South Africa - Early Learning Outcomes Measure 2016

Reference ID

zaf-ie-elom-2016-v1.1

Year

2016

Country

South Africa

Producer(s)

Innovation Edge

Sponsor(s)

D.G. Murray Trust - - Funder

Collection(s)

Innovation Edge

Created on

Oct 11, 2017

Last modified

Jul 25, 2020

Page views

7349

Overview

Identification

Country

South Africa

Title

Early Learning Outcomes Measure 2016

Study Type

Child Assessment Survey

Recommended Citation

Early Learning Outcomes Measure Project. Early Learning Outcomes Measure 2016 [dataset]. Version 1.1. Cape Town: Innovation Edge [producer], 2017. Cape Town: DataFirst [distributor], 2017. DOI: https://doi.org/10.25828/m8hh-t883

ID Number

zaf-ie-elom-2016-v1.1

Version

Version Description

Edited, anonymised data for public distribution

Production Date

2017-02-17

Notes

Version 1 was deposited with DataFirst in 20170217. Version 1.1 has minor changes to value labels and includes ID numbers generated by Innovation Edge for those schools which do not have EMIS numbers.

Overview

Abstract

In 2015, Innovation Edge commissioned the development of South Africa's first national-level preschool child assessment tool. Finalized in 2016, the primary purpose of the Early Learning Outcomes Measure (ELOM) (www.elom.org.za) is to provide the country with a national instrument to fairly assess children age 50-69 months from all socio-economic and cultural backgrounds. With this tool, we will be able to monitor early learning program outcomes, guide program improvement, and test program effectiveness. This study is conducted to assist Innovation Edge with the 2nd phase in the process for the development of ELOM--Age validation. In this study, ELOM tools was administered to children enrolled in public schools at the commencement of their Grade R year in 2016, in schoolf of all five quintiles in three provinces. The goal of the ELOM age validation process was to construct a sample that was likely to be as representative as possible of children eligible to enter Grade R in January 2016, drawn from across South Africa's socio-economic distribution, and including five major language groups.

The ELOM includes both direct assessment of children's performance as well as an assessment of the child's social and emotional functioning and orientation to tasks. The ELOM Direct Assessment consists of 23 items measuring indicators of the child's early development in five domains:

Gross Motor Development

Fine Motor Coordination and Visual Motor Integration

Emergent Numeracy and Mathematics

Cognition and Executive Functioning

Emergent Literacy and Language

Kind of Data

Observation data/ratings [obs]

Units of Analysis

Individuals

Scope

Notes

ELOM data includes data on the child's school: School setting (province, rural/urban, traditional), school quintile, and school name. Data on each child includes the child's age, home language, height, and child performance scores collected using the Early Learning Outcomes Measure (ELOM) tool developed by the researchers. This tool allows for both direct assessment of children’s performance as well as an assessment of the child’s social and emotional functioning and orientation to tasks. Direct Assessment consists of 23 items measuring indicators of the child’s early development in five domains which are internationally accepted recognised as key learning and developmental areas. These include: Gross motor development, fine motor coordination and visual motor integration, emergent numeracy and mathematics, cognition and executive functioning, and emergent literacy and language. The child's Task Orientation is also rated by the assessor during direct assessment. The child’s capacity for self-care (toileting), relations with peers and adults, and emotional functioning are measured with a Teacher Assessment.

Keywords

Early child development, Early learning

Coverage

Geographic Coverage

It is envisioned that the ELOM will be applied to children from a range of cultural and socio-economic settings. However, as finances did not permit a national sample, three provinces

were chosen for the study. The sample for this study then aimed to be representative of public school Grade R students in the target language groups who were between the ages of 54-66 months in selected school districts in North West (Setswana speakers only), the Western Cape (English, isiXhosa and Afrikaans speakers) and KwaZulu Natal (isiZulu speakers only).

Geographic Unit

The lowest level of geographic aggregation in the data is district.

Universe

Desired target population is Grade R children in South African public schools between the ages of 54-66 months.

Producers and Sponsors

Primary Investigator(s)

Name	Affiliation
Innovation Edge

Other Producer(s)

Name	Affiliation	Role

Funding

Name	Abbreviation	Role
D.G. Murray Trust		Funder

Metadata Production

Metadata Produced By

Name	Abbreviation	Affiliation	Role
DataFirst		University of Cape Town	Metadata producer

Date of Metadata Production

2020-07-25

DDI Document Version

Version 4