Improving written-expression curriculum-based measurement feasibility with automated writing evaluation programs.

Automated writing evaluation programs have emerged as alternative, feasible approaches for scoring student writing. This study evaluated accuracy, predictive validity, diagnostic accuracy, and bias of automated scores of Written-Expression Curriculum-Based Measurement (WE-CBM). A sample of 722 students in Grades 2-5 completed 3-min WE-CBM tasks during one school year.

Diagnosed and Nondisclosed Concussions Among Young Athletes With ADHD.

Objective: Within a sample of young athletes with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), to explore the frequency of disclosed and nondisclosed concussions, identify reasons the youth did not report a suspected concussion, and learn the frequency that the youth still practiced or played in a game after a suspected concussion.

Method: Cross-sectional surveys were completed by 448 youth athletes (ages 8-14 years) and a corresponding parent (or caregiver). As part of larger respective surveys, questions regarding ADHD status and concussion history were asked of the youth and parents.

Formative behavioral assessment across eight constructs: Dependability of direct behavior ratings and formative behavior rating measures.

Due to their promise as a feasible tool for evaluating the effects of school-based interventions, Direct Behavior Ratings (DBR) have received much research attention over the past 2 decades. Although DBR methodology has demonstrated much promise, favorable psychometric characteristics only have been demonstrated for tools measuring a small number of constructs. Likewise, although a variety of methods of DBR have been proposed, most extant studies have focused on the use of single-item methods.

Implications of bias in automated writing quality scores for fair and equitable assessment decisions.

Recent advances in automated writing evaluation have enabled educators to use automated writing quality scores to improve assessment feasibility. However, there has been limited investigation of bias for automated writing quality scores with students from diverse racial or ethnic backgrounds. The use of biased scores could contribute to implementing unfair practices with negative consequences on student learning.

Cost analysis and cost-effectiveness of hand-scored and automated approaches to writing screening.

Although researchers have investigated technical adequacy and usability of written-expression curriculum-based measures (WE-CBM), the economic implications of different scoring approaches have largely been ignored. The absence of such knowledge can undermine the effective allocation of resources and lead to the adoption of suboptimal measures for the identification of students at risk for poor writing outcomes. Therefore, we used the Ingredients Method to compare implementation costs and cost-effectiveness of hand-calculated and automated scoring approaches.

Diagnosed and Nondisclosed Sport-Related Concussion: An Exploratory Comparison Study by ADHD Status in Collegiate Athletes.

Objective: To determine if ADHD status in collegiate athletes was associated with differences in the number of diagnosed and nondisclosed sport-related concussions, and reasons why suspected concussive injuries were not reported.

Method: A cross-sectional survey was completed by 858 collegiate athletes (65 with ADHD; 793 without ADHD). The survey included self-report items regarding ADHD status and histories of diagnosed and nondisclosed sport-related concussions.

Five direct behavior rating multi-item scales: Sensitivity to the effects of classroom interventions.

Direct Behavior Rating (DBR) is a tool designed for the assessment of behavioral changes over time. Unlike methods for summative evaluations, the development of progress monitoring tools requires evaluation of sensitivity to change. The present study aimed to evaluate this psychometric feature of five newly developed DBR Multi-Item Scales (DBR-MIS).

An Online Tool to Assess Sentence Comprehension in Teenagers at Risk for School Exclusion: Evidence From L2 Italian Students.

This study presents a web-based sentence comprehension test aimed at identifying high school students who are at risk for a language delay. By assessing linguistic skills on a sample of high school students with Italian as an L2 and their monolingual peers, attending a vocational school, we were able to identify a subgroup of L2 students with consistent difficulties in sentence comprehension, though their reading skills were within the average range. The same subgroup revealed to experience a lack of support within the school context, suggesting that poor L2 skills might be a critical variable to consider in order to identify students at risk for school exclusion.

Cognitive Profile of Intellectually Gifted Adults: Analyzing the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale.

The Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS) has been used extensively to study intellectual abilities of special groups. Here, we report the results of an intellectually gifted group on the WAIS-IV. Gifted individuals are people who obtained scores equal to or greater than 2 standard deviations above the mean on an intelligence test.