John T. Neisworth

The MisMeasure of Young Children The Authentic Assessment Alternative

Measurement in early care and education, and early intervention, particularly, continues to be dominated by the use of conventional, norm-referenced testing practices to the detriment of young children. Conventional tests have been neither developed for nor field-validated on infants, toddlers, and preschoolers with developmental disabilities. Thus, contrary to professional wisdom in the fields, conventional tests have no evidence-base for use in early childhood intervention. Nevertheless, the accountability movement in education embodied in No Child Left Behind legislation continues to promote the use of conventional tests, which yield distorted results for young children with special needs. It is long overdue for our interdisciplinary fields to abandon decontextualized testing practices and to champion the use of measurement techniques that capture authentic portraits of the naturally occurring competencies of young exceptional children in everyday settings and routines—the natural developmental ecology for children. In this article, we present the “authentic assessment alternative” to the mismeasure of young children. We review the purposes for assessment in early childhood intervention; issues related to conventional testing; 8 standards for professional “best practices”; a rationale and examples of the process and methods for authentic assessment; and guidepoints for implementing authentic assessment in action.

The Case Against Intelligence Testing in Early Intervention

A legal-like format is employed in this article to put intelligence testing in early intervention “on trial”. Six major presumptions that underlie the use of early intelligence tests are presented and disputed. The concerns center on the construct of early intelligence, reliability, prediction, standardized administration, professional acceptability, utility for decision making, and congruence with P.L. 99--457. Logic and evidence are marshaled to refute each presumption. In the summation and closing arguments, we urge professional solidarity in opposing the continued unwarranted use of intelligence testing in early intervention.

The Intervention Efficiency Index: An Approach to Preschool Program Accountability

Intervention programs claiming to benefit young children are increasingly being required to provide evidence of their effectiveness. An Intervention Efficiency Index (IEI) is proposed as a method of measuring child progress and program impact by relating changes in childrens developmental capabilities to time spent in a program. A series of steps involved in computing an IEI is presented. Research data supporting application of the IEI in two different preschool programs for handicapped children are analyzed and discussed.

Behaviorism in Early Intervention

A consistent and persistent devaluation and misunderstanding of behaviorism, the behavioral approach, and its application to early childhood special education exists among many professionals in the field. In this article we explore common criticisms of behaviorism and present reactions. In addition, we identify and describe the critical features of the behavioral approach and their similarities to early childhood special education. Finally, we provide examples of the influence and application of the behavioral perspective in early childhood special education. In the conclusion of this discussion, we assert that the behavioral perspective has contributed substantially to improving the lives of young children with developmental delays and disabilities and their families. As such, behaviorism has utility in the design and implementation of early childhood special education services.

Operant Treatment of Asthmatic Responding with the Parent as Therapist.

Pronounced reduction of chronic asthmatic responding in a 7-year-old boy was achieved through parental management of “therapeutic” contingencies. Treatment was begun with professional guidance by the mother after she had attended several instructional sessions in operant conditioning. Reinstatement of original consequences and return to treatment contingencies produced corresponding changes in the duration of asthmatic behavior. An 11-month follow-up confirmed the stability of the therapeutic changes, general improvement in the childs health, and the absence of any demonstrable deleterious side-effects. The results suggest closer and extended scrutiny of operant techniques in the treatment of asthma and other allergic responses.

Effect of repeated listening experiences on the intelligibility of synthesized speech

Two studies (one with child subjects, one with adult subjects) were conducted to investigate the effect of the following variables on the intelligibility of synthesized speech: synthesizer (DECtalk childs voice vs. Echo II+); repeated listening experiences (five sessions); and vocabulary type (novel vs. repeated). The pattern of findings was similar for the two studies: intelligibility scores were significantly higher for the DECtalk than for the Echo; repeated listening experiences resulted in significantly improved scores for both novel and repeated vocabulary; and, in sessions 2 to 5, repeated vocabulary was more intelligible than novel vocabulary. The results provide evidence that repeated listening experiences result in improved performance for both children and adults. Children and adults not only remember and recognize words that they have heard previously (repeated vocabulary), but repeated exposure to synthesized speech also improves performance on words heard for the first time (novel vocabulary).

Parent-Professional Congruence Is It Necessary?

Considerable attention has been given to the issue of parent-professional congruence, specifically in connection with reliability of assessments. Concerns regarding the trustworthiness of parental assessments have guided research to focus on the conventional issues of interrater reliability and rater interchangeability. However, this conventional perspective may be misdirected and counterproductive. It is argued that the focus should be the reliability of the pooled assessment information from parents and professionals. A more appropriate generalizability theoretic model, which would maximize social, ecological, and construct validity, is proposed. An illustration with data from an early childhood assessment system is provided.

Self Control Possibilities for Exceptional Children

Behavior modification research and training materials within education have focused on techniques in which the locus of control rests solely with an external change agent. Recently, there has been increased interest in having the person control his own behavior. With the growing emphasis on normalization for handicapped children, self control techniques may be especially pertinent. There are three self control strategies that appear to have immediate implication for exceptional children: (a) cue regulation, (b) self reinforcement, and (c) self observation.

Identifying Instructional Targets for Early Childhood via Authentic Assessment Alignment of Professional Standards and Practice-Based Evidence

Now at middle age, the field of Early Childhood Intervention (ECI) and its professionals have demonstrated a unique capacity to develop their own practice-based evidence (PBE) and professional standards to forge solutions to challenging professional practice dilemmas. This innovative capacity is no more evident than in designing and implementing individualized linkages among assessment/instruction/progress evaluation for all children, particularly those with delays and disabilities. In this article, the authors advocate for the overarching purpose of assessment in ECI—to identify instructional targets and to plan beneficial programs for young children with special needs in inclusive, natural environments. The authors highlight major developments that have changed their professional practices since the passage of PL 99-457; PBE that supports and promotes these practices and the linkage among assessment, instruction, and progress evaluation; and critical issues for future policy, practice, and research.

Functional Similarities of Learning Disability and Mild Retardation

Descriptions of educable mentally retarded and learning disabled children are discussed as they relate to similarities and differences in assumed cause and educationally relevant problems. The terms genotype and phenotype are presented to conceptualize the distinction between underlying condition and objectively assessed psychoeducational repertoire. The argument is made that real or assumed differences in the underlying conditions of the educable mentally retarded and learning disabled are somewhat irrelevant to the analysis and design of instructional programs. A tentative schema is provided that illustrates appreciable overlap of the educable retardation and learning disability classifications with respect to instructional objectives and instructional intervention.