This book is intended to help early childhood practitioners develop the essential understanding they require for appropriate use of assessment and evaluation information and to illuminate many of the issues involved in formal and informal assessment and evaluation. The chapters are: (1) "Assessment and Evaluation in the Early Childhood Years"; (2) "Putting Early Childhood Assessment and Evaluation in Perspective"; (3) "Evaluation from a Developmental Perspective"; (4) "Formal Assessment and Evaluation Instruments and Procedures"; (5) "Making Informed Decisions about Formal Assessment and Evaluation"; (6) "Testing and School Readiness"; (7) "Informal Assessment and Evaluation Procedures"; (8) "Alternative Forms of Assessment"; and (9) "Integrating Alternative Assessment Procedures into the Early Childhood Curriculum." Appendixes contain a glossary of assessment instruments in early childhood education, and a case study of one school's attempt at developing an alternative assessment program. Contains over 100 references. (HTH)