Early Childhood Assessment Strategies
Course Description
This course provides exposure to a variety of assessment techniques in early childhood education, including children with special needs. There is a focus on structured observations, use of behavioral rating scales, psycho-educational screening tests, and assessment of parent-child interactions. Formal and informal parent contacts, interviewing techniques, the use of technology in the assessment process, and referrals to school and community resources also are explored.
Topics and Objectives
Role of Assessment
- Identify the key elements of assessment in an early childhood classroom.
- Identify the key terminology used in early childhood assessment.
- Analyze the role of assessment in the early childhood classroom as it relates to designing and implementing effective programs and practices.
- Analyze and discuss how historical, social, and cultural aspects of assessment have had an impact on current issues and trends in early childhood assessment.
- Identify the legal and ethical aspects of assessment.
Assessment Tools and Approaches
- Examine a range of assessment tools and approaches for gathering, documenting, interpreting, and analyzing assessment results.
- Conduct observations of children in classrooms, homes, and communities where there is access to play and formal learning experiences.
- Identify how to interpret observations and reflect on their significance.
- Analyze the characteristics, strengths, and weaknesses of assessment tools and approaches.
- Identify valid assessment tools and approaches that are developmentally, culturally, and linguistically appropriate.
- Examine the use of assistive technology as an assessment tool.
Assessment Partnerships
- Identify the significance of creating assessment partnerships with families and colleagues.
- Analyze methods for positively communicating with families and colleagues when reporting assessment results.
Uses of Assessment
- Examine how to use assessment results to make curricular modifications.
- Analyze the use of assessment results to plan instructional strategies and activities.