Different types of observation - unit 024 explain the selection of the assessment methods

[Anna marie stivala]

Hi am currently working through unit 024 and i need alittle help with outcome 1 Q3? i would really appreciate some guidance on explaining the assessment methods used

024 1.3: Explain the selection of the assessment methods used / what are they and why were they chosen?

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Please also see outcome 3 of Unit CYP 3.1 understanding childrens development

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[tutu]

you need to have demonstrated knowledge of a range of assessment methods which in ey is usually observations and know why you use them and which area of dev and learning some are better at assessing than others

[Anna marie stivala]

Thankyou sometimes you just need someone to point out the obvious as the more i go over some of these questions the more i just dont see what they require of me! if that makes any sense at all? thanks again.

[Ruthierhyme]

Hi, this will depend on the methods your setting uses most frequently to conduct assessments and then what else is available for them to of made those decisions against.

Ways of recording information can happen through..

• Pictoral, diagrammatic, charts
• Tabled
• Note making on anything to hand or pre-arranged materials
• Oral
• Digital

Types of observations could be ..

Means of collecting information provided by parents, carers, colleagues

Spontaneous notes, snapshot or post-its that record 'wow or surprise moments

Event sampling - good for monitoring settling in/times of transition, potential patterns in behaviour, evaluate specific interests or resources

Spider's web - good for assessing attachment to a key figure and what might support the child's developing confidence & independance eg. if particular type of activities engage their interest

Tracking or tracker observation - similar to spider web obs, good for assessing resource use, social grouping and time spent at activities.

Target child observations - provides a detailed profile of a child at each minute of a ten minute duration. These are pre-coded observations where codes that have been agreed ahead of time/proactively describe particular actions, activities or behaviours, whilst reducing time during an observation they rely on knowledge of the codes and their meanings or definitions.

eg: code - ADM = adult directed manipulation, GWR = game with rules, DB = distressed behaviour, PRE = pretend play, SSC = small scale construction, LSC= large scale construction, WA = watching. Codes may differ setting to setting depending on need and maybe link to frameworks to evidence development.

Narrative observation

Time sampling - good for seeing how a child spends a section of their time at the setting

Standardised tests

Check sheets or tick lists

Software - there may also be electronic forms of assessment made on a computer that would be informed by other observations of children.

Video, photography, audio



Helpful reading:

Implementing the EYFS - about observations and assessments, free chapter written by Penny Tassoni

Observation, assessment and planning in the early years on amazon.co.uk (links to the 2012 EYFS framework) Current EYFS framework on gov.uk



About observations and assessments during a child's early years - Learning Together Cambridgeshire


How to Observe Children, 2nd edition Sheila Riddall-Leech


CAF and the pre-caf are also assessment methods for identifying & meeting invididual needs where your service provision works in partnership with outside agencies.

Activity planner - planning creative physical other area of learning observation

Development plan for observing & assessing individual children

Another useful thread

An introduction to the range of monitoring, observation and assessment methods

Observing speech, communication, language needs worcestershire.gov.uk links on the right are useful reading

CYP 3.2 promote child and young person development
1.1 explain the factors that need to be taken into account when assessing development
Supporting children's physical, intellectual, communication, social, emotional and behavioural skills and development
1.3 explain the selection of assessment methods used - ie. how well they fit with the setting, staff and child and family's needs; time constraints, privacy, what a practitoner wants to obseve - behaviour, resources, interests, getting to know a child

Example child development plan thread

From Supporting Teaching and Learning Lv 3 quote from page 50 of the STL handbook

Observations

Free description
enables you to write everything down during the period of the observation. (usually five to ten minutes. It means that the observation will be quite short, as it will be very focused on the pupil. Free descriptions need to include what they pupil says to others, how they express themselves verbally and the way in which the activity is carried out. These are usually used when a lot of detail is required and are usually written in the present tense.

Structured description these may require the observer to record what the pupil is doing against specific headings or in response to planned questions. Structures descriptions are used to guide the observer on what needs to be recorded, for example a series of steps towards achieving a task.

Checklists used to check and record whether pupils can carry out a particular activity quickly and in a straightforward way. they usually require the observer to make a judgement on whether a pupil is able to achieve a task, the focus is not on how they do it, but whether or not they can. Checklists may take different forms and schools can devise their own easily, depending on what is being observed.

Event samples are used to record how often a pupil displays a particular type of behaviour or activity. Event samples need to be carried out without the observer participating in the activity to retain objectivity.

Informal observations may arise if you are, for example, asked 'just to keep an eye' on a pupil or to watch them during breaktime, especially if there have been any specific concerns, and then feed back to the teachers. In this case you can make you own notes, but should be careful about confidentiality if you are writing things down and remember not to leave notebooks lying around, particularly if you have recorded any names.