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Assignment #5: Purposes/Functions of Assessment

Leah Roberts

Kent State University

SPED 63957: Assessment and Evaluation in Early Childhood Services

Dr. Chen

April 17, 2024

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Assessment is an important aspect of early childhood services. It can be used to

preemptively screen for developmental disabilities, determine eligibility, plan services, monitor

progress, and evaluate programs. Assessments should be both reliable (consistent) and valid

(measuring what it is intended to measure), and we should ensure that we are using

evidence-based practices and following all assessment procedures to ensure that our results are

accurate. There are three types of assessments that all play a crucial role in the identification and

treatment of children with developmental disabilities: developmental screening tools,

norm-referenced diagnostic assessments, and curriculum-based assessments.

Developmental screening tools can be used by healthcare providers, early childhood

teachers, or other trained providers to look for developmental milestones and determine whether

a child may need more testing and/or support services. These screening tools are designed to be

quick snapshots of a child’s development rather than a more intensive assessment so that

providers can look for signs of developmental delay more frequently and efficiently. These

screens should be conducted at 9, 18, and 24 or 30 months, or whenever there is a concern

(Chen, 2024, Introduction to the ASQ system). Often, these screens are checklists that can be

completed collaboratively with caregivers to quickly determine whether further assessment

should be conducted.

Child Find is a system mandated by IDEA in both Part B and C that requires states to

actively identify and evaluate children as early as possible (Chen, 2024, Introduction to the ASQ

system). Increasing public awareness of typical developmental milestones and red flags through

parent-friendly websites such as the CDC’s developmental milestones help meet this mandate, as

well as caregiver developmental monitoring and health care provider developmental

surveillance. Developmental monitoring happens when caregivers are aware of the

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developmental milestones they should expect from their child, and are able to pay attention to

what their child is and is not doing. Screening tools are important because they are used regularly

in early childhood, meaning that children can be identified as potentially having a developmental

disability earlier and receive services earlier, leading to more positive outcomes.

There are several developmental screening tools that exist. The Ages and Stages

Questionnaires (ASQ-3) is one example of a screening tool that is commonly used. This tool is a

questionnaire that can be filled out collaboratively with the parent or caregiver and looks at a

child’s development in communication, gross motor, fine motor, problem solving, and

personal-social domains. The Ages and Stages Questionnaires: Social Emotional (ASQ:SE) is

another screening tool that looks at a child’s social-emotional development. Other general

developmental screening tools include the Battelle Developmental Inventory Screening Tool, the

Parents’ Evaluation of Developmental Status (PEDS), and the Denver-II Developmental

Screening Test (Special Learning, 2024).

If a child does not pass the cutoff on a developmental screening, the next step is a

norm-referenced diagnostic assessment. These assessments are often used to determine whether a

child is eligible for services. They are called “norm-referenced” because these assessments

compare the child’s performance to the performance of other children (the “normative sample”)

(Chen, 2024, Battelle developmental inventory - week 5). Diagnostic assessments are also

standardized, which means that the procedures and materials are specified to ensure that there is

consistency in results and eligibility determinations. The results of a diagnostic assessment can

be used to generate a child’s developmental age or percentile score (comparing the child’s results

to the results of other children of the same age) (Chen, 2024, Battelle developmental inventory -

week 5). These assessments are more intensive than screenings, because they are used to
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determine whether or not the child needs services after the child didn’t meet the cutoff on the

screening criteria.

There are several norm-referenced diagnostic assessments that exist. The Battelle

Developmental Inventory (BDI-2) is one such assessment that assesses five developmental

domains: adaptive, personal-social, communication, motor, and cognitive (Chen, 2024, Battelle

developmental inventory - week 5). The Goldman-Fristoe test of articulation is another

norm-referenced diagnostic assessment that specifically looks at a child’s ability to pronounce

sounds in different parts of words. Some other examples of norm-referenced diagnostic

assessments include the Adaptive Behavior Assessment System (ABAS-3), the Bayley Scales of

Infant and Toddler Development, and the MacArthur Bates Communicative Development

Inventories (Miceli et al., 2020).

Curriculum-based assessments are criterion-referenced assessments that give a

comprehensive measure of a child’s developmental abilities. Criterion-referenced assessments

compare the child’s performance to a set of standard skills, rather than comparing them to other

children as in a norm-referenced assessment. These assessments should assess functional skills,

and they are conducted alongside a curriculum. These assessments can be used to monitor the

child’s current skill levels, as well as to help develop outcomes and goals, to determine what

interventions should be used and what content should be taught, and to monitor progress (Chen,

2024, Curriculum-based assessments AEPS-w8). This type of assessment is ongoing, and is used

primarily to track progress continuously and ensure that the child has the correct support.

Observation plays an important role in completing curriculum-based assessments for

young children. We should observe children in different settings and contexts to make sure we

have a full understanding of their abilities. We should also ensure that we are being both
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descriptive and objective when recording our observations. Direct observation alongside family

observations helps us make sure that we are getting an accurate picture of the child.

There are many examples of curriculum-based assessments. One assessment that I have

seen a lot first-hand through my internship is the Hawaii Early Learning Profile (HELP). The

Assessment, Evaluation, and Programming System (AEPS-3) is another assessment that covers

eight developmental areas: gross motor, fine motor, adaptive, cognitive, social-communication,

social-emotional, math, and literacy (Chen, 2024, Curriculum-based assessments AEPS-w8).

Some other examples of curriculum-based assessments include the Carolina Curriculum for

Infants and Toddlers/Preschoolers, the Teaching Strategies GOLD (The Creative Curriculum),

and the Transdisciplinary Play-Based Assessment (TPBA).

The process of identifying and providing support to children with developmental

disabilities is composed of many different types of assessments, alongside caregiver reports and

observations. Ensuring that we understand this process and administer assessments accurately is

incredibly important in our field.

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References

Chen, C. (2024). Battelle developmental inventory - week 5 [PowerPoint slides]. School of

Lifespan Development and Educational Sciences, Kent State University.

Chen, C. (2024). Curriculum-based assessments AEPS-w8 [PowerPoint slides]. School of

Lifespan Development and Educational Sciences, Kent State University.

Chen, C. (2024). Introduction to the ASQ system [PowerPoint slides]. School of Lifespan

Development and Educational Sciences, Kent State University.

Miceli, M., Bae, A., & Eile, J. M. (2020). Norm-Referenced Assessment Tools for Children Birth

to Age Five Years with Potential for Remote Administration for Eligibility Determination

. U.S. Office of Special Education Programs.

Special Learning. (2024, March 28). Screening tools used during a developmental-behavioral

screening.

https://special-learning.com/screening-tools-used-during-a-developmental-behavioral-scr

eening/