Distance Assessment of Early Childhood Development at Home
Researchers
Emma Näslund-Hadley, Juan M. Hernández-Agramonte, Olga Namen
Abstract
School closures resulting from lockdowns to limit the spread of COVID-19 threaten to result in learning loss for students, particularly young children in vulnerable contexts. In order to evaluate the short-term impacts of distance learning efforts, researchers need to be able to effectively assess student learning outcomes remotely. In this project, researchers are working with Ministries of Education in Peru, Colombia, Panama, Costa Rica, and El Salvador to design and validate a distance assessment to be administered remotely with preschool children aged 4-5 years. The assessment, adapted from existing forms of assessment for early childhood education, is being designed to last 20 minutes, be conducted over voice or video calls, and cover math and literacy skills as well as socio-emotional development. Researchers are piloting the assessment to better understand its reliability and validity with approximately 3,000 children in Colombia and Peru, and will then use it for measurement in all five of the project's countries.
Project Outcomes of Interest
Early childhood learning outcomes in mathematics, literacy, and socio-emotional development; validity and reliability of distance assessment instrument
Partners
Inter-American Development Bank, Ministry of Education, Costa Rica, Ministry of Education, El Salvador, Ministry of Education, Panama, Ministry of Education, Peru, Ministry of Education, Colombia
Impact Goals
- Keep children safe, healthy, and learning
Project Data Collection Mode
- CATI (Computer-assisted telephone interviewing)
Results Status
No Results Yet