BLT-2: Bankson Language Test

Ages: 3-0 through 8-11
Testing Time: 30 minutes
Administration: Individual

Complete BLT-2 Kit includes: Examiner's Manual, 25 Profile/Examiner's Record Booklets, 25 Screen Record Forms, and a Picture Book, all in a sturdy storage box. (©1990)

The Bankson Language Test-Second Edition (BLT-2) provides examiners with a measure of children's psycho-linguistic skills. The device is organized into three general categories that assess a variety of areas: Semantic Knowledge-body parts, nouns, verbs, categories, functions, prepositions, opposites; Morphological/Syntactical Rules-pronouns, verb usage/verb tense, verb usage (auxiliary, modal, copula), plurals, comparatives/superlatives, negation, questions; and Pragmatics-ritualizing, informing, controlling, and imagining. The selection of subtests to be included in the BLT-2 was predicated on a review of those areas that language interventions frequently test and remediate in younger children.

Test results may be reported in terms of standard scores and percentile ranks, which are provided for children ages 3-0 through 8-11. The test is administered individually. The normative sample consisted of more than 1,200 children living in 19 states.

The demographic features of the sample are representative of the U.S. population as a whole on a variety of variables as provided by the Statistical Abstract of the United States (1985). Evidence of internal consistency reliability is provided in the test manual, and reliability coefficients exceed .90. Support for content, concurrent, and construct validity also is provided. The BLT-2 is a valuable assessment instrument for use by speech-language pathologists, special educators, and others. A 20-item short form also is available to screen children for language problems.