Academic Achievement Battery (AAB) Comprehensive Form

The Academic Achievement Battery (AAB) Comprehensive Form is a test published in 2014 designed to measure an “individual’s performance in the main areas of achievement defined by the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act.” The AAB Comprehensive Form is intended for use with English speakers ages 4–85. The test can be administered in print or digital formats. The print version is administered using an item booklet, response booklet, two stimulus books, and a letter/word reading card.

Subtests & Composites

The AAB Comprehensive Form comprises 15 subtests that result in eight composite scores:

• Basic Reading
• Reading Comprehension
• Listening Comprehension
• Expressive Communication
• Written Expression
• Mathematical Calculation
• Mathematical Reasoning
• Academic Achievement Battery Composite

The 15 subtests are not all administered to every examinee. Eleven subtests are standard, while five are administered only to examinees in pre-K through Grade 3. One subtest excludes pre-K examinees, and another excludes examinees below Grade 3. The subtests are designed to align with key concepts and skills in the Common Core State Standards and are supported by the International Reading Association and the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics.

Uses

The AAB Comprehensive Form is intended to be used for the following purposes:

• Identifying academic strengths and weaknesses
• Informing special services eligibility decisions
• Aiding in intervention planning
• Informing decisions about placement or accommodations (adults)
• Identifying adults for disability services

Administration and Scoring

The AAB Comprehensive Form requires administration by an examiner with formal training in assessment. The test takes 30–90 minutes to administer, depending on the age of the examinee. Scoring procedures also require specific expertise, as the scorer must be “knowledgeable about English language usage and expression to score the on-demand written essay.” The publisher, Psychological Assessment Resources, Inc., offers computer scoring for the AAB Comprehensive Form.

Development

The AAB was designed to address the broad skill areas outlined by the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). The test focuses primarily on literacy, communication, and numeracy skills that are covered from preschool through high school. In developing the AAB, the authors created and tested a larger pool of subtests and items than what appears in the final version. Expert reviews were conducted to assess content and face validity. Items were also reviewed for potential bias relating to sex, race/ethnicity, or religious background. Pilot data were collected in 2011, followed by a refinement study and a standardization study.

Technical Information

Standardization data for the AAB Comprehensive Form were collected in 2013–2014 from 30 U.S. states. The age-based sample norms were derived from data from 1,274 people ages 4–83. The grade-based sample norms were derived from data from 1,447 people ages 4–19. The demographics of the normative samples closely matched those of the 2012 U.S. population.

Limitations

One reviewer noted that the AAB Comprehensive Form’s Listening Comprehension: Passages subtest may confound memory with the primarily literal comprehension task, as the examiner reads the passage aloud and then asks questions about it. The reviewer also noted that because the Guide for Occupational Exploration, which the AAB draws on, is based on literature reviews conducted 40 years ago, it is unclear whether the abilities defined in that document align with the skills demanded by today’s job market.

References

Academic Achievement Battery Comprehensive Form. (2016). In The Twentieth Mental Measurements Yearbook (p. 2).

Academic Achievement Battery Comprehensive Form. (2016). In The Twentieth Mental Measurements Yearbook.

Review of the Academic Achievement Battery Comprehensive Form by DAVID MORSE. (2016). In The Twentieth Mental Measurements Yearbook.

Review of the Academic Achievement Battery Comprehensive Form by HILLARY MICHAELS. (2016). In The Twentieth Mental Measurements Yearbook.

Review of the Academic Achievement Battery Comprehensive Form. (2016). In The Twentieth Mental Measurements Yearbook.