The purpose of this inquiry was the construction of a useful, valid, and reliable test instrument to be used for the prediction of the future academic success of students in the Iranian guidance cycle which occurs when students are approximately fourteen years of age. It was assumed that due to the lack of objective measuring instruments and standardized tests, the new guidance cycle would not function efficiently.The first instrument for the purpose of evaluating students' talents and abilities was constructed on the basis of items selected from several widely used American test batteries, such as the DAT and W-G CTA tests. These were translated into the Persian language. The experimental instrument constituted a total of 304 items with which selected Iranian students were tested.The one hundred students in the population selected for this study were randomly selected from eighth grade students at three junior high schools, two boy's schools and one girls' school in Tehran. The items were answered by the students in three sessions and then were returned to the United States for item analysis.Item analyses were run to identify those test items which clearly discriminated between the academically talented and less able students previously identified by teachers in the schools. Since the primary purpose of this experiment was to select the items which would discriminate most effectively, an ordinal index of difficulty was run in an effort to secure the appropriate selection of items. Indices of discrimination were also carried out. The most appropriate experimental approach, with respect to the external criterion (teachers' judgments concerning the students' academic ability), was judged to be the high-low group (HLG) design, with a wide separation between superior and less qualified students. The summary statistics of the item analyses run to determine the difficulty as well as discrimination of test items reflected the relatively high accuracy of the teachers' judgments in distinguishing between academically talented and non-academically talented students in this experiment. It appeared that the tests, on the whole, discriminated between the academically talented and non-academically oriented students, and thus, will likely function more effectively after the less discriminating items have been deleted and the tests are further refined.The items used in this experiment are related to the following seven interrelated competencies and appeared to be a valid measure of the general academic abilities of Iranian students:1. Verbal Reasoning2. Numerical Ability3. Inference4. Recognition of Assumption 5. Deduction6. Interpretation7. Evaluation of ArgumentsIn the first selection, eighty-six items fell within the criteria represented in the item analysis technique designed to strengthen test validity and reliability. An additional number of twenty-four items was selected in the second review of the items, thus making the total number of appropriate items one hundred and ten. The items selected appeared to show high validity and reliability for future testing with Iranian students. These will, hopefully, in the future constitute an assessment measure which will yield high correlation with the future academic success of Iranian students.This kind of test allows the guidance counselors of Iran to feel reasonably certain of the identification and prediction of student talents and abilities associated with academic or technical and vocational studies in the guidance cycle as well as in the subsequent planning of curricular programs. However, it would be difficult to reach final conclusions about the students? Academic success on the basis of test scores alone. There are a number of social and psychological factors which affect the academic success of students. Predictions made about students or their selection should be temporary, flexible, and, in effect, for a short term of time.

In order to study Maccoby & Martin's (1983) dimensions of parental responsiveness and demandingness among different achievement groups, 237 students were divided into average and low achievers and those with learning disabilities. The students completed the Children's Report of Parental Behavior Inventory (Schaefer, 1965) and their group scores on the three demandingness (Lax Discipline, Enforcement of Discipline, and Extreme Autonomy) and three responsiveness (Child-Centeredness, Rejection, and Acceptance of Individuation) subscales were compared. The MANOVA investigating responsiveness uncovered no differences among the three groups of achievers while only one subscale on the demandingness dimension significantly differentiated students with learning disabilities from the other groups. These findings are intriguing in that they do not support existing literature indicating that higher levels ofresponsiveness and demandingness relate to higher student achievement. / Department of Educational Psychology

The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of per pupil expenditure and high school size in public school corporations upon academic success in college. A random sampling of 196 students from the entering classes of 1963 and 1964 served as the study population. Sex of the student, rank in high school class and SAT verbal scores were used for comparative purposes. Per pupil expenditures and class rankings were converted to T scores in order to afford comparability in both areas.The statistical treatment involved computation of the Pearson product moment of correlation for every combination of variables and a stepwise regression analysis with grade point average as the dependent variable. The two null hypotheses and question number one were tested through this treatment. In order to answer questions involving the relationship of sub-groups within the sample population six other regression analyses were made. These involved subgroups determined by the number of quarters of college completed and by high and low ranking in class as determined by college grade point average. The two null hypotheses were as follows: 1. There is no significant correlation between the expenditure per pupil in public school and the academic success of their graduates as indicated by grade point average in college. 2. There is no significant correlation between the graduating class size in public high school and the academic success of their graduates as indicated by grade point average in college. The questions explored were as follows: 1. Is there a correlation between per pupil expenditure in public school corporations and graduating class size of high schools in these corporations? 2. Is per pupil expenditure or size of high school graduating class related to the number of years of college attended by a corporations graduates? 3. Are per pupil expenditure or graduating class size useful predictors of academic success for groups of students who have terminated their college education during their first year, their second year, third year, or at the completion of their fourth year of college? 4. Do either high school graduating class size or per pupil expenditure relate to the prediction of academic success when that group of students with the highest ranked grade point average and another group with the lowest ranked grade point average are considered separately? The first null hypothesis was rejected. Although the practical importance of the correlation was slight it was significant. The second null hypothesis was accepted. Question number one was answered affirmatively. The results obtained from investigation of other questions involving sub-groups were similar to the findings for the total group. Some of the conclusions were as follows: 1. There is no solid agreement by writers in the field of education as to what constitutes the ideal high school size. 2. Although the simple correlation of per pupil expenditure and college academic success is -.018, per pupil expenditure does add slight significant value in the prediction of academic success after high school rank and SAT verbal scores have been considered. 3. No significant correlation exists between high school graduating class size and academicsuccess in college. 7. Of the variables considered in this study, high school class rank is the best predictor of further academic success. 9. High school class size is not a determining factor in how long a student remains in college. 11. There are no marked differences between the results obtained when considering the effect of high school graduating class size and per pupil expenditure upon college academic success when computed using the entire study sample than when only the top fifty and the bottom fifty academically ranked college students are considered. 12. Class size is not a factor in the determination of how many quarters a student will complete in college.

The purpose of this study was to examine the individual and collective relationships between and among sets of predictor variables obtained from an ecological preschool screening model and criterion variables designed to assess performance in kindergarten. A second purpose of this research was to determine the unique contribution of parental input within the ecological preschool screening model. Fall screening included an individually administered standardized test, the Bracken Basic Concept Scale (BBCS), and a structured parent interview, the Minnesota Preschool Inventory (MPI). The BBCS and the Developmental Scale (DEVEL) of the MPI constituted the set of predictor variables. The criterion set of performance measures included a group administered standardized testing procedure, the Metropolitan Readiness Test (MRT), and a teacher rating scale, the Teacher Rating Scale-Spring (TRS-S), completed in the spring of the kindergarten year.Canonical correlation analysis was used to examine the interrelationships between the two sets ofvariables and to determine the best possible combinationof variables for predicting kindergarten achievement. Multiple regression analysis was used to determine the unique contribution of parental input for predicting kindergarten achievement over and above that information supplied by the standardized test.The results of this study supported the use of an ecological model for predicting kindergarten performance. The information gained from parental input and standardized testing contributed significantly and uniquely to the composite of the predictor set. There was both a statistically significant and a meaningfully significant relationship between the screening procedures completed at the beginning of the school year (the BBCS and the DEVEL) and the assessment procedures done at the end of the school year (the MRT and the TRS-S) when these four variables were considered simultaneously.The use of parental input was supported by the multiple regression analyses. Information gained by structured parent interview had something statistically significant, meaningful, and unique to contribute to the prediction of kindergarten performance over and above that information gained from the individually administered standardized test. / Department of Educational Psychology

Typescript (photocopy) / Bibliography: leaves 98-111. / Microfiche. / vii, 126 leaves, bound 29 cm

Thesis (Ed.D.)--University of Tulsa, 1984. / Bibliography: leaves 100-109.

Thesis (Ed.D.)--University of Tulsa, 1988. / Bibliography: l. 65-73.

Thesis (Ed.D.)--University of Tulsa, 1991. / Bibliography: leaves 58-65.

Thesis (Ed.D.)--University of Tulsa, 1991. / Bibliography: leaves 58-65.

Dissertation (Ph.D.)--Auburn University, 2006. / Abstract. Vita. Includes bibliographic references (ℓ.102-115).