There are many methods for monitoring children and young adults. These include: observations, written records, assessments framework, information shared with work colleagues and children’s families, standard measurements. For teaching assistants and practitioners should be essential understanding first the purpose of the observations they are going to make as part of their role.
In fact, the information recorded has a very high value and need to be shared with the class teacher who will report it to the children’s parents and carers.The assessments should be made to keep track of the progress of children’s development. There are standard measurements that can be used by early years practitioners to determine the physical and cognitive growth and development of a child. The assessment framework or “assessment triangle” can help understanding whether the children are developmentally compared to their peers.There are also standard measurements, such as school tests and cognitive aptitude tests; these can display the children’s academic ability and their skills at memorising information already taught and may be used to compare outcomes between a larger population of same-age children.
For example, there are health assessments that can measure head circumference, weight, height and sensory functioning. Educational psychologists may use other reasoning tests to assess children’s intellectual age in contrast to their chronological age.It is very important to share information with colleagues and parents that enable you to monitor children in the best effective way. Parents and primary carers who know the child and colleagues’ expertise can be very useful, especially when planning for the social and academic success for children with special educational needs and learning disabilities. When teaching assistants are concerned about a child’s development it is always good to ask and share information.
