The development of reading and language awareness was investigated by measuring beginning letter and word knowledge in five- and six-year-old children of average ability. A letter and word reading test was constructed on the basis of a hierarchical representation of linguistic awareness of preschool children; 50 children's performance on this test…

Eighteen studies on the validity of tests of English as a foreign language (EFL) for college admission and placement decisions are briefly summarized. No studies were found on the extent to which these tests reflect language skills, curriculum (content validity), or theory or behavior (construct validity). Instead, all of these studies…

TO CLARIFY ISSUES INVOLVED IN THE RAPID AND CONTINUING EXPANSION OF OVERSEAS STUDY PROGRAMS FOR AMERICAN COLLEGE STUDENTS, A STATISTICAL ANALYSIS WAS MADE OF DATA OBTAINED FROM A BATTERY OF TESTS AND INTERVIEWS WITH 85 JUNIORS ACCEPTED FOR STUDY ABROAD IN THE SPRING OF 1965. FINDINGS WERE COMPARED WITH SIMILAR DATA FOR NON-APPLICANTS AND REJECTED…

Based on data collected from the 1,288 students who enrolled at Kapiolani Community College as first-time freshmen in Fall 1979, a study was undertaken to determine the characteristics of new students that are predictive of two dependent variables: (1) second semester enrollment, and (2) a first semester grade point average (GPA) of 2.0 or above.…

A non-experimental design was used to determine if scores of students enrolled in specified major coaching schools were significantly higher than scores of comparable uncoached groups. Score increases at two Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) coaching schools and Law School Admission Test (LSAT) schools were compared. Over 1,400 SAT examinees and…

This study attempts to identify potential school problems in preschool children in order to facilitate the provision of relevant information for systematic screening and early guidance. Data from the first 14 months (to the end of the preschool period) of a longitudinal study extending from 4 1/2 years of age to the end of second grade are…

A twenty-four item inventory was constructed and standardized in order to develop an instrument which measures the degree to which a preschool teacher adheres to Piaget's epistemological belief system. Using two criterion groups of teachers and graduate students--one Piagetian and one behaviorist--the inventory exhibited the ability to…

The effectiveness of a model for determining a minimal cut-off score for criterion-referenced tests was examined. The model, based upon techniques presented originally by Nedelsky and by Angoff, was first used in conjunction with a multiple choice test developed for use in certifying school counselors in Georgia. A "knowledge estimation panel" was…

Thirty eight studies which employed Graduate Record Examinations (GRE) scores in predicting success in graduate study are reviewed. The report is presented in four sections--summary of findings by major field of study (23 different major fields); 21 studies employing varied criteria of success; 13 studies employing grade-point average as the…

It has long been assumed that Part 3 of the National Boards, which stresses patient management and clinical problems, is a valid measure of "clinical competence" for doctors. These authors, challenging this premise, devised a study to analyze which components of medical school achievement are most predictive of Part 3 performance. Their…

This study at George Washington University tested for the dependence of the graduate quality point index on total scores of the Admission Test for Graduate Study in Business (an aptitude test), undergraduate quality point index, and length of time since receiving the bachelor's degree. It was hypothesized that success in the Graduate Business…

Data from the National Science Foundation Fellowship applicant records and the NRC Office of Scientific Personnel Doctorate Records File were utilized to evaluate the potential of GRE Aptitude and Advanced Tests as predictors of whether or not the candidate attained the doctorate within a period of from seven to ten years. In addition, the study…

A study was conducted to: (1) determine the simple and multiple correlation coefficients between selected educational/personal variables and academic achievement at intermediate grade levels as measured by the Iowa Tests of Basic Skills; (2) determine the multiple linear regression equations for predicting individual student achievement as…

A copying test (VAT) is described in which the test items can function as teaching objectives with the expectation that acquiring competency in the represented behaviors will be generalized to other visual-motor tasks. Six hundred and sixty-seven kindergarten first- and second-grade children were tested. Results show: (1) a reliable scoring method…

Performance of limited-English speaking graduate school applicants on the Prueba de Admision para Estudios Graduados aptitude test is compared with Graduate Record Examination results, and the validity of the two tests as predictors of academic success for bilingual doctoral students in the New York University Puerto Rico program is examined. (MSE)