Assessment and Child Essay Example for Free

Assessment and Child Essay Assessments are very important in determining how to teach our children and where they are in terms of development. There are many types of assessments that can be beneficial in helping determine how to approach the learning style of each child as an individual instead of as a whole group. While each assessment is structurally different, they can produce results which give us insight on where our children are during different stages of their lives. There are both formal and informal assessments that can be used. â€Å"Formal assessments are norm-referenced tests that have standardized, formal procedures for administering, timing and scoring. They have been â€Å"normed† or administered to a representative sample of similar age or grade level students so that final test results can be compared to students of similar characteristics. Test results indicate a person’s relative performance in the group. These standardized tests must be administered as specified in the manual to ensure valid and reliable results†(ERIC Clearinghouse on Assessment and Evaluation). There is another type of formal assessment called criterion-referenced test. These type of test measure what the person is able to do and indicate what skills have been mastered. A CRT compares a person’s performance with their past performances. â€Å"In criterion-referenced measurement, the emphasis is on assessing specific and relevant behaviors that have been mastered rather than indicating the relative standing in the group†(ERIC Clearinghouse on Assessment and Evaluation). Formal assessments can prove to be beneficial as far as comparing test scores over a period of time and how the child is developing over that same period. While formal assessments are useful they also have flaws in them. Standardized test can make a child feel like pressure and anxiety. In a lot of situations when a child feels like this they will not do their best on any type of assessment. Another problem with these types of tests is that they use the same set of questions for all the children and are not sensitive to the situations that different children endure. Children who live in poor and underdeveloped environments may not be exposed to certain ways of life and may not have the same advantages of acquiring knowledge as the other children they go to school with. This will automatically put them at a disadvantage in school and on test they may take. There is another way to do an assessment that is better suited for the child and does not make them feel so uncomfortable and that is an informal assessment. An informal assessment focuses on play and observation of the child and not a test of sorts. By observing the child in a certain situation you can record how they act and how they respond to different situations and stimuli that are presented to them. You can use check-list and rating scales to record your findings and document them and file them away in a portfolio. Another way to do an informal assessment is by parent interviews. You can find out a lot of valuable information by asking the parents questions about their child. Over the past few years teachers have placed more emphasis informal testing than formal testing. â€Å"Some districts have increased the use of curriculum-based measurements(CBM). Several samples of a student’s performance are collected, using items drawn from the local curriculum, usually in basic skill subjects of reading, math, spelling and written expression. Such brief tests are called â€Å"probes†(ERIC Clearinghouse on Assessment and Evaluation). One form of an informal assessment is the Battelle Developmental Inventory. â€Å"The Battelle Developmental Inventory is an assessment for infants and children through age seven. It is a flexible, semi-structured assessment that involves observation of the child, interviews with parents and caregivers, developmental and social history, and interaction with the child using game-like materials, toys, questionnaires, and tasks† (Logsdon). This type of assessment is used to make sure that infants and children are reaching their developmental milestones or showing early signs of learning disabilities or developmental delays. This assessment can also be used through examiner/child and parent/child interaction. Examiners observe the child’s responses and score them based on standardized criteria. The parent caregiver input is also important in the assessment because it is used to gather information about the child’s history and interactions that take place beyond the testing session. When this assessment is used to observe the toddler through preschool development it is mostly done by tasks that involve testing the child with games, toys and tasks. They observe how the child follows directions, interacts with others, and how they perform certain tasks. Parent information is used to assess areas that can’t be observed during the testing session. The performance scores are based on standardized criteria. The Battelle is used to assess five components of development. They are adaptive behavior, personal and social skills, communication including expressive and receptive language, gross and fine motor skills, and finally cognitive skills are included. The results of this assessment can be used to determine if there are delays and how significant they are based on the age group the child is in. Another good assessment tool is play-based assessment. This is simply observing the child in their natural environment. By doing this the observer is able to see interactions between the child and their peers as well as how they speak, the language they use and their motor abilities. It is good to record all this information and keep it in an ongoing portfolio. By keeping a written record of what has been observed and any areas of concern you may suspect, you will have more information to share with the parents and find the proper method of dealing with the problems. I feel there is a major advantage when you use an informal assessment as opposed to a formal one. With formal assessments you can never really tell how smart a child really is. These types of assessments are based on statistics of a large group of children not the children as individuals. Just because children do well on a test does not necessarily make them smarter than others, it simply means they have better test taking skills. There are lots of times that the smartest people do horrible on tests just because they suffer from anxiety and get nervous. You can take the same kids that do poorly on a test and give them an informal assessment where they feel comfortable and you will get different results. Standardized tests are not a reliable means of assessing intelligence based on the fact stated above. These types of tests are often overused in this country and they do not take into account the comfort level or socioeconomic background of the child being tested. These play a more important role in test taking than the test itself. This is the number one reason kids are misdiagnosed for having  learning disabilities and other disorders such as ADHD. I also feel that a good relationship with the parents is essential in determining the educational needs of the child. No one knows their children better than the parents or caregivers. They are the ones who spend the most time with the children and can fill you in on patterns of behavior not seen during a certain test taking session. Parents are the most important resources you can obtain information from when dealing with children. I would strive to keep the parents informed of everything that was going on with their child and how to help them with anything that raised a red flag. The parents should always be informed when an assessment is going to be used. A parent could be upset when their child is going to be tested for a development problem without their consent. If you explain the process and how it can help to determine if the child is developmentally behind it can ease the parent’s mind and make everyone more comfortable. I feel that assessments can be beneficial if they are conducted in the proper manner. Making a child feel more comfortable in their environment is the best way to truly assess them and find out if they are lagging in certain areas of development. It is equally important to always keep the parents involved in all decisions affecting their child and the processes used to assess them. The information used by assessments can help make sure children are developmentally on track, just remember the most important factor is the comfort level of the child. Without assessments a plan of action cannot be implemented or executed if the child is behind in any facet of development. Bibliography Logsdon Ann. Testing for Infant and Toddler Development. About. com Guide. http://learningdisabilities. about. com/od/intelligencetests/p/battelledevelop. htm. Accessed on December 10, 2012. ERIC Clearinghouse on Assessment and Evaluation. Assessments for Young Children. 1999. http://www. 1donline. org/article /6040/ Accessed December 10, 2012. Sue C. Wortham (2012). Assessment in Early Childhood Education. 6th ed.

Jane Eyre as an Independent Woman Essay -- Jane Eyre Charlotte Bronte

Jane Eyre as an Independent Woman Jane Eyre was probably the most shocking and controversial novel of it’s time. Not only was it almost unheard of for a readable novel to be written by a woman, but the views and opinions expressed by the character of Jane Eyre were unthinkable and before their time. In the eighteenth century, when Queen Victoria was at the height of her reigning day, People were far more reserved that the people of today. People were much more prudish and kept themselves to themselves. Life, in general, was very class orientated with the aristocrats of the day dominating the social status whilst the poor were ostracized. Therefore, moving to a higher class was near impossible. Society was very much male dominated. Women were expected to obey a man’s commands and were treated inferior to their male superior. Therefore, a novel written by a woman was never read, since it was deemed unworthy to be read by the literature critics all of which were male. Consequently, Charlotte Bronte published under the name Currer bell- a man’s name. We first see Jane’s Independence at Gateshead; she was â€Å"excluded from privileges intended for happy content little children† she was isolated from family activities and this may explain why she was so autonomous, standing up to her elders and the superiority of the young Master John Reed. During a â€Å"moment’s mutiny† she attack’s him in a â€Å"picture of Passion†. This would have been severely frowned upon since it was unheard of for a lady not to know her place and not to strike he benefactress’ son. She documents John Reed as being â€Å"A murder†¦a slave driver†¦like the roman emperors† At this period of time, in which children should be seen and not heard; young lad... ...sing that she truly could not live without Mr. Rochester she goes in search of him and finds Thornfield â€Å"burnt to a cinder† and the residence residing at Fern dean manor For the period of time this book was written, Jane’s thoughts and actions defied the norm for women of the day. Her independence outruns all expectations for women at this period of time, and is probably on par with ladies of today, and rebels against stereotypical images of women that have been present since the bible, such as men being the stronger sex and women needing a man to succeed in life. Although these trivial things are widely accepted as being untrue nowadays in the nineteenth century it was though to be true and many people then saw this novel as shocking and controversial. Therefore I can conclude that Jane was an independent woman of her time and probably ours as well.

Understanding Leadership as a Theory

Understanding Leadership as a Theory 06 June 2012 word count: 250 By: Author The purpose of this essay is to discuss what I have learned by reading this weeks assigned chapter in regards to understanding leadership as a theory. I will discuss the building blocks of â€Å"theory', as well as take a look at the organization in which I work in to take a look at variables that may be used to evaluate the performance of the President of my company.Leadership as a theory in chapter 3 mentions a great Tory of the Janitor at NASA working late because the president had instilled in him a sense of pride that made him want to work late without getting paid. However, when looking at the Anatomy of Theory we find that it can be broken down into specific units, â€Å"namely, the theory itself, followed by subordinate constructs, variables, and personalized measures† (Ludlow, G. R. & Copula, M. N. , 2011).I found my looking at these specific units; it became clearer on how leadership as a t heory can be utilized to learn how to become a better leader. I would have to agree that this chapter was o pedantic, In that it seemed to break down things too deep. Within my organization the senior leadership Is measured based upon his ability to lead and make tough decisions. Because we are non-profit organization, research, and academic that Includes clinics, we must have a leader that understands the many facets of the business.The variables that must be used Include knowledge, ability, and skill at a CEO level In order to understand how the college operates. â€Å"Given that leadership knowledge comes from several disciplines, It Is Important to use social science-based methods to provide clarity to the study of leadership† ( Ludlow, G. R. & Copula, M. N. , 2011). I believe that If you look Into each aspect of the business, you will find that all these variables mentioned can be placed Into each part of the operations. References Ludlow, G.R. & Copula, M. N. (2011). Le adership for Healthcare Professionals: Theory, Skills, and Applications. Sturdy, Maine: Jones and Bartlett Learning. Understanding Leadership as a Theory By mike floors WIDE : Understanding Leadership as a Theory too pedantic, in that it seemed to break down things too deep. Within my organization the senior leadership is measured based upon his ability to lead and academic that includes clinics, we must have a leader that understands the many facets of the business.

Why Do I Need A Piece Of Paper - 772 Words

These days, marriage has a 50 percent probability of surviving intact. Daniel Manzuk wrote â€Å"why do I need a piece of paper to prove I love this person?† this question is common in many countries. Love is not about the words that are written on the paper in the court or in the church. And the paper is not so that people know that you love each other. Love is the feeling when you will do anything or give up anything for a person even if it means dying for that person. The paper is about proof of commitment. Over many years, things have changed. The old adage, â€Å"first comes love, then comes marriage, then comes child,† has been rearranged to be â€Å"first comes love, then comes child, then comes marriage.† Each country has a different value placed on marriage. If we take this into account and compare marriage in America and Libya, they both have the same values for happiness, but they have different customs and culture. Firstly, culture is one of the most powerful sources of information about marriage. Both America and Libya have the same value but a different view. American culture both values and devalues marriage in a variety of ways. In fact, the immense majority of Americans will marry at the same period of time demonstrates the value that society puts on married. Nevertheless, in recent times the number of couples who choose living together as a substitution to marriage clearly has risen. In summation, it has become prevalence to end marriage through divorce.Show MoreRelated The Importance of Clarity in Writing Essay1130 Words   |  5 Pages To write a good paper is there a magical recipe to follow? If there is you will not find it in these two books; Williams Style: Toward Clarity and Grace and Strunk and Whites The Elements of Style. What you will find is the elements that should be present to have a successful paper. 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