Examining Early Child Development in Low-Income Countries: a Toolkit for the Assessment of Children in the First Five Years of Life the WORLD BANK Lia C
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
Examining Early Child Development in Low-Income Countries Examining Early Child Development in Low-Income Countries: A Toolkit for the Assessment of Children in the First Five Years of Life THE WORLD BANK Lia C. H. Fernald, Ph.D. Patricia Kariger, Ph.D. Patrice Engle, Ph.D. THE WORLD BANK THE WORLD BANK Abbie Raikes, Ph.D. Cover2.indd 1 11/25/2009 3:58:37 PM Examining Early Child Development in Low-Income Countries: A Toolkit for the Assessment of Children in the First Five Years of Life Lia C. H. Fernald, Ph.D. Patricia Kariger, Ph.D. Patrice Engle, Ph.D. Abbie Raikes, Ph.D. THE WORLD BANK Washington, D.C. © 2009 The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank 1818 H Street NW Washington DC 20433 Telephone: 202-473-1000 Internet: www.worldbank.org E-mail: [email protected] All rights reserved The findings, interpretations, and conclusions expressed herein are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Executive Directors of the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank or the governments they represent. The World Bank does not guarantee the accuracy of the data included in this work. The boundaries, colors, denominations, and other information shown on any map in this work do not imply any judgment on the part of The World Bank concerning the legal status of any territory or the endorsement or acceptance of such boundaries. Rights and Permissions The material in this publication is copyrighted. Copying and/or transmitting portions or all of this work without permission may be a violation of applicable law. The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank encourages dissemination of its work and will normally grant permission to reproduce portions of the work promptly. For permission to photocopy or reprint any part of this work, please send a request with complete information to the Copyright Clearance Center Inc., 222 Rosewood Drive, Danvers, MA 01923, USA; telephone: 978-750-8400; fax: 978-750-4470; Internet: www.copyright.com. All other queries on rights and licenses, including subsidiary rights, should be addressed to the Office of the Publisher, The World Bank, 1818 H Street NW, Washington, DC 20433, USA; fax: 202-522-2422; e-mail: [email protected]. Examining Early Child Development in Low-Income Countries: A Toolkit for the Assessment of Children in the First Five Years of Life Authors Lia C. H. Fernald, Ph.D. Patricia Kariger, Ph.D. Patrice Engle, Ph.D. Abbie Raikes, Ph.D. Prepared for the World Bank Human Development Group, April 3, 2009 Corresponding author: Patricia Kariger ([email protected]) Acknowledgements: We are grateful for a critical review of this document by Frances Aboud (McGill University), Santiago Cueto (Catholic University, Peru), Ed Frongillo (University of South Carolina), Jane Kvalsvig (University of Kwa-Zulu Natal, South Africa), Ann Weber (University of California, Berkeley), Paul Wassenich (University of California, Berkeley), Michelle Neuman (The World Bank), and Mary Eming Young (The World Bank). Thanks to Robin Dean, Kallista Bley and Anna Moore for research assistance. TABLE OF CONTENTS TABLE OF CONTENTS ................................................................................................................ v TABLE OF FIGURES ................................................................................................................. viii EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ........................................................................................................... ix CHAPTER 1: IMPORTANCE OF MEASURING CHILD DEVELOPMENT............................. 1 Introduction ................................................................................................................................. 1 Conceptual framework ................................................................................................................ 4 Development across childhood ................................................................................................... 5 Differential vulnerability ............................................................................................................ 7 Cultural norms and development ................................................................................................ 9 Cumulative risk ......................................................................................................................... 11 Environmental context of development .................................................................................... 13 CHAPTER 2: DOMAINS OF DEVELOPMENT TO BE MEASURED .................................... 15 Introduction ............................................................................................................................... 15 Cognitive skills ......................................................................................................................... 15 Executive function .................................................................................................................... 17 Language skills ......................................................................................................................... 18 Motor skills ............................................................................................................................... 19 Social/emotional ....................................................................................................................... 20 CHAPTER 3: THEORETICAL DECISIONS IN SELECTING INSTRUMENTS ..................... 22 Introduction ............................................................................................................................... 22 Purpose of assessment............................................................................................................... 22 Types of assessments ................................................................................................................ 24 Direct Tests ........................................................................................................................... 26 Ratings and Reports .............................................................................................................. 28 Observational Measures ........................................................................................................ 30 Screening tests versus assessment of abilities .......................................................................... 31 Screening tests ...................................................................................................................... 31 Ability tests ........................................................................................................................... 33 Population versus individual-based testing ............................................................................... 33 Rationale for population-based tests ..................................................................................... 34 EDI: example of a population-based assessment ................................................................. 34 Survey-based measures ......................................................................................................... 35 Ethical risks and responsibilities in assessing young children .................................................. 36 Constraints to consider .............................................................................................................. 37 CHAPTER 4: MODIFICATION, ADAPTATION & STANDARDIZATION OF EXISTING TESTS ........................................................................................................................................... 41 Introduction ............................................................................................................................... 41 Norming and milestones ........................................................................................................... 41 Validity of measures ............................................................................................................. 42 Lack of information on normative developmental milestones ............................................. 42 Modification and adaptation ..................................................................................................... 43 Preparatory work for test adaptation ..................................................................................... 44 Steps for successful test adaptation ....................................................................................... 45 CHAPTER 5: CREATION OF NEW TESTS .............................................................................. 50 v Introduction ............................................................................................................................... 50 Requirements for creating a new test ........................................................................................ 50 The “Standards” approach ........................................................................................................ 53 Linking child-level Standards to program standards ............................................................ 56 Using Standards for assessment of learning ......................................................................... 57 Pros of Standards approach ..................................................................................................