Preschool Behavioral and Emotional Rating Scale (PreBERS): Test-retest and inter-rater reliability for children with disabilities

This article reports three studies that evaluated the test-retest and inter-rater reliability of the Preschool Behavioral and Emotional Rating Scale (PreBERS) (Epstein & Synhorst, 2009). First, teachers rated 63 children receiving school services for disability on the PreBERS, with two ratings one month apart. Second, paraprofessionals rated the same children on the PreBERS, with two ratings one month apart. Third, teacher and paraprofessional ratings were compared for inter-rater reliability between these observers. Correlations were large to very large in each of these studies, indicating that the PreBERS is a stable measure across time and raters. Recommendations for use of the PreBERS with preschool children with disabilities as well as directions for future research are discussed.