Reflective Analysis of Portfolio Artifact

Rationale/Reflection

NAEYC Standard:
STANDARD 3. OBSERVING, DOCUMENTING, AND ASSESSING TO SUPPORT YOUNG
CHILDREN AND FAMILIES.
Candidates prepared in early childhood degree programs understand that child observation,
documentation, and other forms of assessment are central to the practice of all early childhood
professionals. They know about and understand the goals, benefits, and uses of assessment. They
know about and use systematic observations, documentation, and other effective assessment
strategies in a responsible way, in partnership with families and other professionals, to positively
influence the development of every child (NAEYC, 2010).
Brief Description of Evidence:
As part of my ECED 235: Preschool Practicum course during the fall semester of 2014, I worked
in an early childcare setting and completed a case study on an individual child. I completed
baseline assessments with the child, and worked collaboratively with my mentor to come up with
goals in each developmental domain to work on with the student throughout the course of the
assignment. I documented multiple learning artifacts that the child created in order to prove
learning in the specified domains, and completed another assessment toward the end of my
assignment to gage what he had learned. I then compiled the assessment sheets with the
documented artifacts, as well as a final narrative, to create a child assessment portfolio.
Analysis of What I Learned:
In completing this case study, I learned how to work collaboratively with a child care
professional and family members to evaluate a childs present development, advance to meet
new goals and learn new objectives, and finally assess the progress made within the set time
frame. I enhanced my ability to observe and document using anecdotal notes, complete
developmental evaluations, and communicate with parents and childcare professionals. I was
able to conduct myself as an early childhood professional and make informed conclusions about
the childs achieved progress as I worked in collaboration with the teacher to set goals, and
evaluate the childs growth toward the end of the assignment. The project ties in to the
Montessori teaching approach as children learn best by using their senses and pursuing their
interests. Rather than giving the child worksheets and instructions, I was able to document
learning while he was playing, pursuing his interests.
How This Artifact Demonstrates my Competence on the NAEYC Standard:
My proficiency in this standard is demonstrated by my ability to work collaboratively with
families and childcare professionals to assess, enhance, and evaluate a childs personal growth in
each of the developmental domains. This project displays my ability to combine data from

various sources and compile a final examination of a childs progress and development. Through
the completion of this portfolio, I have demonstrated my skill to assess a child using standard
testing provided by the elementary school, document growth and improvement using photos and
anecdotal notes, set and achieve objectives for the child through collaboration with teachers and
families, and reflect on the assessment as a whole.