Session B: Assessing young children's literacy and mathematics understandings

Current research indicates that young children are capable of developing mathematical concepts and reasoning much earlier than previously considered. The development of mathematical concepts emerges out of children’s understandings about pattern and structure from interaction with the real world. An early mathematical assessment interview, the Pattern and Structure Assessment (PASA) focuses on a range of concepts and processes and is linked with mathematical attainment in the ACER Progressive Achievement Tests in Maths (PATMaths). Abstract ACER is piloting early-years technology-based tools, such as the Digital Early Reading and Mathematics Assessment (DERMA). DERMA is an audio-based assessment of early reading and mathematics skills delivered on offline tablets fitted with headphones. The practice program enables young students who have never used a computer before to gain sufficient skill to independently work through the assessment. DERMA promotes the message that reading is a meaningful activity with tasks that model good classroom practices. It also promotes authentic mathematics tasks where students can drag and drop objects to count, sort and compare groups and order numbers. DERMA has been successfully used in Afghanistan in 2014 in a large-scale survey conducted in Dari and Pashtu with Grade 3 students. It has also been successfully used in pilot studies in Lesotho and with remote Indigenous communities in Australia. ACER is currently piloting a version of DERMA for use with Australian students in the first three years of school. This workshop session will demonstrate DERMA and cover the five main reasons for using DERMA: motivation of the students, portability of the medium, validity and content coverage, reliability, and efficiency of gathering sample data.