Studying the validity of the Developmental Indicators for the Assessment of Learning (DIAL), 53 kindergartners took the DIAL before school entrance and then had their Slosson Intelligence Test scores and Metropolitan Readiness Tests monitored for the school year. Preschool screening programs and their relation to the DIAL are discussed. (CE)

Since 1975, the Chicago public schools have been conducting ongoing research and development related to the identification and remediation of prekindergarten children with potential learning problems. The present study describes initial efforts toward the creation of a longitudinal data base aimed at determining (1) prekindergarten-age…

Approximately 120 published pre-school and Kindergarten tests (including over 630 subtests with separately normed scores) were evaluated through the MEAN test evaluation procedure which reflects four main areas of concern: measurement validity, examinee appropriateness, administrative usability, and normed technical excellence. Evaluation results…

Presents an annotated bibliography of recent ERIC documents on the effectiveness of screening and standardized testing at the early childhood level of education. (Author/BB)

The ability of the Slosson Intelligence Test to predict academic achievement was assessed by using three samples of pre-kindergarten pupils from three successive years in a large midwest school district. Results indicate a moderately good predictive power of the instrument. (Author/JKS)

The Pediatric Examination of Educational Readiness (PEER) was designed as an integrated health and neurodevelopmental instrument to be administered by pediatricians and nurses in the assessment of preschool children. It may be used to identify potential learning disabled children who need intervention. The neurodevelopmental part of the test…

Analyzes the uses and abuses of the Gesell School Readiness Screening Tests and similar tests. First, discusses developmental screening and readiness tests, then focuses on the Gesell tests, specifically addressing their validity and questioning their current uses. Discusses implications of using readiness tests for assigning children to…

The Kaufman Assessment Battery for Children and Wechsler Preschool and Primary Scale of Intelligence (WPPSI) were administered to Anglo- and Mexican-American children aged four to six. Both scales measured similar, but not identical, intellectual and achievement factors, indicating concurrent validity. Anglo children scored higher on WPPSI verbal…

As concern about the developmental progress of preschoolers has increased, the number of assessment instruments available has expanded. This paper reviews recent advances in early childhood assessment and evaluation, and describes several screening and assessment instruments. Varying information is presented for each test, but may include a…

The Preschool Racial Attitude Measure (PRAM) and the Comfortable Interpersonal Distance Scale (CID) were concurrently administered in counterbalanced order to 60 black and white five and six-year olds to establish whether a relationship existed between assessed racial bias and the interpersonal distance ascribed to figures by race. No relationship…

Twenty-seven instruments appropriate for measuring self-concept in children from the preschool level through the third grade are listed. Information concerning the purpose of the instrument, nature of the materials, groups for which it is intended, administration, scoring, interpretation, and standardization are included when available, together…

Findings of two studies which examined the identification of prekindergarteners with potential learning problems are presented. The first was a pilot study, in which a short screening device and a parent questionnaire were administered to a large, randomly-selected sample. In the second study, these instruments were validated against extensive…

As a preschool screening instrument, the Preschool Preposition Test (PPT) can play an important role in the early identification of cognitive delay. PPT scores increase appropriately with chronological age. Cognitive data demonstrate impressive correlations with recognized intelligence tests (the Stanford-Binet and the Peabody Picture Vocabulary…

The Head Start Measures Project was a 3-year study to develop a set of measures designed specifically for Head Start children. The measures are based on a path-referenced approach to assessment, in which children's performance is described in terms of their position along paths of development. A path is defined as a sequence of skills within a…