We need better instruments to assess the functioning of disadvantaged preschoolers. Despite increased concwn about carly intervention, a gro-th in the number and variety of programs, and continuing controversy about the merits of different approaches, our ability to s w how u ell individuals and programs are doing is limited. Authoritative reviexi s, e.g., Hocpfrter, Stern and Nummcdal (1971), indicate that few available instrurncnts incet the basic requirements of reliability, validity, and practicality.
This report summarizes one rnethod of appraising how a ell disadvantaged preschoolers comprehend a set of concepts that appear basic in successful school performance. When used in conjunction with previously published materials (The Boehin Test of Basic Concepts) this nrt,iclc constitutes n test manual and makes it possible for others to use our test.
Ann E. Boehm (1967Boehm ( , 1971) devcloped an impcirtant test for measuring knowledge of basic concepts in children in kindergarten through second grade. She started with an analysis of teaching materials used in first and second grade. She tried to determine the concepts that are essential if a child is to understand "the language of instruction" in elementary school, the concepts used when teachers and textbooks tell children what to do, e.g.,: "Put your name at the top of the page;" "Do your arithmetic after you finish ivith your reading;" "Look a t the picture that is the same as mine." After isolating a set of 50 such concepts, she constructed a group test designed to measure children's knowledge of these key words, The Boehm Test of Basic Concepts (BTBC).