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The purpose of this chapter is to review our findings related to the question “Do outcomes related to dynamic assessment on a cognitive measure predict reading growth?” Our discussion related to the predictive validity of such procedures focused on outcomes related to a battery of memory and reading measures administered over a three-year period to 78 children (11.6 years) with and without reading disabilities (RD). Working memory (WM) tasks were presented under initial, gain, and maintenance testing conditions. The preliminary results suggested that maintenance testing conditions were significant moderators of comprehension and vocabulary growth, whereas probe scores and gain testing conditions were significant moderators of nonword fluency growth. Overall, the results suggested that the dynamic assessment of WM added significant variance in predicting later reading performance.

This study proposes targeted modernization of the Department of Defense (DoD's) Joint Forces Ammunition Logistics information system by implementing the optimized innovative information technology open architecture design and integrating Radio Frequency Identification Device data technologies and real-time optimization and control mechanisms as the critical technology components of the solution. The innovative information technology, which pursues the focused logistics, will be deployed in 36 months at the estimated cost of $568 million in constant dollars. We estimate that the Systems, Applications, Products (SAP)-based enterprise integration solution that the Army currently pursues will cost another $1.5 billion through the year 2014; however, it is unlikely to deliver the intended technical capabilities.

Each of the four objectives can be applied within the military training environment. Military training often requires that soldiers achieve specific levels of performance or proficiency in each phase of training. For example, training courses impose entrance and graduation criteria, and awards are given for excellence in military performance. Frequently, training devices, training media, and training evaluators or observers also directly support the need to diagnose performance strengths and weaknesses. Training measures may be used as indices of performance, and to indicate the need for additional or remedial training.

This chapter provides a contemporary view of state-of-the science research and thinking done in the areas of selection and classification. It takes as a starting point the observation that the world of work is undergoing important changes that are likely to result in different occupational and organizational structures. In this context, we review recent research on criteria, especially models of job performance, followed by sections on predictors, including ability, personality, vocational interests, biodata, and situational judgment tests. The paper also discusses person-organization fit models, as alternatives or complements to the traditional person-job fit paradigm.

This chapter develops a predictive approach to Granger causality (GC) testing that utilizes k -fold cross-validation and posterior simulation to perform out-of-sample testing. A Monte Carlo study indicates that the cross-validation predictive procedure has improved power in comparison to previously available out-of-sample testing procedures, matching the performance of the in-sample F-test while retaining the credibility of post- sample inference. An empirical application to the Phillips curve is provided evaluating the evidence on GC between inflation and unemployment rates.

With the passage of the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act, the federal government increased its role in the reform of public education. The central feature of this movement is the use of standardized testing to raise student achievement, and particularly among minority and low-income disadvantaged students. Drawing on the slogan of the Children's Defense Fund, the NCLB Act is intended to reverse the “soft bigotry of low expectations” and include all children in efforts to achieve academic excellence. Additionally, the Act requires states to put in place procedures and policies to attract and retain “highly qualified” teachers in core subject matter areas. This chapter will focus on accountability and high stakes testing under NCLB, present arguments for and against the act, and report findings of recent research on standardized testing. The chapter concludes with a discussion of several aspects of NCLB that could produce a disparate impact on African American students in urban schools.

This paper investigates the relationship between organizational structures and the performance of FORTUNE 500 companies, which have always been among the most profitable and admired in the world. After a discussion of whether companies should organize regionally, nationally, or globally, the important assumption is made that each structural type utilizes resources differently in generating profit. Performance is conceptualized as Return on Capital Employed (RoCE) and Return per Employee (RpE). A sample of 50 companies was randomly selected. Testing revealed that structural types are positively related to financial performance, calculated as RoCE, with Multidivisional-structured companies outperforming Functional-structured ones; structural types are not related to human resource performance, calculated as RpE.