Revision and Validation of a Test for Assessing the Spatial Conceptual Abilities of Visually Impaired Children

Abstract

The purpose of the investigation described in this article was to revise Hill's test for assessing the development of spatial concepts among visually impaired children, “Concepts Involved in Body Position and Space,” establish the test's validity and reliability, and collect normative data. Orientation and mobility specialists administered the revised instrument to 273 visually impaired children ages 6 through 10 from 48 different educational programs in 23 states. Normative data were then collected in the form of percentiles by age; percentage passing each item by age and by reading modes; and indexes for the difficulty and discriminatory power of each item as well as the proportion of correct answers. According to the results, the revised instrument is valid and reliable enough to use with visually impaired children in the age groups studied.

Standardized and Experimental Tools to Assess Spatial Cognition in Visually Impaired Children: A Mini-Review

“…The Hill Performance Test of Selected Positional Concepts (Hill and Hill, 1980) This test is based on the "Concepts Involved in Body Position and Space" test developed by the same author (Hill, 1971) to evaluate basic positional concepts in visually impaired children between 6 and 10 years of age. The seventy-two performance items are divided into four parts assessing the abilities to (a) identify positional relationships of body parts; (b) demonstrate positional concepts by moving various body parts to one another; (c) demonstrate positional concepts by moving the body in relation to objects; (d) form object-to-object relationships.…”

Development of an Instrument to Measure Manual Dexterity in Children with Visual Impairments Aged 6–12

“…The motor development of a child who is visually impaired is at risk not only from the visual condition but from the insufficient stimulation of the tactile, kinesthetic, and auditory functions in the early years (Adelson & Fraiberg, 1977). In addition, visual impairment causes particular problems in mastering temporal and spatial relationships (Hill & Hill, 1980). Information obtained by moving in space plays an essential role in both visually impaired and sighted people's judgments of distance.…”