Children's perspectives on language assessments
EVA has conducted a study of children's perspectives on participating in language assessments at their daycare centre.
The study has partly been conducted with reference to article 12 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, which stipulates that children must be involved in decision-making on those issues which affect them, and partly on the basis of epistemological considerations about the necessity of involving child perspectives so that children can contribute to studies with unique knowledge about their own lives.
The study has collected specific methodological experience in involving children's perspectives on their lives at their daycare centre by using video footage of language assessments, questionnaires for children etc. The fact that the study has voiced children's experiences in test situations regarding language assessments has also brought new attention to the interpretation of language tests and has provided new options and possibilities for the professionals working with the children.
The project is part of a larger study on language assessment of three-year-olds and follow-up language interventions carried out by the Danish Evaluation Institute in 2009 and 2010.
This paper was presented under the proposal entitled “Studies of child perspectives - methodological experience and new knowledge about language assessment of three-year-olds” (Ref.0102) at the International Congress for School Effectiveness and Improvement (ICSEI) 2011 in Limassol, Cyprus.
