How and Why We Observe
Why do we observe children? What is the purpose behind it? The purpose behind observation is to help children reach their full potential. To take note of their skills, and where they need help. It is a tool designed to assist educators, and families so that they can work together to help their children. Observation is a huge part of many early childhood settings. “Early childhood educators facilitate daily experiences that support and promote each child’s physical, language, cognitive, social, and creative development and behavior using applicable observation tools while respecting inclusion principles and diversity issues.” (Observing Young Children, 2012, pg. 55) Since it plays such a vital role for early childhood educators it is very important to make sure that your observations are done correctly and effectively so that anyone can understand them.
In our Observing, Recording, and Assessing class we have gone over effective ways to document our observations of children. It is important to use inclusive language that is nonjudgmental, to avoid bias, and to keep an open mixed tone that is reflective of a diverse environment. It is also important to take notes that are descriptive in order to make sure that the observation is as accurate as possible when it comes time to assess your observations. In our class we practiced observing by watching videos of children in a childcare setting and realized just how difficult it is to take such notes. It is hard to pay attention to the child you are observing and take note of what they are doing at the same time. We found that as we went to write something we observed, the child would do something else and we would miss it. A combination of distractions such as other children, loud noises, and taking the time to wire down observations can make it difficult to completely focus in on the child’s behavior. One way that we learned to make note taking faster in class was to use short forms, but to use them consistently so that our notes are easy to understand as other people will need to be able to understand what we have written as well. This is because beyond just observing, we must work together to take action based on our observations. The cycle of observation is “An ongoing and interactive reflective cycle of observation, including interpretation and appreciative inquiry, team participation and discussion, planning and evaluation. This cycle outlines for the observer the many interactive components and steps of the observation process.” (Observing Young Children, 2012, pg. 43) We believe that it is vitally important to work as a group in order to further the potential of every child we come across and by following the guidelines we are provided to assist us, we hope that we will be able to do so.
