This study was an investigation of the relationships among a diverse sample of elementary students' social skills, problem behaviors, academic competence, and academic achievement. The primary research question addressed the relationship between social behaviors and academic achievement. All data were collected and examined at two timepoints within a school year, which allowed for a replication of the relationships among the variables and an investigation of the predictive relationships over time. The participants in this study were 139 third-and fourth-grade students, and their teachers, from two schools in a large urban community in western Massachusetts. The results of this study indicated that (a) social skills are positively predictive of concurrent levels of academic achievement and (b) problem behaviors are negatively predictive of concurrent academic achievement. Only social skills, however, emerged as a significant predictor of future academic functioning. The linkage between problem behaviors and future academic performance may vary as a function of ethnic or cultural membership status.In schools across the United States, positive social behavior, academic competence, and high levels of achievement are objectives valued by teachers, parents, and other educational stakeholders. Given these valued objectives of education, it is surprising to find that many stakeholders are concerned that interventions focusing on students' social behavior may diminish or shortchange the development of academic outcomes. This perception is most likely because of the belief that time will be taken away from academics if social behaviors are given a prominent place in instruction. Researchers suggest, however, that there is a strong relationship between social behavior and academic achievement (DiPerna

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Objective: The objective of the study was to investigate the convergent validity of the Developmental Test of Visual Perception -Adolescent and Adult (DTVP-A), the Motor-Free Visual Perception Test -third edition (MVPT-3) and the Test of Visual Perceptual Skills (non-motor) -third edition (TVPS-3) when used with adults.Method: Two hundred and twenty-one participants aged 20+ years (49 with and 172 without neurological impairment) completed the DTVP-A, MVPT-3 and TVPS-3. Spearman rho correlation coefficients were used to analyse the convergent validity of the three tests.Results: The DTVP-A (non-motor) total score was significantly correlated (p<0.01) with the MVPT-3 and the TVPS-3 total scores (rho = 0.73 and rho = 0.75 respectively). The MVPT-3 total score was also significantly correlated (p<0.01) with the TVPS-3 total score (rho = 0.79). The DTVP-A figure-ground subscale was found to be significantly correlated (p<0.01) with TVPS-3 subscales 1 to 7 with rho coefficients ranging from 0.36 to 0.56, as was the DTVP-A visual closure subscale (rho coefficients ranging from 0.43 to 0.64) and the DTVP-A form constancy subscale (rho coefficients ranging from 0.51 to 0.64). The DTVP-A total score was also significantly correlated (p<0.01) with subscales 1 to 7 of the TVPS-3 (rho coefficients ranging from 0.48 to 0.68). Moreover, the TVPS-3 total score was significantly correlated (p<0.01) with the figure-ground, visual closure and form constancy subscales of the DTVP-A (rho = 0.62, rho = 0.65 and rho = 0.68). Furthermore, the MVPT-3 total score was significantly correlated (p<0.01) with the figure-ground, visual closure and form constancy subscales of DTVP-A (rho = 0.59, rho = 0.68 and rho = 0.65 respectively) and with subscales 1 to 7 of the TVPS-3 (rho coefficients ranging from 0.53 to 0.70).Conclusion: The DTVP-A, MVPT-3 and TVPS-3 exhibited moderate to high levels of convergent validity. The clinical implications of the findings of the study are that the DTVP-A, MVPT-3 and TVPS-3 appear to be measuring similar visual perceptual skills, but it is also important to note that the three tests all assess the visual perceptual skills in different ways.