Discusses what the term "High-Stakes Testing" means; concerns about high-stakes testing; whether testing is an important part of good educational design; why using tests for high-stakes decisions causes problems; whether test scores improve when high-stakes assessment is mandated; and ways to help states monitor student success in the curriculum.…

Offers a model of assessment for disabled readers that yields information not only about current performance but also about the potential for learning. (FL)

Concludes that the PDIL (the Spanish version of the Test of Early Language Development) should be used with caution. Since its reliability and validity were determined with the English language version, the method used to translate test items may have some ambiguities, and some illustrations on picture cards may not be culturally appropriate for…

Examines the Decoding Skills Test (DST), a criterion referenced, diagnostic instrument designed to identify deficiencies in word decoding. (JC)

Claims that in the conventional administration of the Informal Reading Inventory (IRI) comprehension diagnosis is inordinately influenced by the reader's ability to recall information. Suggests that allowing reinspection by the reader restores recall to its proper function and may result in other advantages. (NH)

Examines The GAR, which is intended as a group assessment of reading ability for elementary and secondary school students in the areas of reading level, comprehension, study skills, and reading interests. Concludes that the test has many shortcomings. (FL)

Suggests that knowledge of phonics before learning to read (which can be measured by a new inventory) is a good indicator of future success. (JM)

Concludes that potential users of the Clymer-Barrett Readiness Test should exercise caution in drawing inferences or conclusions about children on the basis of anything other than raw score data associated with the measure. (FL)

In this study, mothers predicted their preschoolers' prereading skills beyond chance expectation. (MKM)

Researches a basal reading and a language arts method of teaching reading, advancing the possibility of using reading readiness instead of intelligence tests to predict later reading achievement. (RB)

Reviews literature on different aspects of reading readiness, then presents a reading readiness material analysis inventory constructed according to the findings of the review. Explains how the instrument can be used by educators to compare readiness program materials. (FL)

Reports that readiness tests given to children in bilingual villages in Papua New Guinea showed that children learning to read in an unfamiliar language were more confused than were children who had never had literacy instruction. (FL)