Basics of Educational Assessment - study guide

Session 5: Diagnostic methods - Interview

Key Concepts

Some scholars talk about the concept of living in a "society of conversation" (e.g., Kvale, 2009), highlighting an interview as a distinct form of communication that profoundly influences various aspects of our lives. In the realm of education, several types of  interviews can be identified.

- Diagnostic (cognitive)  interviews: These focus on probing personal motives, beliefs, experiences, preconceptions, opinions, or values of an individual, as well as their relationships with others (such as parents, classmates, and teachers). They delve into facts regarding personal, health, family, or social history, as well as the processes, methods, and outcomes of learning. Diagnostic conversations facilitate information gathering through direct personal interaction between the interviewer and the respondent.

- Research  interviews: These contribute to the investigation of specific questions aimed at enhancing understanding or gaining insights into social reality. They contextualize an individual's subjective perspective on a particular event, process, or phenomenon.

- Corrective (remedial)  interviews: The primary objective of these conversations is to positively influence the development of an individual's personality and social situation, drawing from insights gained through the diagnostic process.

The boundaries between these different types of  interview s are fluid. The key distinction between diagnostic and research  interview s lies in the fact that diagnostic  interviews uncover specific facts that inform interventions, particularly in supporting an individual's educational journey (e.g., establishing support measures).

Diagnostic Interview: Types and Phases

We categorize diagnostic conversations into individual versus group conversations, and structured/semi-structured versus unstructured formats. In educational-psychological diagnostics, individual and semi-structured conversations are commonly utilized, although unstructured conversations also have their place.

Phases of Conducting a Diagnostic Conversation

The effectiveness of conducting and evaluating a conversation is closely tied to the professional diagnostic competencies possessed by the educational worker (as discussed in Chapter 1). We can outline five phases of conducting a conversation (particularly relevant in teacher-student or teacher-parent interactions), adapted from Kohoutek (2005):

**Preparation Phase**

   - Familiarize oneself with basic information about the student/parent before the conversation.

   - Select a suitable, comfortable, and private environment.

   - Define the conversation's goal and prepare relevant questions.

   - Estimate the conversation's duration.

   - Choose the Method of Recording the Conversation** (e.g.,  recording, taking notes etc.).      

**Initial Phase**

- Establish trust by assuring confidentiality or discussing the extent of disclosure.

- Highlight the option not to respond.

- Emphasize that there are no right or wrong answers.

- Avoid starting with topics that may evoke negative feelings or reminders of past failures.

- Proceed from relatively positive aspects to less favorable ones.

- Allow the respondent to express concerns or emotions freely.

- Give ample space for the respondent to share their thoughts.

- Utilize open-ended questions to encourage dialogue.

- Foster a positive atmosphere through active listening.

**Developing the Conversation**

- Ask more complex questions as the conversation progresses, tailored to the respondent's cognitive and emotional capacity.

- Adapt the question sequence, language, and formulations based on the respondent's personality and the situation.

**Conclusion**

- Conclude the conversation in a way that leaves room for further interaction.

- Aim for emotional closure to the conversation.


Types of Questions Asked in a Diagnostic Interview (adapted from Kohoutek, 2005): 

- Introductory Questions - Establish rapport and initiate conversation.

- Basic Questions - Introduce new topics or areas for discussion.

- Probing Questions - Delve deeper into topics to gain insight.

- Filtering Questions - Assess the respondent's ability to answer specific questions.

- Prompting Questions - Allow the respondent to share freely.

- Open vs. Closed Questions – Open-ended questions encourage elaborate responses, while closed questions typically yield concise answers.

- Projective Questions – Explore the respondent's thoughts and feelings through hypothetical scenarios.

- Suggestive Questions – Influence responses towards desired outcomes.

- Closing Questions – Conclude the conversation on a positive note.

What Are the Principles of Effective Interview Conduct? 

Consider the context and relationship dynamics between speakers (e.g., "Is the student distressed about a recent test? Would they prefer spending break time with peers?").

- Establish a clear objective for the interview.

- Strive to foster a trusting relationship actively (e.g., maintain eye contact, nod, use affirmations like "hmm," avoid condescension).

- Select an appropriate setting conducive to open dialogue.

- Use language suited to the student's age, avoiding technical jargon.

- Strategically organize the conversation's flow, beginning with broader, less personal topics as warm-ups.

- Engage in active listening techniques such as paraphrasing and mirroring.

- Offer constructive feedback to reinforce participation and understanding (e.g., "Your insights provide valuable perspective. I've gained significant insights from our discussion...").

- Pay close attention to non-verbal cues, including tone, pacing, facial expressions, body language (e.g., fidgeting, blushing, eye contact), as they may indicate underlying emotions or reactions.

- Reflect on personal biases and stereotypes about the student, avoiding the influence of first impressions (halo effect).

Common Errors in Conducting Interviews

During interviews, several mistakes can occur (adapted from Mertin and Krejčová, 2016). Some of these are exemplified in the provided conversation transcript, which was part of a student's assignment in the "Basicss of Educational Assessment " course, where student Vera conducted a conversation with student Barbora during her practice.

**Insufficient Elaboration of Informant's Responses**

Example with commentary:

Barbora: So this question is clear, like no. But I enjoy some subjects.

Vera: Do you think that what you learn at school will be useful in life?

**Vera fails to expand on Barbora's response and switches to a different topic, postponing further exploration of Barbora's relationship with specific subjects until later in the conversation.**

**Posing Multiple Questions Simultaneously**

Example with commentary:

Vera: Hi Baru. How are you? How was school today?

Barbora: Bad, because I had a headache. My mom had to come and get me after three hours.

**Asking multiple questions simultaneously disrupts focus on responses, often leading to selective answering and a failure to address all questions posed.**

**Overreliance on Closed Questions Prompting Yes/No Responses**

Example:

Vera: Alright, do you enjoy school?

**Closed questions typically elicit brief responses, limiting the depth of information gathered, as students may not offer elaborations voluntarily.**

**Employing Leading (Suggestive) Questions Guiding Responses**

Example:

Věra: So, you don't know?

**Asking Manipulative Questions to Confirm Assumptions**

Example with commentary:

Barbora: I don't enjoy Czech, history, German because we have a terrible teacher, but I like chemistry, math, biology, art, music is okay, and physics because we have a cool teacher, and that's about it.

Vera: So, you don’t enjoy English? Would you like it if you had a different teacher?

**Vera's question about English, following Barbora's discussion of disliked subjects, reveals a shift in the conversation's focus, possibly influenced by Věra's preconceptions about Barbora's attitude towards English.**

**Ineffective Conversation Length**

Commentary:

The attached conversation is relatively brief, limiting the depth of diagnostically relevant information gathered.

**Deviation from Interview Goals**

Commentary:

Vera's conversation aimed to understand Barbora's overall school attitude and specifically her feelings towards English tutoring and learning difficulties. However, Věra's focus on warm-up questions potentially detracted from the main goal.

**Other Examples of Interview Errors**

- Premature interpretation of nonverbal cues (e.g., "appears hostile")

- Use of complex language or technical terminology

- Fast-paced conversation lacking space for reflection

- Insufficient consideration of cultural or family background

- Errors in interpreting data, such as premature or evaluative conclusions


For an idea of how the entire conversation went, here is the transcript:

Vera: Hi Baru. How are you? How was school today?

Barbora: Bad, because I had a headache. My mom had to come and get me after three hours.

Vera: I'm sorry, and are you feeling better now?

Barbora: Yeah, I am. I slept until you came.

Vera: I'm glad to hear that. What classes did you have? Do you have any homework?

Barbora: I had chemistry, biology, and Czech. I don't have any homework.

Vera: Alright, do you enjoy school?

Barbora: Well, that's a clear question, like no. But I do enjoy some subjects.

Vera: Do you think what you learn at school will be useful in life?

Barbora: Well, some of it yes. Like I don't know, maybe from Czech yes. But if you come home from work and do a sentence analysis or a dictation instead of resting, probably not. But I think English, German, and math will be useful. Maybe someone will use physics, but definitely not me. I doubt you can apply history. Or maybe you'll use biology when you go mushroom picking and say, 'hey, this is...' and chemistry too, when you mix something so your cake doesn't overrise or something. I doubt I'll ever use music.

Vera: What subjects do you enjoy at school and which ones do you dislike?

Barbora: I don't like Czech, history, German because we have a terrible teacher, but I like chemistry, math, biology, art, music is okay, and physics because we have a cool teacher, and that's about it.

Vera: So, you don't enjoy English? Would you like it if you had a different teacher?

Barbora: I don't enjoy it because we don't really learn anything, she just gives us independent work or teaches us only the easy stuff, and the hard stuff is given as homework. Otherwise, I would like it because last year I had Mrs. Špačková and she was cool. She really knew how to teach.

Vera: What are you currently covering in English?

Barbora: Environment and passive voice in grammar, but I haven't been there for a long time.

Vera: Do you understand it? The passive voice?

Barbora: I was there for that for one hour, so I actually don't know if I understand it.

Vera: Aha. So, we could go over the passive voice together.

Barbora: Okay.

Vera: Do you know when and how the passive voice is formed?

Barbora: (starts laughing) I was in school and they wrote a sentence on the board and I was just looking at it like, um, okay. (makes a face)

Vera: So, you don't know?

Barbora: Well, I know that when the thing does it, then it's the other voice.

Vera: You mean the active voice?

Barbora: Yeah, that one, and when the thing is like not doing it but suffering it. Like, houses were being built. So that's the passive voice.

Vera: See, you do know what it is. We'll clarify it further and I'll tell you how the passive voice is formed.

Barbora: Alright.

Vera: Thank you, Barushka.

Anamnesis and Anamnestic Interview

According to Zelinková (2001, p. 31–34), "anamnesis serves as a method to gather information from a student's past experiences, aiding in understanding their current condition."

Typically, a psychologist at a school counseling facility compiles the anamnesis, although teachers may also conduct it, especially when integrating a child into the school environment, among other scenarios. Data for the anamnesis is usually gathered through questionnaires or interviews.

Categories of Anamnesis Based on Focus:

- Personal (Developmental) – Encompasses details about prenatal and perinatal development (including pregnancy course, childbirth, and the initial 10 days post-birth), early years' developmental milestones (such as psychomotor skills, speech, handwriting abilities, and play and drawing development). Additionally, it covers health-related information (like illnesses, injuries, allergies, hospitalizations, medications, etc.).

- Family  – Provides fundamental insights into family dynamics (e.g., family structure, parental age, etc.), emphasizing family member relationships, parenting styles, the individual's behavior within the family unit, parenting challenges, and the family's socio-economic status.

- Educational – Tracks the individual's educational journey within institutional settings (e.g., transitioning to kindergarten or primary school, adapting to school environments, etc.), interactions with peers and teachers, adherence to school rules and routines, and educational history.

- Social – Observes the individual's social integration, peer interactions, interests, and extracurricular activities.

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