Revisions of tests are becoming a fact of life (Butcher, 2000) Tulsky and Ledbetter (2000) say that a horse put together by a committee need not resemble an elephant but rather may be better, more powerful, and ultimately more satisfyingly a horse Changing from a ‘beloved and relied-upon test’ to an improved updated version is daunting Few people give up an old shoe without a struggle

Psychological tests are susceptible to the effects of time It is important for tests of child development to be updated regularly to ensure that they continue to accurately reflect stages of development in a modern context, and to maintain links with the broader educational context

One challenge when updating a test is the thin line between modernisation and retaining the original spirit of the measure

The team tasked with the revision of the Griffiths Mental Development Scales has tackled this quandary from the foundation up, distilling the true essence of the measure whilst rigorously holding it up to the needs of modern practitioners and up-to-date theory and psychometric influences

Extensive research at the outset of the project recognised the predominance of new attitudes to early learning in 0 to 6 year olds The findings of this research highlighted the need for a more extensive revision than originally anticipated

THE REVISION PROCESS – SETTING THE LANDSCAPE Phase One – Diagnostic Literature Review, Stakeholder Feedback and Market Research Phase Two – Fine Grain Analysis Construct Development and Item Review Phase Three – Item Design Item Construction and Development Phase Four – Deployment and Testing Pilot testing and Sampling Phase Five – Optimisation Test Release Phase Six - Training

The Five Scales of the Griffiths III Scale A: Gross-Motor Scale B: Personal-Social-Emotional Scale C: Language and Communication Scale D: Eye and Hand Co-ordination Scale E: Foundations of Learning

THE GRIFFITHS III DEVELOPMENT TEAM Prof Louise Stroud (South Africa) Dr Elizabeth Green (England) Mrs Hilary Lane (Ireland) Dr Sue Bloomfield (Scotland) Dr Ruth Paradice (Wales) Dr Paula McAlinden (Northern Ireland) Mrs Rosemary O’Connell (Ireland) Mr Johan Cronje (South Africa) Prof Cheryl Foxcroft (South Africa) Mrs Rivca Marais (South Africa)

“Every child needs at least one adult who is irrationally crazy about him or her” Urie Bronfenbrenner