Woodcock-Johnson III: Reports, Recommendations, and Strategies
Woodcock-Johnson? III: Reports, Recommendations, and Strategies(Nancy Mather & Lynne Jaffe, New York: Wiley, 2002) is an essential resource, not only for evaluators who use the Woodcock-Johnson III and teachers who use the results of Woodcock-Johnson III (WJ III) assessments, but also for anyone involved in educational evaluation or planning individual educational programs.The first section of the book begins with a collection of extremely well-designed forms, worksheets, and tables that make it much easier to organize and report WJ III evaluation findings so the findings will be understandable and helpful to teachers and parents. It continues with the clearest explanations I have seen of scores and levels of interpretation, including "sample statements for reports scores and score discrepancies." The section ends with valuable information on interpretation of comparisons between tests and patterns of errors, including a tremendously helpful, three-page table of "task analysis and comparison of selected tests."The 31 sample reports (27 for children of ages 4 through 17 and 4 for adults) in the second section provide a variety of instructive models, including the use of 41 other tests to supplement the WJ III. Many different report formats are offered with a mixture of disabilities (including none).The 158 pages of specific, practical, clearly explained recommendations, organized by categories, are a treasure chest for any evaluator or teacher. They include suggestions for further evaluation, accommodations and modifications, and teaching methods. This section could stand alone as a special education textbook. Including appropriate recommendations from this section will tremendously enhance the value of an evaluation report.Finally, there are 85 pages of specific instructional strategies, some self-contained with needed materials printed in the book and others clear summaries with references to published materials. This clear, detailed presentation will provide even the most experienced evaluator or teacher with valuable, new information and will allow the evaluator to show teachers precisely how to carry out recommended instructional strategies with which the teachers may not be familiar.The myriad resources inWoodcock-Johnson? III: Reports, Recommendations, and Strategiesachieve the seemingly contradictory goals of making it easier to write evaluation reports and making the reports much more useful to parents, teachers, and administrators.The breadth, depth, clarity, and overwhelming utility ofWoodcock-Johnson? III: Reports, Recommendations, and Strategiesmake it an essential resource for even the most experienced evaluator or special education teacher as well as an ideal textbook for assessment courses. I enthusiastically recommend it.John O. Willis, Ed.D.Senior Lecturer in Assessment,Rivier College;Assessment Specialist,Regional Services and Education Center,Amherst, NH