Thinking of Child Development/Thank You

You can teach a student a lesson for a day; but if you can teach him to learn by creating curiosity, he will continue the learning process as long as he lives. - Clay P. Bedford

Get over the idea that only children should spend their time in study.  Be a student so long as you still have something to learn, and this will mean all your life. - Henry L. Doherty

In early childhood education, children develop a love for learning.  This love it what propels all future learning forward.  These quotes reinforce the idea that we should never stop learning. 

Thank You to all of Early Childhood Development Colleagues

This course has been amazing.  Here we have learned about develop from infancy up through middle childhood.  I have truly enjoyed the discussions that we have had with one another.  This insight has forced me to think critically and differently about the development of our students and the issues surrounding their development such as: attachment, resiliency, and trauma.  I wish you all well within the field of early childhood. 

Regards,

Deirdre

My Supports

Sources of Daily Support and Their Benefits

God-provider, protector, and a Father that makes life easier

Family-emotional, physical support, and love

Friends-emotional support and extended family

Community-ensures all aspects of the above support systems coming together

All of these supports are important and essential to my well being.  Each plays both an interconnected and isolated role.  All are centered around a relationship with God.  Therefore, without one the system is off balanced.  Without family as sense of belonging leaves, while without friends peer interaction becomes difficult.  The community serves as the collaborative support of all of the above.  Without a community, how would friends and families interact differently with one another? 

The Challenge

The challenge that I choose was that of being blind.  A blind person relies on others for transportation.  Family and friends would be needed in order to aid in this area.  However, blind individuals are able to cook, feed themselves, and take care of themselves daily.  With proper systems in place, tasks such as getting dressed can be quite simple.  However, family members and friends would be needed to create these initial systems.  Tasks such as managing finances would require the assistance of a trusted family member.  How would the life of a blind person be different without these supports?  While service dogs can be provided to aid in daily life, tasks such as allowing someone else to manage the finances require trust.  How can such systems be developed without the supports of family, friends, and even members of the community?   

Assessing in Early Childhood

Today the focus in on accountability.  That is the ability of teachers to demonstrate growth in their students.  As a result of this, the education movement focuses more and more on standardized assessments.  Several early childhood professionals  agree that children should be assessed.  The question is, how should they be assessed?  Often times this manner of assessment is deemed to be developmentally inappropriate.  For example, as a kindergarten/first grade educator I feel as though I find myself conducting more assessments than instruction.  Is this the environment that we desire?  It is my belief that young children should be assessed through observation and authentic assessments or through producing a product.  Verbal assessments serve as a critical way of determining student progress as well.  Only then, with a combination of the above assessments can we get a true holistic picture of the growth a child is achieving.  A standardized assessment is only a glimpse into how a child thinks.  Nonetheless, some children are excellent test takers while others are poor test takers.  As a result of this, how can we ensure that the assessment is both a reliable and valid indication of a child’s progress?  

According to the Programme for International Student Assessment, Australia ranks sixth in reading, eighth in science, and thirteenth in mathematics amongst fifty-six countries (Wikipedia, n.d.).  This intrigued me and made me what to investigate their approach to primary education.  In Australia, children attend preschool-kindergarten between the ages of four and five (Wikipedia, n.d.).  This is not a part of compulsorily education.  It serves to aid children in social learning and introduce them to formal schooling the next year.   Kindergarteners are between the age of five and six.  This experience is categorized as transitional.  As a result of this, emphasis is not placed on this part of the educational experience (Wikipedia, n.d.).  This would lead us to believe that assessment are not valued at this part of the educational experience.  A few years ago, an Aussi foreign exchange student  informed our English literature class that they were not given grades.  Rather, their performance was looked upon holistically to determine promotion to the next grade (Personal Interview, 2002).  Will we ever begin to view education as a holistic approach as opposed to isolated evidence of an assessment?  If so, what strides must we take to get there.  I too agree that observations and work samples should be used to determine promotion.  How and when will our educational system evolve to include more than standardized assessments?    

References

Education in Australia. Wikipedia (n.d.). Retrieved from www.wikipedia.org