Case evidence suggests the Thorndike-McCall diagnoses comprehension power unaffected by reading mechanics, as in a slow reader of above-125 IQ scoring at grade level¶

Claim · All claims
Evidence · 1 study · associational r2 · q1
Currency · newest study 1921 · not yet checked against its sources · not reviewed by a person

Subclaims¶

q1 i? A grade VIII girl with IQ above 125 and oral reading poor for grade III scored 65 on the Thorndike-McCall (near her grade mean of 63.4) while scoring far below class means on Courtis, Monroe and Burgess comprehension tests, which the authors take as evidence of the test's diagnostic value. → Arthur I. Gates 1921

Evidence¶

Arthur I. Gates 1921¶

Arthur I. Gates. (1921). An Experimental and Statistical Study of Reading and Reading Tests (Continued). The Journal of Educational Psychology. https://doi.org/10.1037/h0068367

q1 · i? · associational · r2

Single-case study of S.S., a grade VIII girl with IQ above 125 and oral reading poor for grade III, who scored 65 on the Thorndike-McCall against a grade mean of 63.4 but scored far below class means on Courtis (24 vs 55.6), Monroe (15 vs 38) and Burgess (8 vs 67.8). The authors conclude it is "an adequate measure of her" comprehension excluding speed.

"We are convinced that this is an adequate measure of her " comprehension," excluding speed. No other test of comprehension gave her a high score."

Discussion¶

Related Claims¶

• Monroe's silent reading test permits substantial chance success, inflating comprehension scores — related
• The Burgess test correlates more highly with rate and comprehension composites (0.82 and 0.80) than any other single test, and pairs well with the Thorndike-McCall — related
• The Thorndike-McCall correlates about 0.50 with other single comprehension tests and 0.69 with a composite of group intelligence tests — related
• Of the so-called reading tests used, Thorndike's Visual Vocabulary is the best measure of reading ability — related