ABSTRACT
Skilled practitioners should spend most of their time interacting directly with children to guide their learning rather than writing things down.
(DfE, 2011a: 30)
It is intentional to put this chapter ahead of the planning chapter because assessment is the starting point at which to plan experiences. This chapter covers the suggested revisions of EYFS and provides guidance on how to approach the revised assessment requirements, as well as sharing examples of assessment practices from practitioners and from the wealth of information provided by the early years national strategy pre-2010. The research evidence for the EYFS review concluded that, ‘formative assessment will lie at the heart of providing a supporting and stimulating environment for every child’ (Evangelou et al., 2009: 5). Basic assessment principles are shared and discussed. At one level, one can be heartened at the reduction in assessment requirements, but on closer examination this may not seem as reduced as Tickell suggests. I have no doubt that those practitioners I work with will keep me abreast of their views in due course. Nonetheless, what I want to have emboldened on every page is the following statement. I urge practitioners to heed this statement at all costs:
It is the interaction between practitioners and children that helps promote the rich learning environment the EYFS is seeking to create. This cannot be achieved if practitioners are making notes, instead of talking and playing with children.
