When exploring trends in children’s development, the broad question that we want to answer is: “Are our kindergarten-aged children doing better, worse, or about the same as in the past?” HELP has developed a method that communities and stakeholder groups can use to make informed judgments about change over time in EDI scores. The method that HELP has used to examine ‘change over time’ is described in the literature as Critical Difference.
HELP has developed some new tools in an effort to make calculating Critical Difference easier. First, we have created the Critical Difference Calculator, a tool that will help with interpreting change over time and differences between EDI scores in the BC context. The calculator is easy to use – simply enter the values for each place or time and click on the Calculate button. The result will calculate automatically.
We have also developed new interactive maps of neighbourhood Critical Difference for each school district. Maps can be found here. Simply choose your school district and then click on the Critical Difference Map link found under the EDI Mapsets header.
For more information about Critical Difference and these new tools, please visit the Understanding Critical Difference webpage.