assessment in early childhood education report- reflective journal

activity!

Journalr e f l e c t i v e

Camille BagasanBrixie Cappal

“Keeping a journal is a humbling process. You rely on your senses, your impressions and you purposely record your

experiences as vividly, as playfully, and as creatively as you can. It is a learning process in which you are the learner and the one

who teaches.‘”(Holly, 1991)

Purpose21st of October 2013

A place to express emotions, make judgements, or form hypotheses

It’s not a part of the child’s file but the personal property of the writer

A healthy outlet for emotions

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UsesExpress emotions or questions, let off “steam”, express anger, frustration, or elation, express worry concerning a child or child’s family, a coworker, supervisor, or self

For self-examination of attitudes, biases, or prejudices

Pose theories about child’s behavior that are from intuition

Explore remedies, strategies, advantages, and disadvantages of possible solutions

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1. External View - an opportunity to explore the view that others see and compare it to the inner and deeper meaning

2. Quick Check - can be place for a cursory overview of performance, feelings, or events of the day without getting into deep analysis

3. See Changes - can help us notice changes about thinking and attitudes4. Close Examination - can be a private place to self-examine a

troublesome area, an attitude toward a child or a coworker, a creeping doubt about one's ability, or a prejudice that has come into one's consciousness can be closely examined in a journal

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5. Done Repeatedly - brings the teacher to inward examination again and again whether in writing or in thinking

6. Reflection Becomes A Memory - looking internally through the RJ to examine values, beliefs and feelings also forms memories

Reflection is more than just day-dreaming, it can be a life-changing experience

Write about

yesterday..

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AdvantagesAn outlet for emotions

A vehicle to work through theories, and clarify and expand thinking

A record of professional development

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Disadvantages

Written after the event when facts are lost

Highly inferential and emotionally based

Not comprehensive in recording information remembered on each and every child, only those who stand out

A reflective journal is not as useful for the child’s assessment of development because:

Development of Independence

Attachment

Stranger Anxiety

Separation Anxiety

21st of October 2013John Bowlby’s

Attachment Theory

• children come into the world biologically pre-programmed to form attachments with others

• Infants produce innate ‘social releaser’ behaviors that stimulate innate caregiving responses from adults

• the determinant of attachment is not food but care and responsiveness

Attachment Theory

• a child would initially form only one primary attachment

MONOTROPY3 Key Propositions!

1. when children are raised with confidence that their primary caregiver will be available to them, they are less likely to experience fear than those who are raised without such conviction

2. this confidence is forged during a critical period of development, during the years of infancy, childhood, and adolescence, and that the expectations that are formed during that period tend to remain relatively unchanged for the rest of the person's life

3. these expectations that are formed are directly tied to actual experience (children develop expectations that their caregivers will be responsive to their needs because, in their experience, their caregivers have been responsive in the past)

Bowlby believed that there are four distinguishing characteristics of attachment:

Proximity Maintenance - The desire to be near the people we are attached to.

Safe Haven - Returning to the attachment figure for comfort and safety in the face of a fear or threat.

Secure Base - The attachment figure acts as a base of security from which the child can explore the surrounding environment.

Separation Distress - Anxiety that occurs in the absence of the attachment figure.

Attachment Theory

Preparation for Entering Programs and Schools

Gather information from the familyPersonal meetings and home visitsVisit the school/open housesFormal family orientation

Building trustChild orientationComfortable arrivals and departuresHandling separation anxieties

Arrivals and Departures

EatingSleepingToiletingParticipationSocial interactionActing out

Signs of Separation Difficulties

Children with special needsDiverse CulturesHelping Professionals

Helping all children with separation and school

adjustment

Sample Diary or Journal Account

9/10 I’m so excited about the first day of school. I wonder if having so many boys in the class will affect behavior and class management? Hey– do I expect a difference? I guess I do! How can I keep my “active boys” bias from influencing what I see? Maybe these new methods of recording will help. I think I’ll look for some things to read about sex differences and behavior.

9/13I heard Mary and Ted next door talking about my new room arrangement breaking down the barrier between blocks and dramatic play. Do I let blocks go in the “oven” Or in purses and brief cases? What about high heels and cowboy boots in the block area? We’ll see!

Sample Parental Information Form