Copyright 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. or its affiliate(s). All rights reserved. Preschool Language Scales-5 Assessing Children from Birth through 7 Nancy.

Copyright 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. or its affiliate(s). All rights reserved.

Preschool Language Scales-5Assessing Children from Birth through 7

Nancy Castilleja, MA CCC-SLP

September 9, 2011


Course objectives• describe at least two principles identified by

ASHA as best practices in early language assessment

• identify three key differences between PLS-4 and PLS-5

• describe two research studies conducted with the PLS-5


Agenda• ASHA: best practices in early language assessment• PLS-5 vs. PLS-4

–Start points–Age level placements–Scoring

• PLS-5 Research Studies–Development–Minimizing Bias–Standardization–Reliability & Validity

• Q & A


Roles and Responsibilities of SLPs in Early Intervention

• www.asha.org /policy

• Four guiding principles1. family-centered and culturally and linguistically

responsive2. developmentally supportive and promote

participation in natural environments3. comprehensive, coordinated, and team based4. based on the highest quality evidence available


Family-centered and culturally and linguistically responsive

– Caregiver participation in testing

– Caregiver-selected and caregiver-identified social routines and vocabulary tested for very young children

– Extensive bias review and widespread testing with a diverse sample has resulted in

○ Familiar home vocabulary and contexts○ Dialectal, regional, and cultural variations to identify

responses that are accepted as correct

– Home Communication Questionnaire


Sample from the Home Communication Questionnaire


Developmentally supportive and promote participation in natural environments

• Observation of naturally-occurring behaviors for younger children

• Credit given for spontaneous productions in and outside the assessment room

• Developmentally appropriate skills assessed


Comprehensive, coordinated, and team based

• Provides a survey of language skills in the areas of

– Social communication– Semantics– Morphology– Syntax– Articulation

• Useful for arena assessment; can be administered by professionals in child development teams


Based on the highest quality evidence available

• Current review of research for item development • Expert review

• Current normative data


What is new?

• Current norms for a wider age range: based on the 2008 update of the U.S. Census for children birth through 7:11

• Streamlined administration, with new suggested start points and test items that involve manipulatives grouped for smoother transitions during testing

• New test items in the areas of play, understanding false beliefs, and literacy

• New Growth Scale Values, Evidence-based scores you can use to track progress


Based on the performance of children in standardization…• New ceiling rule

–Basal: 3 consecutive correct responses–Ceiling: 6 (not 7) consecutive errors

–Because PLS-5 tests a variety of skills, a child could obtain one or more score points if you discontinue testing earlier


Score multiple test items with one procedure


New test items• For ages 18-24 months–additional items assessing play

• For ages 3 through 4 years–new items assessing book handling and concept ofprint

• For ages 5 through 7 years–new items testing

– Theory of Mind– Integrated language skills such as use of synonyms– Emergent literacy skills such as naming letters and

understanding prefixes


New item: Uses synonyms


New Demonstration Item for Understands Size/Sequence Concepts (smallest, biggest)


New Practice item: Uses Possessive Pronouns: hers, his


Items integrating Theory of Mind concepts• Some items requiring that the child make

inferences about another’s feelings or intentions


Understanding false beliefs


What is different?

• Revised test items, based on clinicians’ and reviewers’ feedback

• Updated Articulation Screener with picture stimuli

• Start points

• Age level placements of certain developmental skills

• Normative scores


Revised Test Items


Modified Articulation Screener


Frequently Asked Questions


Why is “responds to speaker by smiling” now at age 6-8 months?

“Start Points” are not developmental age levels


“Start Points” are not developmental age levels


Why do so many of the PLS-5 test items appear at later age levels than PLS-4?

• Some clinicians are confusing the Start Points with Developmental Levels

• Criterion change for item placement



Why do so many of the PLS-5 test items appear at later age levels than PLS-4?

• Some clinicians are confusing the Start Points with Developmental Levels

• Criterion change for item placement at developmental levels

• The items were modified in some way– The task is different– Sub-items are different– The number of sub-items has changed– The pass criterion has changed


Uses past tense

Age 4: 7%

Age 4:6: 42%

Age 5:0: 22%

Age 5:6 58%

Age 7: 78%


PLS-5 age level placements do not match placement from Brown’s studies

• According to Owens (2008), the age of mastery for Brown’s developmental milestones is based on the research of:

– Bellugi & Brown (1964)– Brown (1973)– Miller (1981)

• Demographic characteristics of the sample in 2010

• When you review performance of a high SES sample, performance on PLS-5 tasks match Brown’s seminal research


Some children are scoring higher on the PLS-5? I’m concerned that children will no longer qualify for services.• PLS-4/PLS-5 correlational study

– N = 134– Average change:

○ AC: 1 point lower than PLS-4○ EC: 1.5 points lower than PLS-4○ Total Language: 1 point lower

– Range of score change for individuals higher

• Protocols we’ve reviewed after publication• Scores sometimes higher, sometimes lower• Performance differences• Item criterion differences• No change in eligibility unless a child qualified with a 77 on

PLS-4


On the EC scale, the child hardly needs to talk at all at age 2:0!• At age 2:0, 64-71% of the normative sample

–Used words more than gestures to communicate–Used words for a variety of pragmatic functions–Used different word combinations

That means 29-36% of children did not…

• By age 2:6 to 2:11, the majority of the children in the sample met criterion for these behaviors


Standardization Research

• Over 1800 children were tested for standardization and related reliability and validity studies from December 2009 through August 2010

• The standardization sample was collected by 189 clinicians in 42 states in the United States


Technical Information– Demographic Information– Validity Studies

– Clinical studies○ Ages 1-2:11 language delay study○ Ages 3:0-7:11 language disorder study○ Sensitivity/specificity○ Positive/negative predictive power

– Correlations with other assessments○ PLS-4○ CELF Preschool-2

– Reliability Studies– Internal consistency: typical

○ .80-.97– Internal consistency: disorder

○ .96 to .98– Inter-rater reliability: .95 to .98– Inter-scorer agreement: .91 to 1.0

– Case studies– Autism– Hearing Impairment

PLS-5 Sample: Race/Ethnicity

African American 14.2%

Asian 4%

Hispanic 23.9%

White 53.7%


Sample mirrors March 2008 Update of the U.S. Census: Race/Ethnicity

African-American 14%

Asian 4%

Hispanic 23%

White 55%

Other 4%


Sample mirrors March 2008 Update of the U.S. Census: Parent Education

0-11 years 15%

High School diploma or GED 26%

1-3 years college or technicalschool 28%

4 or more years of college 31%


Sample mirrors March 2008 Update of the U.S. Census: Region

PLS-5 Normative Sample: Region

Northeast 19.7%

Midwest 19.9%

South 36.4%

West 24%


Where Children in the PLS-5 Sample Spend the Majority of their Day

Child's Learning Environment

Home w/Family 56.4%

Home w/Sitter 2.9%

Day Care 16.4%

Preschool 6.7%

Kinder

Grades 1-2

Other/NR


Are children with disabilities included in the PLS-5 sample?


PLS-4/PLS-5 Correlations


CELF Preschool-2/PLS-5 Correlations


Clinical Study: Developmental Delay


Clinical Study: Receptive-Expressive Disorder


Sensitivity/Specificity: NPP/PPP with 50% Matched Sample

AC EC Total

Cut Score SD and Predictive Power

Matched Sample 50%

Matched Sample 50%

Matched Sample 50%

-1 SD

PPP .83 .86 .81

NPP .77 .85 .83

-1.5 SD

PPP .93 .94 .92

NPP .66 .75 .74

-2 SD

PPP .96 .95 .94

NPP .60 .63 .63

Note. PPP is Positive Predictive Power and NPP is Negative Predictive Power.


Minimizing Bias

• Current literature review • Clinician surveys• Research studies

–Pilot–Tryout (includes bias oversample)–Standardization

• Statistical analyses of bias• Expert review





Questions related to the kit

1. Do I need to purchase the manipulatives or can I collect my own?

2. Why can’t we have a Picture Manual we can wipe clean?


Questions related to the kit

How do you get the bear and the pitcher to fit in the box?


I can’t get the bear to sit!


Questions, concerns, comments?

www.speechandlanguage.com

Copyright 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. or its affiliate(s). All rights reserved. Preschool Language Scales-5 Assessing Children from Birth through 7 Nancy.

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