Progress, or lack thereof, in the development of ability testing is reviewed. Current tests, though inadequate, respond to the demands of test consumers. Test publishers must look ahead to changing demands and begin to lead the market, rather than follow it, by drawing on basic research in testing. (SLD)

The stability of some dimensions of ability between the ages of 12 and 15 years was investigated for 225 boys and 242 girls in Sweden. Testing in grades 6, 8, and 9 indicated high stability for the general intelligence factor and for the residual of the General Visual factor. (SLD)

A mental model analysis was conducted with 27 graduate and 29 undergraduate students in the statistical hypothesis testing domain to determine the nature of relevant mental models that can be taught to novices. Results suggest the efficacy of using separate and diagrammatic strategies in teaching novices introductory hypothesis testing. (SLD)

Attention during reading lessons was explored for 116 second and third graders (60 males and 56 females). Some of the concurrent and antecedent factors that influence attention were investigated. Oral reading errors undermine attention. Nominal reading group membership is more strongly related to attention than individual fluency and comprehension…

In 4 experiments, 85 preschoolers and kindergartners had to pronounce the initial consonants of spoken words. Subjects' performance varied markedly with the linguistic structure of the words. Words with initial consonant clusters were more difficult than words beginning with a single consonant. Implications for phonemic awareness instruction are…

Decoding, working memory, and domain-specific prior knowledge were studied as predictors of comprehension for 48 university undergraduate students after rewriting notes, rereading notes, or rereading a text. Working memory was most important for comprehension of text-implicit information, whereas knowledge was relatively more important for…

Four experiments with 23 second graders in Haifa (Israel) tested the hypothesis that comprehension gains in fast-paced reading are attributable primarily to changes in short-term memory (STM) functioning. Results confirm the hypothesis, providing support for a causal role of STM functioning in text processing. (SLD)

The role of practice tests in predictions about test performance on texts was investigated in 3 experiments with a total of 180 college students. Taking a similar practice test did not help students predict their test performance. Practice tests may help students learn information. (SLD)

Two experiments were conducted with 124 undergraduate and graduate students to investigate the interaction between strategy use and accessibility to relevant knowledge. Variations in relevant knowledge accessibility significantly affected strategy use on the first memorization trial, and ease of use on the first trial affected maintenance of the…

Results for 78 college students who took a pretest on basketball knowledge, read a passage on basketball, and took an immediate or delayed posttest indicate that pretest scores are significantly related to immediate posttest scores, whereas delayed posttest scores are related to Scholastic Aptitude Test verbal scores. (SLD)

Five boys and five girls each in grades one through six (n=60 students) asked controversial questions in interviews, recognized the lack of social consensus on the controversial topics and made subtle distinctions between controversial and noncontroversial topics. Implications for discussion of controversial issues in the classroom are discussed.…

Fourteen female teachers participating in Montgomery County (Maryland) Public Schools' Students Achieving Independent Learning Program, which promotes strategies-based instruction to enhance reading comprehension of elementary school students, were interviewed about program effects. Teachers identified both strong points and shortcomings of the…

Two experiments with 188 college students investigated the facilitative effect of typographical signals such as underlining, headings, or other devices to help readers identify specific points. Results do not support a general facilitative effect of typographical signals but suggest that use of signals depends on the reader's strategic processing.…

Causal attributions of 96 college students' performance in cooperative group assignments, and students' perceptions of the underlying dimensions of causal attributions (including relationships among performance outcomes, attributional dimensions, and attributional consequences) were examined. Locus of causality was related to affective reactions.…

Use of subject-generated elaborations taught through embedded and detached training strategies was compared with experimenter-provided elaborations (or no elaborations) in a computer-based instruction unit taken by 80 administrative assistants. Results favor use of subject-generated elaborations, particularly when taught by embedded training. (SLD)