1. EarlyChildhood

Assessment

Early Childhoodit is the period when young

children’s rate of physical, motor, and linguistic development outpace growth rates at all other stages.

Growth is rapid, episodic, and highly influenced by environmental supports: nurturing parents, quality caregiving, and the learning setting.

Assessment

early childhood assessment is the process of gathering information about children from several forms of evidence, then organizing and interpreting that information

PURPOSE OF ASSESSMENT(a) Supporting and guiding learning and development;

(b) Guiding planning and decision making;

(c) Identification of children who are at risk; and

(d) Evaluation and accountability.

Supporting and Guiding Learning and Development Assessment of learning and development

Assessment for Learning and Development

Assessment as Learning

Functions of Assessment to Support and Guide Learning and Development Curriculum and Instructional

ModificationImmediate Relevant Information to Stakeholders

Guiding Planning and Decision Making

Identification of Special Needs

Evaluation and Accountability Programme Effectiveness

Monitoring Assessment

This is useful for external people who are making decisions about funding, extending or terminating programmes.

This is useful for internal staff running the programme and is responsible for decision making concerning curriculum and pedagogy.

This may require sampling children’s data or using a matrix to sample different abilities in different children.

This requires data on all relevant domains from all children in a programme.

2. Child-Level Outcomes and

Measures

By the end of this topic, you should be able to:1. Identify the age ranges for the infant and

toddler; 2. List the functions of infant/toddler assessment; 3. Discuss the challenges of infant screening; 4. Discuss the disorders considered as threats to

normativedevelopment; 5. List the five domains generally assessed under

learning and development; and 6. Appraise each of the five domains emphasising

their importance.

SCREENING YOUNG CHILDREN

Assessing Infants and Toddlers: Over the past half-century, behavioral development has become an integral part of regular pediatric evaluation, and pediatricians routinely provide clinical information on behavioral, cognitive, and psychosocial factors, thus providing a more comprehensive picture of each child’s overall growth and development.

Functions of Infant/Toddler Assessment

(a) To identify infants who may be at risk for developmental delay;

(b) To diagnose the presence and extent of development problems;

(c) To identify an infant’s specific abilities and skills; and

(d) To determine appropriate intervention strategies.

Challenges to Effective Infant ScreeningChildren are affected by Contextual FactorsThe Nature of ChildrenGenetic or Metabolic ScreeningPhenylketonuriaCongenital HypothyroidismGalactosaemiaCystic Fibrosis Newborn Hearing ScreeningVision ScreeningIron Deficiency ScreeningLead Screening

Developmental Assessment

Developmental assessment is the process designed to deepen understanding of a child’s competencies and resources, and of the care giving and learning environments most likely to help a child make fullest use of his or her developmental potential.

ASSESSING LEARNING AND DEVELOPMENT

(a) Physical well-being and motor development;

(b) Social and emotional development;

(c) Approaches to learning; (d) Language and literacy; and (e) Cognitive skills, including

mathematics as a particular case.

3 .The Role of Formal

Assessment and

Evaluation

FORMAL ASSESSMENT AND EVALUATION INSTRUMENTSDevelopmental Screening TestsDiagnostic Tests Readiness Tests : most readiness tests are

criterion referenced with the items focusing on general knowledge and skills achievement and performance. Because of what readiness tests measures, they can be used for child placement and curriculum planning

Achievement Tests

CHARACTERISTICS AND USES OF STANDARDISED TEST RESULTS

Standard References:

i) Norm-Referenced Tests: They are to assess individuals on non-sequential

information and where no specific level of competency is essential for making educational determinations.

They are also used where there is the need to choose an individual from among a group. An example is the selection for admission to higher educational level. Norm-referenced tests are suitable here because they would give the teacher selection information concerning the child’s relative performance. It is also used when there is an imperative to examine individual differences.

scores on standardised norm referenced testsStandard ScoresPercentile ScoresAge-Equivalent Scores Grade-Equivalent Scores (ex. 2-6: second level in the six months)

Criterion-Referenced Teststhe degree to which a child has attained a certain level of accomplishment according to a specified performance standard

Use of Standardised Test ResultsReporting to Families: What is important

here is that the teachers also provides descriptions of actual classroom behaviours to go along with the test score so that the parents have a better understanding of the meaning and implication of their child’s score. It would also be helpful to provide the parents with examples of actual classroom work that would also amplify the meaning of the score.

ADVANTAGES STANDARDISED TESTINGUniformity in Test Administration

Numerical or Quantifiable Scores

Norm Referencing Valid ResultsReliable Results

The Disadvantages of Standardised Testing AdministrationBiasInfluence on the CurriculumHigh-Stakes Testing