ERIC Number: EJ927307
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2011
Pages: 28
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1040-9289
EISSN: N/A
Parent-Teacher Agreement and Reliability on the Devereux Early Childhood Assessment (DECA) in English and Spanish for Ethnically Diverse Children Living in Poverty
Crane, Jennifer; Mincic, Melissa S.; Winsler, Adam
Early Education and Development, v22 n3 p520-547 2011
Research Findings: Social-emotional competence is especially important for children living in poverty, and effective assessment of social-emotional skills is critical. This study examined parent-teacher agreement and reliability of the Devereux Early Childhood Assessment (DECA; P. A. LeBuffe & J. A. Naglieri, 1999) English and Spanish forms in a large (n = 7,756) sample of impoverished, ethnically diverse preschoolers. Both forms were reliable. Parents reported greater social-emotional protective factors and behavioral concerns than teachers. Parent-teacher agreement was moderate (rs = 0.20-0.28) and consistent with previous research. Parent-teacher agreement was higher when both informants completed the survey in the same language. Agreement was highest for average-functioning children, according to a standardized assessment of cognition, language, and motor skills that was also administered. Parents rated low-functioning children more favorably than did teachers; teachers rated high-functioning children more favorably than did parents. Practice or Policy: The English and Spanish DECA forms demonstrate reliability for examining social-emotional skills and behavioral concerns for impoverished, ethnically diverse preschoolers. (Contains 5 tables.)
Descriptors: Emotional Intelligence, Poverty, Parent Teacher Cooperation, Interpersonal Competence, Spanish, Measures (Individuals), English (Second Language), Second Language Learning, Social Development, Surveys, Schemata (Cognition), Parent Attitudes, Teacher Attitudes, Language Skills, Psychomotor Skills, Reliability, Preschool Children
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Evaluative
Education Level: Preschool Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A