Developing a questionnaire to assess confidence of early years educators in using language support strategies

Educator training in high-quality adult-child interactions can improve children's early language outcomes. To address a lack of validated measures, this study developed LangQuest-EY - a self-report questionnaire for Early Years (EY) educators which aims to accurately assess their confidence in their use of language supporting strategies with children aged 2 to 4 years. Potential items for a practitioner questionnaire were developed through a rapid literature review followed by modified three-round Delphi technique, a review with 12 experts in the field of early language and communication. A pilot study of the resulting questionnaire with 79 EY educators demonstrated that LangQuest-EY has acceptable reliability and validity. Sufficient variation in reported confidence levels allowed associations with setting and educator characteristics to be explored. The results suggest that LangQuest-EY could be used as a measure in intervention studies, and further work done to adapt it for use in professional development.