Goodman, Y. (1978, June). Kid watching. National Elementary Principal, 57(4), pp. 41-55.
Goodman asserts that children learn language through their natural environment, thus testing that language development is inappropriate. Language learning is like testing a hypothesis: a language learner makes hypotheses about language and adjusts responses based on the responses they receive in their environment. Standardized testing does nothing to aid in language development. If anything, it stifles a child’s development. Goodman stresses that watching kids is the best way to assess their development and that observing mistakes in language usage over time can show how a child is developing. Additionally, kid watchers must take dialect and culture into account when taking assessments.
When I approached this article, I thought the information would be out of date. Instead, it holds consistent with other texts and research on miscue analysis and kid watching both by Goodman and by other authors.
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