Dear Ashley,

It has been great working with you over these past 8 weeks.

Thank you for your positive feed back and great attitude:)

 

Ana

 

Dear Rachael,

Thank you for your support throughout this course.

It has been a pleasure reading your posts!

Good luck with the rest of your courses!

 

Ana

CHILDREN...

 

We, as educators have the obligation to keep that belief alive...

 

Diversity is the beauty of mandkind and each and every child should feel special, ALWAYS.

 

 

Testing for intelligence…

As an early years educator, I believe in a holistic approach to teaching and thus assessing.  

I believe that assessment guides our teaching. How else would we know our student abilities, if they have constructed understanding, what they know and what they are ready to do next.  We as educators have the obligation to make sure that through our assessments we are not harming the child, the child is does not feel stressed in any way. As long as the assessment is child friendly, assessments are a tool to help teachers plan for their students to succeed.

Assessments that can be used at a multitude of ways, drawings, videos, observations, photos can all be used to effectively assess young learners` knowledge, skills, abilities, understanding.

Testing in Japan

Japan's state education system is often criticised for quashing original thought among pupils in favor of rote learning, and for placing an emphasis on theory rather than practical skills as well as on tests.

Japan's approach – rote learning accompanied by regular reviewing and testing – has proved hugely successful in establishing basic academic skills among pupils. The country's literacy rate is frequently put at 99%.

The stress on memorising information and passing exams, which begins in primary school and continues through to senior high, has been blamed for stifling critical, independent thought and placing too much pressure to succeed on children as young as five.

Japan, a world leader in international test scoring, and an education system envied in many countries, is not without its flaws. Despite attempts at reform, Japanese students are increasingly becoming disinterested in school. Japan's centralized education system has stated that they wish to reform their curriculum in order to instill a sense of love of education in their country's youth in order to provide young adults with the abilities to compete in the global market.

http://www.japantoday.com/category/opinions/view/japan-and-its-standardized-test-based-education-system