These behaviors concerned us, as they sometimes indicate developmental delays. As teachers, we found that the most effective way to convey these concerns to parents was through involving them directly in their children's assessment. Assessment is required by law and used by local educational agencies and school administrators, primarily to determine risk for developmental delays. Teachers also use assessments for the purpose of determining the basis for appropriate developmental activities for young students both at home and in school, and to evaluate the success of our own teaching. Critical Addition Accurate assessment of young deaf and hard of hearing children can be a challenge.
Checklists exist, but they offer limited views of the child's capabilities.
Observations are important, but the setting for this is critical. Even when used together, checklists and observations leave gaps. The recent use of portfolios has added another source for documenting how young children grow and learn over time. We decided that using portfolios would be an effective way to combine a variety of assessment strategies and methods, and provide an in-depth, comprehensive view of each child. After brainstorming, we agreed that a strong team, consisting of ourselves, the families of each student, the students themselves, and other professionals such as administrators, school district personnel, and communication specialists, was essential.