low-risk mothers. Concluded that the BCRS appears to…

Examines prominent theoretical models and assumptions about contextual factors that drive acculturation measures, which are used widely in educational research with Hispanics and other minorities. Uses Hispanic acculturation measures, particularly the Bidimensional Acculturation Scale for Hispanics and the Acculturation Rating Scale for Mexican…

Describes features of the concept of involvement, or quality of a child's activity, and a training package for observing children's involvement at child care centers. Recounts use of Leuven Involvement Scales to examine activities of over 600 children in 8 German child care centers. Findings reveal the prevalence of sex-typed activity preferences…

Students use various approaches to learning based on the interaction between their personal characteristics, task characteristics, and the learning context. While students may appear to demonstrate a particular style over time, this style may change. In fact, the ability to draw on multiple strategies for different tasks distinguishes good and…

Tested the reliability and validity of a teacher-completed checklist to identify movement difficulties in a sample of 3- to 5-year-olds. Analysis showed that the checklist identified movement difficulties and found significant differences between children who displayed movement difficulties and those who did not. Interrater reliability and…

The 32-item Attitudes about Romance and Mate Selection Scale (ARMSS) was developed to measure constraining beliefs about mate selection. Results of factor analysis showed few gender differences in the degree to which constraining beliefs about mate selection are held by single young adults. However, significant differences were found when age,…

Proposes a theoretical framework for designing online-situated assessment tools for multimedia instructional systems. Uses a graphic method based on ecological psychology to monitor student performance through a learning activity. Explores the method's feasibility in case studies describing instructional systems teaching critical-thinking and…

Describes a study that examined the potential of a hypermedia-based expert tool to scaffold regular education sixth graders engaged in a problem-based learning program. Topics include cognitive apprenticeship support for problem-based learning; using hypermedia to offer expert modeling; attitudes toward the learning environment; and self-directed…

A study compared the Court-Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) lay-volunteer program and the staff attorney model in a large midwestern city. Results indicate that CASA volunteers performed at least as well as specialized attorneys in representing children in juvenile court. (BG)

Issues in measuring language proficiency of monolingual and bilingual persons are discussed. Psychometric procedures in developing both English- and Spanish-language proficiency instruments are illustrated through development of the New York City Language Assessment Battery, an assessment of proficiency in both languages used to screen eligibility…

A technique and mathematical model--the "Catch Model"--for identifying a face previously seen are presented. Three experiments, involving a total of 38 American and 30 Israeli college students, supported the model for identification of a target face. Practical implications are discussed. (SLD)

Developmental standard score scales produce unrealistic expectations for growth of low-achieving students only if the low-achieving students are tested in an inappropriate way. Examples illustrate the unrealistic nature of such score scales when applied to the testing of learning disabled and Chapter One students. (SLD)

Describes the development, content, ancillary materials, goals, and testing and evaluation procedure of the AMIGOS educational television project. The aim of the project is to teach Spanish to students in kindergarten through second grade in schools without a qualified foreign-language teacher2 (CB)