When you assess children you have to make sure that you use the proper tool. I have found that a lot of the assessment tools used in schools are not fair to all children. I find this to be more noticeable in assessing children that have English as their second language. When choosing an assessment tool it is important to remember that children develop at different rates. Children have different styles of learning. It is not fair to say that two children who are the same age should be able to do the same things. When I assess a child I already know what to expect before I begin. I have observed the child enough to know what they are capable of doing. I have anecdotal notes that help me understand why they obtained a certain score. When I have a child that has English as their second language, I have a form called an ASQ that I give to the parent to fill out. Now I know as a parent myself, I would not want my child to receive a low score so I know that some of the scores that I see on the ASQ have been fudged a little. When that happens and I know that I expect a lower score, I usually do my own ASQ and compare the two. The Dial 3 does not support children with physical disabilities. How can you expect a child to get a fair score on an assessment that has gross motor activities on it?
The CELF Preschool-2 Spanish and PLS-4 Spanish is used to determine Hispanic children language ability. They both are language test which are used to compare the language skills of children that are the same age. The children that are assessed are children who only speak Spanish, but are learning English, children who speak both languages well, and Hispanic children who speak no Spanish at all. Each child is equipped with different skills which are emerging at different stages and rates. The characteristics of the child determines which test the child will be given. The advantage to this is that the language and speech assessment has to be administered in the child’s primary language.
Assessing Spanish_Speaking Preschoolers: CELF Preschool-2 Spanish and PLS-4 Spanish. Retrieved from http://www.txsha.org/_pdf/Convention/New%20Folder/Pearson_Assessing%20Spanish-Speaking%20Preschoolers
Angela
arltaylor 