E111-TMA03-Observing and Assessing children
E111 – Supporting Learning in Primary Schools - TMA03
Observing and Assessing children
In accordance to the ethical guidelines written by The British Education Research Association (BERA, 2011), the names of the children and school, where used, have been changed in order to maintain confidentiality and anonymity. KU 1.2/KU 1.5
A pen portrait of the child
For this essay I will be using Aaron, the child I used for my last essay “Including all children”.
Aaron is a six year old boy who has been diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD).
Aaron is a physically big boy for his age with a matching personality.
He has bright blue eyes with red hair which is often the reason for him being bullied.
When Aaron is not in a good mood, which is quite a lot of the time, he has a scowl on his face that can make him look quite menacing, but even though he can look like this, he is in fact extremely big hearted.
He is always trying to please his teachers and his peers, and it is this pleasing that more often than not, gets him in trouble.
Aaron tries very hard to gain adult praise and takes great pleasure in receiving it but is overly sensitive to criticism.
Why do we observe and assess?
The reasons we observe and assess is to see if there are any difficulties the child/children may be having and in what areas and to see if what we are teaching the child/children is actually being learnt.
Observations can also help show what can influence behaviour over a period of time.
Koshy (2010, p9) sees any kind of “action research”, such as observation, as “a continuous learning process”, with its main purpose being to improve practice.
For each child to fulfil their potential we must all work towards better outcomes.
It is through the sharing of information gathered through ongoing observations to classroom staff, outside agencies and professionals that relevant strategies can be put in
Observing and Assessing children
In accordance to the ethical guidelines written by The British Education Research Association (BERA, 2011), the names of the children and school, where used, have been changed in order to maintain confidentiality and anonymity. KU 1.2/KU 1.5
A pen portrait of the child
For this essay I will be using Aaron, the child I used for my last essay “Including all children”.
Aaron is a six year old boy who has been diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD).
Aaron is a physically big boy for his age with a matching personality.
He has bright blue eyes with red hair which is often the reason for him being bullied.
When Aaron is not in a good mood, which is quite a lot of the time, he has a scowl on his face that can make him look quite menacing, but even though he can look like this, he is in fact extremely big hearted.
He is always trying to please his teachers and his peers, and it is this pleasing that more often than not, gets him in trouble.
Aaron tries very hard to gain adult praise and takes great pleasure in receiving it but is overly sensitive to criticism.
Why do we observe and assess?
The reasons we observe and assess is to see if there are any difficulties the child/children may be having and in what areas and to see if what we are teaching the child/children is actually being learnt.
Observations can also help show what can influence behaviour over a period of time.
Koshy (2010, p9) sees any kind of “action research”, such as observation, as “a continuous learning process”, with its main purpose being to improve practice.
For each child to fulfil their potential we must all work towards better outcomes.
It is through the sharing of information gathered through ongoing observations to classroom staff, outside agencies and professionals that relevant strategies can be put in
References: British Education Research Association (BERA) (2011) Ethical Guidelines for Educational Research, London, BERA Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (2011) Convention on the rights of the child [online] Available at www.bera.ac.uk (Accessed 17 January 2014) Department for Education (DfE), (2003a), ‘Every child matters’, [online] Available at webarchives.nationalarchives.gov.uk (Accessed 17 February 2014) Kristine Black-Hawkins, Lani Florian, Marty Rouse, (2007), 'Achievement and Inclusion in School’, Routledge Chapman & Hall Publishers. The Open University, (2013), ‘Study Topic 9: Observing Learning’, E111 Supporting Learning in Primary Schools, Book 2, Milton Keynes. The Open University. The Open University, (2013), ‘Study Topic 10: Assessing Learning’ E111 Supporting Learning in Primary Schools, Book 2, Milton Keynes. The Open University The Open University, (2013), ‘Primary Teaching Assistants, Curriculum in context, Children and the Curriculum, Watching and Learning: The tools of Assessment’, E111 Supporting learning in primary schools, Reader 2, Milton Keynes. The Open University. The Open University (2014) National Curriculum documents science. Statutory framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage [online] Available at https://learn2.open.ac.uk/mod/subpage/view (Accessed 17 February 2014)