This is a very good question David. It has made me reflect hard on whether i ever went an extra mile to know the needs of my students. 

I recall that I introduced online learning in my class in 2017 and was strict on timelines. Students were excited about it but they never completed tasks within given time. Most teachers dont like this. 

I administered CATS at given times and was hesitant on extending timelines for those who failed to complete in time.   I investigated and came to learn that most students could not access network outside campus and relied on free wifi in campus. They also shared smart phones amongst themselves which slowed them down. This made me adjust activities given and extended timelines to complete the tasks. This lessened tension amongst us.   

Excellent question David. I recall having to gather information on all my pupils last year when Covid-19 struck and teachers had to find alternative ways to reach their students online. Not every child had a device with which to connect for synchronous sessions and not every child had connectivity. The information gathered allowed me to make allowances and adaptations to try to reach each child. 

Information gathered about students have changed the way I teach and reach my students.

I have used students' interests and background to motivate students to read.  In some areas that I have worked in, students are involved in fishing from a very young age.  Choosing a passage or poem on fishing, stimulated the interest in students to read.  We discussed the passage/poem and they were excited to have their input, even more so, when they were able to teach their teacher about fishing.  Comprehension became easier for them and moving on to different poems/passages were more acceptable as they no longer see reading as far-fetched.

Best Regards

Kamaldaye

Observation, narratives and checklist are used throughout the Daily schedule to observe and document children’s behaviour and progress. Observations were made of a male student who uses obscene language continuously and was reminded to be respectful and kind to his peers and teachers.  Teachers collaborate discuss and planned an intervention at what learning center and what time it will occur.  We continue to observe and document what triggers this negative behaviour for a period of week.  We use puppets as an intervention the following week and continue to observe he still uses obscene language to express his thoughts.  He was given many opportunities to play with the puppets and display drinking a Carib beer while using obscene language to express himself while staggering and laughing.

We spoke to the parents and they disclose living close to a bar and he adopts some behaviour of the patrons who patronize the business and does that at home as well.  We are aware of the contributing factor of his negative behaviour and continue to try various intervention. He was given leadership roles and rewards for positive behaviours. There has been considerable positive outcomes at school and at home.

Before any child is admitted into the school there is a questionnaire for parents. Within this the information regarding the child's development in included.

The information includes any on going health issues, child's physical development and any other information relevant to the child.

This is not to discredit any child from enrolling, but to render the proper assistance where needed.

I effectively adapted my teaching concerning a child that I saw struggling to focus,to realize she was going blind due to an illness. I changed my teaching strategy to more vocal than visual. Something as simple as how I pronounce my words was very important to her grasping my instructions. My adaptation to the child's needs help her to cope with her challenges.

Hi

As an early childhood educator, one of the ways we gather information about a child/ children is through observation.

From what is taking place now, with covid 19 resulting in online classes, we have to change the way we teach. Before at the centers we would provide hands on materials where the children will come and interact with it , for example if we are doing the days of the week - a child will come and take the word Thursday and place it in the spot "Today is    ". But now we have to find other ways to make them involve in their learning or to make learning more interesting. So I would use sesame street characters and other online cartoon characters to help.

In my current online class I sometimes utilise videos to reinforce concepts. There is one student who has a hearing impairment and wears a hearing aid. I have added captions to all videos so that he can read and follow along with the videos in addition to the audio. 

Great question and yes I have. After collecting and documenting information on a little boy in my class about his behaviour and when the behaviour occurred I was able to inform the staff, administrator and parents of what I have notice. The parents took the child to get an assessment done. The child was autistic.  I started to change my approach to teaching.  Encouragement to change the ethos and culture of the environment to cater for challenging behaviour. Such as figuring out the motivation behind the tantrums that occur.  Find ways to support positive behaviour. And provide structure, routine and  safety. 

After acquiring information from the administrator concerning the child after they ae enrolled, conducted observations, records and checklists, to better assist the particular child i have to collaborate with staff, parent and administrator, plan and use appropriate curriculum, provide the necessary resources and adjust my teaching style to meet the necessary needs of the child to ensure they are provided with an equal opportunity to engage in learning experiences. 

Information gathering plays a critical role is teaching. As an Early Childhood  Educator, I do daily observation and recording of all the children where I dentify their strengths and weaknesses. This information is used to plan daily activities, make improvements to the environment and facilitate learning of all children according to their developmental levels. 

After gathering information on a particular child, I realised that the child doesn't like speaking in front of his peers. The child sttured a bit and was being made fun of. My task was to develop strategies to encourage the child to share their experiences with their peers. The children was also encouraged to appreciate everyone as they are, to show love for their peers.  

I displayed the child's work to build his Self-Esteem and encourage him to share vocally with his peers, never forcing him too. The children clapped after each child spoke and after some time it movitated him, I stood by him when he first started and it really gave him the encouragement to speak. Feeling that sense of encouragement and trust among his peers he was able to overcome his fears. 

Hi, 

The information i have gathered about my students over the years have developed my teaching methods. I had a student who had difficulty retaining but, had a fixed interest in cars. I used this info to create flash cards and color coded key points with the student's favorite color. This, encouraged learning for not only for that student, it made the lesson enjoyable for the entire class.