This month's Topical Review focuses on one of the major problem areas in current educational practice with learning disabled children. It has proven very difficult to translate our conceptual definitions of learning disabilities into assessment procedures that are defensible from either a scientific or practical viewpoint. Scientific questions focus on the reliability and validity of the information produced by current procedures, while practical concerns center on the validity of classification decisions and the usefulness of these procedures as a guide to intervention. In this review, the author presents information relevant to both scientific and applied issues in assessment. The information presented here is particularly powerful, as it is the result of an organized and comprehensive research effort extending over several years.—J.K.T.
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