Module 2 Blog: Observing and Interacting With Professionals, Children, and Families in an Early Childhood Setting.
I am observing in a Head Start classroom that consists of children who are 4 and 5 years old. There is a teacher with a Bachelor's degree, a teacher with an Associate's degree, and an assistant in the classroom. There are 17 children in the class and they are all going to kindergarten in the fall.
The focus for my research paper is Developmentally Appropriate Practice. Within that I am focusing on assessments, classroom activities, and parental education about child development and learning. While observing in my host classroom, I observed that there was a good balance of large group times, free choice time, small groups, and recess. The activities seemed to range in difficulty and I asked the bachelor teacher about that. She said that some children are at different learning levels than others so they need a range of activities to meet the children's needs.
I talked with the bachelor teacher about what type of assessments they do on the children and she said that they do an ages and stages questionnaire on the children with the parents at the beginning of the year and they also do social/emotional questionnaire on them. She also said that they observe the children daily, taking notes and pictures to document their progress throughout the year and plan appropriate activities for the children. The teachers meet with the parents three times a school year to discuss the children's progress and discuss any concerns.
During my observation, I was able to talk to some of the parents about what any of their concerns were with the program and I asked if any of them knew what Developmentally Appropriate Practice was. None of the parents knew what DAP was and the main concern of most of the parents was that it seems like the children just play all day at school. I was also able to talk to the teachers about some of the parents' concerns and it seemed to really frustrate the teachers. They said that they hear that all the time from parents and they try to explain that children learn through play.
One insight I gained through my observations is that the teachers would like to educate parents more about child development and learning. I was glad to be able to talk to families and teachers during my observations to get a feel for what concerns them. I got some great information regarding assessments that they do and how they plan activities for the children in the classroom.
That is not an uncommon answer for children, "we played" because it is hard for the children to say, when we played today I learned that "sharing is caring" and I learned how by brushing paint across salt makes a cool texture, because to them it is all play. I think developmentally appropriate practice is something most parents do not understand, especially when all they hear is we played. I love when teachers take pictures of what "play" they did on a certain day and it shows the children are learning new skills which build on other skills.
ReplyDeleteTraditional ideas of play include setting aside time for children to play games or with toys, yet circumstances for play are everywhere, most all the time. Everyone can play every day by extending the idea of play to include a playful approach to life and looking for play opportunities in ordinary places, as well as in traditional ways but of course parents do not understand this process. I have had parents say to me as well oh all he or she does is play and not knowing and understanding that social piece that is so needed to succeed in life; parents like to see quick results in their children by everyone learns at a different pace. I think parents need hands on experiences as well to grasp and understand what is going on. As an educator myself I have encountered this issue and it seems as if we are repeating ourselves but it is needed in order to help parents to understand developmentally appropriate practices.
DeleteHi LuAnne, I really enjoyed reading your blog post. Your research paper focus being about DAP has really gotten my interest. For instance, regarding the classroom activities, I would really love to hear more about the range of activities offered to your students with different learning levels and how your classroom structures the activities to encourage child development. I am also curious how your school's student assessment process might differ from other schools (if at all). I know this may sound silly, but I could tell just from your blog's tone that you do really care for your students and that it is important to you to keep the parents educated that their 4 and 5 year old sons and daughters are not just there to play, but are there to grow.
ReplyDeleteDAP is a good topic. It is good for a advocate such as yourself. Classroom Management is needed to help the children remain calm throughout their day. When the teachers are calm, that sets the tone for the entire class. This is vital in the development of the child.
ReplyDeleteAssessment are good, because it helps teachers to develop lessons that are structured and prepared to meet the need of the child. I like assessments because it supports children learning in all of the domains. Assessments help in learning how to better serve children and families holistically. Using DAP seems to be one of the best practice to push the children further. DAP is something effective teachers.
LuAnne: I am a Bilingual Head Start teacher and our children come to our program for a little over three and half hours. Ninety percent of my student’s parents work outside their homes. When parents are looking for another place where their child can be safe and secure after/before they come to school they always ask, how do I know if a program is Developmentally Appropriate? I always tell them that a trained provider will interact well with children because of her knowledge and expectations of behavior for that age group. What do you think?
ReplyDeleteI have past experience working with Head Start and most of what I have seen through this organization is very shameful. I like to begin with the truth, so here it is. Most of the teachers may have the degrees behind their names, but most of them were grandfathered into the program. Many of them are not computer literte and just as the parents are not familiar with the familiar term, Developmentally Appropriate; most of the teachers are not implementing it. I dare not speak for all of the Head Start programs out there who are serving children in an effective and developmntally appropriate manner; I'm speaking from my past experiences in the South. Just as the education system is in great need of a total overhaul, so is Head Start. I'm an advocate for early childhood education, when it is implemented in a developmentally appropriate manner. I find the bulk of the problem is not in parent education, it is in teacher and administrator education. There needs to be some form of continued developmental education for teachers, especially where the issue of Federal funding is concerned. I noted you stated the teacher listed taking pictures of students to document progress as a way to document student progress. I would like you to find out if there were any release forms on file to authorize the agency to take pictures of the child. This is what DAP is all about. I also wonder how appropriate is it for a parent to fill out any type of prescreening tool, such as Ages & Stages and not understand the full theory and concepts of the term developmentally appropriate. Most programs today need to become appropriate, prior to opening day. It does take an entire village to raise a child, but how much more effective would the child be if everyone in the village understood the term DAP.
ReplyDeleteDAP is a topic that is discussed often at the preschool level however once you get into the grades 1 - 12 no one knows about it. IS differentiated instruction the same or somewhat the same topic?
ReplyDelete