PLAY IS THE 

HIGHEST FORM OF

RESEARCH   

...... Albert Einstein   

         Good luck to 
ALL MY COLLEAGUES

in your future endeavors

 and

Thank you for sharing your

perspectives, ideas, comments and

life experiences

Charlene

  

Assessment in Other Parts of the World

Idealistically, I believe there is a place for also considering  Gardner’s view of multiple intelligences into consideration when looking at what children really know and can do well.   Evenmore, Steinberg’s view might be better suited for testing since most cognitive activities include some form of analytic, creative and/or practical skills.

            In The Gambia the West African Examinations Council administers The Gambia Basic Education Certificate Examination (GABECE), taken at the end of upper basic school (nine years), in addition to the West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE), taken at the end of the Senior Secondary School curriculum (12 years). The GABECE was first introduced in 2002, replacing the Junior School Leaving Certificate. The Senior Secondary School curriculum and the West African Senior School Certificate were adopted in 1998.

According to WAEC data, just over 14,200 students took WASSCE examinations in 2012, an increase of 14 percent versus 2011. Including the basic education examinations, a total of just over 115,000 Gambian students took WAEC administered examinations in 2012.

Basic education WAEC curriculum

In 2002, a new unified basic and compulsory education system was introduced to cover the first nine years of schooling. The nine years of basic education are divided into two cycles: lower basic and upper basic. Students transition automatically and without examination to lower secondary school at the end of the six years of the lower basic cycle. At the end of the lower secondary cycle, all students sit for the Basic Education Certificate Examination.

Students sitting for the GABECE take examinations in four core subjects, at least one elective ‘general’ subject from a pool of seven subjects, and at least one ‘pre-vocational subject’ from a pool of five. Students can take a maximum of three general and three pre-vocational subjects for a maximum load of 10 subjects. The four core subjects are:

·         English

·         Mathematics

·         Science

·         Social and Environmental Studies

Since 2008, the WAEC has also conducted the National Assessment Test for the Gambian government, which offers assessment data used to monitor learning and teaching standards in the core basic subject areas of the national curriculum, but does not determine student progression within the system. This census is taken annually by all students in grades 3, 5 and 8. The country’s lower basic school completion rates have increased from 39 percent in 1992 to 66 percent.

It looks like the subject areas and grade levels being tested are basically the same as we do here in the States however, I find it interesting how they also test 6 more subject areas which seems a pretty fair way of assessing what a student can do.

References

Berger, K. S. (2016). The developing person through childhood (7th ed.). New York, NY: Worth Publishers, pp359-360.

http://wenr.wes.org/2015/03/school-examinations-curricula-anglophone-west-africa-gambia-ghana-liberia-nigeria-sierra-leone/

click on the link below to receive information about Why it is necessary to Strengthen Adult Capabilities to Improve Children's Outcomes.......

http://developingchild.harvard.edu/resources/building-adult-capabilities-to-improve-child-outcomes-a-theory-of-change/ 

A Preschool Scenario To Reflect On:

Consequences of Stress of Children’s Development

The consequences of a 4-year old preschool boy is clearly observed by the center administrator and other professionals who intervened to help him adjust in the classroom. This example is from a series of classroom observations and interventions made to help him become more accepting and accountable for his teacher’s directions; structured routines in the classroom and his daily interactions towards his peers as he is displaying daily anger and oppositional behaviors towards his teachers and others in the classroom:

-         -  the child often ignores his female teacher’s request to wash his hands after using the toilet. he says “I want to play ______ (in a preferred center)” and walks towards the classroom by himself. he falls onto the floor and uses his shoe or an object he randomly picks-up and kicks the nearby steel radiator. he often hits/punches/kicks his teachers when they try to intervene – his mother or center administrator is called many times throughout the day to intervene. in addition, his mother refuses to allow a free observation, family review and referral be made by a qualified, credentialed team early intervention professionals to help the child adjust and comply with center/classroom  rules. 

-         - the child falls onto the floor, refusing to wash his hands before and after playing in the sandbox at center time. he often hits/punches/kicks his teachers when they try to intervene – his parent or center administrator is called throughout the day to intervene — his mother continues to refuse to allow a free observation, family review and referral be made by a qualified, credentialed team early intervention professionals to help the child adjust and comply with center/classroom rules

-          - the child spontaneously slapped another peer in the face when she took a toy out of his hand without asking and she suffered a significant bruise on her face – his mother was called into the office to discuss his current need for early intervention services – both his mother and father agreed and this request for early intervention services which was immediately made by his teachers on his behalf.

Early Intervention Results called for:

-         -  his teachers to be trained on setting a daily warm environment with predictable routines and praise for all the children in the classroom to follow

-         -  both parents to work together and set-up an acceptable a daily routine that reinforces daily predictable structured routines, rewards and caring, respectable interactions with others

-         - both parents to take turns spending daily extended time with the child, especially at pick-up and drop-off times of the day where teachers have the opportunity to deliver face-to-face daily reports on his behavior(s) thatt will ultimately make him more accountable for his actions during the day and allow the opportunity to be rewarded by his parents for actively displaying positive behaviors.

Summary of Results

It seems once the child was given ample opportunities for: 1) more quality time with both his parents; 2) a better system of positive feedback to be set in place; 3) more structured, predictable routines to be put in place and followed at home and at school and 4) more opportunities for him to be more accountable and be more verbally expressive at home and at school, he began to flourish and so far, this child is more accepting of daily routines, transitions in school and his peer interactions. Additionally, he is beginning to use his words more instead of hurting others.

Child Immunization: A World-Wide Public Health Intervention

Click here to view child vaccines required for Infants and Children up to age 6
http://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/parents/downloads/parent-ver-sch-0-6yrs.pdf

Since before the 15^th century, contagious diseases such as, smallpox, measles, chickenpox, scarlet fever, whooping cough, the bubonic plague, typhus, malaria, influenza and pneumonia have caused millions of human deaths around the world.  Thirty percent of all children in Europe died before reaching their 15^th birthday during the 15^th century and close to ninety percent of the native Indians\ population died of infectious diseases in America during the 17^th century.. Some diseases such as, measles, smallpox, yellow fever and polio however, were practically wiped out in the modern developed countriess by the 20^th century after  Louis Pasteur made the first  vaccination in the lab (online, public) that primed the body’s immune system to resist infectious disease (Berger). Many of these vaccines, considered basic child immunizations, are saving millions of  infants and children's lives up to age 6 in modern developed countries and thanks to increased access to vaccines, in undeveloped countries, more lives are being saved (online, public). 

Globally, the CDC Global Immunization Strategic Framework for example, is committed to working with global partners toward achieving the following six goals in disease, disability and death prevention around the world for 2011-2015:

Goal 1: Control, eliminate, or eradicate targeted vaccine-preventable disease (VPD), disability and death globally

Goal 2: Strengthen capacity and enhance performance of health systems to sustainably deliver routine immunization services

Goal 3: Strengthen VPD health information and surveillance systems to enhance decision-making capacity for immunization programs

Goal 4: Increase the appropriate development, introduction, and use of new and underutilized vaccines—pneumococcal, rotavirus, meningococcal group A conjugate vaccine, hepatitis B vaccine birth dose, rubella, cholera, typhoid, malaria, yellow fever to prevent global diseases

Goal 5: Promote synergies between immunization and other public health interventions to strengthen health systems and contribute to decreased maternal and child mortality

Goal 6: Build and strengthen partnerships that maximize coordination and synergy in meeting immunization goals (online, global).

            In closing, I believe this life-saving, vaccine prevention approach to eliminating world-wide disease, disability and death could have far-reaching benefits as it could spur global partnerships among nations. It could save billions of lives around the world; increase intellectual property that could solve world-wide problems which could ultimately make the world a better place to live; it extends more educational opportunities to others around the world and to the extent that we care for our children, speaks to our respect for humanity.     

References:

Berger, K. S. (2016). The Developing Person through Childhood (7th ed.). New York, NY: Worth Publishers, pp137-169.

Online Websites:
global              retrieved from

http://www.cdc.gov/globalhealth/immunization/docs/gid-strat-framewk.pdf 

public              retrieved from

http://www.publichealth.org/public-awareness/understanding-vaccines/

During pregnancy, I attended routine monthly check-ups. In the hospital: my husband witnessed two childbirths in the delivery room; I received local anesthesia as I delivered 2 healthy bright-eyed babies--5 1/2years apart; we bonded together as a family before we took our babies home and when we arrived home, we were determined to provide our children with love, nurture and as much education as we could possibly afford.

Britain for example, practiced two different types of child rearing methods during the eighteenth century (Smith, 2006):

• Like Americans, Rousseau and the Romantic poets--Blake, Coleridge and Wordsworth urged parents/educators to think of children as being endowed with a naturally goodness and a precious innocence that will eventually be lost after reaching adulthood therefore, children should be reared like many of their country's rich population--with love, nurture and education.   

• John Wesley and Hannah More however, urged parents/teachers to think of children as bringing a corrupt nature and evil disposition to the world which need to have their spirit's broken so that it can eventually become more subject to the will of God. 

I believe life's miracle of birth changes us all for the better because our bodies want to make babies (Web Video). This birthing process also changes the normal mathmatical equation from
1 + 1 = 2 to 1 + 1 = 3+ and with the onset of  Head Start and Early Head Start programs in America, I believe that Rousseau and the Romantics are correct, infants and young children should experience many loving, nurturing relationships for their successful developmental growth.

References

Smidt, S. (2006). The Developing Child in the 21st century: A global perspective on child development. New York, NY: Routledge, Children and Childhoods, pp1-16.

Web Video Above: PBS NOVA: Life's Greatest Miracle
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/body/life-greatest-miracle.html

       

Dear Colleagues,

I appreciate and thank you for being encouraging and supportive of me during our time together this  semester…….

I wish you all well on your academic journey,                                                                              Charlene.

 

Three ideals in the NAEYC and DEC Code of Ethics that are meaningful to me are found in the:

DEC Evidence Based on Practices:

2.           We shall use every resource, including referral when appropriate,

               to ensure high quality services are accessible ad are provided to 

               children and families.

 

NAEYC Ethical Responsibilities to Colleagues:

I-3A.2—To share resources with co-workers, collaborating to ensure that

                the best possible early childhood care an education program is

                provided. 

 

NAEYC Ethical Responsibilities to Community and Society:

 

I-4.6 ----To promote knowledge and understanding of young children and

               their needs. To Work toward greater societal and

               acknowledgement of children’s rights and greater social

               acceptance of responsibility for the well-being of all children.

 

The above ethical codes are especially  important to me at this time  in my professional life because of late, I have been supporting the teachers as they support their preschool children and families in initiating a conversation about their child needing to be tested, referred and possibly recommended to receive early intervention services for example, because the assessment test results and/or documentation  may show that a child has a social-emotional delay and in this case, I often find myself  reaching-out and locating online resources for the teacher to explore and present to parents.

 I have also looked for the latest research on using effective, evidence-based practices that teachers can readily use in their daily practice in the classroom --  including tips and strategies for engaging children with challenging behaviors; documenting challenging behaviors; talking to parents; getting parents on-board with the early intervention process and how to make a referral for early intervention services and I usually promote the knowledge by putting the information in a 3-ring binder and make it available on my desk for all teachers to sign-out and use – this is now part of my daily practice and the ethical codes presented above confirms my finding, using, haring and promoting every resource available to ensure that children receive the high quality services they need to make their lives better, which is their ultimate right to have.   

Also, my three resources allow you the opportunity to sign-up for email electronic news that keep educators, parents and families informed about the current advocacy events, themes, topics and who's who in Pennsylvania:

http://papromiseforchildren.com/

http://www.pennaeyc.com/Pages/default.aspx

http://www.dvaeyc.org/

                                                         INSPIRING WORDS

"Children benefit most from teachers who have the skills, knowledge, and judgment to make good decisions and are given the opportunity to use them." Susan Bredekamp


"Mr. President, I rise today to pay tribute to an outstanding public servant, and a wonderful friend and colleague, Dr. Edward Zigler, who has recently retired after 40 years as a professor of psychology at Yale University.

Dr. Zigler has been a tireless advocate for children for many years, and has successfully been able to take his scientific research and apply it to society's greatest problems. Because of his expertise and his commitment to our Nation's children, he has been asked to assist every Presidential administration since the time of President Lyndon Johnson. From 1970 to 1972, Dr. Zigler was the first director of the U.S. Office of Child Development (now the Administration on Children, Youth, and Families) and Chief of the U.S. Children's Bureau.

He is a true visionary leader who has transformed national and State policies in early childhood development".        - Senator Christopher J. Dodd
                                  taken from a speech at Dr. Zigler's retirement from Yale University

"I absolutely fell in love with three and four year olds"
                                          -  Louise Derman-Sparks
"My passion now is the same as it always has"
                                           - Louise Derman-Sparks


"My passion comes from my intrinsic motivation for the work I do"
                                            -Raymond Hernandez  
"I think my passion comes from wanting to make a difference"
                                            -Raymond Hernandez

                                

 This is my Personal Childhood Web of Relationships that helped me attain Healthy Development.

From top left to right is me being loved and nurtured by my mom and dad.

The baby in the middle is me during my early childhood years. 

From bottom left to right is me being loved, nurtured and respected by my immediate family (sisters and brothers) AND my extended family--close neighbors, uncle, aunts, cousins and grandparents.