Assessment for Effective Intervention

Treatment integrity data are essential to drawing valid conclusions in treatment outcome studies. Such data, however, are not always included in peer-reviewed research articles in school psychology or related fields. To gain a better understanding of why treatment integrity data are lacking in the school psychology research, we surveyed the authors of the 210 treatment outcome articles published in four school psychology journals from 1995 through 2008 regarding their perceptions of barriers to implementing treatment integrity procedures. Results indicated that (a) lack of theory and specific guidelines on treatment integrity procedures; (b) lack of general knowledge about treatment integrity; (c) time, cost, and labor demands; and (d) lack of editorial requirement were broadly perceived as barriers by school psychology researchers to implementing treatment integrity procedures. Implications for future research are discussed.

The Preschool Behavioral and Emotional Rating Scale (PreBERS) is a standardized, norm-referenced instrument that assesses emotional and behavioral strengths of preschool children. This study investigated whether the PreBERS four-factor structure (i.e., emotional regulation, school readiness, social confidence, and family involvement) could be replicated with an early childhood special education (ECSE) sample of children. Teachers who participated in the study rated a total of 1,103 preschool children with disabilities. Confirmatory factor analysis determined the extent to which the ECSE data fit the original four-factor PreBERS structure identified with the national normative sample. Results indicated that the four-factor structure demonstrated an acceptable fit with the ECSE sample.

Substantial research exists to support the use of reading curriculum-based measures (R-CBMs) for screening and progress monitoring in schools; however, nearly all of this work has been done in English. The changing demographics of students who attend public school includes children who speak other languages. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between R-CBMs in Spanish used as a universal screening measure and performance on the state achievement measure in Spanish. Results included moderate correlations at third and fourth grade. Diagnostic accuracy results using the 25th percentile and the selection of cut scores using receiver operating characteristic curves suggest the utility of R-CBMs in Spanish for screening purposes. Practical implications and future directions for research are discussed.

The relation between fidelity of implementation and student outcomes in a computer-based middle school mathematics curriculum was measured empirically. Participants included 485 students and 23 teachers from 11 public middle schools across seven states. Implementation fidelity was defined using two constructs: fidelity to structure and fidelity to process. Because of the nested nature of the data, we used a two-level hierarchical linear model for analysis. Four variables, all categorized as fidelity to structure variables, proved significant—total time in intervention (p <.001), concentration of time in intervention (p = .03), direct observation of intervention fidelity (p = .04), and pretest score (p <.001). Fidelity to process was found to be nonsignificant. The importance of measuring the relation between implementation fidelity and student outcomes is discussed as well as implications for researchers and teachers.

This paper provides a review of widely used measures for assessing Autism Spectrum Disorders, including the Autism Diagnostic Interview–Revised, Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule, Psychoeducational Profile–Third Edition, Gilliam Autism Rating Scale–Second Edition, and Childhood Autism Rating Scale–Second Edition. Each measure is evaluated in terms of its usefulness for diagnosis and screening with respect to IDEA eligibility criteria, clinical diagnostic criteria, and current understanding of best practices.

This study investigated the psychometrics of the Diagnostic Evaluation of Language Variation–Screening Test (DELV-S) test using confirmatory factor analysis, item response theory, and differential item functioning (DIF). Responses from 1,764 students in kindergarten through second grade were used in the study, with results indicating that the DELV-S is multidimensional and measures syntactic skills and nonword repetition ability. Item response theory suggested that most items were easy and that the measured skills were most reliable for students who had low language abilities. Standardized effect sizes for DIF suggested small differences existed on syntactic skills between white and minority students. Scores were vertically scaled to produce reference tables to assess performance at specific points in time, as well as growth over time.

The Screening Test for Emotional Problems–Self-Report (STEP-S) was designed to assess students aged 10 to 17 years referred for wide-ranging emotional disturbances categorized under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act. Preliminary analysis indicated that subscale coefficients alpha ranged from .76 to .85 and test–retest coefficients from .65 to .79. Confirmatory factor analysis indicated a marginal fit of the five-factor model to the data, whereas substantial support was provided for diagnostic, convergent, and discriminant score validity.