Welcome to the Evaluation Tools Special Collection. This collection provides a listing of a variety of screening and diagnostic tools, and books about recommended practices in assessing the development of young children with and without disabilities from culturally and linguistically diverse groups.
This collection is designed to provide information that raises awareness regarding alternative assessment for young children. In addition, our goal is to provide you with information about tools especially designed for culturally and linguistically diverse children and families.
The CLAS Institute's emphasis is on the evaluation process, not the specific instruments and publications. This listing is meant to encourage a dialogue about culturally and linguistically appropriate evaluation in the field of early childhood.
A number of the materials in this collection can also be found in the CLAS database of reviewed materials. Please take a look at the reviews from service providers, parents, and personnel trainers in the field of early childhood education.
For evaluation tools, each listing includes the following information:
For books about evaluation, each listing includes summary information about content, language availability, and a brief description of reference information, such as appendices and checklists, for adapting evaluation instruments so information can be collected in a culturally and linguistically respectful manner.
Before you use these materials, please be aware
Many of these materials have not been reviewed by CLAS. They are included in our database for the purpose of sharing information with the field, not as an endorsement for their use. Materials that have been field tested or reviewed by CLAS are indicated as such.
We urge you to examine materials in other languages (original or translated) very carefully as they have not been reviewed by CLAS staff for their appropriateness or accuracy for their intended audience(s).
The CLAS Institute does not endorse these diagnostic or evaluation tools. Many complex issues surround evaluation (e.g., the disproportionate number of minority children identified, misuse of scores, limited norming information for diverse groups). While we cannot address all of the issues we hope this section contributes to an exploration them by sharing information and encouraging feedback from the field.