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Child Outcome Assessment Tools for Early Childhood Education

Child outcome assessments are ongoing activities to measure a child's progress. The results inform program administrators, early childhood teachers and providers, policy-makers, parents, and the public about progress toward the broad goal of promoting children's learning and development over time by improving early childhood programs and services. More specific goals include identifying children eligible for special services, modifying curriculum to meet the needs of individual children, and easing the transition for children and families from home to school. What follows is a selected list of a Federal system, State-level early childhood assessment systems, multi-domain assessment tools that measure child outcomes and that are designed for use by center and family child care educators; information about national organizations that have expertise in and provide resources on assessment; and additional publications with information about child outcome assessments.

Federal

  • National Reporting System: Information Brief from the Associate Commissioner (April 2003), prepared by the Head Start Bureau, describes a procedure that is used in all Head Start programs at the beginning and end of the program year to assess all 4- and 5-year-olds on a limited set of language, literacy, and numeracy indicators. The Head Start Bureau plans to document Head Start’s effectiveness nationally in a valid and reliable way by using the same set of tools to collect information from each Head Start program. The National Reporting System will not report or examine individual child progress: that will be managed in local programs and in partnership with parents. This information brief is available on the Web at http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/hsb/pdf/NRS.pdf.

State Early Childhood Assessment Systems

  • California Department of Education (CDE)
    Child Development Division
    1430 N Street
    Sacramento, CA 95814
    916-319-0800
    World Wide Web: http://www.cde.ca.gov/sp/cd/

    CDE's Child Development Division has revised its approach to evaluating the child care and development services it provides. The Department is moving away from a process-oriented compliance model and toward a focus on the results desired from the child care and development system. The new approach is compatible with CDE's accountability system for elementary and secondary education. Desired Results for Children and Families is a comprehensive system that allows educators to document the progress made by children and families in achieving desired results. It also allows educators to retrieve information to help practitioners improve child care and development services. A selection of Desired Results assessment materials and forms is available on the Web at http://www.cde.ca.gov/sp/cd/ci/desiredresults.asp. The following documents relate to the use of this system in early childhood.
    • First 5 California Evaluation: Design of the First 5 California School Readiness Initiative Evaluation (February 2003), by Donna Spiker, Shari Golan, Mary Wagner, Todd Franke, Jay Chambers, Deborah Montgomery, and Deanna Gomby, published by SRI International, sets forth the proposed design for the SR Initiative evaluation. It presents the goals of the evaluation and the conceptual framework that guides it, and describes progress on the evaluation design in Year 1 of the contract. It has separate sections presenting the research questions, sampling plan, and data collection methods for all major components of the evaluation. The overall evaluation approach involves gathering data that describe the practices and well-being of children, families, schools, programs, and communities when implementation of the School Readiness Initiative is just beginning in most counties (baseline in 2003), and again at regular intervals (every 1 or 2 years, depending on the data collection approach) to document changes and trends over time. Both quantitative and qualitative approaches will be used. Kindergarten entry developmental profiles will be collected for a sample of 100 schools (or clusters of schools) using a modified version of the Desired Results Developmental Profile (MDRDP), which was developed by the California Department of Education. The MDRDP includes 26 items and covers the following skills and behaviors:
      • Emotional well-being and social competence;
      • Approaches to learning;
      • Communication skills; and
      • Cognition and general knowledge.

    This resource is available on the Web at https://apps.csando.net/cems2/ai/Uploads/Prop10OutcomesRev2/
    HL_RevisedSchoolReadinessInitiativeworkplan0722200422947PM.doc    .

  • Kentucky Department of Education
    Office of Early Childhood Development
    700 Capitol Avenue, Room 133
    Frankfort, KY 40601
    502-564-2611
    World Wide Web: http://www.education.ky.gov/KDE/Instructional+Resources/Early+Childhood+Development/default.htm

    The Kentucky Office of Early Childhood Development was designed to support and strengthen families; assure that all children grow and develop to their full potential; provide high-quality, accessible, affordable early care and education options; and promote public awareness of the importance of the first years for the well-being of all Kentucky's citizens. It accomplishes these goals by building upon existing resources, fostering public-private partnerships, insuring collaborative planning and implementation, and mobilizing communities. The following document describes how Kentucky plans to tie a continual assessment system to Kentucky's early childhood standards:
    • Building a Strong Foundation for School Success: Kentucky's Early Childhood Continuous Assessment Guide (August 2004), eds. Beth Rous and Kim Townley, for the Kentucky Department of Education, is a companion piece to the Kentucky Early Childhood Standards. The Guideprovides an overview of assessment and critical components of a continuous assessment system. It outlines specific types of assessment useful for screening, diagnosis, and instruction. The definition, purpose, and recommended practices of the specific type of assessment are described. The Guide includes information on how to link assessment with program goals and discusses the relationship of the standards and assessment tools. In addition, the Guide provides information about program evaluationand how assessment information can be used to improve the quality of an early care and education program. The Guide also discusses the role of professional development in an assessment system design and implementation. This resource is available on the Web at the Kentucky Department of Education web site.

Multi-Domain Assessment Tools

  • Creative Curriculum
    Teaching Strategies, Inc.
    P.O. Box 42243
    Washington, DC 20015
    800-637-3652 or 202-362-7543
    World Wide Web: http://www.teachingstrategies.com

    Teaching Strategies, Inc. offers curriculum materials, training programs, parenting resources, staff development services, and assessment tools that are practical, developmentally appropriate, and responsive to the needs of the field.

    Teaching Strategies, Inc. has developed the following products to help programs assess children and report progress:
    • The Creative Curriculum Developmental Continuum Assessment Toolkit for Ages 3-5 isa kit that includes all the forms needed to assess up to 25 children in programs that implement The Creative Curriculum. This resource is also available in Spanish.
    • The Creative Curriculum Progress and Outcomes Reporting Tool (CC-PORT) is a software application to be used with the Creative Curriculum Developmental Continuum Assessment Toolkit to produce reports on groups of children.
    • CreativeCurriculum.netis a secure interactive Web-based assessment system based on The Creative Curriculum Developmental Continuum for Ages 3-5.
  • Galileo Preschool
    Assessment Technology, Inc.
    5099 East Grant Road, Suite 331
    Tucson, AZ 85712
    800-367-4762
    World Wide Web: http://63.172.114.196/galileoPreschool/overview/index.htm

    Galileo     is a comprehensive early childhood knowledge management system, which makes it possible to document, track, and report preferred information on children, staff, families, and volunteers.
    Galileo Online integrates assessment and the documentation of outcomes with eLesson Planning and eCurriculum features. Continuously evolving based on advances in research, the needs of educators, and innovations in software communications technology, Galileo offers an advanced approach for the Electronic Management of Learning (EML), including Merlin, a child and family case management system; the Parent Center, which generates four individualized reports that tell parents about what a child has learned at preschool and about a child's readiness to learn new capabilities in a given developmental area, such as language and literacy or early math; and Storyteller Center, which provides learning opportunities and objective assessment directly articulated to Instructional Goals.
     
    Galileo G-2 has stand-alone technology (available on CD-Rom) that connects assessment, screening, lesson planning, classroom activities, and outcome documentation. Galileo G-2 is an entire suite of tools that increases the availability of child outcome data and flexibility in analysis. Galileo G-2 comes with Online Reporter, a Web-based tool that allows programs to aggregate data and access reports online.
  • The High/Scope Child Observation Record (COR)
    High/Scope Foundation
    600 North River Street
    Ypsilanti, MI 48198-2898
    734-485-2000, ext. 218
    World Wide Web: http://www.highscope.org/Assessment/cor.htm

    The High/Scope Foundation is an independent nonprofit research, development, training, and public advocacy organization. In a High/Scope program, students learn through active involvement with people, materials, events, and ideas. The High/Scope's Cognitively Oriented Preschool Curriculum represents an attempt to construct a developmentally valid educational framework for young children.

    The High/Scope COR for Ages 2-6 is an observational assessment tool that charts children's development and progress over time. COR assessment areas include language, mathematics, initiative, social relations, creative representation, and music and movement. The COR assesses the ways in which young children initiate their own activities as well as how they respond to teacher questions and demands. It can be used in a variety of early childhood settings. Components of the COR Assessment Kit are the following items: COR Manual; COR Assessment Booklets; COR Anecdotal Notecards; COR Parent Report Forms; and COR poster.

    The High/Scope COR for Infants and Toddlers looks at the whole child-highlighting broad areas of development for children from the ages of 6 weeks to 3 years. It can help caregivers gather, organize, document, and learn from observations of children within the context of everyday life at the center or home setting. This information can also be shared easily, accurately, and effectively with parents and others.

    Additional related resources include:
    • Planning Around the High/Scope Child Observation Record (COR) Categories, Items, and Levels - Strategies and Activities to Support Child Development;
    • Using the High/Scope COR to Assess and Report Head Start Outcomes;
    • Program Quality Assessment Instrument (PQA);and
    • Using the High/Scope Child Observation Record in Head Start Classrooms and Centers.
  • Individual Growth and Development Indicators (IGDI)
    Center for Early Education Development
    College of Education and Human Development
    University of Minnesota
    215 Pattee Hall, 150 Pillsbury Drive SE
    Minneapolis, MN 55455
    612-625-2898
    World Wide Web: http://ggg.umn.edu

    IGDI    s are quick, efficient, and repeatable measures of components of developmental performance. They sample child performance in major developmental domains (i.e., language, social, cognitive, motor, and adaptive), with a special emphasis on assessment related to long-term developmental outcomes that are common across the early childhood years. They are functional and are related to later competence in home, school, and community settings. These indicators measure young children's growth over time toward important developmental outcomes rather than just their skill level at one point in time. Preschool IGDIs are intended for children between the chronological ages of 30 months and 6 years of age. Early elementary IGDIs are intended for children between the ages of 5 and 8, or roughly from prior to kindergarten entry through the end of 2nd grade.

    IGDI    s can be used by psychologists, teachers, and other program staff who want to measure, record, and act on information about young children's rate of growth and development toward long-term, developmentally important goals. This assessment may be completed to monitor children not receiving specialized intervention, to identify children who might benefit from such intervention, and to monitor the effects of such intervention.
  • The Marazon Systems
    MAPS For Life
    P.O. Box 667
    Perrysburg, OH 43552
    419-661-1945
    World Wide Web: http://www.marazon.com/default.htm

    The Marazon Systems (Classroom System, Home Visitor System, Family Child Care System, Christian System, and Parent System) are developmentally appropriate planning and assessment systems designed for a variety of educational settings for children of all ages. The Systems provide parents and professionals with the tools to support and challenge children's growth, development, and learning. It is focused on describing children's interests and developmental characteristics, and then using the every day curriculum of the home, school, and the community to support and challenge their interests and promote development. The system celebrates 96 child development characteristics across six domains or areas of the child's growth. The six domains are Affective (relating to self), Social (relating to others), Creative (originating from self), Cognitive (thinking), Language (communicating), and Physical (doing). The four steps of the System-Plan, Environment, Assessment, and Partnership-assist practitioners in developing intentional plans to help children grow and develop as individuals. The comprehensive nature of The Marazon System enables teachers to observe children throughout the week to achieve the following tasks related to authentic assessment and individualized planning:
    • Record one-to-two anecdotes per day.
    • Interpret the anecdotes according to the 96 Target Objectives that same day.
    • Composite or summarize the Target Objectives onto the Child Assessment and Planning Tally that same day.
    • Review each child's Assessment and Planning Tally prior to planning each week.
    • Develop Individual and Group Domain Plans based on data related to children's emerging needs and interests.
    • Arrange the environment, interact with the children, and conference with families either formally or spontaneously.
  • The Ounce Scale
    Pearson Early Learning
    P.O. Box 2500
    135 South Mt. Zion Road
    Lebanon, IN 46052
    800-552-2259
    World Wide Web: http://www.pearsonearlylearning.com/

    The Ounce Scale is an observational assessment for evaluating infants' and toddlers' development from birth to age 3. Its purpose is to provide guidelines and standards for observing and interpreting young children's growth and behavior, and to provide information that parents and caregivers can use in everyday interactions with their children. The Scale has three elements: the observation scale; the family album; and the developmental profile. The instrument is organized around the following six major areas of development: personal connections; feelings about self; relationships with other children; understanding and communicating; exploration and problem-solving; and movement and coordination. The Ounce Scale provides a way to evaluate children's accomplishments, areas of difficulty, and approaches to learning. The Ounce Scale is available in Spanish.
     
    The Work Sampling System
    Rebus, Inc.
    P.O. Box 4479
    Ann Arbor, MI 48106-4479
    800-435-3085
    World Wide Web: http://www.pearsonearlylearning.com/index2.html

    The Work Sampling System is an ongoing classroom performance assessment system that is used in preschool through 5th grade. Its purpose is to document children's skills, knowledge, behavior, and accomplishments across a wide variety of curriculum areas on multiple occasions in order to enhance teaching and learning. Curriculum areas include personal and social development, language and literacy, mathematical thinking, scientific thinking, social studies, the arts, and physical development.

Teachers using the Work Sampling Observational Assessment observe children with the Developmental Guidelines; record classroom observations efficiently using reproducible process note forms included in the Using Work Sampling Guidelines and Checklists: An Observational Assessment teacher's manual; document learning by completing a grade-level Developmental Checklist for each child three times per year; and report to parents three times per year and maintain school records of student achievement with the optional Work Sampling Report to Parents.

National Organizations

  • Child Care Information Exchange
    P.O. Box 3249
    Redmond, WA 98073
    800-221-2864
    World Wide Web:http://www.ccie.com
    The Exchange is a bi-monthly magazine primarily for child care administrators and managers. In the past, it has featured assessment in the "Beginnings Workshop" section of the magazine. The following selected articles address assessment:
    • "Assessment Tools in the 21st Century" (July/August 2002); and
    • "Needing to Assess and Assessing Needs" (September/October 1998).
  • The Early Childhood Education Assessment (ECEA) Consortium
    Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO)
    One Massachusetts Avenue NW, Suite 700
    Washington, DC 20001-1431
    202-336-7000
    World Wide Web: http://www.ccsso.org/Projects/scass/projects/early_childhood_education_assessment_consortium/

    ECEA was initiated in 2000 to provide guidance to decision-makers on appropriate assessment systems in order to promote and ensure high-quality learning opportunities for young children. The consortium's focus is on early childhood learning and developmental outcomes, appropriate assessment, program evaluation, and using data for system accountability.
  • Early Childhood Outcomes (ECO) Center
    785-395-0829
    World Wide Web: http://www.fpg.unc.edu/~eco/index.cfm

    The ECO Center seeks to promote the development and implementation of child and family outcome measures for infants, toddlers, and preschoolers with disabilities. These measures can be used in local, State, and national accountability systems. The ECO Center actively pursues their goals by collaborating with stakeholders and other groups concerned with outcomes measurement; researching issues related to the development and implementation of outcome measures; and providing technical assistance to support States in developing and implementing outcome measurement systems. The ECO Center is a five-year project funded by the Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) in the U.S. Department of Education. It is a collaborative effort of SRI International, Frank Porter Graham Child Development Institute at UNC-Chapel Hill, Juniper Gardens Children's Project, the National Association of State Directors of Special Education, and the University of Connecticut Health Center. The following publications relate to measuring outcomes:
    • Uses and Misuses of Data on Outcomes for Young Children with Disabilities: Draft (July 2004), by Kathleen Hebbler, produced by the Early Childhood Outcomes Center, identifies in table format the ways that data can be used effectively (or misused)—at the national, State, and local level—to determine outcomes for young children with disabilities. The tables are designed to help policy-makers clearly delineate the various purposes and limitations of specific measurement approaches and alert them to possible interpretations of results made by the public. This resource is available on the Web at http://www.fpg.unc.edu/~eco/pdfs/ECO_Outcomes_Uses.pdf.
    • Considerations Related to Developing a System for Measuring Outcomes for Young Children With Disabilities and Their Families (revised April 2004), by the Early Childhood Outcomes Center, presents a framework for thinking about the key considerations related to the development of a system for measuring outcomes. Examples of key decisions that must be made are presented. This resource is available on the Web at http://www.fpg.unc.edu/~eco/pdfs/considerations.pdf.
  • National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC)
    1509 16th Street NW
    Washington, DC 20036
    800-424-2460 or 202-232-8777
    World Wide Web: http://naeyc.org

    NAEYC is a nonprofit professional organization dedicated to improving the quality of care and education provided to our nation's young children. NAEYC publications on assessment and young children include the following resources:

    "Spotlight on Assessment" (January 2004), in Young Children Vol. 59, No. 1, includes the following resources on the topic of assessment:
    • "Beyond Outcomes: How Ongoing Assessment Supports Children's Learning and Leads to Meaningful Curriculum," by Diane Dodge, Cate Heroman, Julia Charles, and Jessica Maiorca, discusses how ongoing assessment can be a manageable and dynamic process, directly linked to planning curriculum and supporting each child's learning and development. They describe effective assessment methods such as mapping children's progress on a continuum. Additional information is available on the Web at http://www.naeyc.org/resources/journal/item-detail.asp?page=1&docID=2891&sesID=1096561428710.
    • "Ensuring Culturally and Linguistically Appropriate Assessment of Young Children," by Rosa Santos, discusses useful tools accessible through the Early Childhood Research Institute on Culturally and Linguistically Appropriate Services (CLAS), which offers information on numerous Internet-based resources to assist professionals, families, and others in ensuring that assessments are culturally and linguistically appropriate. The article includes a list of considerations for appropriate assessment. Additional information is available on the Web at http://www.naeyc.org/resources/journal/item-detail.asp?page=1&docID=2895&sesID=1096561428710.

    The following are articles from the January 2004 issue, Child and Program Assessment: Tools for Educators, of NAEYC's Beyond the Journal.

    Additional publications include:
    • Screening and Assessment of Young English-Language Learners: Draft Recommendations (January 2005) is a supplement to Early Childhood Curriculum, Assessment, and Program Evaluation: Building an Effective, Accountable System in Programs for children Birth through Age 8 position statement by NAEYC and the National Association of Early Childhood Specialists in State Departments of Education.. The document discusses the specific issues and challenges related to assessing young English language learners. This resource is available on the Web at http://www.naeyc.org/statements/pdf/englearners.pdf.
    • Basics of Assessment: A Primer for Early Childhood Professionals (2004), by Oralie McAfee, Deborah Leong, and Elena Bodrova, is intended to increase understanding of child assessment, including its specialized vocabulary. Focusing on children's development and learning, the authors provide an overview of basic assessment concepts. Additional information is available on the Web at http://naeyc.org/shoppingcart/Itemdetail.aspx?Stock_No=257.
    • Early Childhood Curriculum, Assessment, and Program Evaluation: Building an Effective, Accountable System in Programs for Children Birth through Age 8; Position Statement with Expanded Resources (November 2003)is based on the 2003 Joint Position Statement of the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) and the National Association of Early Childhood Specialists in State Departments of Education (NAECS/SDE). It includes the statement of position; recommendations; and indicators of effectiveness of the position statement; as well as an overview of relevant trends and issues; guiding principles and values; a rationale for each recommendation; frequently asked questions; and developmental charts for curriculum, assessment, and evaluation. This resource is available on the Web at http://www.naeyc.org/resources/position_statements/CAPEexpand.pdf.
    • Assessment of Practices in Early Elementary Classrooms (2001), by John Schuster, Kelly Maxwell, Mary Hemmeter, and Melinda Ault. Additional information is available on the Web at http://www.naeyc.org/shoppingcart/Itemdetail.aspx?Stock_No=163.
    • Teacher Materials for Documenting Young Children's Work: Using "Windows on Learning," (1998). Additional information is available on the Web at http://www.naeyc.org/shoppingcart/Itemdetail.aspx?Stock_No=797.
    • Windows on Learning: Documenting Young Children's Work (1998) is a complete guide to documentation with examples and step-by-step guidelines. Additional information is available on the Web at http://www.naeyc.org/shoppingcart/Itemdetail.aspx?Stock_No=796.
    • Reaching Potentials: Transforming Early Childhood Curriculum and Assessment (1995) Vol.2, by Sue Bredekamp and Teresa Rosegrant, discusses what is important for children o know and be able to do in a variety of domains. Additional information is available on the Web at http://www.naeyc.org/shoppingcart/Itemdetail.aspx?Stock_No=227.
    • Developmental Screening in Early Childhood: A Guide, 4th Edition, (1994) 4th ed., by Sally Atkins-Burnett and Samuel Meisels, discusses how to organize and conduct an exemplary early childhood screening program. The resource includes advice on selecting an appropriate screening instrument. Additional information is available on the Web at http://www.naeyc.org/shoppingcart/Itemdetail.aspx?Stock_No=121.
    • Reaching Potentials: Appropriate Curriculum and Assessment for Young Children (1991)Vol. 1, by Sue Bredekamp and Teresa Rosegrant, shows the connection between curriculum and assessment. Additional information is available on the Web at http://www.naeyc.org/shoppingcart/Itemdetail.aspx?Stock_No=225.
  • National Association of School Psychologists (NASP)
    4340 East West Highway, Suite 402
    Bethesda, MD 20814
    301-657-0270
    World Wide Web: http://www.nasponline.org/index2.html

    NASP serves the educational and mental health needs of all children. The NASP Position Statement on Early Childhood Assessment (2002) is available on the Web at http://www.nasponline.org/information/pospaper_eca.html.
  • New Assessment: Early Childhood Resources
    Center for Family and Community Partnerships
    University of New Mexico
    World Wide Web: http://www.newassessment.org/

    The New Assessment: Early Childhood ResourcesWeb site was created by The Center for Family and Community Partnerships in the College of Education, University of New Mexico, and funded by the Department of Education, Office of Special Education Programs, and Early Education Program for Children with Disabilities (EEPCD). The goal of the Center is to develop new ways to approach understanding the impact of various factors on the development of young children. The assessment of infants and young children leading to effective interventions/supports has been a major focus since 1987. Information on key issues related to assessment is available on the Web at http://www.newassessment.org/Public/Assessments/default.cfm?CategoryID=18.
  • Teachers College Press
    P.O. Box 20
    Williston, VT 05495-0020
    800-575-6566
    World Wide Web: http://www.teacherscollegepress.com/index.html

    Teachers College Press provides resources for all participants in the education process (i.e., teachers, teacher educators, researchers, academics, administrators, school board members, policy-makers, parents, and students). The following selected resources discuss assessment and young children:
    • Facilitator's Guide to Using Assessments to Teach for Understanding: A Casebook for Educators (2002);
    • Using Assessments to Teach for Understanding: A Casebook for Educators (2002);
    • Assessment of Practices in Early Elementary Classrooms (APEEC) (2001);
    • Issues in Early Childhood Educational Assessment and Evaluation (1997);
    • Observing and Recording the Behavior of Young Children (1997, 4th ed.);
    • Issues in Early Childhood Educational Assessment and Evaluation (1996);
    • Assessment Methods for Infants and Toddlers: Transdisciplinary Team Approaches (1994); and
    • Understanding Assessment and Evaluation in Early Childhood Education (1993).
  • WestEd
    730 Harrison Street
    San Francisco, CA 94107
    877-493-7833 or 415-565-3000
    World Wide Web: http://www.wested.org

    WestEd is a nonprofit research, development, and service agency dedicated to improving education and other opportunities for children, youth, and adults. Drawing from research and practice, WestEd works with practitioners and policy-makers to address critical issues in education and other related areas. Selected publications related to assessment include:
    • Developing a Standards-Based Assessment System: A Handbook (2000);
    • Making Assessments Work for Everyone: How To Build on Student Strengths (2000);
    • Improving Classroom Assessment: A Toolkit for Professional Developers (1999); and
    • Guide to Developing Equitable Performance Assessment (1995).
  • ZERO TO THREE/National Center for Infants, Toddlers, and Families
    2000 M Street NW, Suite 200
    Washington, DC 20036
    202-638-1144
    World Wide Web: http://www.zerotothree.org

    ZERO TO THREE is a national organization focused exclusively on issues affecting infants and toddlers.
    The following article discusses the broader issues related to assessment:
    • "Fusing Assessment and Intervention: Changing Parents' and Providers' Views of Young Children" (February/March 2001), in ZERO TO THREE discusses some of the problems involved in assessing young children, assumptions about assessment, performance and functional assessments, The Ounce of Prevention Scale, and fusing assessment and intervention. This resource is available on the Web at
      http://www.zerotothree.org/vol21-4s.pdf.
    • New Visions for Parents (1996) is a packet of materials on assessment that has been developed for parents who are concerned about their child's development. The packet is intended for parents who are about to go through a developmental assessment with their infant or young child or who might have already had experience with developmental assessments and for the practitioners who work with them. The packet contains:

Additional Publications

  • “Who Goes to Pre-K and How Are They Doing?” (Spring 2005), in “NCEDL Pre-kindergarten Study,” Early Developments Vol. 9, No. 1, published by the FPG Child Development Institute at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, describes research by the National Center for Early Development & Learning (NCEDL) on public pre-K classrooms, teachers, and children in their study, Multi-State Study of Pre-Kindergarten. Measures used by NCEDL in their assessment of 240 prekindergarten classrooms in six States include the following:
    Classroom Observations

    • Early Childhood Environment Rating Scale—Revised (ECERS-R), (Harms, Clifford, Cryer, 1998).
    • Classroom Assessment Scoring System (CLASS), (Pianta, La Paro, & Hamre, 2004).
    • Emerging Academic Snapshot, (Ritchie, Howes, Kraft-Sayre, & Weiser, 2001).
    Direct Assessments of Children’s Skills

    • Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test 3rd edition (PPVT-III), (Dunn & Dunn, 1997).
    • Oral & Written Language Scales (OWLS) (Oral Expression Scale), (Carrow-Woolfolk, 1995).
    • Woodcock-Johnson III Tests of Achievement, (Woodcock, McGrew, & Mather, 2001).
    • Applied Problems Subtest.
    • Sound Awareness-Rhyming Subtest.
    • Identifying Letters, Numbers, Counting and Writing, (NCEDL, 2001).
    • Color Bears, (Zill & Resnick, Head Start Family and Child Experiences Survey, 1998).
    Teacher Reports

    • Teacher-Child Rating Scale, (Hightower et al., 1986).
    • Language and Literacy Skills, (National Center for Education Statistics, 1999).
    • Teacher Attitudes and Beliefs, (Schaefer & Edgerton, 1985).
    • Student Teacher Relationship Scale, (STRS; Pianta, 2001). (page 14)

This resource is available on the Web at http://www.fpg.unc.edu/%7ENCEDL/PDFs/ED9_1.pdf.

  • Early Childhood Measures Profiles (2004), by Lisa J. Bridges, Daniel J. Berry, Rosalind Johnson, Julia Calkins, Nancy Geyelin Margie, Stephanie W. Cochran, Thomson J. Ling, Martha J. Zaslow, Allison Sidle Fuligni, and Christy Brady-Smith, published by Child Trends, presents a compendium of common measures that were developed to provide psychometric data about a range of outcome domains. This compendium contains approaches to learning measures, general cognitive measures, language measures, literacy measures, math measures, ongoing observational measures, social-emotional measures, and Early Head Start Measures. A description is provided for each measure that includes background information, administration of measure, functioning of measure, examples of studies examining measure in relation to environmental variation, and adaptations of measure. In discussing recommended assessments, it states:
    Based on review of assessment tools available using criteria presented above, the following instruments have been recommended as appropriate for use within the state of Kentucky. These instruments are categorized in one of two ways. Single-domain instruments are those that assess one specific area of development or one domain. Multi-domain instruments are those that can be used to assess children's development across domains or developmental areas. (page Diagnostic 7)

    Multi Domain

    Diagnostic
    • Batelle Developmental Inventory (BDI), Riverside Publishing, Inc.
    • Bayley Scales of Infant Development (BSID-III), The Psychological Corp.
    • Developmental Assessment of Young Children (DAYC), PRO-ED
    • Learning Accomplishment Profile - Diagnostic (LAP - D), Kaplan Early Learning Co.
    • Merrill Palmer Revised Scales of Development, Stoelting, Co.
    • Mullen Scale of Early Learning, American Guidance Service, Inc.
    • Pediatric Evaluation of Disability Inventory (PEDI), Center for Rehabilitation Effectiveness
    • Scales of Independent Behavior - Revised(SIB - R), Riverside Publishing
    • Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scales(VBAS), American Guidance Service, Inc.

    Single Domain
     
    Motor
    • Peabody Developmental Motor Scales- Second Edition (PDMS-2), PRO-ED

    Language
    • Clinical Evaluation of Language Fundamentals (CELF), The Psychological Corp.
    • Comprehensive Test of Phonological Processing, American Guidance Service, Inc.
    • Goldman Fristoe Test Articulation, American Guidance Service, Inc.
    • Expressive Vocabulary Test, American Guidance Service, Inc.
    • Kaufman Survey of Early Academic and Language Skills(K SEALS), American Guidance Service, Inc.
    • Oral Written Language Scale(OWLS), American Guidance Service, Inc.
    • Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test III(PPVT-III), American Guidance Service, Inc.
    • Preschool Language Scale IV(PLS-IV), The Psychological Corp.
    • Rossetti Infant-Toddler Language Scale III, Linguisystems Diagnostic 7

    Social
    • Social Competence and Behavior Evaluation - Preschool Edition, Western Psychological Services
    • Vineland Social Emotional (SEEC), American Guidance Service, Inc.

    Cognitive/IQ
    • Differential Ability Scales(DAS), The Psychological Corp.
    • Stanford Binet - Fourth Edition, Riverside Publishing Co.
    • Wechsler Preschool and Primary Scale of Intelligence(WPPSI) - III, The Psychological Corp.

    Behavior
    • Behavior Assessment System for Children(BASC) - Preschool, American Guidance Service, Inc.
    • Connors Rating Scale - Revised,MHS
    • Devereaux Early Childhood Assessment(DECA), Kaplan Early Learning Co.
    • Temperament and Atypical Behavior Scale(TABS), Brookes Publishing Co.

    Reading/Literacy
    • Test of Early Reading Ability(TERA) III, PRO-ED

    Math
    • Test of Early Math Ability(TEMA) III, PRO-ED

      (page Diagnostic 7)

    This resource is available on the Web at http://aspe.hhs.gov/hsp/ECMeasures04/report.pdf.

  • Resources for Measuring Services & Outcomes in Head Start Programs Serving Infants & Toddlers (April 2003), by Ellen Eliason Kisker, Kimberly Boller, Charles Nagatoshi, Christine Sciarrino, Vinita Jethwani, Teresa Zavitsky, Melissa Ford, and John M. Love, for Child Outcomes Research and Evaluation; Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation; Administration for Children and Families; U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, discusses the importance of Head Start programs that serve pregnant women and families with infants and toddlers developing a comprehensive performance measurement plan that will support their continuous program improvement efforts. "Section 3" and "Appendix C" present information about existing screening and assessment instruments designed for use with children under age 3 and their families, as well as instruments designed for assessing services provided by programs serving them. Many of the instruments described are established instruments that yield a standard score that places the child's performance in the context of other children of the same age. The list of measures include:

    Child Development Instruments
    • Achenbach System of Empirically Based Assessment
    • Ages and Stages Questionnaires
    • Ages and Stages Questionnaires: Social-Emotional
    • Assessment, Evaluation, and Programming System for Infants and Children
    • Batelle Development Inventory
    • Bayley Scale for Infant Development, Second Edition
    • Brigance Diagnostic Inventory of Early Development-Revised
    • Carey Temperament Scales
    • Carolina Curriculum for Infants and Toddlers with Special Needs Assessment Log II
    • Denver II Development Screening Test
    • Developmental Observation Checklist System
    • Developmental Profile II
    • Devereux Early Childhood Assessment (DECA)
    • Early Coping Inventory
    • Early Head Start Evaluation-Parent Interviews and Child Assessments
    • Early Learning Accomplishment Profile-Revised Edition
    • Eyberg Child Behavior Inventory/Sutter-Eyberg Student Behavior Inventory-Revised
    • Functional Emotional Assessment Scale
    • Hawaii Early Learning Profile
    • High/Scope Child Observation Record (COR)
    • High/Scope Child Observation Record for Infants and Toddlers
    • Humanics National Infant-Toddler Assessment
    • Infant-Toddler Developmental Assessment
    • Infant Toddler Social-Emotional Assessment
    • Infant Toddler Symptom Checklist
    • Leiter International Performance Scale-Revised
    • Macarthur Communicative Development Inventories
    • Mullen Scales of Early Learning
    • The Ounce Scale
    • Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test, Third Edition
    • Preschool Language Scale
    • Receptive-Expressive Emergent Language Test-2nd edition.
    • Rossetti Infant-Toddler Language Scale
    • Temperament and Atypical Behavior Scale
    • Test de Vocabulario en Imagenes Peabody
    • Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scale
    • Vineland Social-Emotional Early Childhood Scales
    • Woodcock-Johnson III

    Parenting, the Home Environment, and Parent Well-Being Instruments
    • Adult-Adolescent Parenting Inventory-2
    • Beck Anxiety Inventory
    • Beck Depression Inventory-Second Edition
    • Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale
    • Child Abuse Potential Inventory
    • Composite International Diagnostic Interview
    • Conflict Tactics Scales, Parent-Child Version
    • Confusion, Hubbub, and Order Scale
    • Early Head Start National Evaluation Questionnaires
    • Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale
    • Family Environment Scale
    • Family Needs Scale
    • Family Resource Scale
    • Family Support Scale
    • Home Observation for Measurement of the Environment
    • Infant-Toddler and Family Instrument
    • Kempe Family Stress Inventory
    • Knowledge of Infant Development Inventory
    • Nursing Child Assessment Teaching Scales
    • Parenting Stress Index
    • Support Functions Scale

    Program Implementation and Quality Instruments
    • Arnett Caregiver Interaction Scale
    • Early Childhood Environment Rating Scale-Revised
    • Early Head Start Evaluation-Parent Services Interviews
    • Family Day Care Rating Scale
    • Head Start Family Information System
    • Infant/Toddler Environment Rating Scale
    • National Association for the Education of Young Children Accreditation Criteria
    • Program Implementation Checklist and Rating Scales

  • Program Review Instrument for Systems Monitoring
    This resource is available on the Web at http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/opre/ehs/perf_measures/reports/
    resources_measuring/resources_for_measuring.pdf    .

  • "Policy Brief-Preschool Assessment: A Guide to Developing a Balanced Approach" (July 2004), NIEER Policy Brief Issue 7, by Ann S. Epstein, Lawrence J. Schweinhart, Andrea DeBruin-Parecki, and Kenneth B. Robin, examines assessment of learning among preschoolers and the trend toward increased standardized testing of young children. This brief offers definitions and applications of assessment concepts and policy recommendations essential to a balanced approach. This resource is available on the Web at http://nieer.org/resources/policybriefs/7.pdf.

  • Building an Assessment System to Support Successful Early Learners (2004), a project of the Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO), discusses considerations about when and how young children should be assessed. Fact sheets produced by the project include:
    Additional information about this project is available on the CCSSO web site: Key Resources From The ECEA SCASS On Early Childhood Assessment.

  • A Look at Social, Emotional, and Behavioral Screening Tools for Head Start and Early Head Start (2003), by Philip H. Printz, Amy Borg, and Mary Ann Demaree, published by the Center for Children and Families, Education Development Center, Inc., seeks to clarify questions from Head Start and Early Head Start programs regarding the requirement that a specific social, emotional, and behavioral screening be administered for Head Start and Early Head Start children within 45 days of enrollment. It provides guidance for choosing a specific screening tool and a framework for screening tool selection and guidance on how to choose a tool. It includes abstracts of six standardized social, emotional, and behavioral screening tools that they feel meet requirements of the Head Start Performance Standards. These include:
    • Ages and Stages Questionnaire: Social Emotional (ASQ:SE)
    • Brief Infant Toddler Social and Emotional Assessment (BITSEA)
    • Early Screening Project (ESP)
    • Preschool and Kindergarten Behavior Scales (PBKS)
    • Social Skills Rating System (SSRS)
    • TABS Screener for the Temperament and Atypica

  • Behavior Scale: Early Childhood Indicators of Developmental Dysfunction (TABS)
    In addition, they list the names of some published social emotional assessment tools, developmental screening tools, and developmental assessment tools that are not social emotional screening tools, to assist in differentiating among them. These include:

    Social, Emotional Behavioral Assessment Tools
    • AIMS: Developmental Indicators of Emotional Health
    • Child Behavior Checklist
    • Conners' Rating Scales - Revised
    • Devereux Early Childhood Assessment (DECA)
    • Devereux Early Childhood Clinical Form (DECA-C)
    • Infant-Toddler Social and Emotional Assessment

    Developmental Screening Tools
    • Ages and Stages Questionnaire
    • Bayley Infant Neurodevelopmental Screen (BINS)
    • Brigance Screens (Infant & Toddler; Early Preschool)
    • Child Development Inventories
    • Developmental Activities Screening Inventory (DASI-II)
    • Denver II
    • DIAL-3 (Developmental Indicators for the Assessment of Learning Third Edition)
    • Early Screening Inventory (ESI-R)
    • First STEP Screening Test for Evaluating Preschoolers

    Developmental Assessment Tools
    • AEPS for Infants and Children (Assessment, Evaluation, and Programming System)
    • Bayley Scales of Infant Development Second Edition (BSID-II)
    • Battelle Development Inventory
    • Brigance Inventory of Early Development (Revised)
    • Child Development Inventory
    • Creative Curriculum Developmental Continuum Assessment System Toolkit
    • Hawaii Early Learning Profile (HELP)
    • Infant Toddler Developmental Assessment (IDA)
    • Learning Accomplishment Profile (LAP)
    • Early Learning Accomplishment Profile (ELAP)
    • Mullen Scales of Early Learning
    • The Carolina Curriculum for Infants and Toddlers with Special Needs
    • The Carolina Curriculum for Preschoolers with Special Needs
    • Transdisciplinary Play-Based Assessment;

    This resource is available on the Web at http://notes.edc.org/CCF/ccflibrary.nsf/aadb9d70967202f085256e130019026d/
    4ef7c268ca492cef85256e2f006d178c/$FILE/screentools.pdf    .

  • Assessing the State of State Assessments: Perspectives on Assessing Young Children (2003), eds. Catherine Scott-Little, Sharon Lynn Kagan, and Richard M. Clifford, published by Southeastern Regional Vision for Education (SERVE), presents a compilation of perspectives on assessment issues discussed during the Assessing the State of State Assessment Systems symposium. Young children's inability to read, the episodic nature of their learning, and their stress in unfamiliar settings with unfamiliar people all contribute to the special challenges facing those concerned with assessment of young children. The document covers four critical areas from a variety of perspectives: design issues, instrumentation issues, implementation issues, and data utilization issues. The document includes information for policy-makers and gives specific examples from Florida and Michigan. This resource is available on the Web at http://www.serve.org/_downloads/REL/ELO/ASSA.pdf.

  • Early Literacy Assessment Systems: Essential Elements (June 2003), by Jacqueline Jones, Educational Testing Service, describes how assessment can support policy, teaching, and learning of those literacy skills that are the key determinants of individuals’ future educational success. This resource is available on the Web at http://www.ets.org/research/pic/earlylit.pdf.

  • "Early Childhood Assessment" (March 2003), a Policy Brief, by Jessica McMaken, by the Education Commission of the States, addresses the issues policy-makers need to consider when choosing child assessments to make decisions about the effectiveness of individual Head Start programs. When choosing an assessment, two key technical factors must be considered: validity and reliability. Errors of validity and reliability can be mitigated when the results of a large sample of children are aggregated and considered as a whole. Before mandating child assessment for high-stakes program evaluation purposes, it is essential that policy-makers make sure the assessment has been subjected to rigorous evaluations of validity and reliability. A list of questions is provided for policy-makers to consider before approving child assessments for evaluating early care and education programs. This resource is available on the Web at http://www.ecs.org/clearinghouse/43/19/4319.htm.

  • Child Assessment at the Preprimary Level: Expert Opinion and State Trends (2002), by Carol Horton and Barbara T. Bowman, published by the Erikson Institute, presents the results of two surveys to provide information on the current state of expert opinion and public practice with regard to the assessment of prekindergarten children. The first survey questioned a group of 25 national leaders in the early childhood field; the second survey questioned State-funded prekindergarten programs regarding specific assessment practices mandated, recommended, or commonly used in their classrooms. This resource is available on the Web at http://www.erikson.edu/files/nonimages/horton-bowman.pdf.

  • "Early Childhood Education and School Readiness: Conceptual Models, Constructs, and Measures: Workshop Summary" (June 17-18, 2002), sponsored by the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD), the Administration on Children, Youth and Families (ACYF), and the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation (ASPE) within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), describes a two-day workshop that was convened to offer advice on the measurement and assessment of learning and development in early childhood and on priorities for measures development. Workshop presenters and participants were asked to consider current research on what children should learn and develop from birth through age 5 to prepare for kindergarten and the early grades. Some of the sessions focused specifically on the creations of Head Start's National Reporting System. This resource is available on the Web at http://www.nichd.nih.gov/crmc/cdb/Kyle-workshop.pdf.

  • Understanding Young Children's Mental Health: A Framework for Assessment and Support of Social-Emotional-Behavioral Health (January 2001), by the Nebraska Early Childhood Mental Health Work Group Assessment Subgroup, has information on the following social-emotional assessment tools for young children:
    • Ages and Stages Questionnaires: Social Emotional (ASQ: SE)
    • AIMS: Developmental Indicators of Emotional Health
    • Behavior Assessment System for Children (BASC)
    • Brief Infant-Toddler Social Emotional Assessment (BITSEA)
    • Child Behavior Checklist (CBC)
    • Devereux Early Childhood Assessment Program (DECA)
    • Infant Toddler Developmental Assessment (IDA)
    • Infant-Toddler Social and Emotional Assessment (ITSEA)
    • Infant Toddler Symptom Checklist
    • Temperament and Atypical Behavior Scale (TABS)
    • Vineland Social-Emotional Early Childhood Scales (SEEC)

This resource is available on the Web at http://www.esu3.org/ectc/partnerships/ecmh/assessframe.pdf.

  • Recommended Practices in Early Intervention/Early Childhood Special Education (2000), by the Division of Early Childhood (DEC), attempts to bridge the gap between current research and practice and to offer guidance to professionals who work with young children with disabilities. It also includes essential elements for achieving and sustaining high-quality services, such as child-focused interventions, family-based practices, and appropriate assessment. Additional information is available on the Web at
    http://www.dec-sped.org/publications.html#earlychildhood.
     

Additional Resource

  • The Early Language and Literacy Observation and Assessment Tools document under the Literacy topic of NCCIC's Web site in the Popular Topics section at http://nccic.org/pubs/goodstart/assessment-literacy.html includes information on research of selected State prekindergarten initiatives.

Updated March 2005