A study of the persistence behavior of students who drop college courses included predictions concerning which students were most likely to drop courses, which courses were most likely to be dropped, and at what point in the semester students were most likely to drop courses. (Author/MLW)

Investigated the efficacy of predicting academic achievement as measured by the Wide Range Achievement Test using the factor scores of the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-Revised as potential predictors. Results indicated that the freedom from distractibility factor score significantly aided in the prediction of reading and spelling…

Study results from the Individualised Classroom Environment Questionnaire indicated a positive association between the degree of classroom individualization and student attitudes for 320 junior high school science students who were tested on dimensions of Personalization, Participation, Independence, Investigation and Differentiation. (Author/CM)

Establishes the validity of the Picture Potency Formula as a tool to predict the extent to which children will respond to pictures. (FL)

Discusses the overprediction of minority students' college grades in studies using test scores and high school grades. Describes a study of 790 fourth-year undergraduates, analyzing both academic and nonacademic measures to see if more accurate predictions could be obtained. Reports that the addition of nonacademic constructs resulted in better…

This study examined informal phonological awareness measures as predictors of first-grade broad reading ability with 91 former Head Start students. Regression analyses indicted that three phonological awareness tasks (invented spelling, categorization, and blending) were the most predictive of standardized reading measures obtained at the end of…

The majority of depressive symptoms, prevalent among adults (without a history of a depressive disorder) entering alcohol treatment, usually abate within 2 to 3 weeks of abstinence without specific depression-focussed intervention, but some hospitalized alcoholics experience significant depressive symptoms despite sustained abstinence. Such…

The claim that tests of intelligence and abilities are the best predictors of academic success fails to examine closely the important moderator variable as test and criterion characteristics rather than as person characteristics. (EH)

The predictive analysis approach to adaptive testing originated in the idea of statistical predictive analysis suggested by J. Aitchison and I.R. Dunsmore (1975). The adaptive testing model proposed is based on parameter-free predictive distribution. Aitchison and Dunsmore define statistical prediction analysis as the use of data obtained from an…

High rates of learner attrition from courses continue to plague distance education institutions. As educational researchers continue to examine the attrition/completion issue, many measurement problems emerge. Focusing on Athabasca University, Alberta, this paper, part of a series produced by Project REDEAL (Research and Evaluation of Distance…

A study was designed to test predictability of actual occupation from expressed vocational choice when combined separately with measures of career development. Subjects were 1,994 members of a national study of high school career development who were working more than half-time three years later (1976). Expressed vocational choice and measures of…

The effectiveness of Medical College Admission Test (MCAT) scores in predicting success during the first phase of medical education is investigated. The process by which medical students are educated and evaluated, the nature and purpose of the MCAT, and the MCAT Interpretive Studies Program developed by the Association of American Medical…

Reports a study that evaluated the efficacy of a nonranking grading system in assessing superior performance. (JT)

The predictive validity of the equation used for determining entrance into the University of Washington's freshman class during the 1978-79 academic year is examined. The sample was comprised of all freshmen entering the university directly from high school in autumn quarter 1974 who had been tested through the Washington Pre-College Test Battery…