What is VPK
We are required to do assessments because the Voluntary Pre-Kindergarten is a federally funded programs. The program is free to the parents and paid for by the federal goverment. Florida is one of the first states to have the 540 hour program offered to the parents for their 4 and 5 year old children. The children need to be 4 years old before September1 st.
Why are assessments required?
Assessments are done to see how the children are doing in the class. As we all know all children learn at different paces and in different ways. The assessments help us to find out if the children are learning what is being teached and if some children need more help than other children. And which subjects need more attention to while we are teaching it.
What we learn from the assessments.
You would not believe how many times you think a child is understanding what is being taught and when you do the assessment you find out they don't understand it. Or the child who looks at you while you are teaching and look at you like a deer caught in the headlights and you do the assessment and you find out they understand it. You can't go by which children are learning what is being taught by how the look or act while being taught.
Who sees the scores on the assessments?
The scores on the assessments are entered in the VPK website for each child. Each childs parents get a copy of the their childs scores. The preschool director also sees the scores. And I see the scores of course since I give the assessments.
Assesments are important in the classroom they help us to know how help teach the children. Each child learns in different ways and sometimes a child needs a little extra help in their learning.
My job is to get the children ready to move on to kindergarten.
Great post.
We actually have some issues with the school systems and mainly with some teacher who don't do their job. They are just to lazy to look for the real needs for the kids,
I know some teachers like that.
Do you have any advice how to motivate them. We are thinking to write to government, as they got paid from them.
But if they get the name of the one who complains, the job for the kid at school might not getting better.
A lot of school tell you how to teach the children. But the teachers need to think out ofthe box and make the learning fun for the children. Children love to be part of the learning. If you are teaching the children use the children as part of the teaching. If you are teaching adding use the children as what your adding. Have 2 children stand up and then have 2 more children stand up and then count the children count the children standing up and you just taught the children what 2+2=4 and they were part of the teaching.
Are the assessments play-based or the kids need to 'cram' robotically a bit as if they were to sit an exam?
After all, those assessments for sure can help the school refine your teaching materials and methods
The teaching is play based. The assessments are questions and answers but worded like we are playing a game. And the children are not timed during the assessment.
This is what I call genuine education, kids around these ages should undergo play-based activities and assessments only!
As a parent of a 6 years old, I've paid much attention to learning and education. I wrote a rather long post from a perspective of a parent on overall education for kids in Hong Kong based on what I'd seen around me. https://steemit.com/education/@prch/what-is-the-point-of-repetitively-memorising-doing-mechanistic-homework-and-sitting-endless-academic-examinations-at-young-ages
I've just followed you and restreemed this post. Let's exchange views on education.
Happy teaching and good day!
thank you
Good work,
Evaluating progress is key. It serves multiple functions, like inspiring continued diligence. I know if you judged my learning based of the way I look in Geometry class Freshman year, sleeping, you never would have guessed I would pass that class with more than a hundred. :) Great share, thank you.