In viewing a young child holistically, there are several areas that I think need to be measured when assessing the young child. The areas that I think should be measured are physical, social/emotional, language and cognitive development, and economic conditions.
Physical, social/emotional, language and cognitive development are areas that are examined in most standardized tests. They measure the child’s development individually. I believe outside sources also affect a child’s development. Knowing the economic conditions child is living in would be help in considering a child as a whole. A child who comes to school hungry has more difficult time learning than a child who has had breakfast. UNICEF states, “Evidence from pediatrics, psychology, nutrition, child development and anthropology tells us that survival, growth, and development are inter-linked; each depends to some extent on the others (UNICEF, 2006).”
In the UK and Australia, they use an assessment called Early Years Learning Framework.
The EYLF:
◆◆ outlines the kinds of environments in which children’s learning is facilitated
◆◆ highlights the desirable knowledge, skills and attitudes held by early childhood educators
◆◆ addresses ways children’s learning opportunities may be enhanced.
The goal is to provide children’s learning experiences through purposeful actions by
educators in collaboration with children and families. The early learning environments the
Framework applies to services that cater for children in the birth to five age group,
such as preschools, kindergartens, family day care, home-based care, occasional care,
playgroups and long day care (Goodfellow, 2009). This would be a very good assessment for the
USA because it considers many factors when teaching young children.
Sources –
Goodfellow, J. (2009) The Early Years Learning Framework Getting Started. Retrieved from http://synarbor.com.au/images/What_is_the_EYLF.pdf on June 9, 2011
UNICEF (2006) Programming Experiences In Early Childhood. Retrieved from http://www.unicef.org/earlychildhood/files/programming%20experiences%20in%20early%20childhood.pdf. on June 9, 2011
Jennifer, this is a great post. There is so much great information here. It looks as though the UK and Australia have quite an extensive framework and definitely look at the entire child from a holistic point of view.
ReplyDeleteJennifer, this post was very informative. I think it would be helpful for the US to consider these factors when assessing children. Unfortunately schools in the US are too busy worrying about what their students grade will bring to their budget.
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