Faculty of Education

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Scholarly output from the Faculty of Education at MSVU.

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Browsing Faculty of Education by Subject "Ability testing"

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    An Examination of Psycho-Educational Reports and Empirically Validated Practices
    (2007-09) Crofts, Danielle; Metsala, Jamie
    The purpose of this study was to examine whether interventions that School Psychology trainees recommend for struggling readers are those that have been shown to be effective in educational research. Twenty-eight reports spanning a 5 year period, were randomly chosen from the archives of a School Psychology training program at an Atlantic Canadian university. Students identified within these reports were in grades 1 to 9, and ranged in age from 6 to 14 years. Of the 28 reports examined, 1 student had difficulties in reading comprehension only, 7 students had difficulties in word reading only, and 20 students experienced difficulties in both areas. Results confirmed the hypothesis that a considerable proportion of these reports did not contain evidenced-based (EB) recommendations targeting reading difficulties. Further, when EB recommendations were present, these were not complete or in depth; that is, they did not specify the range of instructional components necessary to effectively address reading difficulties. Finally, contrary to predictions, neither the number of EB recommendations per report, proportion of reports with EB recommendations, nor the depth of EB recommendations increased from the earlier to the later reporting period. Results are discussed within the context of School Psychology training programs.
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    Linking recommendations from psycho-educational reports to curriculum outcomes for the Atlantic Provinces: Examining evidence-based practices in reading
    (2009-04-15T17:56:46Z) MacLeod-MacDougall, Kara K.; Metsala, Jamie
    This thesis examined evidence-based practices in instruction for students struggling to acquire reading skills. These practices were then used to formulate recommendations which relate to the Atlantic Canada English language arts curriculum outcomes. The two main purposes for this thesis were to better inform school psychologists and teachers about evidence-based practices in reading instruction for students who struggle with reading; and to relate psycho-educational recommendations to the curriculum outcomes provided in the Atlantic Canada English Language Arts Curriculum, both in the Elementary K-3 (e.g., New Brunswick Department of Education Curriculum Development Branch, 1998) and Grades 4-6 (e.g., Nova Scotia Department of Education and Culture, 1998) documents.
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    Mathematics beyond computation: and examination of assessment tools and exploration of an alternative item set
    (2009-04-14T17:13:43Z) Angelopoulos, Sarah; Boulet, Genevieve
    This study examined the role of mathematical understanding in studentsâ overall mathematical knowledge. Participants included a total of two students who were tested with a selection of items from the mathematics subtests of the Wechsler Individual Achievement Test, Second Edition (WIATâ II) and a set of comparison items (Pilot Items). Results suggested that there was a difference between the type of information collected by the two item sets and that mathematical understanding could exist in the face of poor calculation skills. Additionally, an Evaluation Rubric was developed based on the work of the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM). Both of the mathematics subtests of the WIATâ II were analyzed using the Evaluation Rubric, as were the Pilot Items. Results suggested that the WIATâ II items were weakest in the areas of Process and Knowledge Representation whereas the Pilot Items were strongest in these areas. Findings are discussed within the context of psychoeducational assessment and mathematics learning disabilities.