In practice, early childhood mental health consultants will complete observations of both individual children and classroom environments. They may also complete screening and assessments for individual children, but in the consultant role, are more likely to guide the selection of instruments, the implementation and interpretation of the results, and the implications for any planned intervention with ECE staff.
Careful observation is important for gathering information and is often completed in the early care and education setting or the family home during a home visit. Consultants commonly use running record observations to record behavior without bias. Reviewing, understanding, and interpreting these observations must consider aspects of the child’s culture and the cultural context that might influence the child’s behavior.
Developmental screening and assessments are complex processes magnified by different expectations of families and those completing the assessments (Barrera, 1996). The assessment of a child involves a judgment about adaptive functioning in the context of caregiving relationships – family and early care and education – and requires an understanding of what is valued and expected by the family’s culture (Emde, 2006). Developmental observation, screening, and assessment will only be culturally responsive when those guiding, selecting, completing, and interpreting these processes demonstrate personal cultural competence. In addition, the procedures and instruments used must be culturally and linguistically appropriate if the assessment is to be valid.
Culturally competent and effective consultants demonstrate the ability to:
(Yates, T. et al, 2008)