Discriminant Validity of the Windward Rating Scale: Screening for Learning Disabilities

Abstract

Local teachers and other school personnel in Hawaii expressed a need for guidelines in identifying children with learning disabilities. The Windward Rating Scale (WRS), a locally-developed teacher rating scale of student behavior, was evaluated for potential use as a screening measure. Pre-certification ratings of 720 learning disabled students and non-special education students in grades K-6 were analyzed. Psychometric properties and diagnostic efficiency of the WRS were examined. The WRS was able to accurately classify 78% of the students in a discriminant classification analysis with approximately 82% accuracy obtained using selected cutoff scores. Implications of the evaluation results for both theoretical and applied issues are discussed.