The Infant-Toddler Program Quality Assessment (PQA) is a research-validated tool that provides an accurate and authentic picture of a program’s strengths and needs for improvement in a form that caregivers can understand and use. Form A of the Infant-Toddler PQA measures quality in child care settings serving children in the zero-to-three age range. The form focuses on four key dimensions of quality:
• Learning environment
• Schedules and routines
• Adult-child interaction
• Curriculum planning and child observation
Users gather data to complete the form primarily through direct observation during everyday activities in infant and toddler rooms. Form A includes 25 assessment items, scored using objective 5-point rating scales. Each item includes specific, easy-to-understand quality indicators with detailed examples and explanations to guide scoring.