1. Our Children, Our Community, Our Change
Early Development Instrument Subdomain Charts
Purpose of this tool:
Our Children, Our Community, Our Change is a campaign led by the Office of the State Superintendent of Education (OSSE) and Raise DC.
This PowerPoint is intended to empower you as you engage your organization and community to:
Better understand DC children’s developmental outcomes, including the strengths and needs across our city’s geography.
Help your organization and community have a conversation that seeks to understand the environments that support our youngest learners, including your own experiences and knowledge.
Lead a conversation that will help your organization and community to spark commitments to concrete policy and practice actions!
Go to RaiseDC.org/ourchildren to see more about the Early Development Instrument (EDI), and download the Our Children, Our Community, Our Change facilitation guide, which will help you plan a conversation.
We want you to be supported!
Note to facilitator:
This PowerPoint provides an appendix to the full EDI PowerPoint (a different document) with more data, especially the EDI maps. Check out RaiseDC.org/ourchildren to see more.
This PowerPoint contains only the EDI subdomain information. This tool will be most helpful if your group or organization has specific questions about the citywide subdomain information.
DATE | EVENT

2. Domains Note to facilitator:
You can use EDI’s domains to illuminate underlying child development trends in EDI data in DC.
If your group becomes more interested in additional child development and brain science, consider ways you can build such knowledge into your conversation. for help.
Suggested talking points:
Research tells us that children’s early experiences and environments have a critical influence on the neurological and biological pathways that impact their development.
The EDI data captures a snapshot look at the holistic and distinct development of young children, which allows us to the EDI as a lens to view children’s developmental outcomes within the geography of our city.
As we use this tool to better understand the environments impacting young children, we can think about targeting population and neighborhood policy and practice changes to allow children and families to thrive.

3. Domain Details
Absence of disease, access to appropriate nutrition, necessary gross and fine motor skills
General standards of acceptable behavior, cooperation with others, showing respect for adult authority, communicating feelings and needs
Curiosity about the world, eagerness to try new things, ability to reflect before acting
Note to facilitator:
The most important takeaway for participants is that EDI data includes many aspects of a child’s development – and that all of these are made of subdomains, which will become important later as we want to ask additional questions of where to focus.
Suggested talking points:
There are five areas, or domains. These are further made up of 16 subdomains.
Each of these domains is a different window into a critical aspect of children’s – and human – development.
Abilities with reading, writing, and numbers; shape recognition; interest in books
Understanding verbal communications; ability to communicate experiences, wishes, and feelings

4. The EDI Subdomains Note to facilitator:
The EDI subdomains and their results are calculated differently than the EDI domains.
Domains present data that is norm-referenced. Norm-referenced means that a single data point is compared to a larger set of data that determines a “normal” range*. *Within two standard deviations of the mean on a bell-curve.
For the EDI, this means that DC’s pre-K results are compared to the national kindergarten average. All of DC’s EDI maps draw on these normed results.
The EDI subdomains give us more detailed information about what is included in the domains, but subdomains and domains shouldn’t be compared to one another directly. They are calculated differently, though subdomain results are reflected in the overall domain vulnerability rates. Criterion-referenced ranges are research-based and do not shift over time.
Researchers and child development experts worked with the publishers to establish a profile of a ”ready”, “somewhat ready”, and ”not yet ready” child.
You can best use subdomains to help you ask more detailed questions about citywide trends. If you have decided to focus a discussion on a domain, where might you further narrow your focus to understand the citywide needs in child development?

5. Subdomains Physical readiness for school work Physical independence
Gross and fine motor skills
Overall social competence with peers
Respect and responsibility
Approaches to learning
Readiness to explore new things
Curiosity about the world
Eagerness to try new things
Ability to reflect before acting
Note to facilitator:
The most important takeaway for participants is that the EDI data includes many aspects of a child’s development – and that all of these are made of subdomains, which will become important later as we want to ask additional questions of where to focus.
There are no subdomains for communication skills and general no knowledge.
Suggested talking points:
There are five areas, or domains. These are further made up of 16 subdomains.
Each of these domains is a different window into a critical aspect of children’s – and human – development.
Basic literacy skills
Interest in literacy/numeracy and memory
Advanced literacy skills
Basic numeracy skills

6. EDI Subdomains Physical health and well-being Note to facilitator:
Subdomain results are criterion referenced – children’s results are compared to an expected developmental profile of a child who is ready for school.
The subdomains are: physical readiness for schoolwork, physical independence, and gross and fine motor skills.
These include elements including absence of disease and access to appropriate nutrition.
Examples of questions teachers are asked: Can the child hold a pencil? Is the child underweight or overweight?
Suggested talking points:
DC’s results suggest that citywide, children have the most needs in fine and gross motor skills.
Updated March 2017

7. EDI Subdomains Social competence Note to facilitator:
Subdomain results are criterion referenced – children’s results are compared to an expected developmental profile of child who is developmentally ready for school.
These subdomains are: overall social competence with peers, respect and responsibility, approaches to learning, and readiness to explore new things.
Social competence is about interacting appropriately with other children and adults.
Social competence also captures general standards of acceptable behavior, cooperation with others, showing respect for adult authority, and communicating feelings and needs.
Examples of questions teachers are asked: Does the child share with others? Is the child self-confident?
Suggested talking points:
DC’s results suggest that citywide, children have the most needs in overall social competence with peers.
Updated March 2017

8. EDI Subdomains Emotional Maturity Note to facilitator:
Subdomain results are criterion referenced – children’s results are compared to an expected developmental profile of a child who is ready for school.
These subdomains are: prosocial and helping behavior, anxious and fearful behavior, aggressive behavior, and hyperactive and inattentive behavior.
This domain also includes curiosity about the world, eagerness to try new things, and the ability to reflect before acting.
Emotional maturity is really capturing a child’s willingness and eagerness to engage with the world.
Examples of questions teachers are asked: Is the child able to concentrate? Would the child help someone who is hurt or upset?
Of course, for the 10% of children who are not ready or somewhat ready on anxious and fearful behavior, this still might present a high need for these individual students.
Suggested talking points:
DC’s results suggest that citywide, children are least ready overall in prosocial and helping behavior.
Updated March 2017

9. EDI Subdomains Literacy and Cognitive Development Note to facilitator:
Subdomain results are criterion referenced – children’s results are compared to an expected developmental profile of a child who is ready for school.
These subdomains are: basic literacy skills, interest in literacy/numeracy and memory, advanced literacy skills, and basic numeracy skills.
Language and cognitive development domain also captures such things as abilities with reading, writing, and numbers; shape recognition; and interest in books.
Examples of questions teachers are asked: Is the child interested in reading and writing? Can the child tell a short story? Please see the next slide “understanding advanced literacy” to better understand the more nuanced items in this subdomain.
Suggested talking points:
The area of highest need citywide is in advanced literacy. DC’s EDI data was collected among pre-K 4 students, as the tool is valid and reliable from 4- to 6-year-olds.
The items in the advanced literacy relate more to the Common Core Standards than the DC Early Learning (pre-K 4 standards) – see the next slide for more details.
Updated March 2017

10. EDI Subdomains Note to facilitator:
Subdomain results are criterion referenced – children’s results are compared to an expected developmental profile of a child who is ready for school.
Communication skills and general knowledge does not have subdomains.
Communication skills and general knowledge captures: understanding verbal communications and ability to communicate experiences, wishes, and feelings.
Examples of questions teachers are asked: Can the child communicate his/her own needs? Can the child communicate with adults and children?
Suggested talking points:
Communication skills seems to be an ongoing need for DC’s children. Because this domain doesn’t have subdomains, you can more easily compare this domain to the maps. However, maps used normed data, and this provides a look compared to the profile of a ready child.
Updated March 2017

11. RaiseDC.org/ourchildren
Contact
RaiseDC.org/ourchildren