Assesments... report cards... what does it all mean?
This week I took a walk and bumped in to a mom that shared a story with me. She was volunteering at the book fair at our local Elementary School. She was told to ask the Kindergartners to read a sentence from the book they chose to buy. If the child could not read a sentence the volunteers were told to suggest a different book. I wonder if this is the best perspective for this situation. I would imagine that even a child that does know how to read they may fail to perform in these circumstances. Basically we are assessing a child's ability to read on one sentence with a stranger they may not know during the book fair. This also seems to make the statement "you are not ready for this book." Is denying them the book they became interested in the best result?
Think of the many possible positive responses: How awesome that you love a book with so many words! Do you like the cover? What do you think the story is about? And if it turns out they could not read it all by themselves - Let's read it together!
This brings to mind assessments in general, since it is that time of year once again. Parents will begin receiving an assessment or report card from school. Parent/Teacher conferences will be scheduled. As we listen to what the teachers say or we read what they wrote about our child, how do we process the information?
Good assessment is meaningful evidence to show us how our children are making progress. We can take in the information and see the areas in which their development is strong, while at the same time think about how to build on the skills they have.
Assessments are often thought of as a way measuring if a child has learned a specific skill by a certain age or grade level. This is an important aspect of why we assess, but - especially when we are talking about very young children - it is even more important that we foster a sense of well being, and the joy of learning in and of itself. In other words, as both parents and teachers it is important to focus our energy on the journey, not the destination.
If we use reading as an example, when our children are just beginning to read, we need to focus on continuing to build their love of reading itself, not rote repetition for the sake of skill building.
When they love to read, the skills will develop and we can take away the joy of reading if we force learning when a child is not ready. If your child is not reading "yet" or any skill mentioned in the assessment the goal is to continue scaffolding so that they are taking steps to accomplish the skill.
With an assessment, we are looking to be objective about where they are today. It is not supposed to be any type of judgement. Today your child can do this; the next step is that. How can we get there together? What support might your child need in the classroom? How about at home?
Assessments of very young children are not intended to be indicative of where they will be developmentally five years in the future. The intent is not to label, or pigeon-hole children into categories of smartness. The goal is simply to determine areas where we can help enhance a developing skill or create a learning opportunity.
As parents it is hard not to worry about our own child's developmental level as compared to other children. Always try to remember: to make it a really good trip, you have to enjoy the ride.
When our child hasn't yet mastered a certain skill, don't focus on their inability to finish quickly or well - focus on their perseverance. Self-motivation is one of the top predictors of future success.
If we let it do so, the way we take in the information we receive from an assessment can impact how we see our child. We should take great care in how we communicate about any results. Overheard negative conversations can have a huge impact on their self esteem and how they view themselves. People - probably most of us! - can carry around negative self-images for their entire lives, often based on some offhand or ill-informed comment they heard as a child.
A child that is naturally curious, enjoys learning and is generally responsible in completing their work has a tremendous set of skills. But these may not be emphasized in their assessment. Perhaps the teacher noticed something else during this time period, for example: twice it was noticed that the child shied away from joining with groups in free play time. There might be a reason, or it might mean nothing all, but now it looms large because it has been mentioned in an assessment. If we are not careful, this might cause us to gloss over the accumulation of all of those good skills, and instead emphasize the negative. Be careful as you take in information regarding your child - separate in your mind the objective and subjective.
So as you read your child's assessment or their report card remind yourself this is one piece of evidence on your child's development. This evidence is to be used to help your child move forward and sometimes it means getting support and sometimes this evidence is just to say your child is doing fine, relax, enjoy them, play with them and live in the moment. For the moment all is well!
Dedicated to Cohort 8... my friends and I learning about good teaching practices all year long!
Think of the many possible positive responses: How awesome that you love a book with so many words! Do you like the cover? What do you think the story is about? And if it turns out they could not read it all by themselves - Let's read it together!
This brings to mind assessments in general, since it is that time of year once again. Parents will begin receiving an assessment or report card from school. Parent/Teacher conferences will be scheduled. As we listen to what the teachers say or we read what they wrote about our child, how do we process the information?
Good assessment is meaningful evidence to show us how our children are making progress. We can take in the information and see the areas in which their development is strong, while at the same time think about how to build on the skills they have.
Assessments are often thought of as a way measuring if a child has learned a specific skill by a certain age or grade level. This is an important aspect of why we assess, but - especially when we are talking about very young children - it is even more important that we foster a sense of well being, and the joy of learning in and of itself. In other words, as both parents and teachers it is important to focus our energy on the journey, not the destination.
If we use reading as an example, when our children are just beginning to read, we need to focus on continuing to build their love of reading itself, not rote repetition for the sake of skill building.
When they love to read, the skills will develop and we can take away the joy of reading if we force learning when a child is not ready. If your child is not reading "yet" or any skill mentioned in the assessment the goal is to continue scaffolding so that they are taking steps to accomplish the skill.
With an assessment, we are looking to be objective about where they are today. It is not supposed to be any type of judgement. Today your child can do this; the next step is that. How can we get there together? What support might your child need in the classroom? How about at home?
Assessments of very young children are not intended to be indicative of where they will be developmentally five years in the future. The intent is not to label, or pigeon-hole children into categories of smartness. The goal is simply to determine areas where we can help enhance a developing skill or create a learning opportunity.
As parents it is hard not to worry about our own child's developmental level as compared to other children. Always try to remember: to make it a really good trip, you have to enjoy the ride.
When our child hasn't yet mastered a certain skill, don't focus on their inability to finish quickly or well - focus on their perseverance. Self-motivation is one of the top predictors of future success.
If we let it do so, the way we take in the information we receive from an assessment can impact how we see our child. We should take great care in how we communicate about any results. Overheard negative conversations can have a huge impact on their self esteem and how they view themselves. People - probably most of us! - can carry around negative self-images for their entire lives, often based on some offhand or ill-informed comment they heard as a child.
A child that is naturally curious, enjoys learning and is generally responsible in completing their work has a tremendous set of skills. But these may not be emphasized in their assessment. Perhaps the teacher noticed something else during this time period, for example: twice it was noticed that the child shied away from joining with groups in free play time. There might be a reason, or it might mean nothing all, but now it looms large because it has been mentioned in an assessment. If we are not careful, this might cause us to gloss over the accumulation of all of those good skills, and instead emphasize the negative. Be careful as you take in information regarding your child - separate in your mind the objective and subjective.
So as you read your child's assessment or their report card remind yourself this is one piece of evidence on your child's development. This evidence is to be used to help your child move forward and sometimes it means getting support and sometimes this evidence is just to say your child is doing fine, relax, enjoy them, play with them and live in the moment. For the moment all is well!
Dedicated to Cohort 8... my friends and I learning about good teaching practices all year long!
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