If we are looking at a child
holistically, we have to keep in mind every area of a child’s development; it
is not only the mind of the child that is important though the mind plays a
vital part in the other areas of development of a child. These areas of
development would include cognition, physical, social. Under these
developmental areas they are subdivided into specific focuses such as, brain
development, motor skills, language, thought processes, self-image, being able
to get along with other peers. These and more are all vital in the assessment
of a child, reason being is that everything about that child is taken in to
consideration; such as the environment they live in, the family dynamics, which
play vital roles in the development of a child. Depending on the progress of
development being made within a child, would therefore reflect upon the
environment in which the child lives.
In Barbados, my home country, the assessment of school aged children
is done on the basis or deportment, getting along with others, caring of
property such as desks and chairs, though the assessment is usually based on
Mathematics, Grammar, Composition, Science, Art, Religious Education, Physical
Education. Despite all these factors are taken into consideration from 6 till
11, at the age of 11 in order to go Secondary school (High School), an exam is
done which only encompasses English, Mathematics, and Composition, which does
not give a representation of a child’s ability altogether. This exam assesses a
particular ability of the child, and does not assess the child as a whole which
at times works to the child’s disadvantage.Though testing a child on what they learn mostly from a book, is not a bad thing, it cannot be the only way of assessment. As stated above in Barbados though those may be the formal way of a assessing a child, a teacher would usually take observations of the child and relate it back to the parent, since the a child may be excelling in school work, that same child may be falling short in their social skills.
I think that is probably impossible to separate all these domains of a whole child. Without knowing it when we test children we are testing whether they had a good night sleep, are fed well, and whether they are suffering from environmental and emotional stresses. It is much better to know that we are looking at children holistically from the beginning.
ReplyDeleteIt is interesting that in Barbados there is such a wonderful support for all areas of development in the early childhood years, but starting in high school the emphasis turns to academics only. Thank you for sharing your experiences!
Kiendra, I also share the view that when assessing individuals we need to consider every aspect of their development and as such make use of a number of formal as well as informal assessment techniques. Like Barbados, the children of Grade 6 (11-12 years olds) also have to write a primary exit exam in order to gain entry into a secondary school. Most times, these standardized test fail our students. only this year I had an "A" student who scored a composite score of 67% on the exam and as a result could not gain entry into the 'top' secondary schools. There are so many factors which could have contributed to her performance including the test format and structure since the test in 'one shot" taken in one day and it only assesses the academics. Nonetheless, the policy holders are making a concerted effort to change the testing format and to include other aspects of the child's development.
ReplyDeleteKiendra,
ReplyDeleteI found it very interesting that in Barbados children are required to take an exam to enter into high-school. I agree that at this point the child should be tested as a whole and not in part.