Early Childhood Education - Assignment Example

Reflection 1: What do you want for children now and in the future? Where have your ideas come from? I would like to see a curriculum throughout Australia that reinforces and promotes play-based learning. I would really like to see children learning in a nurturing classroom, which fosters and enhances their development through their early childhood catering for children of all abilities. As a teacher I intend to use a variety of interactive learning approaches to increase the children’s awareness of their environment with a special emphasis on the practical application of knowledge. I would like to see physically active children that learn from each other through a well resourced classroom or centre. These ideas are conceptually grounded in and draw from the Reggio Emilia approach to early childhood learning which advocates for children to have some control over the form, substance and direction of their learning (Caldwell 1997). I intend to allow the children to become progressively self-sustainable in their learning process by encouraging and prioritizing children centered and collaborative initiatives over teacher centered instruction (Broderick 2004). My core position My core position in the reflection is that: Children should not just develop academically but also physically and socially through play based and interactive learning approaches. Children should be allowed to learn in a less formal but more explorative environment that will allow children of all abilities. Children should also be allowed to have some control over what they are learning and should develop into self-sustainable learners. My core position closely matches the reforming society curriculum position. The first of my core positions, a belief that play is fundamental in children’s learning, is rooted in the liberalist thinking that inspired the reforming society position. Liberalist thinkers like Johann Pestalozi, Friedrich Froebel and educationalists Maria Montessori and John Dewey al recognized the importance of play in children’s learning as play is the best form of physical development and the best possible means for children to simulate the environment around them and learn from it (Johansson and Pramling 2006). As indicated by MacNaughton (2003), Australian and American texts on early childhood programmes recognize the role of play as both a vehicle and a “central mode of learning” (MacNaughton p 159). The reforming society approach also discourages formal and content driven learning which resonates with my position on interaction and exploration and children centered learning aimed at developing self sustainable learners. Dewey argues that society can best be reformed by developing independent thinkers. Reformist educators advocate for broad guiding principles and flexible approaches to learning as opposed to setting specific objectives for children to achieve (Pillay and Elliot 2001). Experiences from American, Australian and South African early childhood programmes shows that curriculum goals under reforming approaches are realized through child-centered, play and activity based and interactive approaches to learning (Tzuo 2007). Changes After reading about the curriculum position reforming society, I would like to add to my initial position and indicate the desire to have each child develop not only physically, academically and socially but also emotionally. As discussed in the reforming society position, children should be empowered to make moral decisions and reform society through truth and justice (MacNaughton 2003). In addition, I would include a desire to allow each child to develop according to their individual abilities through individualized curriculum content that attends to each child’s specific developmental needs (MacNaughton 2003). However, I need to be cautious about the marginalization effect of such differences among children and intervene when necessary to ensure a sense of equity. Therefore, from children now and in the future, I would want them to explore their individual talents and maximise their potential. Reflection 2: What do you believe the role of early childhood education in society should be? What does this mean you will emphasize in your curriculum/program? Early childhood education presents a unique opportunity for children to cultivate positive attitudes, behaviours, identity and personalities. In my own view, therefore, early childhood education is the molding stage for life. In this regard, early childhood education prepares children for their integration into society through the school system and provides a platform for the learning of new ideas, technologies, concepts, attitudes and ethics in society. Grounded in this view, I will emphasize the importance of issues such as healthy and active lifestyles, which include an appropriate balance of study and play, a healthy diet and positive social interactions between children. Learning through play will be the primary emphasis in teaching the children. I will also encourage and reward innovation by challenging the children to come up with solutions to dilemmas in play. I also intend to use play as a platform to promote positive behaviour, which encourages children of all backgrounds and abilities to collaborate while learning and to share collective responsibility for their successes. My Core Position My core position in the initial reflection is that the role of early childhood education in society is: To cultivate positive attitudes, behaviours and personalities among children. To prepare children for integration into society as useful members. To encourage positive behaviour, healthy lifestyles and ethics and to promote innovation. My core position on the role of early childhood education in society resonates with both the transforming society and conforming to society curriculum positions. My position emphasizes the cultivation of positive attitudes, ethics and behaviour among children. This closely matches the goals of transformative early childhood education curricula in Pakistan and the UK which emphasize on the need to use the education system as a vehicle for facilitating change and eliminating negative values such as racism, prejudice, and other forms of discrimination (MacNaughton 2003). Some of the explicitly stated goals include promoting social justice and equity through challenging racism and gender based discrimination. As MacNaughton (2003) indicates, expressions from transformative approaches in Japan, Australia, Ireland and Spain all share the philosophy that the education system should be at the frontline of eliminating biases or discrimination in society and promoting tolerance and cultural diversity (MacNaughton 2003). My core belief that the education system should prepare the child to integrate into society closely matches the conforming to society curriculum position. Preparing children to integrate into society fundamentally requires reproduction of the same skills, understanding, and values that have shaped society as explicitly expressed from literature on early childhood education in Kenya, Nigeria and Korea. This may not be congruent with eliminating negative behaviours, discrimination and biases. Changes After reviewing the literature on the conforming to society curriculum position, I change my core beliefs from preparing children to integrate into society to a more reformist development of an independent thinker. This is based on the realization that what I have outlined as goals for the education system may be inconsistent with what I desire and expect from children now and in the future, However, I have gained valuable insight from the transforming society curriculum position. In particular, I find useful the concept of eliminating biases through practices that enable children to be aware of diversity and learn to accommodate and appreciate it as a form of learning (Department of Education, 2011). Therefore, I would modify my perception of the role of early childhood education as a tool of transforming society instead of preparing children to integrate into it as earlier outlined. Reflection 3: For what aspects of your day with young children do you believe you need to plan in advance? For early childhood education to be effective, it is essential to plan for two critical aspects of the day. First, structure play-based activities must be well planned in advance. It is important for me as a teacher to ensure that sufficient time and space is allocated for the children to play. The playing space also needs to be booked or scheduled in advance. Within the playing space, it is also important to allocate enough resources that will prevent conflicts over playing items such as building blocks, plastic clay and the various assorted toys (Broderick 2004). This involves either budgeting for the available playing resources according to the number of children or scheduling different playing times for different groups of children to enable each individual child to have adequate play time and resources. Secondly, the creative sessions must also be planned for in advance. Each child must be allowed space, time and materials to express their individual creativity through the arts. My Core Position I would plan in advance for: Play and activity time Play and activity space Play and activity materials/resources Creative sessions. My core positions on which aspects of the day with young children to plan for in advance closely match those of the reforming society curriculum position. The curriculum dosing process in reforming position places emphasis on planning for time, people, space, learning resources and knowledge. In this regard, as I initially planned, I have planned for time, space and learning resources. Changes After reviewing the literature on reforming society curriculum position, I have learnt that it is important to plan in advance for all aspects of my day’s interaction with children, not just play. The key lies in designing plans that are flexible and geared towards the unique developmental needs of each child in both the academic and co-curricular context. According to the Early Years Curriculum Learning Frameworks (2008), effective programs require planning that is flexible and responsive to the changing developmental needs of children. One practice that I have found may be useful in planning for my day with children would be keeping a reflective journal. It is essential for planning not just to map out the relationships between space, time and resources but to also be an accurate reflection of the child’s changing needs. By using a reflective journal, I may be able to keep track of the changes in children’s development which would in turn inform my planning for a day with them. In addition, I have discovered that it is not entirely possible to plan for creative sessions but rather to allow children to express themselves within collaboratively established boundaries while they learn. This way, it would be easier to harness and channel their creativity more positively (Department of Education and Early Childhood Development, 2008). Reflection 4: What do you think are the best ways to study children? In the context of early childhood education, the best way to study children is through observing them as they play. Based on the Reggio Emilia philosophy, play is the most significant indicator of a child’s attitudes, behaviour, capabilities, strengths and weaknesses (MacNaughton 2003, Caldwell 1997). During play, a child demonstrates their range of cognitive skills and their awareness of their surroundings. From studying a child during play, we are able to deduct indicators such as the child’s problem solving capabilities, the speed at which they learn new things and how well they are able to work with or collaborate with their peers. For instance, presenting children with building blocks to play with provides a good indicator of the child’s cognitive abilities such as hand-eye coordination and as they contemplate how to build a structure they display their problem solving capabilities (Broderick 2004). During play, it is also possible to observe the patterns of a child’s social interactions, whether they prefer to play in seclusion or with others or whether they are comfortable sharing their toys with their peers. Through their interactions at play, we are also able to monitor a child’s development and their willingness to learn from others. My Core Position My beliefs on studying children are: Children are best studied through observation. Children are best studied during play. My belief that the best way to assess children is through observation closely matches the reforming society curriculum position. The liberalist thinkers behind the reforming society curriculum position such as Dewey consider assessment through observation as one of the building blocks of the practical approach to curriculum planning, emergent curricula(MacNaughton 2003). Specifically, the emergent curriculum is inspired by the Regio Emilia approach to pedagogy which has learning through play as the central theme (Caldwell 1997). As stated by MacNaughton (2003), observation is founded on the assumption that a child obtains knowledge from their interaction with the environment through play. Observation enables a teacher to monitor the child’s progress, identify their developmental needs through assessing their weaknesses and strengths and identify what best influences a child’s behaviour during specific times of the day. Changes In my initial reflection, I believed that observation is the best way to study children. This idea as been reinforced after reviewing the reforming society curriculum position which strongly advocates for play based learning and assessment. However, I have realized that observation alone may not be sufficient to study the child. The practical approach embedded in the reforming society position places emphasis on stimulating expression among children using various techniques and instruments which supplement observation. Certain suggestions by MacNaughton (2003) might be useful depending on the resources available. Writing a reflective journal ranks as the most practical instrument as it simply requires pen and paper. I found the suggestion to videotape the children as very interesting as it would stimulate them to express themselves in the knowledge that they are being recorded. The journals and footage of children in an early education setting may in turn be used as material for future curriculum development. I have learnt tat it is important to keep video logs or journals as they will be available for analysis and interpretation not just by the recording teacher, but also by their peers and also their parents. Using such techniques will enable the knowledge generated by children themselves to be used to develop their own curricula which will in turn reflect the changing pedagogical needs of children in early education (Department of Education and Early Childhood Development, 2008). References Broderick, J. (2004). Initiating experiences with clay and drawing as dynamic conversations.  Canadian Children, 29(2); 7-13. Caldwell, L. (1997). Bringing Reggio Emilia Home: An innovative approach to early childhood. New York: Teachers College Press.    Department of Education and Early Childhood Development. (2008). Analysis of curriculum /learning frameworks for the Early Years (Birth to Age 8). Retrieved on August 23, 2011 from Department of Education.(2011). Early Years Learning Framework. Retrieved on August 23, 2011 Johansson, E., & Pramling S. I. (2006). Play and learning – inseparable dimensions in preschool practice. Early Childhood Development and Care, 176(1), 47-65. MacNaughton, G. (2003). Shaping early childhood: Learners, curriculum and contexts. Maidenhead, UK: Open University Press. Pillay, H., & Elliott, B. (2001). Emerging attributes of pedagogy and curriculum for the "new world order". Innovative Higher Education Journal 26(1); 7-22. Tzuo, P.W. (2007). The tension between teacher control and children’s freedom in a child-centered classroom: Resolving the practical dilemma through a closer look at the related theories. Early Childhood Education Journal, 35(1), 33-39. Read More