Assessment in early childhood education: Micro-regimes perspective

Abstract

The research literature on assessment policies in ECEC typically differentiates performative assessment regimes affected by neoliberal reforms, and social democratic assessment regime that highlights a holistic approach and democratic and local decision making concerning the focus of assessment. It has been suggested that this dichotomy between Anglo-Saxon and Nordic models may be a discursive tool created by authors from within the English language context to critique their own context rather than a description of actual practices. To shed more light on this scholarly discussion, this article introduces a concept 'micro-regime of assessment' to refer to a set of rules, practices, or arrangements related to assessment at a small or localised level, rather than at a broad national or international level. In particular, we ask what kinds of micro-regimes of assessment we can identify in ECEC in Finland and what kinds of interlinkages we can find between the background characteristics of ECEC teachers and micro-regimes of assessment. Assessment practices that teachers used were measured using an online questionnaire. The sample of this study consists of 1,194 participants from 834 ECEC centres. By using latent profile analysis, we identify four micro-regimes of assessment that are 1) technocratic-enthusiast, 2) fragmented, 3) enabling and 4) conflicted regimes. By using multinomial logistic regression analysis, we show how work experience and education were connected to the likelihood of micro-regime membership. In sum, the variation in assessment regimes relates to the aim of assessment, institutional arrangements for governing, and the kind of epistemic community that is involved in evaluation processes. The variation occurs at both the national and local levels. Our evaluative mindsets and the ways in which people make evaluation fit into local traditions, practices, and beliefs seem to emerge as part of local regimes.