Creative Assessment Trends in Early Childhood Education

Nika Jibrael
May 5, 2024
4 min read

Updated: May 8, 2024

Limitations in the Early Childhood Education Teacher Program Models may not accommodate the needs of today’s students. Consider the following scenario. Minju dedicated her entire program to preparing for her practicums at the end of the year. It was challenging for her to link her course content to real-life situations since she had never experienced being in an Early Childhood Education classroom. Upon reaching the practicum, she felt overwhelmed by the fast-paced environment and information overload. Despite having a sponsor teacher to support and evaluate her at the end, she felt there was insufficient time to o establish a trusting relationship with her. A few week of practical experience did not allow enough time to understand center expectations, different communication styles, managing time constraints and practice responsive caregiving. The mentorship experience felt compromised, leading to stress for both the mentor and the student. Minju felt her whole program focus was on her final practicums and evaluation documents rather than the process of her growth and capability.

This is a common experience that many Early Childhood Education students face during their educational training. Therefore, 21st century competencies required by our ECE’s means that we must switch up our traditional learning methods. We must account for diverse needs of today’s student giving them flexibility, hands on learning opportunities rather than text book explanations and emphasize accountability. If we are not able to best prepare our ECE students by giving them the educational tools they need to flourish in today’s world, we are ultimately providing disservice to our children. In my reflections I observed that ECE students and new ECE’s are looking for more practical experiences, mentorship and different types of assessment methods.

Having my own childcare center and being an Early Childhood Education Instructor has given me deep insight into the actual challeges that todays ECE students face. Students require longer practical opportunities and mentorship to apply and hone their skills, as focusing solely on educational goals is insufficient in preparing them for employment and practical outcomes. This is especially crucial in fields like Early Childhood Education where relationship building, effective communication, collaboration, and critical thinking are vital. So how can we put this change into action?

We have to look at program models and evaluate their effectiveness of actually preparing our ECE's for the field, then implement changes to support the gaps considering the diverse needs of todays student. There is always a fear that comes with change because we are so use to doing things how they have always been done. In my opinion, a change in “trend will not dilute the quality and rigor of college education but would create a more responsive educational system”.

The linked article proposed assessment methods that would support a program model that would allow for continuous practicums which would allow for relationship building with the assigned mentor and the use of other forms of assessment. I have provided suggestions on how to adapt each one to the field of Early Childhood Education.

Clinicals offer training that involves applying theoretical knowledge in real world environments under expert supervision to gain practical skills. This approach can be adapted outside of medical education, for example, through teaching or counseling practicums, legal clinics, business or engineering consulting projects, programming bootcamps, and social work field placements.

Offer students a continuous one module of theory and one module of practicum to implement learned knowledge.

Service learning integrates meaningful community service with instruction and reflection to enrich the learning experience, teach civic responsibility and strengthen communities. Students might take part in tutoring and literacy projects, river cleanups, reforestation, community gardens, health awareness campaigns, food security projects, non-profit business consulting, technology education, support for vulnerable populations, public arts installations, or community theater.

Include a service project of the students choice to complete throughtout the duration of their program allowing them to directly engage with the industry and advocate for change.

Public presentations and peer review sessions in humanities and social science courses, where critique focuses on methods and interpretation.

Have students research and investigate with an Early Chilhood Education topic of their choice, including deep elements of reflection and interpretation. Have them present their findings to the public.

Debates and round-table discussions on controversial or complex topics, where students must critically defend their positions.

Include monthly round table discussions open for dialogue with peers around current issues and topics of interest.

Field- or community-based education takes place within an environment relevant to the student’s area of study. Examples include geological or archaeological digs, social work in community settings, and environmental research in natural habitats.

Assign students a continuous practicum at a childcare center to work alongside throughout their educational training. Evaluate students by observing their ability to handle/complete practical tasks.

Mentored research can be lab-based, but can also involve archival research, data analysis, environmental policy research, ethnographic research, interviews, market research and policy analysis.

Have students interested in working in management postitions or other ECE related fields complete research projects of their choice that require them to directly engage with a variety of stakeholders. Have them share their research with any of these stakeholders for feedback.

Hackathons and design sprints, where students develop solutions to problems quickly and then receive constructive feedback.

Sponsor teachers can observe students ability to think quickly and problem solve in real-life childcare scenarios. Provide them on the spot constructive feedback as a form of mentorship and evaluation.

Business or marketing plan competitions that focus on feasibility, creativity and practicality.

Include an "opening a childcare center course" where students must investigate how to open a childcare center and interview a series of childcare business owners.

Case study reviews, where students must present solutions and strategies that are critiqued by peers and instructors.

Have students work one on one with a sponsor teacher to complete a case study review. Have them present their case to peers for critique.

Supervised internships, where students work in a professional environment under the guidance of a supervisor or mentor.

Use an internship model evaluating students by observing their ability to handle/complete practical tasks. Start with the completion of 1/4 courses to obtain their ECEA so they can also contribute to the teacher shortage and experience growth from being an ECEA to becoming a fully certified Early Childhood Eduator.

Read the article here: https://www.insidehighered.com/opinion/blogs/higher-ed-gamma/2024/04/23/liberal-arts-higher-ed-college-pedagogy

Should Childcare Training Programs remove written exams and use other forms of assessment?