Emerging Individual Growth and Development Indicators Trends

• In Event: 3-046 - Use of Individual Growth and Development Indicators to Support Early Intervention and Early Learning

Integrative Statement

This paper will discuss current and emerging trends in the development and use of Individual Growth and Development Indicators (IGDIs) with infants, toddlers, and preschoolers. Evidence and practice document that IGDIs for young children are no longer experimental and increasingly play roles in intervention decision making in Multi-tiered Systems of Support (MTSS) approaches to research, child development, early intervention, and early childhood special education (Diamond, Justice, Siegler, & Snyder, 2013; Greenwood, Carta, & McConnell, 2011). IGDIs are brief, repeatable measures used for universal screening and progress monitoring by program staff in intervention decision making (see symposium papers). IGDIs are designed to fill this unique measurement function not filled by other, traditional standardized developmental screening, curriculum, or outcome measures.

We address a range of emerging issues. These cross-cut other topics such as advances in Classical and IRT Test Theories, improving technical standards, embracing treatment validity, a widening professional user base, potential of “big data”, among others (e.g., new general outcomes/domains). For example, emerging issues in this work to be discussed include: Validating IGDIs for use with Spanish-speaking preschoolers (Wackerle-Hollman & Duran, 2014); Developing approaches that improve the precision of the intervention recommendations (Greenwood et al., 2017); Using IGDIs in randomized trials of the effects of evidence-based intervention practices and moderation by intervention fidelity (Buzhardt et al., 2018); IGDI use in home visiting (Home Visiting Applied Research Collaborative, 2018) seeking to become more evidence-based; and IGDIs as measures that address newly embraced language, literacy and reading social determinants of health in Pediatric Care (Carta, Buzhardt, Walker, & Greenwood, 2017, January 26); Linking IGDIs to digital support systems that facilitate data entry, real-time intervention advice, accurately managing child caseloads, and reporting and interpreting data for individual decision making, program improvement, and accountability. Implications will be discussed and questions addressed.

Authors

• Charles Greenwood, University of Kansas
  Presenting Author

• Lillian Duran, University of Oregon
  Non-Presenting Author

• Judith Carta, University of Kansas
  Non-Presenting Author

• Scott McConnell, University of Minnesota
  Non-Presenting Author

• Alisha Wackerle-Hollman, University of Minnesota
  Non-Presenting Author