Establishing performance standards for child development: learnings from the ECDI2030.

BACKGROUND: Standards of early childhood development (ECD) are needed to determine whether children living in different contexts are developmentally on track. The Early Childhood Development Index 2030 (ECDI2030) is a population-level measure intended to be used in household surveys to collect globally comparable data on one of the indicators chosen to monitor progress toward target 4.2 of the Sustainable Development Goals: The proportion of children aged 24-59 months who are developmentally on track in health, learning and psychosocial well-being. METHODS: To define performance cut-scores for the ECDI2030 we followed a criterion-referenced standard setting exercise using the modified Angoff method. The exercise gauged the expectations from 15 global experts in ECD and was informed by representative population data collected in Mexico and the State of Palestine. The final calibrated age-specific performance cut-scores were applied to these data to estimate the proportion of children developmentally on track, disaggregated by background characteristics, including the child's sex and attendance to early childhood education. RESULTS: Through a process of standard setting, we generated robust performance standards for the ECDI2030 by establishing five age-specific cut-scores to identify children as developmentally on track. CONCLUSIONS: This paper demonstrated how the standard setting methodology, typically applied to measures in the health and education fields, could be applied to a measure of child development. By creating robust criterion-referenced standards, we have been able to ensure that the cut-scores related to age for the ECDI2030 are based on performance standards set by global experts in the ECD field for defining on and off track development.

Identifying and Minimizing Errors in the Measurement of Early Childhood Development: Lessons Learned from the Cognitive Testing of the ECDI2030.

Challenges in measuring early childhood development (ECD) at scale have been documented, yet little is known about the specific difficulties related to questionnaire design and question interpretation. The purpose of this paper is to discuss the challenges of measuring ECD at scale in the context of household surveys and to show how to overcome them. The paper uses examples from the cognitive interviewing exercises that were conducted as part of the methodological work to develop a measure of ECD outcomes, the ECDI2030. It describes the methodological work carried out to inform the selection and improvement of question items and survey implementation tools as a fundamental step to reduce and mitigate systematic measurement error and improve data quality. The project consisted of a total of five rounds of testing, comprising 191 one-on-one, in-depth cognitive interviews across six countries (Bulgaria, India, Jamaica, Mexico, Uganda, and the USA). Qualitative data analysis methods were used to determine matches and mismatches between intention of items and false positives or false negative answers among subgroups of respondents. Key themes emerged that could potentially lead to systematic measurement error in population-based surveys on ECD: (1) willingness of child to perform task versus ability of child to perform task; (2) performing task versus performing task correctly; (3) identifying letters or numbers versus recognizing letters or numbers; (4) consistently performing task versus correctly performing task; (5) applicability of skills being asked versus observability of skills being asked; and (6) language production versus language comprehension. Through an iterative process of testing and subsequent revision, improvements were made to item wording, response options, and interviewer training instructions. Given the difficulties inherent in population-level data collection in the context of global monitoring, this study's findings confirm the importance of cognitive testing as a crucial step in careful, culturally relevant, and sensitive questionnaire design and as a means to reduce response bias in cross-cultural contexts.

Violence against children during COVID-19: Assessing and understanding change in use of helplines.

BACKGROUND: Many of the measures taken by countries to contain the spread of COVID-19 have resulted in disruptions to child protection services. Despite this, many countries have worked to ensure that child helplines remain operational, making such mechanisms even more critical for reporting and referring cases of violence and for providing support to victims. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this paper is to document what has occurred, and been reported, to child helplines during the COVID-19 pandemic. PARTICIPANTS AND SETTING: The study entailed primary data collection from child helplines and a search of media articles and news stories. METHODS: Child helplines submitted data on the contacts received during the first six months of 2020. Data on contacts related to violence were also available from 2019, and used as baseline. The media search used a combination of search terms to identify relevant articles and news stories published between March 1 and June 17, 2020. RESULTS: Overall, the number of contacts to child helplines seems to have drastically increased since the beginning of the pandemic. However, the number of contacts related to violence has increased in some countries, while it decreased in others. CONCLUSIONS: While a mixed picture emerges with respect to violence, the increase in overall contacts made to child helplines provides evidence that such services are a critical lifeline for many children and women during times of crisis. Child helplines should be strengthened; and child protection services should be designated as essential during emergencies to ensure children receive the support they need.

Using social media data for assessing children's exposure to violence during the COVID-19 pandemic.

BACKGROUND: The COVID-19 pandemic brought unforeseen challenges that could forever change the way societies prioritize and deal with public health issues. The approaches to contain the spread of the virus have entailed governments issuing recommendations on social distancing, lockdowns to restrict movements, and suspension of services. OBJECTIVE: There are concerns that the COVID-19 crisis and the measures adopted by countries in response to the pandemic may have led to an upsurge in violence against children. Added stressors placed on caregivers, economic uncertainty, job loss or disruption to livelihoods and social isolation may have led to a rise in children's experience of violence in the home. Extended online presence by children may have resulted in increased exposure to abusive content and cyberbullying. PARTICIPANTS AND SETTING: This study uses testimonial-based and conversational-based data collected from social media users. METHODS: Conversations on Twitter were reviewed to measure increases in abusive or hateful content, and cyberbullying, while testimonials from Reddit forums were examined to monitor changes in references to family violence before and after the start of the stay-at-home restrictions. RESULTS: Violence-related subreddits were among the topics with the highest growth after the COVID-19 outbreak. The analysis of Twitter data shows a significant increase in abusive content generated during the stay-at-home restrictions. CONCLUSIONS: The collective experience of the COVID-19 pandemic and related containment measures offers insights into the wide-ranging risks that children are exposed to in times of crisis. As societies shift towards a new normal, which places emerging technology, remote working and online learning at its center, and in anticipation of similar future threats, governments and other stakeholders need to put in place measures to protect children from violence.

Estimating the number of children in formal alternative care: Challenges and results.

Given the relatively large body of literature documenting the adverse impacts of institutionalization on children's developmental outcomes and well-being, it is essential that countries work towards reducing the number of children in alternative care (particularly institutional care), and, when possible, reunite children with their families. In order to do so, reliable estimates of the numbers of children living in such settings are essential. However, many countries still lack functional administrative systems for enumerating children living outside of family care. The purpose of this paper is to provide a snapshot of the availability and coverage of data on children living in residential and foster care from some 142 countries covering more than 80 per cent of the world's children. Utilizing these country-level figures, it is estimated that approximately 2.7 million children between the ages of 0 and 17 years could be living in institutional care worldwide. Where possible, the article also presents regional estimates of the number of children living in residential and foster care. This work represents an important step to systematically identify and compile sources of data on children in alternative care and provides updated global and regional estimates on the magnitude of the issue. Its findings contribute to raising awareness of the urgent need to strengthen the capacity of countries to improve national systems for counting, monitoring and reporting on these vulnerable children.

The Relationship between Intimate Partner Violence and Family Planning among Girls and Young Women in the Philippines.

This study explored the relationship between intimate partner violence (IPV) and family planning among adolescent girls and young women in formal unions in the Philippines. Analyzing a sample (n =1,566) from the 2013 Philippines Demographic and Health Survey, logistic regression models were separately run for current contraception use and unmet need for family planning on recent physical violence (yes/no), recent sexual violence (yes/no), and recent emotional (yes/no). Findings revealed that the odds of using contraception were significantly higher among girls and young women who reported recent physical IPV (OR=1.84; 95% CI=1.13, 2.99; p<0.05) and sexual IPV (OR=2.18; 95% CI=1.17, 4.06; p<0.05). No significant relationship between recent emotional IPV and contraception use was found. Having an unmet need for family planning showed no significant relationship to IPV. The study adds to a growing body of literature revealing a positive association between IPV and contraception use. Findings hold implications for the provision of family planning services for adolescents and young women in response to the recent passage of landmark legislation pertaining to reproductive health in the Philippines, the Responsible Parenthood and Reproductive Health Act.