DAB-3: Diagnostic Achievement Battery — Third Edition

The DAB-3 is a revision of one of the most popular and useful individual
tests of school achievement ever made. The DAB-3 uses 14 short subtests
to identify a child's strengths and weaknesses across several areas of achievement.

DAB-3 Subtests

• Story Comprehension

• Characteristics

• Synonyms

• Grammatic Completion

• Alphabet/Word Knowledge

• Reading Comprehension

• Capitalization

• Punctuation

• Spelling

• Contextual Language

• Story Construction

• Math Reasoning

• Math Calculation

• Phonemic Analysis (supplemental subtest, new to this edition of the DAB)
Scores from these subtests can be combined to form eight composites:
• Total Achievement

• Listening

• Speaking

• Reading

• Writing

• Mathematics

• Spoken Language

• Written Language

Many improvements were made in this updated edition of the DAB.

These include:
• all-new normative data reflecting the changing population characteristics
of the United States, collected from 1997 to 2000

• several new validity studies, including correlations with the Wechsler
Intelligence Scales for Children-III and the Stanford Achievement Test-Ninth Edition, as well as a confirmatory factor analysis confirming the model on
which the DAB-3 is based

• studies showing the absence of gender, ethnic, and disability bias

• improved scoring criteria for the written composition that includes
contextual language and story construction

• more appealing and realistic color pictures

• clearer administration procedures

• fewer items on the Spelling, Capitalization, and Punctuation subtests

• a new audiotape that the examiner plays for the child for the Story
Comprehension subtest

• clarified entry items, basals, and ceilings for test administration

The DAB-3 generates standard scores (M = 10, SD = 3 for the subtests,
and M = 100, SD = 15 for the composites), percentile ranks, and age/grade equivalents. The test was standardized on 1,534 students in 13 states.
The sample is representative of the national population with regard to gender, race, ethnicity, geographic region, and urban/rural residence.

The DAB-3 includes a supplemental manual enabling the examiner to probe
student responses on the standardized test. The purpose of probing is to
identify the thinking processes and problem-solving strategies that result in
both correct and incorrect responses.

*The DAB-3 is now available with grade norms, which will be included in all
future printings of the Examiner's Manual as Appendix D. For examiners who
do not have these norms in their Examiner's Manual, please contact Customer Service at PRO-ED to obtain the supplemental appendix.

COMPLETE DAB-3 KIT INCLUDES: Manual, Student Booklet, 25 Profile/Examiner Record Booklets, 25 Student Response Booklets, Assessment Probes, and an Audiotape, all in a sturdy storage box. (©2001)

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