Neglected Validities: Evaluating Preschool Assessment Against the Standards

• In Event: 30.052 - Early Childhood Program Quality and Assessment

Abstract

Quality assessment is an essential component of preschool education. The Standards for Educational and Psychological Testing provide benchmarks for evaluating the validity of inferences made from assessment or test results (AERA, APA & NCME, 2014). According to the Standards, test developers should investigate and document information related to five aspects of validity: test content, response processes, internal structure, relationships to other variables, and consequences of test use. The present study comprises a pilot study examining information related to these five aspects of validity among preschool assessments. The results of the pilot study identify important gaps in the validity information reported for early childhood assessments, including certain types of validity evidence that are neglected in the field of preschool assessment.

Authors

• Katharine Buek, University of Pennsylvania

• Katherine Barghaus

• John Fantuzzo, University of Pennsylvania