Changing ideas on intelligence testing and the heritability of intelligence are followed through a fifty-year period. Common criticisms of intelligence tests are examined, but it is concluded that intellectual tests will continue to be of value in diagnosing strengths and weaknesses, particularly of exceptional children. (Editor)

Effects of language of administration on IQ and predictions of letter learning and achievement were investigated for Anglo and bilingual Mexican American preschool children. Significant IQ differences were associated with language of test administration. No significant differences among predictions of letter task performance were obtained for…

Stephens et al. (EJ 055 112) committed a serious methodological error in holding chronological age constant in their IQ measures and allowing it to vary in their Piagetian developmental measures. This error is unrelated to differences in factor rotation methods used by these authors and was not answered in their reply. (CTM)

The experiences of an affirmative-action officer are described, including: efforts to manipulate faculty behavior, David v Goliath dimensions to job, faculty who have both created the problem and the awareness of it, academicians advancing theories of racial superiority, I.Q. tests, etc. (MLW)

A qualitative evaluation of the System of Multicultural Pluralistic Assessment (SOMPA) as implemented in a Colorado public school system is presented. The evaluation relies heavily on perceptions of participating administrators, and is very positive. (JKS)

Counselors must recognize that most intelligence tests measure a sample of the childs' intellectual functioning on a variety of tasks rather than innate potential. Intelligence varies depending on personality, development, and environmental influences. (Author/HLM)

Argues that meritocracy's erosion of democracy is well underway in this country. Focusing on "The Bell Curve: Intelligence and Class Structure in American Life" and "The Revolt of the Elites and the Betrayal of Democracy," the essay examines the concept of the cognitive elite, explains how the new meritocracy arose, and…

A 10-year longitudinal study investigated whether 37 children identified as academically gifted at preschool but who received no specific support would be identifiably different from their peers after 10 years of Finnish comprehensive school. The gifted group scored significantly higher than controls for final school grades and scholastic…

Data from 143 children with reading disabilities (RD), 100 with arithmetic disabilities (AD), and 121 controls (ages 6-16) found the RD and AD groups had significantly lower scores on all verbal IQ subtests. Many also showed significant differences between verbal and performance IQ scores, but so did many controls. (Contains references.)…

This article responds to a critique of a study in which an ambitious program of thinking skills instruction was designed, implemented, and evaluated. Concepts of intelligence and thinking skills are explored, the relationship between the two is analyzed, and the impact of instruction on both is considered. (IAH)

Teacher nominations, parent nominations, and nonverbal measures of intelligence were used to identify giftedness among 178 severely/profoundly hearing-impaired students, aged 5-20. The three identification procedures appeared to be largely independent of each other. Characteristics of gifted hearing-impaired children were similar to those of…

Describes the status of controversies regarding the definition of intelligence, its measurement, and the relative roles of heredity versus environment in the development of individual differences. Intelligence tests alone are inconclusive in examining individual children. (Author/BJV)

Genetic influence was estimated on Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children subtests from inbreeding depression scores calculated on cousin marriages in Japan (n=1,854 children) and correlated with American Black-White racial differences. The genetic contribution of racial differences in cognitive performance may be more robust than was previously…

Reviews and critically analyzes the book, "The Bell Curve: Intelligence and Class Structure in American Life." The author discusses cultural bias in intelligence tests, the errors made in assessing the cognitive abilities of blacks, and the negative effects stemming from belonging to the underclass in American society. (GR)

The Rasch model was applied to selection of items for an Arabic version of the Otis-Lennon Mental Ability Test using a sample of 599 male and female Kuwaiti secondary school and university students. Results indicated that the test is suitable for the range of ability intended to be measured. (SLD)