ERIC Number: ED139842
Record Type: RIE
Publication Date: 1977-Apr
Pages: 27
Abstractor: N/A
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
Measuring Language Comprehension in Young Children: Does the Structure of the Testing Condition Affect Results?
Sponseller, Doris Bergen
The structure of the testing condition is an important variable in measuring young children's language comprehension. This study examined effects of two testing conditions on the language comprehension scores of 24 toddlers, mean age 20.3 months. The methodology was based on the rationale that a test which allows parents to select stimuli which enable their children to demonstrate understanding (unstructured condition) will demonstrate a higher level of comprehension than a test in which parents present a designated set of stimuli (structured condition). Results indicated a significant effect of structure in the predicted direction. Implications for measurement methodology are discussed. (Author/MV)
Descriptors: Age Differences, Cognitive Development, Comprehension, Environmental Influences, Intellectual Development, Language Acquisition, Language Tests, Measurement Techniques, Parent Child Relationship, Patterned Responses, Preschool Children, Psycholinguistics, Research Methodology, Responses, Sex Differences, Testing Problems, Verbal Stimuli
Publication Type: Reports - Research
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: N/A
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Note: Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the American Educational Research Association (61st, New York, New York, April 4-8, 1977)
