Embedded Files
How to Use a Developmental Perspective when Gathering Information
1) Choosing what to observe
The choices of what to observe about children are influenced by a host of factors including your personal and/or professional background, the purpose of the observation, beliefs about what is most important to observe, and personal factors, such as biases based on earlier similar experiences. For example, lawyers, social workers, police officers, and teachers are all looking at different areas when observing children’s lives.
CASAs must choose areas to observe based on what is most important to the health and well-being of the child and what will support his/her optimal development.
Areas to Observe about an Infant/Young Child
Whether a child has met developmental milestones
Parent/caregiver and child interactions
Parent/caregiver reactions to child
Child reactions to parent
How child interacts with others
Environment that the child lives in
Children’s interactions with environment
Whether the child’s immediate needs are being met – physical and social emotional
You do not have to negate observations you make in one area, because you have chosen to observe another. New discoveries or insights often lead to understanding the unique needs of the children that you did not know. However, having a specific area to observe will help you prepare specific questions or targets the infant/toddler should reach before you make the observations. These can serve as your guide in the observation and help you when writing your reports.
2) Determine how to make the observation
How you choose to observe means choosing between informal, semi-structured or formal assessments. For example, one common informal observation method is to observe and/or record the child’s behavior or interactions among two or more people without intervening or directing the interaction. An example of a semi-structured observation involves the observer setting up a particular situation within a natural environment and seeing the child interact in this situation. In most cases, you will not be making semi-structured or formal assessments of children.
These types of assessments (semi-structured or formal assessments) are typically performed by professionals trained and certified in various assessment tools. It is important for CASAs to know about these different types of observations to understand that how you choose to observe children and families will determine the type of responses you get from the participants.
<<Back to Page 5 Page 6 Continue to Page 7>>
Page updated
Google Sites
Report abuse