Discussion Question
The three readings for this module highlight different aspects of the importance of the practice of observing and documenting children’s learning processes. In your discussion this week, reflect and discuss how the module’s content as well as the weekly readings have contributed to your understanding of the purpose(s) of the practice of observation and documentation in early childhood settings. Identify what challenges you can forsee in documenting children’s learning and explore possible solutions to overcoming these challenges.
Readings
• Forman, G., & Hall, E. (2005). Wondering with children: The importance of observation in early education. Early Childhood Research and Practice, 7(2). https://ecrp.illinois.edu/v7n2/forman.html
• Pelo, A. (2006). See attached
Further Learning
• Pelo, A. (2006). At the crossroads: Pedagogical documentation and social justice. In Fleet, A., Patterson, C. & Robertson, J. (Eds.), Insights: Behind early childhood pedagogical documentation. Pademelon Press. See attached
• Seitz, H. (2008). The power of documentation in the early childhood classroom. Young Children, 62(2), 88-93. See attached

Introduction: Why is Observation Important
“As a teacher of young children, interpreting what I ‘see’ when I observe children is central to my role. I use my interpretation to chart my teaching course…”
Janet Robertson (2006, p.148)
In this module we begin to think about the relationships between observation, pedagogical judgment, and curriculum planning. Child observation has always been a key pedagogical tool in ECE. Observation is more than looking. It involves curiosity, intention, concentration, reflection, and interpretation. Rinaldi (2001) offered the phrase: “The pedagogy of listening” as a metaphor for a practice of child observation and documentation that is open and welcoming to differences and to other’s point of view. Educators of young children not only notice children’s interactions and experiences, they also interpret them in pedagogically-responsive, ethical, and meaningful ways. Teachers of young children continuously learn anew about, from, and with children through paying close attention to what happens in the classroom. The documentation of the observation (for example, by means of photography) can become a critical tool for co-creating a meaningful curriculum with young children. Moreover, from their interpretation of observation, educators can learn about themselves and can consequently reflect on and critically examine their own practices.
Ways to Observe
Some methods of child observation are more structured and linear; their purpose is typically to observe children’s progress against predefined stages of development and expectations. Some child observation practices are more open-ended and anecdotal. While both methods are widely used, we will focus on two open-ended approaches to observation and documentation. The two approaches: Pedagogical Documentation and Learning Stories are recognized globally for changing the focus of child observation from an attempt to find out what the child can or cannot do to “making children’s learning visible” (Project Zero & Reggio Children, 2001) and thus open for reflection and conversation.
Pedagogical Documentation
The practice of pedagogical documentation originated in the pre-primary schools of Reggio Emilia, Northern Italy in the late 1970s. The process involves the teacher’s careful attention and active collection of observational materials such as recordings of children’s conversations, photographs or videotaping of children’s processes of learning and experiences, a sample of children’s work, anecdotes about a unique event, etc. Once the material has been collected, the educator initiates a process of reflection and interpretation about the documented events with her or his colleagues, the children, and occasionally the parents with the purpose of: 1) gaining a deeper understanding of the children’s processes of learning and thinking; and 2) opening a space where children’s views, inquiries, and perspectives can meaningfully contribute to the creation of a responsive curriculum. Quite often this beautiful process of observing, documenting and interpreting is summarized and shared in the environment as a display with text and images depicting the learning process.
Watch this video Links to an external site. with Professor Carol Anne Wien Download Professor Carol Anne Wien, where she explains the process of pedagogical documentation as it has been used in Canada.
In British Columbia’s New Early Learning Framework, the practice of pedagogical documentation has been called: Pedagogical Narration and is described in details here on pages 51-60; 90-100: https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/education-training/early-learning/teach/early-learning-framework Links to an external site.
Learning Stories
In New Zealand the practice of learning stories has been developed by Margaret Carr (2001) in response to the national ECE curriculum Te Whariki as a form of curriculum assessment. Educators in New Zealand document and create narratives (stories) that focus on children’s learning dispositions in response to four currciulum principles:
• Relationships. Children learn through responsive and reciprocal relationships with people, places, and things.
• Empowerment. The early childhood curriculum empowers the child to learn and grow.
• Holistic development. The early childhood curriculum reflects the holistic way children learn and grow.
• Family and Community The wider world of family and community is an integral part of the early childhood curriculum.
The storied observations focus on teachers noticing, recognizing and responding to children’s learning episodes. As well, the stories take a non-deficit approach to documenting children’s learning with the goal of supporting and strengthening children’s identities as thinkers and learners. These stories are carefully collected into portfolios that are shared with the children and their families.
Theoretically speaking, the orientation of both pedagogical documentation and learning stories is towards the socio-cultural perspective, which, as we have seen, views learning and knowledge construction within (and inseparable from) social, cultural, and historical relations and contexts. As Carr (n.d.) notes: “Learning is sited [resides] in relationships with people, places and things” (p. 1). The observer in these practices is not viewed as a distant, or objective – looking from the outside in – rather, the educator is conceptualized as a participant and a researcher who is trying to understand with the children the complex processes of knowledge co-construction among a community of learners.
See examples of Learning Stories adapted in the U.S. context – http://tomdrummond.com/learning-story-examples/ Links to an external site.
– https://tomdrummond.com/looking-closely-at-children/writing-learning-stories/ Links to an external site.
* Note that for assignment #2 you are asked to create a learning story (see details in the Assignment webpage). It is important that you make an arrangement and obtain verbal consent for your observation as soon as possible.