Scholar Practitioners Who Impact Future Change

I immersed myself in the early childhood field because I recognized early on what a blessing it is to teach and learn from young children. Young children have so much to offer and they are a joy to be around. As a scholar practitioner, it is my responsibility to be knowledgeable and understand the importance of program evaluations and keep my staff and families (stakeholders) informed about the process. I will make the necessary decisions such as delegating tasks to help the evaluation process become more effective and successful.

When leading program evaluations, the biggest barrier I foresee is family involvement/engagement.  I have over twenty years of experience as a preschool teacher and have discerned that most families do not understand nor do they have information about the assessment process, data driven decisions, or program evaluations. I find that the reason families do not understand is because they are not given the opportunity to be involved in these tasks however, as valuable stakeholders in early childhood programs, families have the right and should be involved in decisions and program evaluations. Engaging families should be a shared responsibility (Weiss, Lopez, & Stark, 2011) within school districts, and early childhood programs.

My responsibility to minimize this barrier is to intentionally encourage families to actively engage in their children’s educational learning. I will design my curriculum with family engagement as a component, implement family workshops, and share information with families regarding school readiness, student achievement, outcomes, and goals (Weiss, Lopez, & Stark, 2011). The purpose is to collaborate with families, share information, encourage families to join school boards, parent- teacher organizations, and provide families with resources to help their children succeed.

Reference:

Weiss, H. B., Lopez, M. E., & Stark, D. R. (2011). Breaking new ground: Data systems transform family engagement in education [Issue brief]. Harvard Research Family Project. Retrieved from http://www.hfrp.org/publications-resources/browse-our- publications/breaking-new-ground-data-systems-transform-family-engagement- in-education2%20

Assessment PPT

Using Assistive Technology

 All children deserve a quality education, unfortunately many children are not afforded this luxury due to the fact of a learning disability or other varying disabilities. As we know learning disabilities vary from mild- to- moderate-to- severe- to- debilitating (Nielson, 2011). As educators, it is our responsibility to make accommodations and modifications that best fit the needs of these children. Using assistive technology is an excellent way to include children with learning disabilities. Although a child may have a learning disability, the child is very capable of learning, and we just need to find and make the necessary modifications so all children will have positive learning outcomes which add to their academic success (Nielson, 2011). I found two assistive technology devices that support preschool children’s development.

The first device is a sound- field system or personal frequency modulated (FM) system. The sound- field system has a wireless microphone transmitter and ceiling or wall mounted speakers. When sound-field systems are used in the classroom they improved the audibility of the  teachers voice for all children not just the hearing impaired (Nelson, Poole, & Munoz, 2013). The personal FM system is my choice for the hearing-impaired children in preschool classrooms.  The personal FM system delivers a clear signal directly from the speaker to the child’s hearing aid or cochlear implant which reduces the noise level and improved the child listening environment (Nelson et. al., 2013). Nelson et. al (2013) stated “it is well recognized that that the acoustical environment in a classroom or other educational environment is a critical variable in the academic, psychoeducational, and psychosocial development of children with normal hearing as well as children with hearing loss and/or other disabilities” (p. 239). It can be very noisy in a preschool setting which makes speech, language and cognitive development difficult for children with hearing loss because it is hard to filter out the noise (Nelson et.al., 2013).

Research studies have shown that the personal FM systems improved attention, speech and language development, academic performance, and behavior in children with hearing loss ((Nelson et.al., 2013).  I have a child in my class that has a hearing loss and the personal FM system would be a welcomed assistive technology device.

The second assistive technology device that can be used in a preschool learning environment is Social Assistive Robotics (SAR). The function of the robot is to assist students and their daily activities. The SAR assists students in social development. Fridin (2013) explained how research studies have demonstrated the positive effects of SAR with children especially those with social disorders.  The Kindergarten Social Assistive Robotics (KindSAR) is a supportive tool that was developed for educational purposes that focus on preschool education. The KindSAR helps staff engage children in educational games for example, the robot will take on the role of storyteller (Nelson et.al., 2013). I think the KindSAR is an excellent way to engage children and to get children who may not typically participate in an activity to now engage in the activity with the robot; having a robot in the class is new and exciting.

Each of the assistive devices that I researched are culturally responsive. Both devices are designed to help children who need modifications to their learning environment (inclusion). The devices help children become active participants in their learning. Teachers can determine if the devices are effective by observing children’s responses and behaviors when using the devices, re- assessing children once the devices have been used for a period to compare the results before and after implementing the devices.

References:

Fridin, M. (2013). Storytelling by a kindergarten social assistive robot: a tool for constructive learning in preschool education. Computers & Education, 70(1), 53-64. doi:10.1016/j.compedu.2013.07.043

Nelson, L.H., Poole, B., & Munoz, K. (2013). Preschool teachers' perception and use of hearing assistive technology in educational settings. Language, Speech, and Hearing Services in Schools LSHSS, 44(1), 239-251. doi:10.1044/0161-1461(2013/12-0038

Choosing the Proper Assessment Scenarios

 Early childhood should be an exciting time in young children’s lives however, as we all know that is not always the case. Early childhood is complicated for many children, and as early childhood educators (ECEs) it is part of our responsibility to provide children with the best education possible with positive learning outcomes. One way for ECEs to achieve this goal is by assessing young children. Assessments give ECEs objective information on children’s learning and development (Ebbeck et.al., 2013). Assessments are a crucial part of early childhood education, equally as important is choosing the correct assessment tool. There is no one-size-fits-all assessment. Ebbeck et. al. (2013) stated “Assessment has to be an integral part of the curriculum, not as an additive but as a purposeful, ongoing, shared communication about children’s learning” (p. 122); consequently, ECEs must have knowledge on assessments, assessment procedures, and assessment practices to effectively choose the right tool. Below I have included two scenarios that require assessing a student however, I did not include the name of assessment I would use; which assessment do you think is the right tool for each scenario?

Marcus is a three-year-old who lives with his two moms, he is adopted. Marcus has had a difficult start into this world, he is hearing impaired, was born with brain damage due to his biological mother’s drug use and domestic violence. Marcus is extremely violent at home and at school; he screams, hits, spits, and kicks the teachers as well as his peers. Marcus currently receives speech and occupational therapy from the Head Start preschool he attends; he also goes to an outside agency for behavioral therapy.

 Marcus is very unpredictable, he will have a good day i.e. following rules and class expectations, and then the next day he is back to exhibiting violent behaviors. Marcus can her about 60% however the sounds are muffled. Marcus speaks American Sign Language (ASL). The teacher is teaching the other children in the class ASL so they can communicate better with Marcus. Marcus is very smart, he did very well on the Brigance assessment however his teacher is concerned that Marcus needs intervention services to better serve his needs. What intervention assessment would be appropriate for Marcus?

James is a four-year-old who lives with his mother and occasionally his father when he visits from Ethiopia. James attends the local Head Start preschool; the teacher is concerned about James’s behavior patterns. Upon arriving at school James immediately starts running around the classroom, and it takes the teacher about fifteen minutes to stop his running. James has very little attention span, he often makes a loud mumbling sound for long periods of time. When the teacher tries to interact with him he does not look her in the face. James is very possessive over the cars in the classroom; he is especially attached to a black car, and whenever another child gets the black car before James he has a meltdown which entails screaming, crying, and hitting the teacher and peers.

The teacher has spoken to James’s mother about his behavior and his mother is concerned as well because James exhibits some of the same behavior patterns at home. James’ mother shared with the teacher that James will run and touch the walls for hours at a time and she is unable to get him to stop; whenever she tries to intervene he looks at her with a blank stare, screams, hits her and then continues running.

The teacher understands she needs to assess James and she is considering referring him for intervention services. Banerjee and Luckner (2013) explained that one of the purposes of assessment is early identification of instructional or therapeutic needs. The teacher discusses James’s behavior with other staff members and they collaborate on which assessment to use.

Reference:

Banerjee, R., & Luckner, J. L. (2013). Assessment practices and training needs of early childhood professionals. Journal of Early Childhood Teacher Education, 34(3), 231–248.

My definition of purposeful assessment is teachers intentionally gather information on each child to measure how children are developing. The assessment allows teachers to take the results from assessments and incorporate the information into their curriculums, share information with children and families, identify learning goals, and focus on using developmental learning outcomes (Ebbeck et.al., 2013). The purposeful assessment also identifies children who may be at risk or may need intervention services. The purposeful assessment provides information about any gaps in the curriculum so the teacher has knowledge of what areas need improvements.

 References:

Banerjee, R., & Luckner, J. L. (2013). Assessment practices and training needs of early childhood professionals. Journal of Early Childhood Teacher Education, 34(3), 231–248.

Ebbeck, M., Teo, G. L. C., Tan, C., & Goh, M. (2014). Relooking assessment: A study

on assessing developmental learning outcomes in toddlers. Early Childhood

Education Journal, 42(2), 115–123.