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ECD 115

Observation and

Assessment of the Young Child

Kim Sutton Instructor

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COURSE OUTCOMES

To enhance your observation skills by increasing your understanding of:

– Authentic assessment

– The essential role of observation in authentic assessment

– Key practices for effectively observing young children  

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Lesson 1

Authentic Assessment

Routine Observations

What is Authentic Assessment?

• Authentic assessment is an essential foundation for effective early care and education programs.

• Why?

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Do We Really Want to Test Young Children?

To understand why authentic assessment is an essential foundation for effective early care and education programs, we first need to look at what authentic observation is not.

LET’S LOOK AT A CONCERNING TREND ABOUT THE USE OF HIGH PRESSURE METHODS OF TESTING FOR ASSESSING YOUNG CHILDREN:

Example:An unknown adult pulls a child out of her familiar environment, sits her down at a table, and “quizzes” her on specific bits of knowledge or skill and expects to see this child at her best.

Testing Young Children Doesn’t Work

• Young children– Have shorter attention spans than older

children.

– Often better express themselves and what they know by manipulating real objects and interacting with familiar people in everyday situations rather than responding verbally to test questions.

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Testing Young Children (cont.)

• Young children– May shut down or not perform well if under

stress or put on the spot.

– May show new or emerging skills unevenly over time and a “snapshot” test may miss valuable information.

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However, Authentic Assessment…

• Is an approach that is natural and non-threatening to children.

• Is widely accepted as a recommended practice in early childhood education.

The Definition and Benefits• Authentic assessment is observing children as

they interact with familiar toys, materials, and people in everyday routines, activities, and places.

• Authentic assessment puts much less pressure on young children.

• By using authentic assessment, we get a more accurate understanding of the child.

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Let’s Watch!

Click on the picture to view a video clip.

QuickTime is required to view this video

You can download QuickTime for free at: http://www.apple.com/quicktime/download/

Ongoing observation of childrenin their everyday routines and activities

is at the heart ofauthentic assessment.

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A Peek Ahead

• Each lesson of this course is based on one of the six key practices for effective observation.

• These key practices build the foundation for observing and assessing children within the early childhood environment.

• The six key practices are listed on the next slide.

• The outlined key practice will be the one discussed during that lesson.

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Six Key Practices for Effective Observation

1. Make observation a routine part of your work

2. Engage families in the observation process

3. Use strategies that match your purposes

4. Observe as objectively as possible

5. Document your observations

6. Reflect on and use your observations

Observation As Routine

• Make observation a routine part of your work with young children.

• It doesn’t have to be complicated but it takes practice.

• Using observation and assessment in the early childhood classroom is an invaluable asset to the teacher.

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Let’s Watch!

Click on the picture to view a video clip.

You will need QuickTime to view this video.

You can download QuickTime for free at: http://www.apple.com/quicktime/download/

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Homework Assignment Directions

• The homework assignment listed on the next page needs to be completed in Microsoft Word.

• Save your file – last name + assignment number

– Example: sutton1.doc (.docx; and .rtf files are okay also)

• Submit your answers to the Dropbox.

Homework Assignment – Lesson 1 (35 points)

• The first video discussed the 5 primary features of authentic assessment.

– List the 5 primary features according to the video.

– Provide a brief explanation of each feature.

• The second video discussed the importance of observing and documenting children’s participation in the classroom.

– Provide two reasons Sarah values ongoing, naturalist observation of the children in her classroom?

– In your own words, provide another reason why ongoing, naturalistic observation is important to an early childhood educator?

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