Rao, N., Sun, J., Ng., M., Lee, D. & Becher, Y.  (2013). The Development and Validation of the East Asia-Pacific Early Child Development Scales (EAP-ECDS): A Six Country Study.

The East Asia- Pacific Early Child Development Scales (EAP-ECDS) have been developed by the Early Childhood Development, Education and Policy Group, Faculty of Education, The University of Hong Kong. The project to develop and validate the Scales has been supported by UNICEF and the Open Society Foundations and is being overseen by the Asia-Pacific Regional Network for Early Childhood. The items on the Scales were developed based on the Early Learning and Development Standards from 7 countries in the East Asia and Pacific Region. The EAP-ECDS are considered to be appropriate for children aged 3-5 in this region. On the basis of the results of pilot studies conducted in China, Fiji, and Mongolia in 2011, the latest version of the EAP-ECDS includes 7 domains (Approaches to Learning; Cognitive Development; Cultural Knowledge and Participation; Language and Emergent Literacy; Motor Development; Health, Hygiene, and Safety; Socio-Emotional Development) and 85 items. The Scales are currently being validated on representative samples in Cambodia, China, Mongolia, Papua New Guinea, Timor-Leste and Vanuatu.