A Comparison of Four Methods of Scaling for the Acquisition of Early Number Concept

Four different methods of scaling for constructing a developmental scale of early number concept were compared: the Guttman scale analysis, the stochastic Mokken scale analysis, the ordering theoretic method, and the item tree analysis. Ss were 537 kindergarten and Grade 1 primary school children who were given three types of number comparison tasks, linear, linear-nonlinear, and nonlinear. The stochastic Mokken scale analysis was the most suitable one for constructing a developmental scale of these number comparison tasks. The final scale consisted of 12 equivalent number-comparison tasks, which together formed a strong Mokken scale. Implications for the development of early number concept are discussed.