Testing for Intelligence?

Considering a commitment to viewing young children holistically (i.e., a commitment to “the whole child”), what, if anything, do you believe should be measured or assessed? Explain your reasoning.
 

A child’s milestones are important, as a parent we keep track of our infant to toddler transitions. For example first tooth, when the child first took a step, and learned how to walk and the first word a child speaks. So it is fair to assess “the whole child” Many studies have shown girls advance quicker than boys in a lot of ways, also studies have shown that boys are better at math than girls. Doing an assessment of a child’s biosocial, cognitive, and psychosocial development, is a proper way to determine how a child is growing. The assessments of children are important to us parents and educators, so that in the event that a child is not developing correctly we can address our concerns, and give a child the necessary help he or she needs to get on the proper educational track.

 
In what ways are school-age children assessed in other parts of the world? (Choose a country or region of the world for which you have a personal affinity.)
 

In The Republic of Ireland Primary and Post Primary Schools have assessments for school –aged students.  In an article called Educational Provision in Ireland, it mentions that Primary teachers currently use a range of pupil assessment instruments (for example,

teacher-designed tests, standardized tests) in their work, though only at the discretion

Of individual schools and teachers. The Education Act now places an obligation on

Principals and teachers to regularly evaluate students and periodically report the

results to the students and their parents (International Conference on Education 2001 ICE).

School ages 6 to 14, are required to follow these regular assessments. When a child reaches 15 there are several options for a student to pursue for graduation.  There is an option of a Junior Certificate Program in the Junior Cycle of school in Ireland. There is a Senior Cycle of school in Ireland; The Senior cycle caters to pupils in the 15 to 18 year old age group. The Senior cycle

aims to encourage and facilitate students to continue in full-time education during the

post-compulsory period by providing a stimulating range of programs suited to

their abilities, aptitudes and interests (International Conference on Education 2001 ICE).

Students may spend up to three years in senior cycle. They may follow a two-year

Leaving Certificate Program immediately after Junior Certificate or they may opt

to follow the Transition Year Program before starting the two-year Leaving Certificate Program.

A report by the National Council for Curriculum and Assessment on the Junior Cycle

notes that, while some of what was envisaged in the development and introduction of

the Junior Certificate Program has been achieved, work remains to be done in the

area of assessment. The failure to implement the wide range of modes and techniques

of assessment associated with the aims and objectives of the Junior Certificate

Program has had a negative impact on the breadth and balance of the curriculum at

Junior Cycle and on teaching and learning.

In examining the nature of student assessment in the Junior Certificate Program,

the NCCA has identified a need to move from a centrally devised and marked

terminal written examination to a broader range of assessment modes and techniques

and a combination of external and school-based components.

A further issue is the fundamental change in the context of assessment at junior cycle.

With increased retention to the end of Junior Cycle, formal assessment needs to be

viewed now in the context of assessment for further learning. There is no reason why

the Junior Certificate should continue to be a mirror image of the Leaving Certificate.

An expansion of the range of assessment modes cannot come about if assessment

continues to be confined to an external model where the assessor is from outside the

school.

A key difference between the role of second-level teachers in Ireland and elsewhere is

the absence in the Irish second-level system of any element of internal assessment of

student performance feeding into a formal, structured and certified State endorsement

of that assessment. Second-level teachers engage in the assessment of their own

students on a very widespread basis, in the certification of PLC and other courses.

As you can see there is a huge difference in the educational system in Ireland. Their school system allows room for a student to excel and transition from one grade to next grade. The full article is very interesting; it gives a more complete breakdown of how the Ireland School System works.         

 
What additional ideas, comments, suggestions, examples, and/or concerns related to assessing young children would you like to share with your colleagues?
 

I personally feel that test like ACT, LSAT, PSAT, GMAT, SAT and DCAS (standardized test in Delaware), are terrible ways to assess a student’s ability. If a curriculum is set up correctly, then a regular test and or quiz should show a student’s proper ability. The majority of the test don’t have anything to do with what a student will learn in school with the exception of math. A student can be an “A” student but then take a standardized test and rank low in scores. This could have an adverse effect on a good student. This can discourage a student, if not dealt with properly.

International Conference on Education (2001 ICE). Educational Provision in Ireland. Retrieved from http://www.ibe.unesco.org/International/ICE/natrap/Ireland.pdf