text:
29 March 201528 March Match Reports
Cup Reports
Senior Division Reports
Reserve Division Reports
Under 21 Division Reports
29 March 2015Benfleet Withdraw
Benfleet have advised the League that they are withdrawing both of their teams with immediate effect.As neither have completed 75% of their League fixtures, their records have been expunged in accordance with our RulesIn addition this means that Frenford Senior receive a bye through to the Final of the Reserve Division Cup.There may be changes to the scheduled fixtures for April/May and clubs effected will be advised in due course
28 March 2015White Ensign in Final
White Ensign reached the final of the Anagram Records Trophy (Capital County Feeder League Trophy) for the fifth time when they won 4 - 2 after extra time at BelstoneTheir opponents in the final will be Letchworth Garden City Eagles who won 3 - 0 at Cuffley. The final is taking place at the Herts County F.A. Ground, Letchworth on 09 May 2015 and kicks off at 15:00
24 March 2015Application for Membership
Any clubs wishing to join our League are reminded that they must apply by 31 March 2015Senior TeamsThe criteria for entry into our League can be found at www.eofl.co.uk/criteria.pdfAn application form can be found at www.eofl.co.uk/application.pdfReserve TeamsAny team already within our constitution who wishes to enter a Reserve team should use the form found at www.eofl.co.uk/resapp.pdf. This application must also be submitted by 31 March 2015Under 21 TeamsAny current clubs wishing to enter a team into the under 21 section should use the form found at www.eofl.co.uk/u21app.pdfIf there are any under 21 teams not associated with clubs already within our constitution that wish to apply, they should use the application form found at www.eofl.co.uk/application.pdfThe part of the criteria stating that you must have finished in the top three of the top division of your current League does not apply to under 21 teams making application to join us
18 March 2015Rule 8 (N) Clarification
Some clubs have been querying how many matches constitute the 30% of a member clubs first and/or reserve team fixtures.
If a player wishes to play for the first team of a club that has played 18 first team matches, he must have played in 6 games for either the first and/or reserve teams of that club in the competitions stated in the rule to qualify.In this example 30% is actually 5.4, but in all cases the number of games he has to have played is rounded up.
17 January 2015Postponed Matches
If you notify the relevant people that your match has been postponed by e-mail or text, you MUST, request a receipt. You will be able to see if the Fixtures Secretary has received your message as the match will either have been deleted from Full Time or have a notation saying it has been postponed.E-mails and text messages do go astray and it is the clubs responsibility to ensure that any e-mails or text messages sent have been received.The correct way to notify all of the above is by telephoneIf the referee calls the game off you MUST notify the Fixtures Secretary by TELEPHONE..
13 January 2015Changed Venues and Kick-Off Times
Clubs are reminded that if they change the venue or the kick-off times from those shown on Full Time they must let the Fixtures Secretary and Referees Secretaries know.This is so that there are no problems if the officials have to be changed at the last moment and will also enable the Website to be kept up to date for the benefit of anyone wishing to watch the match. It also ensures that players taking part in the match are made aware.
09 October 2014Player Authentication
Your attention is drawn to League Rule 8 (R) which deals with the procedure to be followed should you query the identity of a player of the opposing team.The League Management Committee will only deal with appeals if the correct "Player Identification Form" has been used.You can download a "Player Identification Form" via THIS link and clubs are urged to ensure that their team managers have at least one of these forms with them at every match.
This site is not financially supported by either the EOFL or its sponsors.If you use the Amazon Link in the right hand margin when making purchases from the company, some income that helps support the cost of hosting this site is received.Please help to fund this site by using this link and visiting the sites in the advertising block at the top of the page which costs you nothing.Thank You
As part of the F.A. Respect Programme clubs are requested give all of their players, coaches and spectators access to a copy of the Respect Code of Conduct.Copies of these codes of conduct are detailed below.All of the above are also requested to sign a register to acknowledge the fact that they have been made aware of what is expected of them.Copies of draft registers can be downloaded from the link below. All you have to do is enter the name of your club and get them signed.The League takes the conduct of players, officials and spectators very seriously and will not hesitate to take action against those who do not abide by these Codes of Conduct. Ultimately persistent misconduct by any of the above could lead to your club being recommended for exclusion from next seasons constitution.Copies of the Code of Conduct for Match Officials are also available below as are details of what is expected of Club Captains.Your co-operation with this would be appreciated as continued funding of the League by the F.A. is dependant on us showing that we are taking the Respect Programme seriously
The Football Stadia Improvement Fund have updated the information regarding stadia funding for clubs from Step 1 to Step 7The key points are that a higher percentage of total project cost are now available to Step 7 clubs and there is also a wider range of projects now eligible for funding Follow this FSIF link for further details, including how much you can receive.
The presentation given at the All Clubs Meeting by the F.A. on 03 January 2013 is available via this link.
Information regarding Shared Access can be found via this link.
Below is our League banner for you to put on your web site. If you need any help with creating a link back to this site please e-mail me.
Link To This Site


text:
Trending now: Arsenal • Manchester United • Liverpool • Real Madrid • Argentina • Barcelona • Chelsea • England • Belgium • Mexico
Latest Remo Videos
Latest Remo Match Round Up
Last Match
Paraense Sun, 29th Mar 2015
Next Match
Copa Do Brasil Fri, 3rd Apr 2015
Latest Remo Transfer Rumours
Nothing to display. Know something we don't? Add a transfer rumour.
Share your thoughts
Page 1 of 0
In the Remo Forum
In the Stands
1 comments
by matt
1 comments
1 comments
by Northstream
2 comments
by BluFFmaster
22 comments

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Cracker Barrel is right next to the hotel, very quiet town, me and my mom love it a lot. The people in the hotel are so very nice too. Wish we could have a chance to come back again.
It was convenient to all places we wanted to go and relatives we wanted to visit. The free breakfast was wonderful with everything you wished for.
My only problem was that I am short and the bed was just a little too high for me to get in and out of easily.
Although it's a somewhat older hotel with dated decor, I found my room to be very clean and neat.
There wasn't a dining option in the hotel, although there's a diner across the parking lot. The wifi was extremely poor, practically unusable.
Bathroom had mold/mildew, the wallpaper was pealing near the jacuzzi tub and there were cigarette ashes on the floor near the bed and it was a non-smoking room.
Clean room and linens.
Toilet would not flush- bathroom had a plunger in it.
The staff was great.
We had to plug the TV in and fix it
Helpful staff, room and bathroom were very clean, good location close to the interstate, breakfast good choices, quiet location.
Service and Courtesies Room had problem w/TV... staff worked quickly and diligently to fix
Nothing disliked
My room was spacious. Shuttle took us where we wanted to go.
Free breakfast would have been nice.
pillows, bed
Cafe in lobby!
Light up clock
newspaper availability
No tea in room
pool atmosphere
position of television
hair dryer in dark bag in dark closet, hard to find
Customer Service. Room was really nice.
The hotel room had a funky smell.
Very clean and convenient to amenities
Mattress is to soft
Perfect for what we needed.
The hot tub looked very dirty on the inside edges.
It was nice ,quiet and very clean.n
Absolutely nothing. The picture on the website was not an accurate indication of the accommodations. We did not stay the night, and checked into another hotel.
Its terrible and all the rooms, are not smoke free everything smell like cigarette smoke
Really, really liked all the modernization and comfort aspects: good non-slip floors, convenient, easy-access receptacles by the bed, smart night lighting - in some ways better than the typical $250/night hotels I stay at!
It was a non-smoking room, but the smell of cigarette smoke in there was so strong that we had to sleep with the door latched open (the windows were screwed shut); I'm guessing that it was the occupant immediately previous to us, or one just before that, who smoked the place out. Since it was the last room available, we couldn't even ask to be moved... the maids need to note this kind of thing and bring it to the staff's attention so it can be handled immediately.
If it wasn't for this (MAJOR) factor, our experience at this hotel would have been just about perfect. As it was, we both slept poorly and couldn't wait to get out in the morning.
Beds a little hard
We arrived after midnight, and everything went smoothly checking in and out with the professional staff. The room was nicer than I expected given the price and was right off the highway. Very clean and no street noise--the rooms all face away from the interstate--with plenty of space to lay out bags so we could get to sleep quickly! The included breakfast got us to the other end of the turnpike no problem and there was a cheap gas station right across the street.
The heater's cycling disrupted our sleep a little. I think we could have set it differently to make this less of an issue, but we arrived late and didn't spend much time looking at it. Also, the shower curtain was too short and allowed some water to leak on the bathroom floor. This might be more annoying for people staying more than one night, but we just used some of the extra towels to stand on.
The room was light colored which made it more comfortable,clean.10 minutes after we were there the front desk called to see if our room was okay,made me feel like they cared if we were comfortable.
Coffee was extremely strong not much choice.
Clean room.
The bathroom is the biggest drawback of this facility. Sink is wall mounted without any counter space, leaving no room for toiletries. Shower is a step-in space with a curtain and an adjustable hand-held shower head. No extra toilet paper provided.
The staff was very kind and attentive.
The hotel was a confusing maze and my bathroom wasnt very clean.
The smell of the room was mildewish
Here's why:
We're not the seller
At KAYAK we don't set prices, so it's not possible for us to guarantee what other companies are selling.
We aggregate tons of data for you
Our service lets you quickly and easily compare results from hundreds of travel sites at once. In this sense, KAYAK is a search engine and we don't guarantee prices we find.
Why aren't prices accurate 100% of the time?
Prices on airline seats, hotel rooms and car rentals can change frequently. Several people may also be trying to buy the same travel option simultaneously. As a result, you may find on occasion that certain prices are no longer available.
More questions or if you have a bad price to report to us
Please send us an
and someone from our team will get back to you promptly.


text:
>10/10/12 - 4:05pm
Categories Revealed On Tonight's 'The X Factor'
On tonight's The X Factor, 60 acts will get narrowed down to 24 during the "Judges' Homes" episode, which has each judge being assigned a category and pairing up with a music industry heavy-hitter. Britney teams up with will.i.am, Demi Lovato is with Nick Jonas, Simon Cowell is with Marc Anthony and L.A. Reid is with Justin Bieber.
We find out our categories tonight on @thexfactorusa! viddy.it/QSDdT6 Whose group do I think has the winner? Hm... @iamwill
— Britney Spears (@britneyspears) October 10, 2012
And a few sneak peeks at tonight's episode for your viewing pleasure:
via E! Online
Tune in to The X Factor every Wednesday and Thursday at 8/7c on FOX.
Don't miss a Britney beat — follow Britney.com blogger Britannica on Facebook and Twitter!


text:
How To Be A Great Leader To Your Profit Academy Group
Unfortunately not everyone has what it takes to be an effective leader of people, but that is only because they haven't been educated on the correct way to lead. To help get you started your journey down the path to effective leadership, the article below has many great tips. Continue on and learn those valuable leadership lessons.
If you're trying to make a decision, you should try to get input from your team. Your team may be able to help you find a great solution, or they could help you see if you're making a bad choice. A good Anik Singal's Profit Academy leader should be interested in the opinions of others.
Whenever you deal with a fellow employee or a customer, it is crucial that you are ethical. All businesses must adhere to their ethical beliefs. When customers see that you are working in their best interest, you will build up customer loyalty. By developing a set of moral responsibilities for your company's employees, you can help ensure that the rules are followed.
Work on building trust with the people that work with you. People need to feel that they can trust their leader. This can motivate them to succeed and help build cooperation and understanding in the company. You should inspire others so that their trust in you can help tasks get completed properly.
Always come prepared when you're speaking to people on your team. Consider possible questions they may have. Answer questions honestly and in a professional manner. If you have the right answers, your team will admire you. It is also a great time-saving method.
Don't fear failing. Failing is something that many great leaders have done, and it has only spurred them on to greater victories. If you fear failure, you may be afraid to act boldly, which is the only way for a leader to act. If you fail at something, use it to help you change directions.
As a leader, it is important that you set a good example to others. It can be fun to join the workforce for picnics and other activities outside of work. This helps to form good relationships. However, think twice before you join in on Friday tavern nights, poker games or other activities that could damage your leadership role. It is important to keep some things separate from the workforce.
Keep an open mind. Take workshops and classes to ensure you are constantly working on your leadership skills. Innovations are constantly developing and learning new things is always possible. You need to be up-to-date in this field.
Have a vision. Planning for the future is important. Things might be great now, but will it still be a year from now? What about ten years from now? Try to keep abreast of any change that might be relevant to your business. Shape your plans and your vision accordingly.
As a leader, you are responsible for forming the goals and aspirations of your team. Come up with a best-case scenario for your team, and your vision for the future. Share these goals with them, and ask them for their feedback and suggestions. A true Anik Singal's Profit Academy leader has a team under him that is focused on the same goals, and how to achieve them.
As a leader, you must set clear, uncomplicated goals. Be sure that your team can attain them, even if they are a challenge. Give a reward for each goal met, and when it is met, hand out the reward immediately. From the time we are children, this example of goals and rewards motivates us to strive to meet new challenges. It's how people work, and it will work in your workplace.
You probably already know that most organisations have a mission, values, and goals, but what about leaders? As you work to develop your leadership abilities, it helps to define these qualities for yourself. What do hope to accomplish in your role? What personal qualities and values will you use to make important decisions regarding your goals? Bear these in mind as you map out your career plans.
Build relationships with your team by applying the principles of servant leadership. While working toward the group's long-term goal, make it clear that you are personally invested in the short-term goals of each group member. As a servant leader, you focus on empowering others to perform their duties for the task at hand, but also for future projects.
If you work in an industry that requires you to take risks, allow you employees the opportunity to take those necessary risks with confidence. Those risks will not always pay off so you need to make a plan for evaluating various risk factors. Stand behind your employee's decision and never berate them for risks that didn't pay off.
If you must give criticism, do so constructively and in private. Every member of the staff doesn't need to know about every mistake that is made. Being singled out in a crowd in this way is embarrassing. On the other hand, give compliments publicly. This not only build individual confidence, it lets others see that hard work is appreciated and rewarded. Visit this review website for more info
Now that you have read the above Anik Singals Profit Academy article, there is no stopping your pursuit of becoming a leader. The tips you learned about here should give you a nice starting point that you can build on as your leadership skills begin to grow. Keep developing your skills and refer back to this article if you feel you aren't progressing fast enough.


text:
With partners like Drake and Mitchell & Ness, the Raptors's 20th anniversary capsule collection can't miss.
20 Bags to Consider This Fall
Recipe for Men Alcohol-Free Antiperspirant Deodorant
-Has a mild, pleasant scent, like lemons and flowers.
-A liquid applied via roll-on. Not slimy, and it leaves no clumping or visible product.
Antiperspirant deodorant ($22) by Recipe for Men, recipeformenusa.com
Royal Apothic Heroes & Aristocrats Face Cleanser
-Very light. Gentle.
-Smells great, like subtle citrus.
Heroes & Aristocrats Face Cleanser ($34) by Royal Apothic, royalapothic.com


text:
VIEWS: 572 PAGES: 1 CATEGORY: Career Development POSTED ON: 8/8/2008
This is an example of Marketing Director. This document is useful for studying Marketing Director.
Marketing Director FMCG JOHANNESBERG R2.0 CTC negotiable Our client, part of a listed national entity responsible for some of South Africa's favourite brands, is searching for a talented Marketing Director to join their dynamic team. Key business processes and performance indicators: Translating business unit objectives and strategies to develop brand portfolio objectives, strategies and plans to facilitate business unit growth Facilitate the development and management of a healthy, robust portfolio of brands that can command strong market positions in their chosen segments Develop and deliver insightful presentations and strategies to the business unit and executive committee where appropriate Ensure the integration of the business unit marketing function within that of the greater group, and ensure that the business unit optimizes its use of shared and support services Build and develop a marketing team which is competent, commercially astute, dedicated and efficient Assist the business unit to meet its objectives, live the values and culture and to practice company policies Person specification: Minimum of relevant bachelor's degree, preferably a post graduate qualification Commercial capability Strong functional skills Strategy formulation Natural leader Several years experience as a marketing director/equivalent in an FMCG environment Behavioural traits: Ability to interact and influence cross functionally Ability to influence at a senior board level Ability to operate in a complex environment Ability to identify and keep abreast of trends and apply this within the business Process thinking Creative, innovative Challenge status quo Empower marketing team Team player This is an employment equity position. For further information or a confidential discussion, please email your CV to email@example.com or call Michelle Nicolay on +27 21 674 0860 before 13th June 2008
Pages to are hidden for
"Marketing Director"Please download to view full document


text:
Britt Hayes
Britt Hayes is a writer, movie lover, and sensible sweater enthusiast living in Austin, Texas. She watches too much TV and never eats her vegetables. Her mom is worried about her.
Although 'Guardians of the Galaxy' has already been in theaters for several days now, that's not keeping Marvel from releasing some fun 'Guardians' goodies -- like this latest featurette, in which Chris Pratt takes a very MTV's 'Cribs'-style approach to showing us around Peter Quill/Star-Lord's spaceship, the Milano.
When you head to the theater to see 'Guardians of the Galaxy' this weekend, you'll undoubtedly walk out with a favorite character: the surprisingly lovable Groot, the foul-mouthed Rocket Raccoon, the charismatic Star-Lord, the tough but hilarious Drax -- or maybe you'll fall in love with Zoe Saldana's green-skinned, badass Gamora. With all that screen time shared between so many heroes (and villains, and peripheral characters), it'll leave you wanting to see more of Gamora and her talents. Not that that's a bad thing.
It's official: look out, Panem because the Capitol has just become the official target of a group of rebels operating out of District 13 -- a district once thought to be destroyed. The latest bit of marketing for 'The Hunger Games: Mockingjay -- Part 1' has introduced us to the official logo of District 13 and delivered a mysterious website for you to puzzle over.
Over the weekend it was announced that Paul Feig is in negotiations to direct an all-female version of 'Ghostbusters 3,' which is the first bit of news to get us seriously interested since Phil Lord and Chris Miller's names were briefly attached earlier this year. Feig, who also brought us 'Bridesmaids' and 'The Heat,' has given us some hilarious and truly great female-driven films. By making the new 'Ghostbusters' women, this project has so much more potential because there are so many insanely funny and talented women out there. We couldn't help but put together a list of who we think should star in an all-female 'Ghostbusters 3.'
We've known for a while that Universal has been planning a reboot of 'The Mummy,' but the studio has struggled to find a director for the project, which will kick off a new era of their classic monsters. Alex Kurtzman, who recently parted ways with longtime writing partner Bob Orci, and who is helping Universal bring those famous monsters back to life, has now been tapped to direct the 'Mummy' reboot.
If you're looking for something to watch in the comfort of your own home, Netflix has some great new titles hitting Instant in August, including the long-awaited fourth season of 'The Killing.' Read on for our guide to the best new titles coming to Netflix Instant in August 2014.
Just a couple of weeks ago we saw the first teaser for 'Horns,' the new horror thriller starring Daniel Radcliffe as a guy who wakes up with horns growing out of his head. And now, straight from Comic-Con 2014, comes a full trailer for the upcoming film, which promises more than just your typical horror fare.
Comic-Con 2014 has brought us yet another delightful treat: the first full trailer for 'The Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part 1.' With the film's release only four months away, it's time to ignite the rebellion as we return to Panem with Katniss and Co. in the first part of the riveting conclusion to the trilogy.
We know there are some who are still on the fence about the upcoming 'Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles' film, but going by the awesome new footage we saw at Comic-Con 2014, this movie might surprise you. If you want to know more about the work that went into bringing your beloved childhood heroes back to the big screen, check out our interviews with star Megan Fox, director Jonathan Liebesman, and the producers, straight from San Diego.
After being bumped up to an 'Arrow' series regular in season 2, Colton Haynes' Roy Harper is making another leap -- this time to becoming a full-fledged member of Team Arrow, and he's bringing his red hood with him as he goes by a name comic book fans will be quite familiar with: Arsenal.
When Warner Bros. announced its Comic-Con 2014 film lineup, 'Batman vs. Superman' was not on the list, which seemed more than a bit odd at the time. Now we know it was all just a rouse to give the surprise panel more impact.
We've had an 'Unexpected Journey' and seen the 'Desolation of Smaug,' and now this year Peter Jackson brings us the conclusion of the trilogy with 'The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies.' With six months still left ahead before we catch up with Bilbo and friends, it's about time we get our first look at the final chapter in their story.
It appears that you already have an account created within our VIP network of sites on . To keep your points and personal information safe, we need to verify that it's really you. To activate your account, please confirm your password. When you have confirmed your password, you will be able to log in through Facebook on both sites.
*Please note that your points, prizes and activities will not be shared between programs within our VIP network.
It appears that you already have an account on this site associated with . To connect your existing account just click on the account activation button below. You will maintain your existing VIP profile. After you do this, you will be able to always log in to http://lite987.com using your original account information.
*Please note that your points, prizes and activities will not be shared between programs within our VIP network.
Please fill out the information below to help us provide you a better experience.
Register on LITE 98.7 quickly by logging in with your Facebook account. It's just as secure, and no password to remember!
Not a member? Sign up here
Register on LITE 98.7 quickly by logging in with your Facebook account. It's just as secure, and no password to remember!


text:
Boost your immune system, detox and ground your energy using the 4-step system provided by the Yoga Journal 7-Day Detox program.
1. Slowing Down - most detox plans start with reduction of stress and mental hyperactivity. Believe it or not, fatigue, insomnia, indigestion, and excessive weight are often the result of brain and nervous system overload. This program will require you to make sure you eat your meals in a peaceful and relaxed atmosphere, practice yoga every day and make some time for meditations.
2. Detox Diet - purify your body following the dietary program. At the heart of it there's kitchari - rice and mung beans dish that's popular in Asian countries. Don't forget spicy teas and chutneys to aid your digestion. Also, use triphala, an Ayurvedic herbal formula that acts as a mild laxative and immune system stimulant.
3 - Cleansing Yoga - certain yoga poses facilitate the detox process. The program is designed to provide balance between stimulating and relaxing activities. There are sequences that build heat and remove toxins out of your body. Also, there are relaxing sequences that will calm your mind and body, which is extremely important for any detox program.
4 - Self-Study - svadhyaya in Sanscrit. Whether you practice to improve your health or soothe your mind, listening to yourself can make you discover many new things. It is recommended to spend a full day (or at least a half) in silence to see the world and yourself from a different perspective.
In this video:
00:00:01 Ayurvedic tips for every day
00:09:35 Uddiyana bandha kriya
00:15:48 Yoga Class led by Sianna Sherman
00:45:20 Yoga sequence designed by Chase Bossart
01:03:55 Vinyasa sequence led by Janet Stone


text:
You are using an outdated browser. Please upgrade your browser to improve your ReverbNation experience.
Push play.
New LP due for release in 2014
is it doomed?
Stay tuned.
Praise God and pass the ammunition.
© 2015 eMinor Incorporated
All trademarks are the property of the respective owners. ReverbNation is not affiliated with the trademark owners.
Not listening to anything?
Try one of the ReverbNation Channels


text:
New subscription
Renew my subscription
Give a gift
Pay my bill
Change my address
Wolfgang Vladimir LePew, COTD 5/12/09
Active within 459 Days
Hi! My name is Wolfgang Vladimir LePew, COTD 5/12/09
I am a Persian from Mandeville, LA
Nicknames: Wolfie, loves beautiful Maggie #2546. She is the love of my life.
Age: 13 years old
Gender: M
Coat: long haired
Education: I am a very calm traveler and I love to travel. I behave and listen far better than most children. I am intelligent and I understand when you talk to me. If you think I am an animal, think again!
My favorite tricks and treats are: I talk, if I meow and you ask me "What?" I will keep meowing each time you ask me. and I love anything but my favorites are ham and turkey, and to get to travel with Mommy and Daddy.
Where I hang out: The office chair in the computer room.
My favorite grubs: Whiskas
My pet peeves: Being held (I am not in control and I AM a control freak) and I hate having my feet touched.
What I love about my owners: She is my personal slave, she spoils me rotten, and she loves me completely.
My cat hobbies: Travel, playing "I'm Gonna Get You" (I expect to win or I get very angry!), watch television, and of course sleep and eat.
Pet motto: See the cat, FEED the cat!
See all awards »
My Daddy gave me to Mommy for Valentine's Day. I was three months old at the time. Daddy had looked at a LOT of kittens before me, but he said when he met me he KNEW I was THE ONE for my Mommy and he was SO RIGHT!!
I've had 93451 friends visit me.
I'm the 15,473rd member on CatChannel.com.
14,209 friends have voted for me since I joined Club Cat!
Come visit me, Angel Sunshine (ACOTD 3/21/09), Tigger Loves Tigger, Spookie &Trace Happy FALL, Miss Fluffy (COTD4/23/09), Angel Patches & Baby Sissy (ACOTD 2/28/09), My Buddy&MsMurphy Pray forall the sick kittys & Starlight loves King Pete.
Come visit me, Zoe Monique, On the road again.......
Come visit me, Tom & ♥ CC ♥ (In loving memory).
Come visit me, Q. Pappoose "Forever Sleep 4-10-2006 to 4-24-2012", BABY KNIGHT July 18, 1998 to May 20, 2010, Patch Girl Knight (OG) #12767 Photo: 8/04/2014, Suezee Knight - Photo: 7/13/2013, WHYSKRS KNIGHT #10378 ♥ Photo: 12/13/2014, SASSEE "Forever Sleep 5-01-2004 to 10-02-2014", SIX Knight (Sweet Memories 5/15/01-7/03/06), Ebbonny Knight Forever Sleep 8/14/2000 to 3/9/2011, Sweet Pea ~ Forever Sleep 5-15-2001 to 2-25-2011, Tipper Claflin-Knight (7/15/1989 - 7/23/2008), BAHNEETAH KNIGHT #10641 PHOTO: 1/14/2015, Charr ~ In Loving Memory 8/14/2000-9/19/2008, Jazpyr Knight #10428 Photo 1/19/2014, Sissee Knight (OG) #11531 Photo: 11/06/2014, K. RHOAMIN "JULY KING 2008" ~ Photo: 2/27/2015, Velvet~Sleep My Black Beauty 5-10-2002 to 7-7-2012 & Sylvester #11567 ♥ 5/15/2001 - 6/28/2013.
Come visit me, Jynxx-Zoe Monique and I are engaged <3.
Come visit me, Wally, Angel Mickey, Angel Priscilla 1/12/15, BAC Central-Inactive as of 1/1/2014, Angel PK, Angel Gabby, Angel Haylee--We love you!, Angel McFluff, Missy & Holly-THANK YOU FOR MY COTD!.
Come visit me, Princess Molly Rose - Hail King Hami, **A Queen's Memories** - Catpaign & Reign, Angel Rani Loves A. Teddy- Prayers For All, Q.Lady Dolly loves K. Mike- Vote Edina COTM #2884, Rainbow Rose Manor & Mike & Dolly's Wedding Pages, A. Sir Leo Loves A. Rhuby -Sprinkling Angel Dust, LOLLIPOP - (It's ME in the Middle) Mew Mew & A, Lily Rose Luvs K. Sylvester- Hail King Hami.
Come visit me, Dancing Bear (In Loving Memory 1994 to 12/2011), Luvbug - RIP Sir Leo, Fang and Drooler - Thank you everyone, Buster - RIP Q. Pappoose and Q. Gracie, Sphinx (In loving Memory of 1986-2004) Thanks COTD, Lil Jag - RIP Q. Angel Aunt Samantha thanks COTD, Smudge - Married Dame Carmen - RIP Angel Wilson & Q. Angel Kuce (1993-2012) Vote EDINA #2884 COTM.
Come visit me, Angel Nacho -- Rodent Rippers goalie, Angels Stokey, Fuzzy, & Diamond & Rocket, Bingo, & Snooper.
Come visit me, TomCat, Angel Pepper -- 5/26/07 - 3/21/11, Angel Tuxie, Angel Scamper - I Love Tinkerbell, Angel Scooter - MHL Goalie (Chubbies Cubbies), Midnight, Kiwi -- MHL Pres. & Tigre -- MHL - Voracious Frisky Predators.
Come visit me, Q. angel bootz #2601~THANK YOU FOR MY ACOTD, angel tikki....# 33474, K. meeko..2602, K .meeko & Q angel bootz 17441~ & dame rosie # 212287.
Come visit me, down until furtger noyiceBella --- (#235772) & offlime me yo to ullmess --- (#235770).
Come visit me, TOUGHY & BLAZE-WOWSER OH MY THANK YOU EVERYONE, THE TRIPLETS, ANGEL KIM-LEE 2/4/82-6/17/98, SHILO, ANGEL KAYCEE LEE 7/1/95-10/5/10, CHYNA DOLL, WINCHESTER'S MASSAGE THERAPY & ANGEL HIMMEL 8/15/99-7/27/13..
Come visit me, Pacers kitties, Pacer & kayla.
Come visit me, A. Frosty-Welcome, furbrother, Felix!, Angel Moki-Praying for Mom Lynn!, Q. Duchess - Vote Edina #2884 daily in March., A.Red-RIP,7 /19/11-Welcome Trampy, Elmer & S, Dayzee - Praying for all those in need of prayers. & Mischief - Praying for all the sick and lost...
Come visit me, Sir Hedley, K. Neelix (Katie's guy) & Count Jakar (Vote Edina COTM).
Come visit me, RennieBoots OFFLINE 3 weeks, back soon :), ♦Q Lily ♦OFFLINE 3 weeks & ♦Lily's Memory Page♦.
Come visit me, QUEEN JOSIEMAE PLEASE PRAY FOR MY MONTY 205803, MONTGOMERY AND JOSIEMAE'S WEDDING PAGE, ANGEL SCOOTER LETS PRAY FOR ALL OUR SICK ONES, COUNTESS A DOODLEBUG; FOUND A HOME, FAMIY & LOVE, PRINCE SIR THUNDERFOOT 210289 & EARL SIR SHADOWFOOT :LETS JUST PUTT DOWN THE HWY.
Come visit me, Q Angel Yum Yum - vote for Queen Kelsee #28613, Q Angel Yum's COTM Catpaign & Reign & Ammie - vote for Angel Kuce #7387 in December.
Come visit me, Angel Duchess Ginger and sister Lady Maggie.
Come visit me, Heidi & Gwendy.
Come visit me, K.Whiskers ♥ Talley• VOTE EDINA #2884 COTM, saved blogs & Whiskers ♥ Talley Wedding Page.
Come visit me, ***WOOHOO! NAPPERS IS SAMSONS GIRLFRIEND****, A.ELMIE TOGETHER WITH MY A.POUNCER 3-9-15 ♥, ***SUGAR LUVS HIS BALLERINA ***, ***MRS. LILLY & FRASIERS 1ST ANNIVERSARY...JUNE 24, GRACIE & MAX****VOTE EDINA #2884 COTM APRIL*******, ***MRS.WHISKERS LUVS HER WILDMAN EXIT****RIP PING, **ANGEL PAWPAW***THANK YOU FOR MY ACOTD 4-7-14*** & ***BLUEY AKA NUTTY BUDDY LUVS HIS MAIA GIRL*****.
Come visit me, Smokey, Tiger, Rocky (died on August, 20, 2012) & Hercules.
Come visit me, King PUSHKIN missing A.GINGER /Vote EDINA #2884 & PUSHKIN & CASSANDRA'S WEDDING PAGE.
Come visit me, KELSEE~~I ♥ Snickie~~Spring is here~~, K-WINSTON ~~I ♥ Brina~~*Spring has Sprung*, KALI~~I LUV Elvis~~HAPPY SPRING!~~, Winston's Pizzeria~*since 2008*, SHEBA~~Happy Spring~~*I ♥ Shaddy*, JESSE ~~I ♥ Tweetie~~I like Spring!~~, KCK: 2015 Team Page~~Go KCK!!! & ~~ANGELS JINXIE & SHADOW~~.
Come visit me, ♥ Angel Lucy MEMORY PAGE ♥ & Boo Kitty ♥ Angel Winslow - So Long Friends.
Come visit me, Miles & Q. Angel Maggie.
Come visit me, Suki (In Loving Memory)1993-12/28/06, Timmy, Tucker & Bella.
Come visit me, BUDDY.
Come visit me, Family Scrapbook ~ Vote Edina #2884 daily in March, ~ Angels Jezebel & Pierre ~, K Mike ♥ Q Lady Dolly, Dame Mojo Blackbear - Chasing ladybugs!, A Mallow ♥ OJ ~ The biker chicks are loose!, Angel Smokey ~ Sprinkling Angel dust ~ & Evie ♥ A. Shai ~ Welcome springtime!.
Come visit me, Echo & Francis~ & ~Q. Lil' Bear~.
Come visit me, RIP Angel Kato in Heaven with Mom Kathy, Kitty Avalanche MHL only 1 point will save us!, K.Indie, K Shadow COTM May 2010 & Princess Terri.
Come visit me, ♥ K Casper Todd ♥, ♥ Q MerryBelle ♥ & ♥ Q Sissy ♥.
Come visit me, Black Pearl & Julius Steven "Thank You".
Come visit me, K. Spanky-Jack - Spring is here - REALLY?.
Come visit me, K. Tuck ~ # 219145, Dame Dot ~ # 247583, Maizy ~ Thank-you for the COTD!!!, Dame Mouse ~ # 219407 & Smoke's Angels ~ Please Vote Edina # 2884 for COTM.
Come visit me, Our Precious Angels #75646 COTD 12/3/14 WOW!, HEFTY #130639-----VFP Goalie/COTD WOW!, Honey #267035 COTD 1/25/14 THANK YOU ALL!, Handy Andy #149735 WOW COTD! THANK YOU ALL!, Our Angel Meezers #74302 ACOTD 2/22/15 Thank You!, Angel Zeus #246330 COTD 1/14/13!, Molly Jean #79742 COTD 4/4/14 OH MY! THANK YOU! & K.Barney #74382, COTD--- THANK YOU ALL!.
Come visit me, Edina.
Tell a Friend |
Report inappropriate content on this page.
Hi, my name is
Evil, Skits, Speedy & Pugs (not shown).
Visit the photo gallery to cast your vote »
Get quick tips for happy cats, food recall info, news alerts and best behavior advice.
Sign up to get updates delivered straight to your inbox.
CatChannel takes your privacy seriously. To learn more, please read our privacy policy.


text:
Measure, mismeasure, or not measurement at all? psychometrics as political theory.
The author of this article challenges a common assumption made by both critics and defenders of standardized-testing technology (or psychometry), namely that standardized tests "measure" something (culture, ability, etc.). It argues that psychometric practice cannot be classified as a form of measurement and instead is best understood as a marker of social value, an inherently political act. The chapter concludes by suggesting the significance of this argument for debates regarding "standards," "accountability," and educational assessment more generally.
As the role and significance of standardized testing and thus psychometrics increases with new state and federal laws mandating yearly high stakes tests in the name of accountability and a high quality education for all, debates about the validity of this technology have intensified in academic as well as lay circles. Yet, an assumption typical of both critics and supporters of standardized testing is that such tests measure something. This belief is evidenced by the frequently heard question: what is being measured by an I.Q. or a standardized achievement test? Standardized tests are developed, supporters argue, to measure a student's overall academic ability or potential. They can measure the degree to which any student has mastered a particular body of knowledge or set of skills, what is given as scholastic achievement. Proponents of standards-based reform argue that these tests are well suited to measure the performance of educational systems, in both relative and absolute terms, and identify areas in need of improvement. In this way, proponents of the use of standardized tests to improve education are in favor of the recent federal education act known as No Child Left Behind.
Yet, the federal mandates of this Act for schools that do not meet expected performance levels--including the withholding of federal monies and the imposition of various restructuring schemes such as charter schools, for-profit school management, and state takeovers of entire districts--are considered punishments by many individuals, especially given the perennial critiques of standardized tests as such.
For example, one can easily find critics arguing that the best predictor of a student's or school's score on any given standardized test is their associated social class--what one commentator called the Volvo Effect: family wealth as indicated by brand of car predicts student test performance (Wesson, 2000). The format and content of these tests, critics continue, reveal profound cultural and gender biases as well. Such examinations measure more of a student's cultural familiarity with the discourse of Western schooling and linguistic socialization and less some objective notion of innate intelligence or even what they know and are able to do. While critics often mount strong arguments that standardized tests are indeed biased, their assumption of measurement typically holds. (1)
In this way, Gould's (1981) now classic book on intelligence testing, The Mismeasure of Man has popularized a critique of testing predicated on the assumption that a key problem lies with the misuse of educational and psychological tests and specious interpretations of the meaning of test scores. The problem is not with the technology itself, but simply how it is used. (2) This is in fact consistent with the path psychometry has followed. Now fundamental psychometric concepts such as construct validity have emerged to articulate meaningfulness in relation to how the test is used (Cronbach & Meehl, 1955; Thorndike, 1971).
In this article, I take a different direction. I argue that psychometry fails to meet its claim of measurement and that its object is not the measurement of non-physical human attributes, but the marking of some human beings as having more worth and value than other human beings, an act central to maintaining the legitimacy of a particular kind of hierarchical social system such as a meritocracy. Psychometry's claim to measurement serves to veil the fundamentally political act of marking social value.
Definitions of Psychometry
According to the Oxford English Dictionary, psychometry literally means measuring the soul, or "mind measuring." The first reported use of the word, appearing in 1854, gave psychometry as the "faculty of divining, from physical contact or proximity only, the qualities or properties of an object, or of persons or things that have been in contact with it." Sense two is given as follows: "The measurement of the duration and intensity of mental states or processes" with the following quote from Francis Galton. "Psychometry ... means the art of imposing measurement and number upon operations of the mind, as in the practice of determining the reaction-time of different persons." (Galton's choice of the word imposing should not go unnoticed.) And finally, the Oxford English Dictionary offers this definition for psychometrics, which has a more contemporary flare: "The science of measuring mental capacities and processes; the application of methods of measurement to the various branches of psychology."
The literal, etymological meaning of psychometry is a useful place to begin. What would it mean to measure mind (let alone soul)? Is mind (or soul for that matter) the kind of thing one has more or less of? Or, to start with the more contemporary definition, are mental capacities such that they exist in gradation? Is a theory of mind needed in order to determine if mind can be measured, and if so, how metrication can take place? The issues raised here are fundamental from the point of view of both the theory and practice of measurement, and addressing them serves as a useful starting point for deliberating on the nature of measurement and the status of psychometry as a science.
The Scientific Status of Psychometry
Measurement deals with the dialectical relationship between quantity and quality (Berka, 1983; Nash, 1990). Psychometry, however, renders measurement as the mere application of number systems to objects, a process that, according to Cicourel (1964) has "no necessary reference to the empirical world" (p. 8). Thus a key problem for psychometry rests with its adoption of S. S. Steven's definition of measurement as the allocation of numerals according to rules, which stands as the basis for psychometric practice (Lorge, 1951). Such a definition causes some critics to describe psychometry as "measurement by fiat" (Block & Dworkin, 1976; Cicourel, 1964; Pawson, 1989).
According to Berka (1983), scales producing a mere linear ordering are not measurements proper--if this were the case, almost anything of this nature (the assignment of numbers to a given phenomenon) could be considered measurement. For example, a questionnaire, in which the respondent expresses his or her attitude with the aid of numbers, cannot be taken as an instance of measurement of preferences" (Berka, 1970, p. 145). Nash (1990), elaborates the problems inherent in this approach:

 It is easy to construct a series of questions and treat the resulting form as a scale. Consider, for example, these items, to be rated "agree," "uncertain," "disagree": "I get on well at
school," "School is a neat place," "My teachers often praise my
work." So, what do these questions "measure"? This is by no means
irrelevant to practice--it is the very question which validity
questions are designed to answer. Such items, as anyone with a little knowledge of conventional psychological research will recognize, might easily turn up in a scale designed as an Academic Self-Concept Instrument and they might just as equally turn up on a Pupil School Evaluation Instrument. Furthermore, it is more likely than not that a psychologist employing both "measures" would never so much as look at the test items, but report that the study found Academic Self-Concept ... to be highly correlated with Pupil School Evaluation and offer that as evidence for the conclusion that pupils with high academic selfconcept are also satisfied with their school. (p. 132)

Psychometry is plagued by the tendency to imbue data with properties of the measurement procedure. Coombs (as cited in Cicourel, 1964) points out that one cannot assume a scale to be a property of the "measurand" if it (that scale) is a necessary consequence of the method of analysis (p. 13). The relevance here to educational testing is striking. It is not permissible to argue that intelligence (or any purported characteristic of individuals or groups) is normally distributed in the population on the basis of the normal distribution of scores, for such a distribution is demanded by the tests most commonly used. While "such a procedure ought to be virtually standard practice by the lights of many current parametric techniques," Pawson (1986) writes, "to do so ... is a 'gratuitous' expression of statistical expedience" (p. 56).
Central to Berka's (1983) theory of measurement is the concept of magnitude, defined as the property of relative size or extent: it can be thought of as how much. Common, everyday conceptions such as length and weight represent known magnitudes. A standard (say the meter) must be theoretically and technically fit for the measure of objectively existing properties of a thing or phenomenon--it is what allows for a single property, again, say length, of different objects to be measured. It is also the standard that allows for equivalence, or what is also conceptualized as calibration. It is important to understand that while a standard is necessary for measurement, at least initial theoretical work is presupposed for it to be able to render magnitudes. For example, there needs to be a conception of the qualitative aspect of heat before its measurement can take place (see Block & Dworkin, 1976; Pawson, 1989). Once such theoretical knowledge is at least initially established measurement may be possible, allowing for the location and study of the relation between quantitative and qualitative change in objects, phenomena, and processes. For Berka (1983), the issue is not primarily one of precision of measurement. Metrication includes the claim that laws and rules governing quantitative and qualitative change are being represented mathematically.
Theoretical work also determines if the property or quality under investigation can be measured. The development of measurement has generally progressed from classification (qualities), to topology (comparisons) to metrication (measurements) (Berka, 1983). Classification concepts such as "cold" become topological when comparisons are used, such as colder than.... Thus they "enable us, not only to establish the sameness (or difference), but also to mutually compare at least two objects which possess a given property and, consequently, to arrange them into a sequence" (Berka, 1983, p. 6).
Topological concepts provide a transition from classificational to metrical concepts according to Berka (1983), who argues that classification (or differentiation) itself is not measurement, contrary to what some contemporary textbooks put forward (e.g., Hopkins, Stanley & Hopkins, 1990, pp. 1-3). A key problem, one pointed to above with the definition of psychometry as mind measurement, is the assumption that the mind or a purported function of mind is a property capable of gradation. There are many properties that do not permit gradation--such as Pilsner, feline, wooden, and human. In other words, the psychometric dictum of E. L. Thorndike that if something exists, it must exist in some amount is false.
Yet, this premise may have great social and political significance. We know that humanity is riddled with cases of some human beings being designated as less than human, or not human at all; humanness has been given as something individual persons and groups "have more or less of"--a key presupposition of the eugenicist's project of a "master race." The U.S. Constitution made this presumption when it rendered African slaves and Native peoples as only holding a fraction of the value of white Europeans. Such designations are based on the claim that some human beings have less intelligence, ability, or otherwise valued attribute, than other human beings, and on that basis, they have been rendered less human, of less value, and in some cases, a threat to civilization itself.
Most readers will accept at some level, however, that education is something that can be graded. Clearly some students learn more of a particular subject matter than others, and clearly people obtain, both officially and in practice, different levels of education in different fields, etc. In this way, measuring educational achievement seems less problematic than measuring mind or intelligence. Defining content areas such as math seem relatively simple.
Yet, the project of measuring academic knowledge in practice appears particularly fixated on ranking human beings and less on achievement per se. For example, norm-referenced achievement tests offer results in terms of percentile ranks, not delineations of what a student does or does not know about a given field of study, let alone diagnoses of the cause of difficulty. Put another way, scoring in the 70th percentile only indicates how well one did relative to the norm; it does not indicate 70 percent of required material was mastered. Thus the test remains at the topological level, where percentile results indicate only that, for example, Sue performed better than Joe; the preceding semantics suggest that the object is in fact the ranking of persons, and not what they know or can do as such.
The same problem exists with so-called measures of ability. Nash (1990) contends that norm-referenced ability tests only provide rank order information. "Students are ranked, in effect, by their ability to correctly answer test items, but it is inaccurate to argue that their 'cognitive ability' is therefore being measured" (Nash, 1990, p. 63).
State tests marking schools and districts as performing at the proficient level in a given area also reflect this problem--these levels or benchmarks cannot be shown to correspond in a consistent and sufficiently precise way to an actual body of knowledge or set of skills (e.g., Haney, 2000). Because these tests take as their object the differentiation and ranking of human persons, and do not reflect how much has actually been learned in school by any given set of students, such tests should not be used for accountability purposes (Popham, 1999; Wesson, 2000). Ranking human worth on the basis of how well one competes in academic contests, with the effect that high ranks are associated with privilege, status and power, suggests that psychometry is premised on Anglo-American political ideals of rule by the best and the brightest, a meritocracy.
Psychometricians' Consciousness of the Problem
In the following cases, testing experts admit that their tests are not measurements, or indeed, do not measure any real entity. Yet, as soon as these problems are identified, they are ignored or dismissed on the basis of being practical.
None other than Alfred Binet admitted that his intelligence test did not constitute a measurement of intelligence, while simultaneously going on to elaborate his scale as a measuring instrument.

The scale properly speaking does not permit the measure of the
intelligence, because intellectual qualities are not superposable,
and therefore cannot be measured as linear surfaces are measured,
but are on the contrary, a classification, a hierarchy among diverse intelligences; and for the necessities of practice this classification is equivalent to a measure. (Binet & Simon, 1916, p. 41) (3)

This "intellectual bad faith," as Nash (1990) calls it, is also evident among current practitioners. Under a section entitled "Limitations of Achievement Tests" Ebel and Frisbe (1991) make these frank admissions:

 Unlike the inch or pound, the units used in measuring this ability cannot be shown to be equal. The zero point on the ability scale is not clearly defined. Because of these limitations, some of the things we often do [always do, in reality] with test scores, such as finding means and standard deviations, and correlation coefficients, ought not to be done if strict mathematical logic holds sway. Nonetheless, we often find it practically useful to do them. When strict logic conflicts with practical utility, it is the utility that usually wins, as it probably should. (p. 31)

Suen (1990) writes that the "ability of test scores to truthfully reflect quantities of a characteristic of interest actually involves a huge inferential leap" (p. 5). Steyer (1989) begins his work by noting the conclusion of Suppes and Zinnes (1963) that "psychological tests are 'pseudopointer instruments,' the readings of which 'do not correspond to any known fundamental or derived numerical assignment'" (p. 26). To take one more example, Von Broembsen, Gray, and Williams (1974) lament the fact that few scientists are willing to undertake theoretical work in measurement. They regrettably admit that there is "no simple correspondence (or isomorphism) between mathematical structures and structures of relations between elements in the social sciences as there are, for example, in mathematical and physical sciences" (pp. 51-52). Yet, in a footnote on the next page, the authors say this problem is given too much attention.
For a measurement system to be valid there must be a correspondence between elements, relations and operations of the mathematical and substantive system in question. This raises the criteria of measurement, or the problem of being isomorphic--a correspondence that allows for, as an example, the additive principle (one can take 10 feet and add it to 10 feet and obtain 20 feet) and other mathematical procedures. Test items are not equivalent in the manner degrees are on a thermometer, for example, although it must be noted that the additive principle does not hold when dealing with temperature, yet there is a systematic correspondence between the readings from a thermometer and heat phenomena. Thus, as there is no proof to being isomorphic with the object of measurement, let alone a clearly specified and theorized object of measurement, educational and psychological tests cannot claim to reflect laws and rules governing psychological processes. Nash (1990) concludes that the "necessary conditions for metrication do not exist" (p. 145).
In traditional psychometric theory, validity is defined as the degree to which a test measures what it claims to measure. I want to first point out the oddity of this formulation. For example, how does the reader respond to this: my ruler is valid to the degree to which it measures length? Is it normal practice to begin ruler validation by asking this seemingly circular question? Rulers by definition measure length. Note as well that by asking what a test measures the assumption that something is being measured goes unchallenged.
In sorting this out the importance of theory is revealed for in reality a ruler is a standard of length, and can be my forearm, the meter, the inch. My forearm does not measure length any less or more than the inch--both can represent the length of an object. (4) Just to make the point clear, my forearm may be longer or shorter than the reader's, yet both can measure that property called length.
There are generally four types of test validation: predictive, concurrent, content and construct. Nash (1990) has rendered a powerful critique of the psychometric discourse of validity, while others have analyzed the persistent confusion between facts and values (Block & Dowrkin, 1976; Schiff & Lewontin, 1986). However, for the purposes here, I want to highlight validity discourse as a form of justification.
According to Wilson (1998), quoting the American Psychological Association (1985) standards, "Validity is the most important consideration in test evaluation. The concept refers to the appropriateness, meaningfulness, and usefulness of the specific inferences made from test scores." It goes on immediately to explain that: "Test validation is the process of accumulating evidence to support such inferences" (chap. 16, 5). Two things stand out. First, how is it possible that the meaning of any test lies somewhere outside the test? Nash (1990) writes: "the view that meaning lies anywhere other than in the test-text must be resisted" (p. 133). If the test-text does not contain the meaning of the test--many students and teachers feel such tests are indeed meaningless--then it is not possible for the test taker to grasp the meaning of the test. Intervention of specially trained judges (experts), who will decide the meaning of the test for the taker and the consumer of that information, is thus required and justified. This brings us to the second point, which is that "accumulating evidence to support such inferences" is unabashedly what Wilson (1998) calls advocacy. He explains further: "The 1985 Guidelines describes an ideal validation as including several types of evidence." "However," the APA manual emphasizes, "the quality of the evidence is of primary importance, and a single line of solid evidence is preferable to numerous lines of evidence of questionable validity" (Wilson, 1998, p. 9). Wilson rightly points to the "tautology and redundancy in the phrase questionable validity" as "remarkably inept." But even more significant is that,

 validity is proposed as the characteristic of the evidence used to support the construct "validity," and the essence of the concept is surely its very questionability. Far more damning, however, is the clear implication that evidence that does not cogently support the assertions of the test users should not be presented. Putting it another way, validity is a concept based on advocacy, is a rationalizating tool for a methodological decision already made, and is an ideological support rather than a scientific enterprise. (Wilson, 1998, chap. 16, [paragraph] 14-15)

Assessment and Social Value
The above analysis suggests that standardized tests are not tools in measurement. Here I suggest that they be explored as assessments, and in particular as tools for the marking of social value. Williams (1990) specifies that social value is "used in the sense in which value is socially attached to groups as well as to structural positions via status duality (good or bad) and spatial duality (high or low)." This duality of "the sacred and the profane" thus constitutes "the two levels of value duality within a system of vertical classification," or ranked categories (p. 1). With these propositions from Williams, I am immediately struck how educational testing is an elegant example of vertical classification. Within such a system all individuals and groups "are then placed in either the sacred or the profane position. Theoretically, they are mutually exclusive categories." With this perspective, "vertical classification is conceived of as the rigid segregation of human beings into categories of good or bad and high or low" (Williams, 1990, p. 1). It seems to me that marking virtue (good or bad) and talent (high or low) constitute the object of standardized test based assessment within a hierarchically structured social system. Because students do not typically come to school with official labels, academic achievement and ability must be constantly assessed. Herein lies one general reason for the ubiquity of testing, as well as the basis for testing being equated with opportunity.
While it is common to suggest that measurement is simply a more precise form of assessment (e.g., Hopkins, Stanley & Hopkins, 1990, pp. 1-3) assessment is a distinct undertaking. Wiggins' (1993) remarks are useful here.

 Assess is a form of the Latin verb assidere, to "sit with." In an assessment, one "sits with" the learner.... The person who "sits with you" is someone who "assigns value"--the "assessor" (hence the earliest and still current meaning of the word, which relates to tax assessors). But interestingly enough, there is an intriguing alternative meaning to that word, as we discover in the Oxford English Dictionary: this person who "sits beside" is one who "shares another's rank or dignity" and who is "skilled to advise on technical points." (p. 14)

Wiggins suggests that there are hierarchical and non-hierarchical forms of assessment, variously signified in the notion that assessment can be done to a person, or with that person of the same rank. Thus he senses the importance of power relations as a feature of assessment. As Wiggins laments, it is the hierarchical form which dominates the history of assessment in education.
But significance also rests in the definition of assessment as the judgment of value. This is the distinguishing feature of standardized test-based assessment, and it is precisely this fact that is vigorously avoided with psychometric pretenses of measurement.
Measurement and Assessment
Standards are the foundation of both assessment and measurement. In measurement, the objective of the standard is magnitude, the abstract expression of objectively existing qualities of things and phenomenon. (5) The object of the standard in assessment is value; the relation here is between subject and object. With measurement, the magnitude makes possible the grasping of the relation between quality and quantity. Standards in assessment make possible the judgment of value by stipulating boundary points as indicators of quality (merit, worth, goodness, authenticity). In fact, official educational assessment operates on the basis of establishing desired qualities and their vertical classification, or placement in vertically structured category systems with the assistance of numbers. This is what is being delineated when it is said that the task of validity is to determine the meaning (value) of test scores. The validity discourse about test score meaning relative to testing purpose is based on value not residing in things or phenomenon themselves, but in their relation to subjects. Length, however, is a property of an object.
The confusion between measurement and assessment is not insignificant, having both scientific and ideological importance. Scientifically, the confusion over what is measurement is bound up with confusing properties of objects with properties of numbers (a good example being the normal curve) and social relations and the properties of those objects or phenomena in the relation. These mistakes function to masking the workings of the values system in official testing practices and the power involved in making value judgments about people.
Assessment, Value, Position
It appears that assessment--the use of standards in the judgment of value--is a feature of the earliest forms of stratified human society. Ever since "the initiation ceremonies of early societies, there have always been arrangements for formally recognizing the capacity to perform important and recognizable social roles and to exercise the associated social status and power" (Eggleston, 1986, p. 59). A role's associated status and power reveals, first, its importance or value. Second, there are really two capacities being referred to--the first is the capacity to perform the role itself, and the second capacity is to exercise the role's associated social status and power. The second capacity or ability can be thought of as a quality of the individual or the social status of the individual. It is this second ability, which I think is the ultimate object of assessment via standardized tests in education. This may very well explain the relatively strong correlation of test scores and SES (note the uncritical replication of social value in the notion socio-economic status) compared to the relatively week correlation of ability and achievement tests with actual performance (e.g., see National Commission on Testing and Public Policy, 1990).
Precision as Marker of Value
The more advanced the standard, the more that thing or phenomenon is valued. Kula (1986) observes, "in societies where land was relatively abundant, the system of area measures tended to be poorly developed" (p. 6), and the contrary in societies where land was scarce. The same tendency is observed with measures of weight. With "the Ashanti of Ghana," one finds a very advanced system of weights, "in whose economy the extraction of gold dust played a major part" (Kula, 1986, p. 6). Speaking specifically about the question of value, Kula argues that, "the more valuable the object, the finer the measure [standard] employed in its measurement" (p. 88). He continues noting that determinations of measuring procedures are partly practical, but cautions, "practical considerations afford only a partial explanation.... Our emotive, 'feeling' attitude to the object centers upon its 'value' for man" (p. 88). (6)
This general proposition can be seen at work with social value if we take the example of driving a truck versus becoming a physician. Driving a truck can be said, on this basis, not to be of great social value, for the standard to obtain such a license is not very fine, or precise, even though the safety of millions of travelers and billions of dollars worth of products are at stake. One either passes or fails the relevant tests; as with SAT and ACT scores no elaborate hierarchy of licenses exists, and the tremendous difference in the value of degrees from different academic institutions. Academic achievement and ability, the standards for entering medical school, are thus highly valued, reflected on the fineness of their measure. The great effort towards precision is not based on measurement, but instead constitutes a means by which to identify and produce value. That there is a great deal of fineness in the standard of the second and not in the first suggests which is held in more esteem by the dominant culture. We might expect this situation to change radically if truck drivers somehow got themselves involved in making transportation policy. That is, those who are deemed to occupy sacred positions (good character, high ability) are fit to make decisions, to decide on the all important questions of who, what, where and when.
Within the theory of a natural aristocracy or what is commonly call meritocracy there is the assumption that talent signifies virtue, and that virtue qualifies someone for decision-making positions. As with the early Chinese examinations, while character was the preferred object of examination, ability was substituted as the measure (read: standard) of man (Menzel, 1963). Within the Enlightenment tradition of the West, ability is viewed as a marker of virtue. For example, a high score on an IQ test suggests a student is worthy of being trained to play social roles with high status and power--the high score suggests the high status, worth or virtue. School exams focus on abstruse academic exercises, I think, because they endeavor to assess the ability to exercise a role's attending social status and power--e.g., is he or she capable of "good judgment"--and not so much the functional capacities demanded by the role. That is, official educational assessments seem primarily concerned with the second capacity identified above. Because the role of truck driver currently has little associated status or power, licensure procedures need only focus on the functional ability itself.
Exercising status and power demands a particular set of aims and values, or else the stability of that status and power is threatened (it is this stability of the status quo which seems to be the referent of "good judgment"). Abstruse academic exercises constitute values; their exercises constitute what is valued, reflecting a definite world outlook. For example, within Euro-American thought, written competitive exams reveal a person's ability to delay gratification, or "self-denial." Roach (1971) argues that reformers in England

 put considerable stress on the moral argument at both the individual and the national level. For the individual, examinations are a test of common-sense and of character as well as of book-learning. To do well in them demands perseverance and self-denial which strengthen the character. For the nation, a competitive system would be based on high moral principle and would help to reduce corruption and place seeking. (p. 30)

That is, the quality that is reflected in doing well on tests of "common sense" and "book learning" is "good character." It is character that is the object of the examinations. By the middle of the 19th Century, on both sides of the Atlantic, written competitive exams pointed to these general abilities, more towards reasoning and less on the memorization of facts. In British context, this ability reflected the gentlemanly values of quick wit as well as the ability to reason or judge well. The Cambridge Tripos, a test in logic and reason, rewarded speed and accuracy, just as these qualities insured success in the courtroom (Roach, 1971, pp. 13-14). In fact, much of this discourse is found in A Nation at Risk with its talk of "excellence" and "commitment to a set of values" as the basis of "the learning community" (National Commission on Excellence in Education, 1983).
These notions of ability, of capacity, are bound up with social roles, for ability must have a place for it to be manifest. This quality or state of being able manifests itself in the "physical, mental, or legal power to perform," according to Webster's. Note that ability can both signify a power inhering in persons--such as physical power or mental power--as well as legal power, or being formally allowed to do something. It is in the context of the present society that mental power stands as one justification for legal power. It is significant, I think, that the etymology of ability is from the Middle English, suitability. In this regard, standardized test-based assessment is the judgment of worth relative to a structural slot or social position--what is deemed of value and who is deemed of value--the meeting place of which is variously achievement or ability. That is, achievement and ability signify both places and persons, as in someone (an individual) who becomes rich (a social position). Note as well that suitability can take individuals or positions as its object--is the individual suitable to the position; is the position suitable for the individual.
Summary and Implications
The long-standing debate as to whether standardized tests accurately measure merit (worth) is simultaneously a frank admission that standardized tests aim to assign value to human beings--to determine who is worthy of what type of education--and a block to grasping fully the significance and implications of such a project. (7) Standardized tests are not designed to accurately and fairly select, certify, and monitor via measurement of specific competencies or abilities, but rather to legitimate such acts via the assessment of social value. Thus it may be more useful in analyzing psychometry to view it as political theory, as a formal justification for a system where "the argument for democracy is not that it gives power to men without distinction, but that it gives greater freedom for ability and character to attain power" (E. L. Thorndike quoted in Karier, 1973, p. 122). It is no wonder that results obtained by these methods closely parallel the inequalities upon which the entire economic and political order is based.
Possibly the first implication of this understanding is to reject any form of assessment that functions to differentially value human persons. Let me be clear: the issue is not in recognizing that humans differ in their abilities, interests and so on (though such difference are not, in my view, the problem they can be made out to be). The problem emerges when such differentiation is systematically linked to a hierarchical social structure and the reproduction of that structure.
Thus there is a need for assessment in education to establish a new starting point, one predicated on the equal worth, dignity and rights of human beings and human cultures. (8) Those working to develop assessments in the service of education must vociferously reject the linking of academic prowess with notions of bad or good. The habit of talking of good students must be replaced with a culture where the work of teachers, students and the community as a whole is judged by teachers, students and the community as a whole on the basis of whether or not this collective work is serving to prepare youth to solve the problems they and their society face. This is the basis upon which assessments should take place, and in fact such a drive may under pin recent efforts towards alternative or authentic assessment, in particular those predicated on Gardner's (1993) notion of multiple intelligences, which opens up space to recognize and value a broad range of diverse human abilities and achievements.
This conclusion has profound implications for the present standards and accountability movement, especially as embodied in the No Child Left Behind Act 2001 (NCLB). It suggests to me that strategies opposing NCLB on the basis that it does not provide enough funds to meet legal requirements misses the fact that NCLB, and in particular its testing mandates, are in themselves attacks on public education and those who attend and work in public schools. Based on what has been presented here, the law's functioning to mark so many of the nation's schools as failures is not an aberration. By marking public schools as failures, this standards based reform is in my view devaluing public education and education itself. It is an effort, among other things, to assimilate Americans to a lower standard of education, not to a higher one. (9) It is a clear message by those in power that the arrangement whereby all are to have the quintessential American opportunity of education is being wrecked, to be replaced with the notion that only those who "perform well" deserve an education (as opposed to it being a right).
The words measure, measures or measurement appear, by my count, 135 times throughout the nearly 700-page NCLB law, giving the reform initiative the appearance of being politically neutral or objective. In fact, claims to measurement appear to be part of an effort to render decisions about who gets what, when, where and how--i.e., political decisions--as apolitical, as not needing the full participation of those whom they affect. For example, as one textbook puts it: "... assessment, measurement, and evaluation are in the best interests of students ... and society--the educational decisions are only as good as the quality of the information on which they are based" (Hopkins, Stanley, & Hopkins, 1990, p. 3). Good decisions are one's that are based on good quality measurements and this stands as a justification for the fact that these decisions ultimately serve one set of interests over another, often those of ruling elites over those of students, teachers and parents.
(1) See Haney (1993) for a discussion of the notion of bias in psychometry. For a broad sociological discussion of the relationship between social structure and forms and purposes of assessment, see Broadfoot (1979; 1996). See Madaus (1994) for an overview of equity issues in test-based reform.
(2) See Madaus (1990) for an interesting discussion of testing as a social technology.
(3) Note Gould (1981) quotes this same passage (p. 151) but does not include the clauses beginning with "but" where Binet equates classification with measurement.
(4) Note that the precision of these standards is quite a different matter, and here the issue of standardization also arises; however these issues will not be dealt with for space considerations.
(5) Many ask whether magnitudes exist prior to measurement, or whether they are the result of measurement. For Berka (1970, pp. 147-149) "magnitudes are, in substance, of a relational nature. They depend on the procedure of measurement and the resultant numerical values. From this it does not ... follow that magnitudes do not have an objective basis in reality." Measurement is dependent upon the activity of humans and their standards, but it does not follow from this that the object of measurement is a product of human will.
(6) The utility of applying Kula's (1986) study of physical measures to the study of extra physical measures such as educational and psychological tests is supported by Garrison's (2001) case studies of the emergence of standardized testing.
(7) Examples of this language can readily be found on Fairtest's website (www.fairtest.com). For example, a quick search turns up "Test Scores Are Not 'Merit,'" as a response to the attack on minority college students in the name of high standards.
(8) For those wanting to explore the relevance of human rights for education in general, see for example Spring (2001). A useful discussion of rights and opportunities as they relate to education can be found in Esconi and Hurwitz (1974). For the impact of test-based reform on equity issues, see Madaus (1994). Also see the Right to Education Project (RTE) the only such web site in the world devoted solely to the right to education (http://www.right-to-education.org). It was started by Katarina Tomasevski, the first ever Special Rapporteur on the Right to Education of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights, after her appointment in 1998.
(9) I have made this conclusion on the basis of the large body of research and commentaries showing that the testing policies embodied in NCLB actually serve to lower the level of education in general, and exacerbate already gross inequalities. For example, see: (Apple, 2001; Horn & Kincheloe, 2001; McNeil, 2000; Orfield & Kornhaber, 2001).
American Psychological Association, American Educational Research Association, & National Council on Measurement in Education. (1985). Standards for educational and psychological testing. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.
Apple, M. W. (2001). Educating the "right" way: Markets, standards, god, and inequality. New York: Routledge.
Berka, K. (1970). Methodological problems of measurement. Problems of the Science of Science, 1, 143-153.
Berka, K. (1983). Measurement: Its concepts, theories, and problems (A. Riska, Trans.). Boston: Kluwer.
Binet, A., & Simon, T. (1916). The development of intelligence in children (E. S. Kite, Trans.). Baltimore: Williams & Wilkins Company.
Block, N. J., & Dworkin, G. (1976). IQ, heritability, and inequality. In N. J. Block & G. Dworkin (Eds.), The IQ Controversy (pp. 410-540). New York: Pantheon.
Broadfoot, P. (1979). Assessment, schools and society. London, UK: Methuen.
Broadfoot, P. (1996). Education, assessment and society. Buckingham, UK: The Open University.
Cicourel, A. V. (1964). Method and measurement in sociology. London, UK: The Free Press of Glencoe.
Cronbach, L. J., & Meehl, P. E. (1955). Construct validity in psychological tests. In A. W. Ward, H. W. Stoker, & M. Murray-Ward (Eds.), Educational measurement: Origins, theories and explications (Vol. 1, pp. 179-208). Lanham, MD: University Press of America.
Ebel, R. L., & Frisbie, D. A. (1991). Essentials of educational measurement. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall.
Eggleston, J. (1986). Examining school examinations; A sociological commentary. New Education, 8(1), 59-69.
Esconi, C. A., & Hurwitz, E. (Eds.). (1974). Education for whom? The question of equal educational opportunity. New York: Dodd, Mead & Company.
Gardner, H. (1993). Frames of mind: The theory of multiple intelligences (2d ed.). New York: Basic Books.
Garrison, M. J. (2001). Education, standards and the assessment of social value: Case studies in the origin of standardized testing. Unpublished doctoral dissertation, University at Buffalo (SUNY).
Gould, S. J. (1981). The mismeasure of man. New York: W. W. Norton & Company.
Haney, W. (1993). Testing and minorities. In L. Weis & M. Fine (Eds.), Beyond silenced voices: class, race and gender in United States schools (pp. 45-74). Albany, NY: State University of New York Press.
Haney, W. (2000). The myth of the Texas miracle in education. Education Policy Analysis Archives, 8(41). Retrieved December 1, 2001, from http://epaa.asu.edu/epaa/v8n41/
Hopkins, K. D., Stanley J. C., & Hopkins, B. R. (1990). Educational and psychological measurement and evaluation. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall.
Horn, R., & Kincheloe, J. (Eds.). (2001). American standards: Quality education in a complex world, the Texas case. New York: Peter Lang.
Karier, C. (1973). Testing for order and control in the corporate liberal state. In C. Karier, P. C. Violas, & J. Spring (Eds.), Roots of crisis: American education in the twentieth century (pp. 108-137). Chicago: Rand McNally & Company.
Kula, W. (1986). Measures and men. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.
Lorge, I. (1951). The fundamental nature of measurement. In A. W. Ward, H. W. Stoker, & M. M. Ward (Eds.), Educational measurement: Origins, theories and explications (Vol. 1, pp. 11-37). New York: University Press of America.
Madaus, G. F. (1990). Testing as a social technology. Boston: Boston College.
Madaus, G. F. (1994). A technological and historical consideration of equity issues associated with proposals to change the nation's testing policy. Harvard Educational Review, 64(1), 76-95.
McNeil, L. M. (2000). Contradictions of school reform: Educational costs of standardized testing. New York: Routledge.
Menzel, J. M. (1963). The Chinese civil service; career open to talent? Boston: Heath.
Nash, R. (1990). Intelligence and realism: A materialist critique of IQ. New York: St. Martin's.
National Commission on Excellence in Education. (1983). A nation at risk: The imperative for educational reform. Retrieved April 4, 2001, from http://www.ed.gov/pubs/NatAtRisk/risk.html
National Commission on Testing and Public Policy. (1990). From gatekeeper to gateway: Transforming testing in America. Chestnut Hill: National Commission on Testing and Public Policy.
Orfield, G., & Kornhaber, M. L. (2001). Raising standards or raising barriers? Inequality and high-stakes testing in public education. New York: Century Foundation Press.
Pawson, R. (1986). On the Level: Measurement Scales and Sociological Theory. Bulletin de M'ethodologie Sociologique, 11(July), 49-82.
Pawson, R. (1989). A measure for measures: A manifesto for empirical sociology. London, UK: Routledge.
Popham, W. J. (1999). Why standardized tests don't measure educational quality. Educational Leadership, 56(6), 8-15.
Roach, J. (1971). Public examinations in England 1850-1900. London, UK: Cambridge University Press.
Schiff, M., & Lewontin, R. (1986). Education and class: The irrelevance of IQ genetic studies. Oxford, UK: Clarendon Press.
Spring, J. H. (2001). Globalization and educational rights: An intercivilizational analysis. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.
Steyer, R. (1989). Models of classical psychometric test theory as stochastic measurement models: Representation, uniqueness, meaningfulness, identifiability and testability.
Methodika, 3, 25-60.
Suen, H. K. (1990). Principles of test theories. Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
Suppes, P., & Zinnes, J. L. (1963). Basic measurement theory. In R. D. Luce, R. Bush, & E. Galanter (Eds.), Handbook of mathematical psychology (Vol. 1, pp. 1-76).
Thorndike, R. L. (1971). Educational measurement for the seventies. In A. W. Ward, H. W. Stoker, & M. Murray-Ward (Eds.), Educational measurement: Origins, theories and explications (Vol. 1, pp. 87-106). Lanham, MD: University Press of America.
Von Broembsen, M. H., Gray, L. N., & Williams, J. S. (1974). Formalization and verification of theory in the behavioral sciences. International Behavioral Scientist, 6(4), 51-67.
Wesson, K. (2000, November 22). The "Volvo Effect." Education Week, 20(12), 34, 36-7.
Wiggins, G. (1993). Assessing student performance. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
Williams, R. (1990). Hierarchical structures and social value: The creation of Black and Irish identities in the United States. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.
Wilson, N. (1998, May 22). Educational standards and the problem of error. Educational Policy Analysis Archives, 6(10). Retrieved June 23, 1998, from http://epaa.asu.edu/epaa/v6n10/
About the Author
Mark Garrison is Assistant Professor of Education at D'Youville College, in Buffalo, New York. He received his doctorate in the social foundations of education from the University at Buffalo in 2001. His book The Political Origins of Failure: Education, Standards and the Assessment of Social Value is due out fall 2006 (from State University of New York Press). He also has forthcoming material on the social context of the use of educational technology.
Reader Opinion
|Printer friendly Cite/link Email Feedback
|Garrison, Mark J.
|Scholar-Practitioner Quarterly
|Geographic Code:
|Jun 22, 2004
|Previous Article:
|The practice-based learning of educators: a co-emergent perspective.
|Next Article:
|Using social, self-directed learning frameworks to engage and transform aspiring school leaders.


text:
Will Cassidy be making an appearance in the fourth and final season of Being Erica?
I don't think so, I would love it. It's literally just a matter of were both filming at the same time, I'm just not available.
That would be kinda cool, Erin and I have talked about it! As far as I know, Cassidy won't be showing up and it's too bad because she's such a great character!
This season there is a mysterious (and creepy) little girl. What's it like to work with a young actress? Does she look up to you?
She's so present, she's a really good actress. She's 11 years old, she's really quite young. She really rolls with it, she doesn't really need any help at all. She shows up, she does her thing, she can change with the scene, she's very present. I think that it is something that I can learn from her, she's got it down.
Creepy girl alludes to something bigger for Bo. Will that be something that we'll be seeing all season long?
Yes, as far as I know. She definitely comes back and there are things coming for Bo. The great thing about this season for us, is that we shot this season in order, we didn't do that the first season. And so that was a whole challenge in itself. Now we get the scripts as they come out and the story is unfolding for us too, which is how the audience will experience it. For now, there's definitely darker things coming for Bo. She's smarter and stronger this season, she can't be so cavalier about her lack of joining the Light or Dark. She has to realize that her actions have consequences that effect the people that she loves, which is now the only family she has now. It's a re-occurring theme.
Full Interview @ Mike's Bloggity Blog
Being Erica / Lost Girl - Anna Silk on LGS2 and not returning to Being Erica
Will Cassidy be making an appearance in the fourth and final season of Being Erica?
If you're seeing this it means you're having trouble loading the site.
This is normally caused by an Extension/Addon installed in your Browser such as Adblock, Adblock Plus, Ghostery, Admuncher, AVAST! etc. You should try whitelisting www.spoilertv.com domains to ensure that all content is properly loaded.
See the Troubleshooting Guide Here
Click here to Read our Comment Policy
We pride ourselves here at SpoilerTV with the quality, friendlyness and respectfullness of our community. All comments in English please.
Name-calling, personal attacks, spamming, excessive self-promotion, condescending pomposity, general assiness, racism, sexism, any-other-ism, homophobia, acrophobia, and destructive (versus constructive) criticism will get you BANNED from the party as will creating multiple accounts.
If you have a problem with a comment, DO NOT REPLY TO IT.
Instead Click the Dropdown Icon/Arrow to the right of the offending comment and click the Flag link from the dropdown. Our Moderation Team will then deal with any inappropriate comments.
We hope you enjoy your time here at SpoilerTV
Here at SpoilerTV we allow you to personalize your experience by allowing you to customize various items on the site. Close the popup to save your changes
Background Colour Picker
Rounded Sharp Circle
Square None Grid (3 cols) Grid (Beta)
Light (Default)
Dark (Beta)
Unread Off (Default)
Unread On
Banner Selector
All you need to do is to put a link to your banner in the box below and press the Click Button. (For best results your image should be 1090px wide and 200px high.). We have more banners in our Banner Gallery here.


text:
Digital Home & Smartphones Help
It's free to register, to post a question or to start / join a discussion
Camera for taking pictures of cats
Likes # 0
Posted October 28, 2010 at 7:33PM
at the moment i use a Sony cybershot p12 that i have had for a few years now, but it isn't giving me the type of picture that i am looking for. I use the pictures to advertise my cats and kittens and to put onto my webstie as i am a pedigree cat breeder and getting good picutres are not so good with this camera. i am looking for something to take moving pictures as they are always playing and on the move, something that the flash dosen't make them shut their eyes when taking the picture. budget about £300 if possible and looking at the Nikon and Fujifilm digital cameras nothing too flash but will catch detail in new born kittens and will take good movement picutres and videos.
Can anyone advice me please on what ones would do the job.
Likes # 0
Posted October 29, 2010 at 8:50AM
The reason you are getting pictures of your cats with their eyes shut is that you have the anti Red Eye function turned on. This gives a preflash just before the main flash fires resulting in cats shutting eyes. Turn it off and you should be OK. By the time the cat reacts to the flash the picture will already have been taken.
Likes # 0
Posted October 29, 2010 at 5:41PM
In normal daylight or room lighting take the photos with no flash using a higher ASA number
Then brighten the images in an image editor.
Likes # 0
Posted October 30, 2010 at 10:07AM
The camera you have is more than ideal, if all you're doing is placing the photos on the web.
Maybe you should think more about your technique.
Flash is not ideal for this type of photography, but I would not go Jacks way of upping the ISO as this will introduce noise into the picture.
Such as a pair these click here with the light bounced of the ceiling/walls should solve all your problems apart from the video aspect
Likes # 0
Posted October 30, 2010 at 10:22AM
suggested by hss.
But low rez web pix should be OK.
Turn off the Flash - or mask it with tissue paper
If in a well day lighted room - a large piece of white card or similar angled from source to subject is another way of getting more light onto the subject.
Another way using materials to hand- a couple of halogen desk lamps.
The object of the exercise which ever way you go is to get the animal used to the brighter light source.
Likes # 0
Posted October 30, 2010 at 11:23PM
The only thing you need is lots of patience. When I go round to fosterers to photograph their cats and kittens for our website, they encourage them to jump about and play. I explain I want them still and looking appealing. I give them time to settle down and get used to me being there. And the cats.
Some views here click here and visit other pages.
Likes # 0
Posted October 30, 2010 at 11:54PM
What about using a Fujifilm f300exr some say it's a good camera others ay the picutre isn't that good qaulity in taking pic of cats moving. what do you think?
Reply to this topic
This thread has been locked.
Check out PC Advisor's other tech forums
Top 5 Most Popular
Samsung Galaxy S6 vs Sony Xperia Z3 comparison review: What's the difference?
19 best new phones you should be most excited about in 2015: best new phones coming from Apple, Samsung, Sony, HTC, LG, Xiaomi and others
Samsung Galaxy S6 vs Samsung Galaxy Note 4 comparison review: Which is the best Samsung phone?
HTC One M9 vs HTC One M8 comparison: new HTC One M9 is HTC's best ever smartphone - here's why you should upgrade from HTC One M8 to HTC One M9
Samsung Galaxy S5 vs S6 comparison: What's new in the Samsung Galaxy S6


text:
In this tutorial you'll discover how to create a unique swirling text effect in Adobe After Effects. This dynamic text effect is perfect for video intros, brand identity and engaging titles.
See the corresponding blog post and video transcription here: bit.ly/152eCmh
Royalty Free Music by Premiumbeat.com
Loading more stuff…
Hmm…it looks like things are taking a while to load. Try again?


text:
The runways were clear in messaging: the shoes, and more often than not, the boots, have it.
Cozy Up: 25 Chic Sweaters for Fall
Hedvig of The Northern-Light blog showcases one of the top looks of Fashion Month — the high fashion sweatshirt. From Balenciaga to Kenzo and Givenchy, workout wear got a major revamp and girls were more than willing to prove their brand loyalty.
The Balenciaga sweatshirt is staging a world takeover.


text:
Curriki Bloghttps://currikiblog.wordpress.com
Girls and Women in STEM in Asia: UNESCO ReportBy Janet Pinto, Chief Academic Officer, Curriki Curriki was very pleased to be in attendance on March 9th when UNESCO's Asia and Pacific Regional Bureau for Education unveiled their report on girls and women in STEM fields, at the Bangkok … Continue reading
8 Ways OneNote Makes Lesson-Planning a BreezeBy Guest Blogger Minnia Feng, Microsoft OneNote, which you can download for free, is a teacher's best friend. Find out how OneNote can help make digital lesson-planning easier, faster, and more effective! Use any type of content – text, pictures, … Continue reading
10 Most Popular Curriki Learning ResourcesBy Janet Pinto, Chief Academic Officer, Curriki We're already a quarter into the new calendar year, so we'd like to kick it off with a collection of our most popular learning resources this school year. As always, these high quality resources are free … Continue reading
Curriki Twitter
Never Stop Learning! Business Plan Basics resource for students to get your business started http://t.co/EY3RiiUgZI
Did you have a healthy lunch today? Check out this great free resource on the food pyramid! http://t.co/mQutKNe4ei #healthyliving
There are a lots of ways to get involved with Curriki from contributing resources to sponsoring content.
Curriki's non-profit Tax ID # is 203478467.
You can also help us with tax deductible donations:
If you are looking for meaningful volunteer opportunities, we would love to hear from you. We need educators to help curate content, organize educational collections and rate our resources. Please click the button below and fill out the contact form and we will follow up with you right away.
Partner with Curriki
Curriki's Partners have generously supported our efforts with funding, educational content, and/or technology. Like us, our partners believe that making world-class materials freely available to educators around the world is central to equalizing learning.


text:
In the Honeycomb ActionBar, I am trying to determine the position of the icons that appear as my ActionBar's 'showAsAction' options. Several of my icons are set to appear only if there is room. I want to include helpful comments under each icon when the application is first run. To properly position the comments , I need an idea of where these icons are.
I have called getActionBar() from the activity and the icons don't appear in the ActonBar's View. I know I can get a handle on the Menu Item through the onPrepare and the onCreate for the OptionsMenu, but they don't contain any positioning information since the ActionBar has not been rendered. Any ideas? I have also explored the onMenuVisibilityListener, but the ActionBar at that point still does not contain any information that I can use to calculate the relative positions of the option menu icons.
If there is a way to also just determine which actionbar items are actually appearing, I can calculate where to place things too.