school observation checklists?

[LM]

Anyone know of any school observation checklists - apart from the RASCS (ADHD).

Doesn't have to be related to ADHD

Any help would be appreciated!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[miriam]

I don't really use schedules to observe. I just try to notice lots of things:

Does the child behave much the same as their peers?
Do they stay on task?
Do they follow instructions?
Do they move about more or less than others?
Do they produce the same amount/quality of work?
Are they able to interact with peers?
Do they make good eye contact?
Do they use appropriate language?
Do they ask for help appropriately if they need it?
Do they appear to know the rules/routines/expectations of the classroom?
Can they cope with transitions from one task to another?
Can they cope with unstructured times?
Can they play in the playground?
Do they interract appropriately with peers?
And are there any signs of any potential concerns that have been raised?

[Pettie]

In my last AP post, I worked in a Behaviour Assessment clinic which was a joint venture between Community Paediatrics and CAMHS. I undertook numerous school and home observations. I did not use any specific scales (apart from Connor's rating scales if assessing for ADHD). I incorporated all the above that Miriam has stated into the observation write up / report. I structured them as follows and this helped me to set it out clearly and include all the info stated above

background/reason for referral etc.

School Observation
Summary of observation of structured time (ie. in class) activity level, specify subject, classroom situation, time
Summary of observation of unstructured time (ie. breaks, lunch) activity level etc.
Communication with peers (including info on interaction, eye contact etc.)
Communication with staff (eye contact? follow instructions? interaction etc.)
Conversation with teachers and/or LSA (gaining their overall opinons, info on school work, what behaviour programmes they have in place, etc)

Home observation (if needed I put in similar subheadings as above)

Formulation/understanding of difficulties
Recommendations


Not sure if this helps, but I found it was a useful structure and helped to make sure I encorporated all important info without babbling. I knew my reports were going to be read by busy professionals outside psychology, plus families, and thought this was a useful way of getting the info across.

It is probably important to say, that this was approved and thought about with my supervisor at the time. You and your supervisor may wish to tackle it differently.

[MRE95]

Hi,

I wondered if any new resources had become available since this post back in 2007 that people find useful for school observations, particularly in terms of differentiating between behaviours that may be related to ASD, ADHD, anxiety or to having an LD. Any checklists that would assist with this would be especially useful. I appreciate it isn't an easy distinction to make even after doing behavioural obs across various settings, so any resources at all that may help I would be very grateful for!

Any general recommendations that add to the above posts are also welcomed