Preschool Assessment: Principles and Practices - Dissertation Example

Teachers’ perception of school readiness is of great essence for their pupils. Moore (2008, 16) comments on how teachers' perceptions can affect early assessments of children’s skills, affecting children’s adjustment in kindergarten. Hence, it is vital to identify teachers’ perceptions about school readiness. As further stated by Moore (2008), most teachers perceive social abilities like obedience, personality, and the capacity to interrelate with peers and adults as a major contributing factor to kindergarten readiness.

McBryde and colleagues (2004) found out that most teachers have high regard for well-developed determination, flexibility, compliance, and social abilities. Also, personality associated with timid or introvert behaviours were considered by most teachers as hindrances to successful adjustment in formal schooling. Likewise, Piotrkowski and colleagues (2001) discovered that most teachers believe social skills are related to school readiness. They found out that most teachers regard communication skills and being determined, eager, and inquisitive as fundamental to school readiness.

Essentially, the teachers name social abilities, communication skills, independence, and interacting with other individuals vital to kindergarten readiness. Even earlier studies indicate that teachers regard social abilities as vital to school readiness. Furthermore, teachers’ perception of a child is normally an important variable when diagnosing a child as vulnerable or at-risk. Brief, psychometrically reliable evaluations from teachers, is required when children are instructed to undergo a psycho-educational assessment.

Teachers are in a strong position to evaluate children's behavioural and academic skills before they go into formal schooling (Bracken & Nagle, 2006). Kindergarten teachers monitor and evaluate kindergarten pupils for several hours a day. Thus, these teachers have a relative knowledge of, familiarity with, and experiences in evaluating students in different settings. Studies looking at the correlation between standardized tests and teachers’ perceptions have recommended teachers as a reliable evaluator of school readiness.