Smart and Smarter

James E. Gardner

• Editorial: Routledge
• Año: 2013
• ISBN:
  9781135055974
• Edición: 1
• Categoría: Education
• Categoría: Education General

Aims to teach parents and educators how to enhance a child's educational achievement using the Behavioural Assessment Rating Inventory (BARI) and the Weschler Intelligence Scale for Children. Both instruments possess diagnostic and prescriptive teaching qualities.

II

THE FIRST FIVE YEARS

7

Starting the BARI Program

Once a baby is conceived and begins to grow, the learning process starts. The baby continues to learn rapidly after birth and then, of course, throughout all stages of life. The human being, from start to finish, is probably the most efficient and omnivorous learning machine ever to grace the earth. As the shark has evolved to hunt and eat, the human has evolved to learn.

As stated previously, the learning that takes place in the first few years of life is generally considered to be the most important learning of all. This early learning is the foundation for the intellect which will gradually form during the remainder of the child's first decade of life, those ten crucial years that will set the stage for most of what we can or cannot become in later life.

Intelligence is not, as many assume, simply book smarts. It includes but is not limited to being able to correctly answer many Jeopardy show questions and get good grades in school. Being able to think logically, perceive the consequences of one's actions, think vicariously, remember well, and express oneself well in speech or writing involves a highly important form of intelligence—verbal intelligence. It is largely our verbal intelligences that enable us to read, write, and discuss ideas well. It may be the most important of the intelligences for academic success. Even so, it is only one of several important forms of intelligence.

Quantitative intelligence or facility with math and computers may, in the future, come to be more valued than verbal intelligence. And both verbal and mathematical intelligences may in many instances be less important than social intelligence. The latter represents one's ability to creatively grapple with the many aspects and demands of daily life in a crowded and complex world.

Intellect in its broadest sense stands for the myriad of things which humans learn to do ranging across various realms of dance, art, music, the abstractions of math and physics, athletics, drama, philosophy, building, planning, politics and so on. Intellect also encompasses the learning and use of the subtle social skills so important in jobs such as psychotherapy, teaching, sales, and political positions in democratic governments.

Possessing one of the intelligences to a high degree does not preclude possessing other cognitive skills. A highly verbal attorney or professor might, for example, also be a gifted woodworker, musician or athlete. We have our various talents and some of our talents are in greater demand in our society than are others. For the Eskimo, a highly developed intelligence involves an acutely sensitive spatial orientation. This spatial orientation sense is necessary for one who must move about among large expanses in drifts of snow without street signs to point the way. Although a good sense of spatial orientation might be useful in some circumstances in our society, it is perhaps not as important as other intellectual skills might be.

A parent in our society would be confident if her child developed strong language, math and social skills. She would probably not be concerned with the thought that her child may not be able to find his way home in the unlikely event (in our society) of a blinding snowstorm. An Eskimo mother, of course, would probably take an entirely different view.

Every child needs to possess a reasonably well-developed cluster of the basic intellectual skills necessary for survival in his environment. In our high-tech society, skills involving language, math, computer, monetary exchange, and social interaction are highly useful. Skills involving hunting, fishing, running, jumping, swimming, use of a compass, gathering berries, hitting a ball, or discerning ocean currents may not be as critically useful as the first grouping for sheer survival, though they may add much to the quality of life.

THE TASK OF PARENTS

It seems safe to say that most parents today are rightly convinced that the acquisition of good basic thinking skills is very important for their child. Parents tend to be highly aware of the intellectual and social development of their children. The current generation of parents may be better informed in this area than any previous one. Today's parents tend to be goal-oriented and desirous of the “best” they can acquire for their child. Together with love, care, and nurturance, a principal task of the modern parent is to prepare her child for life outside the home environment and for what has become the first stage of formal education, kindergarten.

In order to accomplish this goal, the parent must give careful consideration to the child's development in four major areas:

• Physical-Coordinative

• Language-Cognitive

• Aesthetic-Creative

• Social-Emotional

All of these areas involve forms of intelligence. Combined, they maximize the child's various intellectual propensities and lay the groundwork for further development in the second half of the child's first ten years as we'll discuss in Part III.

The physical-coordinative area involves large and small muscle coordination. Language-cognitive functioning involves skills such as recognition of shapes, numbers, expressive and receptive language, memory and rudimentary cause-effect thinking. The aesthetic-creative domain has to do with music, arts and crafts and the enjoyment and understanding of the physical world. The social-emotional domain of intelligence involves skills in dealing with peers, response to separation or new situations and the budding awareness of self and others.

THE STRUCTURE OF THE PROGRAM

The basic premises of this program are the following:

1. Parents desire and would respond favorably to a planned and well thought out but informal and non-pressuring program by which they could more systematically and effectively assist their child's development in the four key areas

2. Parents want to be aware early of any developmental lags their child may experience in any of the four areas

3. Parents desire information about what steps to take to address any such developmental lags with appropriate teaching procedures and

4. Parents desire that their child be “kindergarten ready” at approximately five years of age. This is because kindergarten is the first stage of the formal learning process for children in our society and thus an important academic/intellectual starting point.

The Behavioral Analysis Rating Instrument (BARI) was developed by the author to promote and enhance a child's development.¹ The BARI consists of many items which have to do with the child's developmental status in the various major areas noted above. The BARI is both diagnostic and prescriptive. Preschools which use the BARI do new ratings every three to six months on each child. This is to keep fresh in the teacher's mind the needs of each individual child. It is also to chart the developmental course of each child. As the child develops and becomes more competent in various areas, his “scores” rise, as they should. All of this will be further clarified in the discussion below.

Use of the BARI begins with the parent initially checking the items corresponding to what the child can or cannot yet do in various areas. Then, the parent merely begins a simple program of teaching to the next level up on each item. The assessment is informal and does not involve testing the child. A sample item involving cooperation is shown below. Since it is expected that the child's development will be evaluated more than once over a period of time, usually every six months, most parents find it helpful to date the time of their rating. Again, please recall that the child is not tested; rather, the parent simply circles the items that best describe her child.

Cooperation with peers (circle one)

Date of 1st rating _________ 2nd rating _________ 3rd rating_________

1. Cannot or will not.

2. Unwillingly cooperates and only with much adult guidance.

3. Cooperates reluctantly, but will do so with adult encouragement.

4. Generally cooperates willingly, though may need some adult prompting.

5. Almost always cooperates well with other children.

Let's say that you checked your child's cooperative behavior with peers as being at about the 2 level. The simple task, then, is to help your child attain the 3 level, then the 4 level and so on. Under each rating box in the chapters to come will be suggestions for activities which will help the child acquire the desired skill. These are by no means all the activities which could be used and parents will be able to think of others well-suited to their own individual child and circumstances.

After the initial rating, the parent begins a gentle teaching program which is informal and individualized. This teaching program utilizes pleasant activities that will engage the child. When the parent is able to circle all 4s or 5s, the child is “kindergarten ready” from an intellectual/developmental standpoint. At this point, the parent will have taken the initial major steps toward maximizing her child's cognitive skills.

This program is not complicated. It is easy to follow and quite straightforward. You will also perceive how easy it is for you to be alert to opportunities to informally advance your child's development in many ways. It is very important, however, that you realize that the BARI program is neither a “test” as in school nor a structured preplanned teaching program.

Let's take another practice example. Item 1 of the BARI asks for your assessment of your child's overall body movement. Obviously, the answer will reflect your opinion but each number provides some idea of the way your child should look in order for you to circle a particular number. The young child will, naturally, be very unsure of himself or, perhaps, you will choose “slow and clumsy” and circle number 2. You simply circle the item which best reflects your honest assessment of the child's ability on this item having to do with Overall Body Movement.

This will be the case on every BARI item. You may rate them all at once, or when you are moved to do so. Each item is developmentally based. A “low” number for the younger child is expected, while the more skilled, older child will be rated higher. Low scores are not inherently “bad,” they reflect only the status of the child's skill level on the item being rated.

Item 1. Overall Body Movement (circle one)

Date of 1st rating______2nd rating ______ 3rd rating______

1. Very unsure of self.

2. Slow and clumsy; movements are awkward.

3. Fairly sure of body movements.

4. Sure of body movements; smooth and well-integrated movements most of the time.

5. Completely at ease with movement of body; good balance and coordination.

As stated, all you do is circle the number of the description which best describes your child. Remember, please, that your rating should reflect only what your child is truly doing, not what you think he could do or feel that he might do soon. To benefit you and your child, your ratings on every item must be absolutely honest and based only on what you have observed. When in doubt, score low.

What is the purpose of all this, you ask, other than to raise parental anxiety when you see that your child is not yet getting all 5s circled (this usually will not happen until the child is a late four year old or early five year old). There are two primary purposes to the ratings:

1. To assess your child's developmental status in the area rated and then to develop, if you so desire, an informal teaching program to help him in that area and,

2. To act as a guide to assist you in what level you need to teach to in order to move the child along developmentally.

Beneath each of the BARI items there is a discussion of the nature of the item and suggestions for teaching toward the next higher level of competency until, by age four or five, the child is completely competent in the areas assessed. You needn't be bound by the suggestions, however. Try to “get the idea” of what is required, feel free to try any and everything which might interest you and your child as it seems to related to the item.

Above all, do not turn enjoyable time with your child into a pedantic, boring, and stressful “teaching time.” These concepts have been derived from the fact that children are natural learners, that parents do a great deal of teaching, and that all the time spent may be more useful for the child's development if parents are following some reasonably structured program in a reasonably unstructured manner.

Initially, some parents have found the BARI to be intimidating because it seemed long and complicated. But it is neither. All you need do is study an item, think about your child, then circle his approximate skill level. Again, please do not set up a series of “tests” for your child to see how he “scores” on an item. If the child has not performed the behavior specified, then rate him a 1 in that area and start a gentle developmental program from that point.

Another purpose of the BARI ratings is diagnostic in nature. There are some children for whom the maturing process takes longer and these children may manifest mild developmental delays or maturational lags in one or more areas of the BARI ratings system. If a healthy, normal four or five year old is receiving honest ratings from you and perhaps your spouse of, say, 2s or 3s on some items, then he may be lagging a bit in those areas.

If you feel that your child may be lagging developmentally, do not panic and certainly do not take the BARI as the final diagnostic word. Consult with your spouse or some trusted family member, the child's preschool teacher and your pediatrician. Perhaps your observations are not accurate, or you misunderstood the item, or perhaps the child has a mild maturational delay. In this case, consultation with relevant and appropriate professionals may be needed.

To repeat. A preponderance of 4 and 5 ratings on all items indicates a kindergarten-ready child.

A few general considerations:

• Parents should consider each item in a broad sense. Don't be “picky” or too particular and fail to rate the item just because it may not be phrased as well as you would prefer. Your wording may be more appropriate to you than mine; we all have our own style.

• Be conservative. When in doubt rate low. This is no reflection on the child. Rating low is a safeguard.

• This is not an age-graded scale. You should rate on an absolute basis. That is, you either see the behavior or you don't. The child can either perform the item in the man...