Table 2 Overview and summary of variables assessed in Learning4Kids
Level | Domain | Name (short form) | Method | Cronbach’s α | Variable details / Subtests |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Educator | Socioemotional development | EBD | Survey | .82a /.84a | Milestones in children’s social and emotional development |
Problematic behaviour | SDQ | Survey | .66 a /.70a / .86a /.64a /.76a | Subscales: Emotional symptoms, conduct problems, hyperactivity/inattention, peer relationship problems; prosocial behaviour | |
Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder | Conners’ scale | Survey | .85a | ADHD Index; short form | |
General child competencies | - | Survey | - | Concentration, language skills, vocabulary, grammar, mathematics skills, motor skills, social and emotional competencies, logical thinking | |
General child development | - | Survey | - | Age-appropriateness of child’s development, school readiness, special needs | |
Media usage | - | Survey | - | Number and usage of different media in the kindergarten (e.g. books, games, tablets) | |
Social popularity | - | Survey | .74a | Acceptance, rejection and disregard by other children in the kindergarten | |
Kindergarten attendance | - | Survey | - | Start of kindergarten attendance, daily attendance in hours | |
Family | Home Literacy Environment | HLE | Survey | .79-.89 | Shared reading, linguistic activities, literacy exposure, literacy instructions, formal HLE |
Home Numeracy Environment | HNE | Survey | .80-.83 | Mathematical activities, number / mathematics exposure and instructions, formal HNE | |
Book title recognition | TRT | Checklist | .87 | Checklist on selected children’s book titles, mixed with fake distractor titles | |
Math game title recognition | MTRT | Checklist | .69 | Checklist on selected children’s mathematical game titles, mixed with fake distractor titles | |
Educational aspiration | - | Survey | .64 | Parental educational aspiration for child | |
Media usage | - | Survey | - | Number of different kinds of media at home, children’s and parental media usage | |
Movie watching | - | Survey | .74 | Parental and child video and movie watching during the week and on weekends | |
Attitudes towards digital media | - | Survey | .75 | Parental attitudes towards media | |
Media literacy | - | Survey | .81/.86 | Children’s and parental media literacy | |
Family background | - | Survey | - | Migration background of parents and child1, spoken languages at home, educational background of parents, occupation of parents2, monthly income, number and age of siblings, family living conditions | |
Learning disabilities | - | Survey | - | Family history of dyslexia, dyscalculia, AHDH | |
Shared reading | FES adapted3 | Observation of shared reading | .84 | Verbal dissociation, nonverbal behaviour, use of questions, explanations of letters/words, phonological explanations, free language level, balance of conversation (child / parent) | |
Dice game play | FES adapted3 | Observation of game play | .87 | Counting, nonverbal behaviour, mentioning of numbers, free language level, explanations of mathematical concepts, comparing / ordering, references to everyday life | |
Parents’ behaviour and living conditions | HOME adapted4 | Observation in the family | .64 / .46 / .69 | Parents’ behaviour towards the child, parents’ attitudes towards the child (affection and warmth), families’ physical environment and living conditions | |
Miscellaneous parent-child interactions | HOME adapted4 | Interview | - | Number of children’s games, frequency of museums visits, teaching of colours and scales, communicativeness of the child, physical contact with the child, TV usage | |
Child | Mathematical competencies | MARKO-S | Test | .82 | Numbers, ordinal number bars, cardinality, number division, inclusion and relations. |
WVT/ number sequence forwards | Test | .79 | Number sequences forwards | ||
WVT/ number sequence backwards | Test | .70 | Number sequences backwards | ||
WVT/ predecessors and successors | Test | .81 | Number predecessors and successors | ||
WVT/ Numerical knowledge | Test | .87 | Number symbol knowledge, knowledge of numeric representations | ||
MBK-0; Calculating task | Test | .78 | Mathematical multiplication and subtraction | ||
Linguistic competencies | AWST-R (verbs and nouns) | Test | .65 | Active / expressive vocabulary | |
PPTV | Test | .95 | Passive / receptive vocabulary | ||
WVT; rhyming task | Test | .79 | Rhyming words, phonological awareness | ||
WVT; letter sound identification | Test | .88 | Identification of first letter sound, phonological awareness | ||
WVT; letter knowledge | Test | .88 | Productive letter knowledge | ||
WVT; letter knowledge | Test | .79 | Receptive letter knowledge | ||
SETK 3-5; plural forms | Test | .82 | Plural forms of (non-)words, grammar | ||
EuLe 4-5; early literacy | Test | .79 | Early literacy knowledge, concept of reading and writing | ||
Intelligence | CMMS | Test | .92-.96b | Short nonverbal intelligence test, general reasoning ability, abstract thinking | |
Concentration | KKA | Test | .88-.98c | Short-term selective attention and concentration | |
Working memory | WVT; working memory | Test | .80d | Digit span working memory task -forward | |
Rapid naming | - | Test | - | Rapid automatized naming of objects/pictures | |
Self-concept | BSLS-M | Test | .72 | Mathematical self-concept | |
BSLS-S | Test | .75 | Literacy self-concept | ||
BSLS-pro | Test | .69 | Prosocial self-concept | ||
BSLS-anti | Test | .82 | Antisocial self-concept | ||
Prosocial behaviour | - | Test | .78 | Prosocial behaviour, sharing |