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Learning Objectives
After reading this chapter, you will be able to:
- Explain the concept of developmentally appropriate assessment.
- Describe different types of formal and informal assessments teachers use with children.
- Describe how teachers manage and use assessment information.
- Identify and explain processes used to evaluate curriculum.
- Describe developmentally appropriate considerations for using technology with children.
- Describe important considerations for lifelong professional learning.
Introduction
Well here you are, on your way to understanding the intricacies of early childhood curriculum and the balancing act that a developmentally appropriate approach requires. Your classroom is a happy, busy place. Friendships are forming, children are playing, and you are using your understanding of the developmental emphasis in the early learning standards and content focus of K–12 academic standards to plan and implement engaging and challenging activities. You’ve also begun to notice the individual characteristics, strengths, and needs of your children and are beginning to think about ways of adapting the curriculum to meet their needs.
Your sense is that everything is going well, but how do you know for sure that you are meeting the goals and expectations of your curriculum? Throughout this book, we’ve addressed this question in part by discussing the need to observe children in order to scaffold their development. But what specific things can you do to determine your children’s individual needs and chart their progress? How do you identify children who might have special needs? How do you know whether your curriculum is working as intended? What should you do to continue developing your own curriculum knowledge? In view of increasing use and awareness of technologies,