The study examined perceptions of 135 teachers of learning-disabled students working in middle-junior high and high school programs regarding (1) presence of attributes of successful programs; (2) their professional views on field-related issues; and (3) suggestions for program improvement. (Author/DB)

Scores on the Holbrook Screening Battery, administered at age four, correctly predicted 89 percent of good readers and 75 percent of poor readers in a sample of 116 eighth graders. Characteristics differentiating good and poor readers included birth history, family history of learning disability, speech delay, and socioeconomic status. (Author/DB)

Learning-disabled and average learners (N=52) in grades 2, 4, and 6 were asked to tell the meanings of 12 proverbs. Only at the sixth grade level was a moderately significant difference in metaphoric comprehension found. (Author/DB)

Relationships among knowledge, perception, and assertive behavior were examined in 32 learning-disabled boys (9-12 years old) . Analysis of data from self-report, role playing, and teaching ratings revealed no significant interrelationships among the three components of social competence, though assertive behavior was more highly valued than…

The study compared 20 good and 20 poor male readers (all with IQs greater than 120 and between 8 and 12 years old). Significant global and specific differences in favor of achievers supported the hypothesis that neuropsychological deficit is associated with reading underachievement among intellectually superior male underachievers. (Author/DB)

Evaluation of reading-disabled children (N=57 and ages 6-11 years) found that socioeconomic status related significantly to achievement and intelligence but was not correlated with performance on neuropsychological tests. (DB)

The author discusses the educational and psychological characteristics of adolescents and young adults with learning disabilities, specific assessment practices which have been implemented to evaluate this target population, current educational programs available, and a representative sample of the empirical research conducted on the adolescent…

The tests yielded similar scores. A qualitative analysis, comparing the tests in the areas of content, quality, time efficiency and relevance for instruction found the California Achievement Test to be superior and more efficient for accessing secondary learning disabled students' math achievement levels. (Author/CL)

The study involving 108 kindergartners revealed that while children at extreme opposite ends of a school readiness continuum differed reliably in the percentage of normative stroke directions used to construct horizontal, vertical, and circular lines, the overall correlation was sufficiently low to suggest caution in using this data in screening.…

The problem of choosing educational and psychological tests to identify students with learning disabilities is discussed within a cost-efficiency framework. An efficiency index for estimating the classification accuracy of tests is presented and the use of expert judgment and the cost-effectiveness ratio is demonstrated with a numerical example.…

Three groups of children (18 dyslexic children: 18 children with reading retardation: 18 normal children) mean age nine years were given an oral storytelling test. The results point out a clear-cut differentiation between the three groups in their overall performance and the presence of atypical linguistic strategies in dyslexic children.…

Three rating scales--the Conners Parent-Teacher Questionnaire, the Queensland Teacher Questionnaire, and the Pittsburg Adjustment Scale--were used to assess the prevalence of hyperactivity among 1908 elementary children. Rates varied from 5 percent to 8.9 percent, with the overlap going 3.5 percent and the sum of those identified 12 percent. (CL)

This study investigated the relationship between hair mineral elements and childhood learning disabilities and determined which minerals, if any, separated 26 learning disabled children with 24 normal controls. The learning disabled group had significantly raised hair-lead concentrations. There were also differences in the mean levels of 10 other…

The article reviews work conducted on the assessment and training of social skills in learning disabled individuals, outlining cognitive social skills and overt social behaviors that should be included in interventions, and discussing assessment techniques (such as behavioral observation codes and sociometric techniques). (CL)

The article describes ways in which learning disabled students can use simple database management and word processing programs as active users. Involvement in these types of computer applications allows the user to be an active, creative communicator. (CL)