One promising application of diagnostic classification models (DCM) is in the area of cognitive diagnostic assessment in education. However, the successful application of DCM in educational testing will likely come with a price--and this price may be in the form of new test development procedures and practices required to yield data that satisfy…

This article presents the author's comments on Simon and Lichten's "Defining Mental Retardation: A Matter of Life and Death." Lichten and Simon (2007) argued for the use of a Total Quotient (TQ) that combines existing IQ and adaptive functioning scores into a single index. They proposed that the TQ index will improve the accuracy of mental…

This article reviews the concept and derivation of age-equivalent scores as evidence for speech-language deficits. It presents arguments against the use of age-equivalent scores in case management decisions and recommends that, when used, a report include a clear explanation of their true meaning and other summaries of test performance. (Author/DB)