A comprehensive and meaningful early childhood assessment requires an understanding of the family context, including knowledge of the family's language and culture, gathering developmental information from parents and carrying out home visits with parental approval. This principle applies to all young people and all families, but it is especially critical for children whose families do not share the language or some of the economic advantages of the dominant culture. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get an original essay Understanding family expectations and experience puts a child's behavior in context and can avoid harmful decisions resulting from misinterpretation of assessment data. Young children present complex problem challenges and require flexible procedures to gather meaningful and useful assessment information. Constitutional variables such as fatigue, hunger, illness, and temperament can easily overshadow a young child's abilities. Time of day, setting, material testing and other situational factors also affect performance. The younger a child is, the more likely he or she will fall asleep, become anxious, refuse to comply with instructions, or be distracted from assessment activities. Professionals must be prepared to modify activities, explore alternative procedures, and/or postpone rather than risk collecting erroneous information that compromises the assessment results. Young children learn by doing and demonstrate their knowledge and skills through action-oriented activities. Authentic assessment of youth as they participate in daily activities, routines, and interactions typically produces the most valuable information for assessment. Where possible, assessment methods should allow for the observation of young children engaged in spontaneous behaviors in familiar contexts and with familiar people. More assessments and increased data do not necessarily result in better assessment information. Keep in mind: this is just a sample. Get a personalized document from our expert writers now. Get a personalized essay. Early childhood professionals should only gather the information they need and know it in advance. determine how they will use any information collected. It is generally best to identify a set of appropriate methods and instruments that provide the necessary information and to refine the use of these procedures over time. Some assessment instruments and procedures are better than others. Factors such as the purpose, content, reliability and validity, effectiveness, cost and availability of professional development are all more important than attractive packaging and effective advertising. The quality of the information collected and the decisions made following the evaluation is of prime importance. Ultimately, whatever evaluations we conduct should benefit the children, families, and programs we serve..