Varnhargen, S., & Gerber, M. M. (1984). Use of microcomputers for spelling assessment: Reasons to be cautious . Learning Disability Quarterly , 7 (3), 266–270. https://doi.org/10.2307/1510484

Journal Article

Varnhargen, S., & Gerber, M. M. (1984). Use of microcomputers for spelling assessment: Reasons to be cautious. Learning Disability Quarterly, 7(3), 266–270. https://doi.org/10.2307/1510484

Notes

[no doi located]

Tags

Electronic administration; Electronic administration; Electronic administration; Elementary; Learning disabilities; Writing

Summary

Accommodation

Each student was tested under both a normal written and microcomputer test administrations.

Participants

A total of 27 students participated: Eighteen students came from one regular (RG) third grade class (average age of 9-3) with 33% of the students described as non-English speaking with low writing skills. Nine students were classified with learning disabilities (LD) and attended a self-contained special education classroom (average age of 11-5).

Dependent Variable

The Test of Written Spelling (1976) was administered, a standardized dictation test consisting of predictable (35 words) and unpredictable (25 words) was administered. Students were scored on: Testing Time, Typing/Writing Times, Number of correctly spelled words, and Student attitude.

Findings

Students in both the RG and LD groups took longer to respond and made more errors on the computerized test version than on the conventional handwritten version, regardless of the order in which they were tested. All 27 students stated that they would prefer to take future spelling tests on a computer.