TITLE Measuring Learning Potential: An Alternative to the Traditional Intelligence Test. Studies in Learning

Proposed is the assessment of learning potential through a test-train-retest paradigm in addition to the traditional intelligence test with mentally handicapped or disadvantaged children. Discussed is a rationale for the approach which posits that poor and/or nonwhite children do not have equal access to school-preparatory experiences though they may exhibit adequate adaptive behavior in their nonschool environment. It is explained that if intelligence is the ability to profit from experience then the test-train-retest approach allows the child to perform at his optimum level by familiarizing him with test contents thus increasing his sense of competence. It is suggested that improvement following training indicates learning competence on reasoning tasks, and that learni g potential assessment should be differentially effective with children from different socio-economic backgrounds and tested. IQs