Child Developmental Assessment
Child development assessment is the processes of obtaining basic data about their growth and development. The essential aspect of the data being collected include cognitive, language, physically/motor, social-emotional and approaches to learning. Thus, while collecting the information the assessor aims at gaining a record growth in all the areas. Other than growth monitoring, child assessment is also essential in identifying children with special needs that may require extra support (Kaufman, 2018). When the thorough examination is conducted, the assessor identifies a specific need which is vital in determining the interventions required to support the child. Child evaluation also allows the assessor to develop an individualized strategy for a child or group of them in the same age that he/she will use to provide care. Furthermore, the process of assessment involves the parents or guardians of the child thus, developing common ground between the care provider and the parents for providing child support. Thus, Child development assessment cannot be overemphasized.
Human needs vary with age; hence data obtained is different at each age. Also, the mode of assessment used is dynamic. For instance, a 5-year old more of the information obtained is from the parent or the caregiver, unlike the twelve-year-old who can express themselves coherently. Observation is one of the techniques used in the assessment where the care provider gets to interact with the child and draws a conclusion based on their conduct. The other methods include parent ratings, care providers rating, portfolios, and standardized test. However, all the methods are best applicable for different ages. In some situations, there is a need to modify the techniques, for example, reading out the questions on a standardized test for a five-year-old and writing answers for them. The same approach when used on a twelve-year-old they are left to read, interpret and even answer the questions on the test with minimal assistance. Developmental Assessment and the School-Aged Child sample essay.
Ten-year-old Ray was born at 37 weeks with 2600grams via SVD and was NBU for two weeks due to birth asphyxia. He had gained 400grams by the time he was leaving the NBU. Ray was breastfed exclusively for the first 6 months and was weaned with different soft foods gradually. The child could roll over at 4 months and began sitting down at 6. Ray was hospitalized for severe malnutrition for a month while he was 9 months. According to the mother, that delayed his milestone and he only crawled when he was 16 months. The child started walking without support at 19 months. Ray could say four-letter words “mama” and “tata” at 6 months and at 24 months he could say complete simple sentences. He relates well with all other members of the family apart from his elder brother who according to the mother does not give Ray or other children the attention they want. Developmental Assessment and the School-Aged Child sample essay. The child joined a school at 4 years and his performance is average. He is an obedient boy loved by the teacher and other students at school.
Erik Erikson a psychologist classified human development into 8 stages. Ray fits in the 4th stage known as Industry vs. Inferiority which has children between 5-12 years. According to Erik, the basic virtue at this stage is competency (Cherry, 2018). While assessing Ray based on Erik’s theory, the assessor should focus on his ability to read and write. At this stage, he is expected to have cognitive skills mostly natures in school where he can do simple sums. Peer group is vital at this stage and the child will gain self-esteem (Rubin, Bukowski & Bowker, 2015). The care provider is likely to obtain information on Ray’s best friend, the kid he doesn’t like and who he would love to be associated with. That forms the circle where the children he hates make him feel inferior. For the examiner to gain cooperation, he should carry out the assessment when Ray is with his friends.
Child development assessment is vital in determining their welfare. It activity provides opportunities for the care provider to establish any special needs that the kid may require. Moreover, the assessment provides a ground where both the care provider and the parent can chip in together to provide support for the child. However, the needs of the child change with time and hence the mechanisms used in assessing as well as the results (Kaufman, 2018). Psychology theories like that of Erik can be used to determine what is expected of a child at a specific age during evaluation.
References
Cherry, K. (2018). Erik Erikson’s Stages of Psychosocial Development. Retrieved Juny, 5, 2018.
Kaufman, A. S. (2018). Contemporary intellectual assessme
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