Equity-Centered Innovations in Early Learning Assessment

Session Type: Coordinated Paper Session

Abstract

Young children increasingly attend early childhood education settings before they enter kindergarten. Yet practitioners in these diverse settings often lack reliable, unbiased data on children’s skills that could inform instruction and other programmatic decisions. This coordinated paper session introduces four novel assessment approaches for early learning settings intended to provide actionable insights to ultimately drive more equitable early learning outcomes. Several of these innovations rely on recent technological advancements, including generative AI, to capture the abilities of preliterate children who often have short attention spans and limited experience with formal learning situations. The first paper describes an approach that builds on traditional observation-based assessment by leveraging large language models to support more efficient and unbiased observations and incorporating tablet-based games. The second describes an integrated, informal assessment approach relying on activities embedded within a widely used learning application. The third explores whether playful tablet-based assessments can capture children’s skills across multiple domains simultaneously. The final paper describes a literacy and language assessment developed with an anti-bias anti-racism (ABAR) lens. The session will conclude with a discussion on future directions in early learning assessment to center equity and ensure tools are aligned with the needs of end-users.

Sub Unit

• Individual Papers, Innovation Demonstrations, Coordinated Sessions, or Organized Discussions

Session Organizer

• Emily Hanno

Chair

• Ximena Portilla, MDRC

Individual Presentations

• An Integrated Observation and Game-Based Early Learning Assessment Approach - Ben Thier, Cognitive ToyBox

• Embedded Assessment for Early Childhood - Kristen DiCerbo, Khan Academy; Caroline Hu Flexer, Khan Academy

• Multidimensional Assessment Approach for Young Learners - Sara Bakken, BrainPop; Yigal Rosen, BrainPop

• Applying an Anti-Bias, Anti-Racist Lens to Early Learning Assessment Development - Alisha Wackerle-Hollman, UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA; Lillian Duran, University of Oregon

Discussant

• Emily Hanno