Joseph C. Kush

Long-Term Stability of Children's Attitudes Toward Reading

The long-term stability of the construct of childrens attitudes toward reading was examined. One hundred eighty-nine students in Grades 1-4 completed two administrations of the Elementary Reading Attitude Survey (ERAS) following a 3-year interval. Initially, reading attitudes were relatively positive and comparable to the standardization sample for both the recreational and academic subscales of the ERAS. Following the 3 years, however, reading attitudes dropped significantly for both recreational and academic scores. Nonsignificant grade differences were observed, but girls consistently expressed more positive attitudes toward recreational reading than did boys. Similarly, girls also demonstrated greater stability in reading attitudes than boys, based on higher correlations between first and second administrations of the ERAS. Implications for the classroom and directions for future research are provided.

The Temporal-Interactive Influence of Reading Achievement and Reading Attitude

Although the relationship between attitudes toward reading and reading achievement has been well documented, the causal relationship between these constructs remains unclear.Using longitudinal covariance structure modeling, this study tested the hypothesis that 3 reading-related constructs in the primary grades (2nd-3rd grade) – reading attitude, behavior, and achievement – would predict reading achievement in the 7th grade. Results showed that primary attitude was not correlated with primary achievement yet both had causal paths to 7th-grade achievement, described as a “temporal-interaction” model. The resulting model suggests that while reading attitude and achievement may appear unrelated at the early stages of reading they become more closely linked over time, developing into important causal determinants of reading achievement by early adolescence.

Discriminant and predictive validity of the WISC-III ACID profile among children with learning disabilities

Clinical interpretation of subtest score profiles on intelligence tests is a common practice. The ACID profile found on Wechslers scales has been widely accepted as a clinical indicator which has both diagnostic and treatment implications. However, this practice has been based on clinical rather than empirical evidence. This study examines the discriminant and predictive validity of the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-Third Edition (WISC-III) ACID profile among 612 students with learning disabilities. Analyses included diagnostic utility statistics (sensitivity, selectivity, etc.) and ROC methods as well as correlational and descriptive statistics. Results indicated that the ACID profile does not efficiently separate children with disabilities from those without disabilities, and further, there is no ACID cutting score which significantly exceeds chance discriminatory power. Likewise, the ACID profile did not robustly predict academic achievement among children with learning disabilities.

Structure and Diagnostic Benefits of a Normative Subtest Taxonomy Developed from the WISC-III Standardization Sample

Abstract The structure and composition of profile types most representative of the 2,200 children (6 years 0 months to 16 years 11 months) comprising the normative sample for the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children—Third Edition (WISC-III) are identified. Profiles from the 10 mandatory WISC-III subtests are sorted according to similar shape and level using multistage cluster analysis with independent replications. The final solution of eight most common (or core) profile types fulfills all formal heuristic and statistical criteria, including complete coverage, satisfactory within-type homogeneity, between-type dissimilarity, and replicability. Profile types are described according to population prevalence, ability level, subtest configuration; and each type is examined for membership trends by child demography, family characteristics, and unusual IQ discrepancies. Two methods are given for determining the relative uniqueness of WISC-III profile patterns in future research and clinical work. The article concludes with a case example using the method recommended for “everyday” decision making.

WAIS-IV and WISC-IV Structural Validity Alternate Methods, Alternate Results. Commentary on Weiss et al. (2013a) and Weiss et al. (2013b)

Weiss, Keith, Zhu, and Chen (2013a) and Weiss, Keith, Zhu, and Chen (2013b), this issue, report examinations of the factor structure of the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale–Fourth Edition (WAIS-IV) and Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children–Fourth Edition (WISC-IV), respectively; comparing Wechsler Hierarchical Model (W-HM) and Cattell–Horn–Carroll Hierarchical Model (CHC-HM), subtest cross-loadings, and factorial invariance between clinical and normative groups from the respective standardizations. Both studies suffer from a number of theoretical, methodological, and practical problems that significantly limit conclusions and recommendations for practitioner interpretations of these instruments. Additional analyses and research are required to better inform practitioners for WAIS-IV and WISC-IV use.

Factor Replication of the WISC-III in Three Independent Samples of Children Receiving Special Education

This study examined the first-order factor structure of the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-Third Edition (WISC-III; Wechsler, 1991) on three samples of children previously diagnosed with a handicapping condition. Five alternative factor models were compared through confirmatory factor analysis. Previous factor analytic studies that focused on the WISC-IIIs four-factor solution employed all 13 subtests in their analyses, despite the fact that only 12 subtests are combined during clinical evaluations to obtain scores on the four factors. This study investigated the WISC-III factor structure by considering the 12 subtests that actually combine to yield index scores on the dimensions of Verbal Comprehension, Perceptual Organization, Processing Speed, and Freedom from Distractibility. Results support a four-factor solution for children with disabilities.

Factor Structure of the WISC-III for Students with Learning Disabilities

The factor structure of the WISC-R for both regular and special education populations has been well documented. Published data also have indicated that the factor structure of the WISC-R is similar across special education populations. However, with the development of the WISC-III, comparable information is not yet well established. With the addition of a new subtest, and a hypothesized new fourth factor, additional data with regard to the psychometric properties of the WISC-III are required. This study examined the factor structure of the WISC-III, using an oblique method of rotation, in a sample of students with learning disabilities. Results provide support for the construct validity of the Verbal and Performance factors, but empirical support was less evident for the use of the other factor scores, Freedom from Distractability and Processing Speed. Implications for school psychologists are presented, and directions for future research are provided.

Fild-Dependence, Cognitive Ability, and Academic Achievement in Anglo American and Mexican American Students:

This study examined the relatedness of field-dependence to tasks of cognitive ability and academic achievement. Sixty Anglo American and 60 Mexican American 4th-grade students, whose primary home language was English, served as subjects. Students completed a series of associative-memory and reasoning ability tasks. Field-dependence evidenced a strong relationship with a nonverbal test of reasoning ability as well as with measures of reading and math achievement. Ethnic differences in the field-dependence construct were not found, although ethnic differences in academic achievement were evidenced. Achievement differences between Anglo and Mexican American students became nonsignificant, however, when parental level of education was controlled statistically. Finally, the best predictor of academic achievement was found to be a three-variable combination, which consisted of a field-dependence task, a nonverbal test of reasoning ability, and the students parental level of education. Results of this study support the hypothesis that field-dependence is better considered as a measure of reasoning ability than of cognitive style although it remains of substantial importance as a nonbiased predictor of school achievement for majority and minority students.

Technology Integration into Pre-service Teacher Training

This study evaluated the perceptions of pre-service teachers in their ability to integrate technology into a learning environment based on coursework and student teaching experiences. Pre-service teachers were surveyed using the 2008 ISTE/NETS*T standards as a framework. Results were collected across four academic years at a university that has identified technology as an underlying theme. Conclusions from the study provide an insight into technology savvy characteristics of pre-service teachers. Results also show that technology modeling and program design within a teacher education program can have a significant impact on pre-service teachers, thus improving their perceptions about their ability to integrate technology.

Confir Rmatory Factor Analysis of the WISC-III for Students with Learning Disabilities

This study conducted confirmatory factor analyses to examine 12 competing models that attempt to explain the underlying latent constructs measured by the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-Third Edition (WNISC-III) in a sample of 1,201 students with learning disabilities (721 White and 480 Nonwhite). Models were selected based upon theoretical explanations of the WISC-III factor structure as well as from previously conducted empirical research conducted on the W7ISC-III normative sample and with independent samples of students with exceptionalities. For both White and Nonwhite groups, four models could not be statistically distinguished from one another based upon overall fit statistics. Plausible models included the traditional first-order four-factor oblique structure of the standardization sample, the hierarchical second-order model with four first-order factors favored by Keith and Witta (1997), a bifactor second-order model with four first-order factors described by Gustafsson and Undheim (1996), and a bifactor second-order model with three first-order factors. Current results add to a growing body of evidence suggesting that WISC-III Verbal Comprehension, Perceptual Organization. and Processing Speed factors are robust across samples but the Freedom from Distractibility factor demonstrates tenuous construct validity.