Observing Communication
This week I had the opportunity to observe an Educational Assistant (E.A.) working one to one with one of her students. The child had a very specific task to complete and the E.A. was helping the child complete this work. Two years ago this child was nonverbal and I felt absolutely blessed to be welcomed in to glimpse the communication skills that this child has developed through the efforts of her teachers and this particular E.A. It was incredibly fulfilling to witness the several attempts this child made to guide the conversation away from the numeracy work set in front of her. A child that once only nodded to show understanding was now initiating conversation by asking the E.A. questions about her weekend and making statements about her own personal experiences.
I noticed the respectful relationship that had developed between this adult and child and the comfort that this child had working with the adult. Even within the child’s attempts to distract the adult from the academic task, the E.A. acknowledged, rephrased, or answered the child’s questions with patience and understanding which allowed the child to feel as though her ideas were valued. She would then gently refocus the child on her task by suggesting they try it together. Together they would begin reciting the numbers and slowly the E.A. would soften her voice until the child was completing the task on her own. When the child needed refocusing a few minutes later, she would go through the same paces with success each time. Her entire approach reminded me that even though we may have a particular task in mind, there is much value in going astray for a moment. In those moments, we can model language, engage children in thinking deeper, and listen respectfully to their ideas. Those moments that we allow children to lead the conversation can often be most valuable in their communication skill development because it is then that they are interested in exploring their ideas further.
Although a specific task was required of this child, the E.A. demonstrated the equal power that had been established in their relationship by allowing the child to continue to initiate conversation and share her ideas without being shut down. “Sharing power during conversations and allowing children to initiate conversations maximizes children’s voices” (Hayes & Matusov, 2005, as quoted by Dangel & Durden, 2010, p. 78). Allowing the child to initiate conversation has encouraged this child to use and expand her language skills and having met this child two years ago, I can see for myself the incredible growth she has achieved by having had these opportunities in her learning environment. That being said, I believe that the exchange of ideas could have been even more effective in supporting this child’s language development if the E.A. had put time aside for conversation before beginning the task. Taking a few minutes to engage in child initiated conversation would have allowed the child to expand on her ideas even further while also giving her the opportunity to build upon the language skills that she has already developed. It may also give her the sense of being heard, allowing her to let go of that desire and focus on the academic task set in front of her.
One of the first similarities that I noticed between this adult and myself is the patience and interest we both have when listening to children’s ideas. However, I could see that as an E.A., this adult had been given a task to complete with the child and this influenced how she responded to the child. For myself, perhaps because I am in a position that I understand and am responsible for planning curriculum activities, I can allow myself to travel with a child on their initiated tangent because I recognize the value that path has in their learning and how it also relates to other curricular outcomes. Often, I am able to integrate the child’s thoughts and ideas into the activity that we are working on making the task even more productive and influential in the child’s development.
I have always respected the child as an individual and I think that this has influenced me greatly in how I communicate and listen to children. I consciously work at creating a collaborative partnership in my interactions with children that include the expression of their thoughts and feelings. I also have come to realize that when I am in a situation in which I must give information or expectations to a child, I give reasoning to why I am directing a child so that they can understand my point of view and the realities of the world around them. I have often had colleagues express their admiration for the respectful interactions they observe in my classroom and the resources this week have allowed me to directly connect good practice with what I am already doing. However, as I look to growing in my abilities to communicate effectively with children, I recognize that although my skills in communicating with children is strong, I sometimes can get caught up in the immediacy of other demands and must remind myself that there is often nothing more pressing then the needs of the child to express and share their ideas at that moment.
References
Dangel, J. R., & Durden, T. R. (2010). The nature of teacher talk during small group activities. YC: Young Children, 65(1), 74-81. Retrieved from http://ezp.waldenulibrary.org/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=ehh&AN=47964033&site=ehost-live&scope=site