When using a holistic approach to view young children, it is important to focus on all areas of development such as cognitive, language, social-emotional and physical (Challenging Young Children, 2016). It allows children to be creative and demonstrate their understanding of concepts and experiences through play. It gives educators an opportunity to what children understand and the relationships that the children have developed during social activities and play (Challenging Young Children, 2016).
In Finland, children do not start official academic learning until seven years old (Butler, 2016). Finland does not allow formal examinations until the age of 18 (Butler, 2016). The term "teaching to the test" is an unknown concept, school hours are not as long and they do not receive a lot of home work (Butler, 2016). Recently, they have made changes to their national curriculum, which included more time for arts and crafts (Butler, 2016). The curriculum focuses on main skills such as multiliteracy, digital skills and entrepreneurship (Butler, 2016). Overall, they want children to enjoy learning and so far, children are more happy and relaxed (Butler, 2016).
I believe children should have a variety of ways to demonstrate that they have mastered a certain concept, skill or comprehension of materials. Every child is different so being able to incorporate different learning styles would be beneficial. I feel as though standardized tests do not always give children the chance to demonstrate everything they know. For example, I have always been stronger in math than writing. So when you use a holistic approach, it will give educators the chance to view the whole child and their strengths and needs.
References
Butler, P. (2016). No grammar schools, lots of play: the secrets of Europe's top education system. Retrieved from http://www.the guardian.com/education/2016/sep/20/grammar-schools-play-europe-top-education-system-finland-daycare.
Challenging Young Children. (2016). What is holistic approach? Retrieved from http://www.talenededucation.eu/toolkitforteachers/challengingyoungchildren/what-is-design-thinking/.
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I like the idea of having hands on work available for the students. It is important for us to remember if we differentiate their learning experiences, we should differentiate their testing experiences as well.
ReplyDeleteHello Jamie,
ReplyDeleteHow interesting to see a school from a different perceptive other than the U.S. I'm glade to see that standardized tests, "is becoming less common as states develop their own standardized tests under the mandate of the No Child Left Behind Act. A similar test, designed for use in urban areas, is the Metropolitan Test. 5. STAR Tests: STAR tests were created by Renaissance Learning for use in K-12 education. The tests are somewhat unique in that they are completed over the computer and use adaptive technology" (Heick, 2017).
Resource:
Heick, T. (2017, October 31). 16 Standardized Tests Being Used In Education Today. Retrieved from https://teachthought.com/education/16-standardized-tests-being-used-in-education-today/.
Hi Jamie I enjoyed reading your post. I think it is great that children do not start official academic learning in Finland until age 7. That gives them time to enjoy learning how to play and building relationships.
ReplyDeleteHello,
ReplyDeleteI agree that all children should have the chance to show their skill sets in different ways! It makes the most sense to allow children to show us their mastery of a skill in the way that showcases it best and if the child shows a skill in an individual way then they would know how to best showcase that skill!! I think that is a great point!
Betsy