The concurrent validity of the peabody individual achievement test relative to the KeyMath diagnostic arithmetic test among adolescents

To investigate the concurrent validity of the Peabody Individual Achievement Test and the KeyMath Diagnostic Arithmetic Test, both instruments were administered to 171 adolescents. Math scores on the Peabody Individual Achievement Test were correlated with all scores on the KeyMath Diagnostic Arithmetic Test. Partial correlation coefficients were computed according to age, sex, race, IQ, and total group. The presence of relatively high and positive partial correlations between the scores supported the concurrent validity of the instruments.     

The visual Aural digit span test and Bender gestalt test as predictors of wide range achievement test-revised scores

Visual Aural Digit Span Test (VADS) scores and Bender Gestalt Test (BG) scores as predictors of Wide Range Achievement Test-Revised (WRAT-R) scores were examined in this study. The sample consisted of 115 children referred for low academic achievement. They were divided into three age groups: (Low) 6–0 to 7–11; (Middle) 8–0 to 9–11; and (High) 10–0 to 11–11. The scores on the 11 VADS measures and BG errors were used to predict the WRAT-R achievement. The VADS Test scores were found to predict Reading and Arithmetic in the Low Group. The BG Test did not correlate with achievement in the Low Group. In the Middle Group, the VADS Test correlated with Reading and Spelling, but not with Arithmetic. The BG correlated with all three achievement measures. In the High Group, neither the VADS Test nor BG correlated with any of the achievement measures. The results suggest that the BG and VADS Test can be used as an effective screening device for young children with potential learning problems.     

The reliability and validity of an interactive arithmetic test

A sample of 331 primary school children from seven primary schools, from Years 3 through 7, participated in this study to determine the reliability of a computer resident interactive arithmetic test, using both the method of a single sitting and that of parallel forms. Reliability coefficients up to .96 were calculated for scoring rates by the single sitting methods and up to .87 by the method of parallel forms. The study also attempted to determine the validity of the interactive test by comparing it with the arithmetic subtests of the Key Math Test (KMT, Connolly et al ., 1971). Positive, but weak, correlations up to .65 were recorded, reflecting differences in the medium of administration and assessment methodology of the two tests.     

Concurrent and predictive validity of the LET-II for average children

Memory tests, such as the Learning Efficiency Test-II (LET-II), have frequently been used to describe the memory characteristics of special populations such as persons with learning disabilities, brain damage, or Alzheimer's disease. Yet, few research studies have examined the memory characteristics of normally functioning children and compared these characteristics to their performance on ability tests or real-life achievement criteria. This study investigates the predictive and concurrent validities of the LET-II for performance on the Kuhlmann-Anderson Tests (K-A), class grades, and actual grade level functioning in reading and mathematics for third and fourth grade children of average intelligence. The LET-II memory factor scores correlated significantly with the K-A scores, class grades and actual grade level functioning in reading. The relevance of these findings for norm-referenced psychological tests, and in particular memory tests, in real-life settings is examined. © 1996 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Concurrent and predictive validity of the WISC-R,McCarthy Scales,Woodcock-Johnson,and academic achievement

Twenty-six normal first-grade children (M = 7.0 years) were administered the WISC-R, the McCarthy Scales, and the Woodcock-Johnson Scales of Cognitive Ability. Two years later, their levels of academic achievement were determined by way of the WRAT and global teacher ratings of classroom performance. Pearson intercorrelations among the summary indices of the three intellectual measures were significant and uniformly high (rang. 77-.95). Correlations between first-grade ability scores and third-grade achievement measures also were significant (range .64-.90), suggesting strong predictive validity for each of the cognitive instruments. Though not significantly so, the correlations between the Woodcock-Johnson and achievement tended to be the highest. The results indicate that all three intellectual measures are appropriate for predicting later academic achievement in young school-aged children.     

Predictive validity of the K-ABC for exceptional preschoolers

This 5-year follow-up study examined the predictive validity of the Kaufman Assessment Battery for Children (K-ABC) for 39 children identified during preschool as exhibiting language impairment (n = 10), behavior control deficits (n = 13), or normal language and behavioral development (n = 16). Mean age at follow-up was 9.75 years. The results generally supported the predictive validity of the K-ABC (p<.001). However, analyses by group indicated that the relationship between baseline K-ABC and follow-up K-ABC, language, and achievement measures for the language-impaired subjects was weak (p>.05). Although these results must be interpreted cautiously because of the small sample size, they suggest that for young children likely to be referred as at risk for future learning problems, the K-ABC may not be useful for prediction of later cognitive skills. Implications for practitioners are discussed.     

The utility of the key math diagnostic arithmetic test for adolescent learning disabled students

The Key Math Diagnostic Arithmetic Test was administered to 82 learning disabled adolescents. An analysis of the performance of these children revealed that: (a) mean LD performance peaked at approximately the fourth grade level of difficulty; (b) there was marginal variation in performance across the 14 subtests; (c) a strong negative correlation existed between years behind grade level and seven Key Math subtests; (d) the subtests factored into two ability categories, as opposed to the three suggested by the test developers; and (e) LD performance was quite distinct from that of normal children in terms of the types of computational errors made on the test.     

An examination of male-female performance in a programmed achievement learning center

College students operated under different classroom contingencies. The Programmed Achievement (PA) condition required students to evidence criterion performance (100% mastery) on weekly quizzes. Failure to show mastery performance on any of the weekly quizzes resulted in course failure. The Standard Control (S-C) condition involved a more traditional college classroom structure where students took weekly quizzes with no requirement to evidence mastery. Male and female performances were analyzed to determine if different course structures interacted with sex of student. The results indicated that PA students demonstrated higher performance than controls on weekly quizzes and a major exam. It was also shown that PA females increased at a more rapid rate than PA males, while S-C males and females were not significantly different. Theoretical implications of the results are discussed.     

Solving story-based arithmetic problems: achievement of children with hearing impairment and their interpretation of meaning

This article considers how a sample of Norwegian school children, ages 6 through 10 with hearing impairment, master three different types of elementary arithmetic problems presented in a nonreading format. The article outlines the effect of task-specific factors on the level of difficulty, as well as the children's understanding of problem structures. The results showed that semantic structure of the problems affected the level of difficulty. The problems were not solved significantly better by students from grade 4 than students from grade 1. Qualitative analyses revealed that the children interpreted the meaning of the imposed problems in three different ways: (1) as numbers and procedures, (2) as take-away situations, and (3) as part-part-whole relations.     

Relationship of WPPSI and subsequent metropolitan achievement test scores in head-start children

The MAT was administered to 35 original Head-Start children 3–4 years after initial WPPSI testing. WPPSI verbal IQ did not correlate significantly with any of the subject areas of the MAT, while Performance IQ correlated only moderately with mathematical components of the MAT (r = .42 – .52).     

Performance in solving arithmetic problems: a comparison of children with different levels of achievement in mathematics and reading

The aim of the present study was to investigate the performance in arithmetic related to achievement levels in reading and mathematics. Basic arithmetical facts and multi‐step calculations were examined. The participants were 941 pupils aged 8 (N = 415), 10 (N = 274) and 13 (N = 252) years. The pupils were divided into four groups by standardized achievement tests. One group showed low achievement in both mathematics and reading (MLRL), a second group showed low achievement in mathematics only (ML‐only), a third group in reading only (RL‐only) and a fourth group showed normal achievement in both mathematics and reading (NA). The ML‐only and the MLRL groups did not differ significantly in basic arithmetical facts at any age level, but both groups performed below the RL‐only and NA groups. The two latter groups also performed similarly at all year levels. In multi‐step calculation all groups differed significantly at the lowest age level, with the NA as the group with the best achievement, followed by RL‐only, ML‐only and the MLRL group. At the two highest age levels the relations between the groups, in multi‐step calculation, were in accordance with the results regarding basic facts. The findings indicate, for both normal and low general mathematical ability, that low achievement in reading to a small extent interferes with the pupils’ development of arithmetic performance     

Evidence of bias in predictive validity on the Kaufman assessment battery for children in samples of Anglo and Mexican American children

Possible bias in the differential predictive validity of the Kaufman Assessment Battery (K-ABC) was investigated with 76 Anglo and 90 Mexican American fifth- and sixth-grade boys and girls. All children were English-speaking and from similar socioeconomic backgrounds. The criterion variable was the Comprehensive Tests of Basic Skills (CTBS; Language, Reading, Mathematics, and Total Scores). Several statistical techniques were used to investigate test bias (examination of predictive validity coefficients; two methods of examining homogeneity of slopes of the regression lines). The results showed considerable evidence of bias in differential predictive validity, indicating that the global cognitive score of the K-ABC (the Mental Processing Composite) was less effective in predicting CTBS scores for the Mexican American group than for the Anglo group.     

An empirical examination of the construct validity of goal commitment in the persistence process

This study represents the first published investigation into the construct validity of goal commitment as it affects the persistence process. Confirmatory factor analyses revealed that goal commitment could be decomposed into multiple indicators of the same latent construct: a special factor called goal commitment that groups items related to goal importance, specificity of goals, and situational influence; a second factor represented by items indicating certainty of purpose; and a third factor consisting of items related to goals in general. The predictive validity of each subcomponent on different outcomes related to student persistence was established. While goal commitment was found to have a significant direct effect on both students' intents to persist and actual persistence behavior, neither of the other two factors were as equally predictive as measures of student retention.