MKEA Conference
Workshop # 6
Skills necessary to support classroom observations
Eleonora Villegas-Reimers
Wheelock College
April 7, 2014

WELCOME EVERYONE!!
Brief introduction of the topic, the workshop, and the presenter

At the end of this workshop, participants will be able to:
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Record naturalistic observations of young children’s behavior in objective, reliable and valid ways;
Use observation records of children’s behavior to assess children’s learning and development and as a basis to partner with parents in supporting their children’s learning;
Use observation records of children’s behaviors to inform and assess their own teaching and curriculum development
Explain the importance of using observations as an instructional tool that informs curriculum development, lesson plan implementation, and assessment of children’s learning
Explain the different ways in which administrators, teachers and instructional assistants can support each other in developing their observation skills.

Let’s watch this video and tell me what you think
 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RP4 abiHdQpc

Can you tell me what you learned about:
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The child’s development: motor, cognitive, emotional, social, language?
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The father’s interaction with the child

Now let’s watch this one
 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p1R
2vha7Ytc

And again, what can you tell me about:
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The older girl’s development: motor, language, cognitive, social?
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The role of the adult in this interaction?

Learning how to observe, record observations, and use those records

Background information
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Observation skills: Learning what to see, hear and pay attention to
Recording skills: Learning how to document children’s behaviors
Recording observations: Learning how to document children’s behavior, what we see and hear

What is observation?
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Observation is a technique of data collection: we document what we (the observers) witness.
Observation in care and education settings is
a tool that allows educators :
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To keep track of children’s development and learning;
To plan curriculum accordingly;
To monitor one’s teaching effectiveness.

For observations to be helpful, they must be:
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Objective: They must be records of behavior only, not of your interpretation or assumptions of the behavior
Reliable: If two people are observing a child, they should be able to report the same behavior in the same way.
Valid: They should record behavior that really represents what we are trying to learn about

Types of observation records
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Behavioral event records
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Running records
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Structured observations
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Anecdotal observations

Different ways of recording observations:
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With a camera (photo): what we see
With tape recorders: what we hear
With video cameras
With pencil and paper
With charts (we check behaviors we see or hear)

Determining the focus of an observation record
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How do we decide what to focus on?
Focusing on a child vs. a group of children
Focusing on a particular set of behaviors
Deciding prior to starting to record the observation vs. deciding on the spot

Practical aspects of recording observations
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What do we need in order to record observations that are usable?
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Tools needed (paper, pencil/pen; taperecorders, cameras (video and photograph)
How different tools may impact the observation record differently
Deciding on “best times” to complete observations during a regular day

Practical aspects of recording observations
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Deciding on participant vs. nonparticipant observations: pros and cons
Where does the observer stand/sit in relation to the object of observation
(where do you stand? Sit?)

Practical aspects of recording observations
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Tips to keep in mind when recording paper/pen records:
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Scribble notes, not full sentences
Write full record as soon as possible (as to remember all abbreviations)
Do not look down for too long
Keep track of where you are writing in the paper

Privacy and confidentiality of the observation records

Recording observations = practice session
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Several practice trials – observing, recording, discussing
Discussions by table about what was easy, what was hard, how to deal with the difficult parts; how to separate observation from interpretation of behavior.
Discussion with the larger audience

Let’s practice now:
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 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7i0X
NyRJkEQ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mp
DO5lw7pG4 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Jm
A2ClUvUY

First let’s talk about the act of observing
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Was it hard? In what ways?
What can we do to make it “less hard?”
Any recommendations you have for future recording of observations?

What did we learn by observing?
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What did we learn about the children’s development (Social? Emotional?
Language? Cognitive? Motor?)
What did we learn about the children’s interests?
What did we learn that could help us plan curriculum for these children?

Discussion: Using observation records
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Using observation records information to document children’s learning
Using observation records information to plan curriculum
Using observation records information to self-evaluate teaching and learning

Follow up after this workshop:
A few recommendations
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Creating observation groups in your institution
Sharing records with others to help you
“interpret” the data
Practice, practice, practice. It becomes easier with time
Whenever possible, have two people record the same information to check for reliability and objectivity

Contact information
Eleonora Villegas-Reimers
Ereimers@Wheelock.edu
617-879-2168