Score Use and Interpretation of First Spoken Language Assessments

Several elements are involved in collecting valid and reliable information about a child’s spoken language abilities. The use and interpretation of commercially available “standardized” spoken language assessments is but one of these elements and can only take place when assessments have been developed for use with the child’s language, something that is far from being a given in many countries and languages. This chapter discusses the use of norm-referenced and other types of standardized assessments (which may involve standardized administration but not normative data) for the assessment of different aspects or areas of children’s language. In addition, the ways in which scores and other data obtained from these assessments are interpreted and used for clinical decision-making will be reviewed, highlighting both the advantages and limitations of these assessments. Finally, the author considers the extent to which the use of standardized assessments within research and clinical contexts overlaps and/or diverges.