EC PROFESSIONAL INTERVIEW REPORT

Early Childhood Professional Interview Report

Alyssa Ayers, Connar Hurst, Lauren Salome
HDFS 421
Michigan State University

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Introduction:
The following lab report is a collection of our groups interviews with three
different Early Childhood Professionals. As a group, we summarized each professionals
answer to the seven questions provided on the assignment document. The questions
include: 1). What types of assessments do you use in your work with young children?
2.) How often do you assess children? 3.) How do you use the assessment information
that you collected? 4.) How do you share assessment information with parents? 5.) Do
you have any technology in your assessment process? If so, how? 6.) Are you ever
assessed as a professional? If so, how often? What kind of feedback do you get? 7.)
What are the biggest challenges you have faced in using assessments?
In addition to the seven required questions, our group created three additional
questions to ask including: 1.) Have you found any types of assessments to be more
useful or less useful than others? 2.) What steps do you take when you see red flags
that a child is displaying? 3.) How useful do you find assessments to be as an
educator? By asking these ten questions, we were able to accomplish the purpose of
this assignment, which was to: understand how assessment helps the professional in
the classroom and other child-related settings, understand a variety of standardized and
non-standardized instruments and techniques, and use assessments in the context of
classroom curricula and teaching.
Before we would could meet the purpose of this assignment, we needed to
choose individually who we wanted to interview. After discussing and deciding on a
professional to interview, we made arrangements individually with our chosen
professional to interview. By setting up individual interviews, each member of our group
was able to meet with a professional at a time that was convenient for their schedule.
We were hopeful that the interviews we planned to conduct would help build our
knowledge about assessments, past what we have learned in class lectures. With the
collected information, we intended to apply it to our own professional careers.
Individually, we each had different focuses for this assignment. Connar stated, I would
like to see if my professional uses any of the assessment tools I have learned about it
HDFS 421. Likewise, Alyssa wanted to know which assessments worked best for the
children in her teachers classroom, and why those seemed to be best for her children.
She was also curious on how her teacher is assessed, and how she implements her
assessment results in order to improve her teaching. Additionally, Lauren stated, I am
curious to see this teachers view on assessments and how helpful she finds them to
be.

Introduction to the Professionals:

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Connar interviewed Abhirami Gunasingam, Abhi for short. Abhi is the

Infant/Toddler head teacher at Early Learnings Childrens Community (ELCC), located
on Lansing Community College campus. ELCC is a child care center that has children
in ages ranging from infants to preschool ages. She has been working with children five
and under for five years. Her classroom as of 11-13-15 has children who range from 617 months. Connar chose to interview Abhi because our group needed a professional
outside the CDL, and wanted to learn more about her and the ways she uses
assessment in her classroom of infants and toddlers. She wanted to know if any
assessment tools she has learned about in HDFS 421, are used in Abhi classroom.
Connar knew Abhi previously from another course when she attended Lansing
Community College and hoped that getting acquainted again would open her eyes
about the views she has on assessment.
Alyssa interviewed Ashley Andersen, a second grade teacher at Cornell
Elementary in Okemos, Michigan. Ms. Andersen has been teaching second grade at
Cornell for five years, since she graduated from the College of Education at MSU with a
Z.A. endorsement. Alyssa has her TE placements for the College of Education at MSU
in Ms. Andersens classroom for both fall and spring semesters. She has already
become very familiar with Ms. Andersens class and routines, but wanted to learn more
about the assessments used in second grade, for Ms. Andersens class in particular.
Alyssa also wanted to learn how assessment of elementary teachers takes place and
how it is beneficial for the students in the classroom, since she is doing her Teaching
Internship in the fall.
Lauren interviewed Sally Mowers, the 4-year-old teacher at the MSU Child
Development Lab in East Lansing. She has been teaching for 22 years and has been at
the CDL for 3 years. Lauren chose this professional because she has worked alongside
her and really enjoyed the experiences she had in her classroom. Lauren noticed her
use of assessment and wanted to learn more about her reasoning for the assessments
and to get more details about them. She was curious to learn more about why Ms.
Mowers did the things she did in her classroom in order to get a better idea of how she
would like to structure her own classroom in the future.

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Summary of the Interviews (professional by professional):

Interviewer: Connar Hurst

Professional: Abhirami Gunasingam

Type of Setting: Child Care Center
Grade of Child / Age Range: Infant/Toddlers, 6-17 months
Years of Professional Experience: 5 years
Connar interviewed Abhi at the ELCC center, in their studio. She came prepared
to ask Abhi 10 different questions about assessment. Connar started the interview by
asking Abhi, What types of assessment do you use in your work with children? Abhi
stated that they use two different types of assessment; 1. Desired Results
Developmental Profile (DRDP) and 2. The Hawaii assessment. The primary one they
use to assess is the DRDP, the other is used when needing further in depth assessment
if a child has a delay. Abhi went into short detail that the DRDP is separated into each
domain, a different number of measures in each domain, where they are at each
measure, a spot that allows for evidence, and an area to put a photo of the evidence.
Abhi finds the DRDP to be the most useful because it is user friendly and easy for
parents to follow. She also stated, I like the DRDP because it does not focus on age
and milestones, but on developmentally appropriate behaviors. When speaking about
how often she assess the children, Abhi replied by stating that her assessment is
ongoing. A quote from Abhi, I find assessments useful as it helps me pause, reflect
further on my observations and reflect on the evidence I have gathered. All the data tells
a story about the child. I look forward to sharing the story with the families, and it also
helps me understand my own journey as an educator. Abhi spoke briefly about the
ASQ. She stated that they use the ASQ as an assessment tool in her classroom with
the children.
Ahbi makes daily lesson plans that she generates observations about that go into
the DRDP. Abhi said that the children are assessed twice a year. She shares each
individual's child's DRDP assessment information with family twice a year at Parent
Teacher Conferences, unless a parent has a concern then they make special
accommodations. At the conferences, the parents are presented with work samples,
pictures, videos, etc. If she has concerns about the childs development, or notices red
flags in the classroom, she looks at the assessments first, then asks parents about their
own observations at home. If the childs parents agree with Abhi about the concerns,
she encourages them to consult the childs physician for additional input. Then she
meets with the parents again to discuss the next step in helping the child. Also, she
meets with the other Infant/Toddler teachers every friday morning and has a 1 hour
meeting where they discuss situations they want to improve on, and what their future
plans are for the children.

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When asked if she uses technology in her assessment process, Abhi stated that
they have a program where they can use the DRDP online for easy access. She can go
into each childs profile and make adjustments as frequently as needed. When Abhi was
first introduced to the DRDP, it was all paper based. There was little room to write, and
by the time the parents had access to their childs assessment, it looked unprofessional
with all the changes that were made. Additionally, if she didnt make the changes to the
DRDP before showing the parents it wouldnt be the updated growth of the child. She
wished she could have went to a training on how effectively to use it because that would
have saved her time in the long run.
Connar also asked Abhi if she is ever assessed as a professional, and how often
she is assessed. She stated that the teachers at ELCC receive an annual evaluation
and then meet with other professionals to discuss and set goals. They also meet every
three months for Professional Development Plans. They meet with the assistant director
and speak about how their classroom is running and any new experiences they want to
bring to the classroom, or conferences they would like to attend.
Interviewer: Alyssa Ayers
Professional: Ashley Andersen
Type of Setting: Cornell Elementary in Okemos, MI
Grade of Child / Age Range: Second Grade, 7+ years
Years of Professional Experience: 5 years
Second grade is a transition year for most seven year old children in the terms of
assessment. The children have been familiar with informal, non-standardized
assessments for the past two years of their lives. In second grade however, they are
introduced to formal, standardized testing that is required by the school district. Children
transition to taking weekly spelling tests, weekly math tests, and even monthly unit tests
in social studies and science. This can be very overwhelming for the students, families,
and definitely teachers, especially Ms. Andersen. She believes that assessment is a
very useful part of the education system, but it is also the biggest challenge. Without it,
we would not understand where students are, and what we need to do in order to help
them progress to where they need to be. However, there is only so much time to assess
what needs to be assessed in a second grade classroom. She often feels like she is
assessing more than she is teaching, and that worries her.
Because formal assessments tend to be overwhelming and cause feelings of
anxiety at this age, she continues to use informal assessments, such as those we have
learned about in HDFS 421. Through mainly observations and work samples, she is
able to assess the second graders in a natural setting, in her class every day. With the
information that she collects about her students literacy, cognitive, social and even
physical skills, she is able to create lesson plans to teach that support their growth
developmentally. With the addition of observation and work samples, she groups

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children into three groups based on formal assessment scores. The groups range from
low, medium, and high. The children are unaware of the reason they are in one of the
three groups, and Ms. Andersen never discusses it with them. Its simply a way to help
Ms. Andersen stay organize and to provide the most attention possible to meet the
education needs of 24 children in the classroom.
With the three groups, she uses the collected assessment information specifically
in math and literacy to create centers in the classroom. The group rotate centers every
15 to 20 minutes during a selected time of the day. The centers are a way to support the
children in learning new skills with their peers. One center has partner games where the
children practice important skills like adding and sometimes spelling. Another center
includes working on workbooks (supplied by the district). Children can work individually,
or with another child to complete problems in the book. The dividing of the children in
three levels is beneficial for this center because it allows children to create problem
solving ideas with others at the same level. It is also beneficial for the supporting
teacher at the center (usually Alyssa), because she can answer questions that more
than one child has, in order to support their needs. The last center is a very specific
center in which Mrs. Andersen is at. This is the skill build center, where Ms. Andersen
teaches how to do certain skills on a more personal level, rather than as a whole class.
She can use previous assessments to help build skills that are lacking. For example, if
the low group needs more practice with spelling words that end in ies, she can provide
more specific one on one support in that area.
Ms. Andersen said that parents are welcome to know how their child is doing in
the classroom at any time. She encourages parents to stay in close contact with her,
and to attend parent teacher conferences twice a year. She frequently shares
assessment data with parents so they are able to support their child at home. An
example of Ms. Andersen sharing assessment data might include a graded spelling test
being sent home, or an email about an observation she made about their child at school
today.
The entire Okemos School District uses technology for collecting data from
assessments. Scores and information about childrens progress is online through
Google. Parents do not have complete access to assessment scores, only what the
teacher provides. Other technology used in Ms. Andersens assessment process is
classroom computers. Starting in January, all assessments will be online. That includes
unit tests, math tests, and more. The students in her classroom will no longer be using
classroom textbooks for subjects such as science, but everything will be available
online. Students progress on informal math games and spelling games online, will be
available for Ms. Andersen to see and analyze. She is not entirely sure how using
computers in the classroom to take assessments will work, but she is willing to do trial
and error to help her children learn in the best way possible.
Like the students, Ms. Andersen is also assessed. She is observed teaching in
her classroom by administration and other teachers and receives written documents

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with feedback from both. The school district uses the practice, Teachers Learning
Together to help all teachers develop their teaching skills. Every few months, a teacher
will receive a sub in their classroom, and the teacher will then go observe another
teacher for a couple hours. The teacher will take notes on what works well for and what
does not work well in their classroom. The teacher being observed receives a checklist
format with criteria that they did or did not meet and informal feedback. Often times
teachers giving feedback will share ideas that they have found successful in their own
classroom.
Overall, Ms. Andersen finds assessment to be a very important aspect in the
classroom. She believes that daily, informal assessments are best because they do not
cause anxiety which might influence a childs score. When red flags come up in
students assessment scores, she is able to reassess their knowledge and then provide
interventions as needed to help the child learn the information necessary to move on to
third grade, and to succeed in life.

Interviewer: Lauren Salome

Professional: Sally Mowers
Type of Setting: Child Development Lab, East Lansing Campus, MSU
Grade of Child / Age Range: 4 years
Years of Professional Experience: 22 years
In regards to the questions Lauren asked this professional, she started by saying
that the types of assessments they use in the four year old classroom at the CDL are
standardized and authentic assessments. She talked about the PELI, which stands for
Preschool Early Literacy Inventory. PELI is an assessment tool that looks at
phonological awareness, vocabulary and comprehension. In addition to the PELI
assessment, the High Scope Core was also mentioned, which Lauren had started to
learn about upon working with Mrs. Mowers in her classroom. This assessment tool has
several domains that are assessed in which information is recorded on the childrens
development which can be done through anecdotes, work samples, and pictures taken.
These assessments are recorded on a daily basis so that on Fridays, teachers can look
at this collected data and plan lessons for the coming week based on what the children
are learning or what it seems like they could use more help with. For example, Mrs.
Mowers said that one of the core items states that children of this age should be using
pronouns, so they use this information to plan lessons to incorporate that into classroom
activities and then record the progress. This recording can be done by writing, but then
is entered to the core through a computer where each child has a place in the system.
Other technology devices such as IPads are used for pictures, as well as phones
to record verbal anecdotal notes so that they happen right when moment happens,
making them accurate. This also helps to collect as much information as possible

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because Mrs. Mowers said that one of the biggest difficulties in using assessments is
taking the time to record all of the data. This information can then be shared at parentteacher conferences with individual parents about their child, or even at the end of the
day at pickup if something stood out during that day.
Teachers alike are assessed yearly at the Child Development Labs. Sometimes
assessments on teachers can also be ongoing for certain, specific things.
In regards to the questions we came up with as a group, Mrs. Mowers said that
there are certain aspects of each assessment tool that she does not find to be
specifically useful when recording data to help plan lessons. For example, neither
assessment tool focuses on rhyming, which is a big indicator of phonological awareness
in children of this age.
When teachers start noticing red flags in development in terms of learning, steps
are taken to help the child displaying the red flags. Data is reviewed on a pyramid
system that shows when they are far below, a little bit below, at, a little bit above, and far
above benchmark. When children are displaying that they are far below benchmark,
specific lessons are planned to help them in that development area.
Lastly, Mrs. Mowers said that assessments are always important in any way they
are defined. It gives so much insight to how children are developing, and more
specifically how they learn as individuals because they are at such an early age when
they are at the Child Development Lab.
Analysis of Responses:
As these professionals were all early educators, we were able to find some
similarities in their responses to each question. One thing we noticed was that the
teachers thought of assessments in a positive way, even though their reasons for saying
so varied somewhat. For example, one teacher mentioned that assessments were
beneficial to help her students, but also herself as an educator, while another teacher
only talked about the benefits of assessments for the children in her classroom. The
way technology was spoke about throughout each professional was similar in the ways
that they believe it has some advantages. Each stated that being able to capture in the
moment photos or recordings is beneficial when having to record them later that day, or
a few days later. It allows them to see a visual of the child in the activity/experience
again, or hear what the children were saying.
In contrast, there were two professionals having been in the professional field for
five years, compared to the professional that has been working in the field for 22 years.
This allowed us to see the differences in their years of study and there take on
assessments. Also, with having a wide range of ages from infants to second grade
children, we see that Abhi and Ms. Anderson do not use the PELI in their assessments
as they are for preschool aged children. Likewise, Abhi spoke about the DRDP, which

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can be used with infants, toddlers and preschool aged children, and Mrs. Mowers did
not.

Reflection on Learning:
Through this assignment, we saw a pattern and this was that assessments are
generally a positive thing. Some professionals saw flaws in certain types of
assessments, but they always circled back to the fact that they are always helpful in
some way. This interview was a learning experience because we have been talking
about assessments all semester, but it was interesting to hear professionals that
engage in specific types of assessments everyday talk about those types. We learned
through real-life examples how the data that is collected is actually put to use to benefit
each child. It was unique to read the different responses from all three professionals
with the age ranging from infants up to second grade children. This allowed us to see
the different types of assessments being used for different ages. Through advancing
technology, teachers are able to enter data onto recording devices, which allows them
to collect accurate data and then that data is all stored in one place for easier access.
We also learned about how teachers are assessed as well. We had not really thought
about this before because we are always so focused on assessing children, so it was
interesting to hear how teachers are assessed and what those assessments look for.
Looking back to see if our initial goals were met, we were all satisfied with how
our interviews went and the knowledge and experience we gained from them. Connar
learned that Abhis classroom does use the ASQ, as an assessment tool, which is
something we have spoke about in HDFS 421 lecture. Likewise, Lauren was assured
that Mrs. Mowers has her doubts about the assessments she uses, but overall, they
give great insight on how children are developing at such young ages. Lastly, Alyssas
professional, Ms. Anderson, spoke about how she uses both formal and informal
assessments with her children. She likes to use the combination of both as it keeps the
stress level down for the children in her classroom.