No abstract

A group of 18 patients with chronic epilepsy were followed in an outpatient clinic for 1-6 years. Month-by-month seizure records were kept and the response to treatment was systematically explored. The present study was prompted when three patients became seizure-free, apparently in response to major life events (marriage, parenthood, and retirement) rather than to changes in treatment. All the subjects were interviewed in their own homes with a companion, friend, or relative present. The interview was based on a standard instrument (Life Experiences Survey, LES). The home environment was chosen to facilitate recall of events and to enable subjects to confirm dates. The seizure record was then compared with the parallel life events record. Two methods of analysis were adopted. In the first, each life event was assumed to have impact on seizure frequency only during the month in which it occurred; life event months were compared with non-life-event months. In the second, a life event was considered a watershed; seizure frequencies before and after the event were compared. Nonparametric statistical methods were used. These approaches revealed associations between life events and seizure frequency in three additional patients (total six). Most of the patients who showed an association experienced partial seizures.

This article considers mays in which the nature of psychological assessment may change following the implementation of the national curriculum. The article highlights the relevance of recent developments in cognitive, social and ecological psychology for educational psychologists' practice.

The reading test performances of 60 hearing and 60 hearing-impaired children of similar measured reading ages on the Southgate reading test were analysed. As in an earlier study using the Brimer Wide-span test it was shown that the performances of the two groups were quite different. Deaf children tackled significantly more test items than the hearing and made significantly more errors in achieving similar reading scores.A detailed examination of both correct and incorrect answers showed that the deaf children were not simply providing answers to questions at random. Even where they produced incorrect responses they tended, as a group, to select the same answer. Unlike the hearing group, who did not converge on the same incorrect solution to difficult test items, the deaf were systematic in their choices, indicating that they were using a consistent strategy.A post hoc examination of individual test items indicated that the deaf children were selecting answers on the basis of word associations in each test item. On some items these produced a correct response, on others the same (incorrect) response. The implications of these findings are discussed to argue that reading tests based on hearing norms are of little value in the assessment of reading abilities and reading problems in hearing-impaired children. RESUMEDu retard en lecture ou dkficit linguistique? 11: les stratkgies employkes par des kldves sourds et des kMves d'ouie normale pour rkpondre aux tests Cette etude prttsente une analyse detaillee des performances sur les tests de lecture de soixante enfants d'oui'e normale et soixante enfants sourds, d'aprb le Southgate Reading Test. Les deux groupes d'enfants avaient atteint les mCmes 2ges de lecture sur ce test. Semblable A une etude antkrieure appliquke aux enfants plus iiges, et marquee selon le Brimer Wide-span Test, on a trouvt que les performances des enfants sourds Ctaient tout A fait differentes de celles des enfants d'ouie (c) Journal of Research in Reading (UKRA) 148 Wood, Griffiths and Websrer: Reading retardation or linguistic deficit? II normale. Dans chaque enquete, les enfants sourds ont tent6 beaucoup plus de questions que leurs contr6les et ils ont fait beaucoup plus d'erreurs en accomplissant des rksultats pareils. Les rksultats d'une analyse factorielle de toutes les quarante-deux questions ont montrk qu'un grand nombre et d'enfants sourds et d'enfants d'ouie normale avaient tendance A essayer les questions les plus simples. Mais ces derniers essayaient beaucoup moins souvent que les enfants sourds de complkter les questions plus difficiles et, par consequent, ils ont fait moins d'erreurs.Un examen des questions qui attiraient de bonnes et de mauvaises rkponses par les deux kchantillons a indiquk que ce n'ktait pas tout simplement au hasard que les enfants sourds faisaient de mauvaises rkponses aux questions. En groupe, leurs rkponses ont convergk sur toutes les questions sauf trois. Sur onze des questions, la reponse choisie n'etait pas correcte. Pareillement, un examen des rkponses deux...