Correspondence
Tests Were not Mentioned
Two lists of spelling and reading tests were printed with the article, which were said to have been standardized in the past 10 years. However, the authors omitted to mention the two tests that are most widely used in the educational setting for children and adolescents: the “Hamburger Schreibprobe” (Hamburg spelling test, HSP-9) was standardized in 2001 and is the most widely used test in Germany in the setting of educational diagnostic evaluation. The test has been used many millions of times in schools and has for a long time been the state-of-the-art test in this setting. In 2010 it was newly standardized; the new standards will be published in early 2011. Its electronic successor, the online test “Schreib-on” (“write-on”) has been available since 2007 and was also newly standardized in 2010. Both tests are widely used in the assessment of special educational needs and less so in the clinical setting, but many doctors and psychologists use it to diagnose dyslexia.
Similarly, the “Hamburger Leseprobe” (Hamburg reading test, HLP), which was standardized in 2003, has an important role in the assessing special education needs in individual children with reading difficulties.
Not to mention these tests in the published list represents a similar bias as if someone listing European currencies did mention the British pound sterling and the Danish krone but forgot the Euro. I assume that this is only an omission and not intentionally misleading, and I therefore recommend that the list be amended.
DOI: 10.3238/arztebl.2011.0262c
Dr. phil. Peter May, Dipl.-Psych.
Henriettenstr. 45
20259 Hamburg, Germany
post@peter-may.de
| 1. | Schulte-Körne G: The prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of dyslexia. Dtsch Arztebl Int 2010; 107(41): 718–27. VOLLTEXT |
