An Investigation of the Dial as a Pre-Kindergarten Screening Instrument

Abstract

This study investigated the validity of the Developmental Indicators for the Assessment of Learning (DIAL) for the prediction of school success. Fifty-three kindergarten children ranging in age from 55 months to 71 months were pre-screened with the DIAL five months prior to school entrance and then administered the Slosson Intelligence Test (SIT), Metropolitan Readiness Test (MRT), and a Progress Report form during the end of the academic year. Canonical correlations and stepwise multiple linear regression analyses indicated that the DIAL Communications subtest was the most valid single predictor of school success as determined by the composite MRT. The DIAL Concepts subtest was the only significant predictor of Progress Report composite score. Implications of these results are discussed in terms of preschool screening programs and the use of the DIAL.