Early Childhood Education and Child Development Principles - Coursework Example

Early Childhood Education Student’s Name: Institutional Affiliation: Date of Submission: Early Childhood Education Introduction Early childhood education is a field that is multifaceted. Children going through early childhood education provide minds that are ready to be molded and educated in the most effective and efficient ways possible. In order to achieve the best results when taking a child through early childhood education, their educators should incorporate different aspects of learning that will help the children understand education. Children are equipped with minds that are creative and animated; it is up to the education they get to equip them with tools to express these attributes (Penn, 2004). The theories that are involved and can guide educators as they go about their duty are numerous since the processes of learning and development in children are also vast and complex. There can never be one approach to education or one type of education that will be good for all who are involved. However, different aspects combine to make a most suitable approach. The most advocated for approach so far involves engaging the children in play as part of their learning and development process. Explanations pertaining to the development of human beings from socio-cultural perspective are included in planning for the best approaches towards educating children. Theories on development and those on planning are linked and should be considered when creating curriculum. Principles of Child Development From a western point of view, early childhood education has been taking place following applications from learning and developmental theories. These theories are meant to explain and describe how children gain knowledge and awareness while they are young. The knowledge that is explained in the theories is not strictly academic but pertains to gaining knowledge from the world and the experiences that one has while living. Theories that have been examined are the developmental and constructivism theory and play theory. Constructivism and Developmental theory The influence that is described in these theories can be traced back to writers like Pestalozzi, Rousseau and Gesell. Advancements of the theory were made by Jean Piaget in his writings on genetic epistemology. He emphasizes the importance of the earlier concepts on curriculum choice and early childhood education. In the 1980s and 1990s, Piaget’s theory was used when it came giving children early childhood education through experiences that facilitated their learning depending on their different ages and development levels. Also, it gives the children the ability to make up their own learning. Piaget argued that young children need to be given an opportunity to explore the environment they are using while learning so as to contribute to their own design of understanding the world and other varying facts. Piaget implies that children are using the experiences they have for exploring and trying out different things so that they can utilize the results to create their own schemas of how they perceive the world and the things within it in their minds. However, more recent postmodernist literature has displaced this view of how children learn and brought them out to seem lonely in their quest for knowledge (Dahlberg et al, 2000). In socio-cultural writings, as in postmodernist ones, the characteristic of knowledge acquisition describes a socially corresponded and cultural view (Lubeck et al, 2001). These views explain that children are not out exploring on their own and coming to conclusions on their own but rather are actively participating members of the society who gain the knowledge they have through the experiences they have while at this. This perception has evolved from Vygotsky’s view that knowledge and the tools for acquiring knowledge are contained in the historical context of the society around an individual (Vygotsky, 1978). This view holds the premise that any society has particular ideas and knowledge activities that have been modified in many years and through many generations and thus they have become part of the history of that represents the particular society. This history is held and transmitted in the social customs and the communication tool such as language and symbolism. When children are young, they copy this knowledge. After this, they internalize what they have learned and interpret it within themselves; it is projected through interpersonal and intrapersonal development fields. This is to say that, any knowledge or development made by the child is going to show in a psychological and a social plane (Vygotsky, 1986). Based on these views and arguments, the point being put out is that the acquisition of knowledge and development of a child’s intellect is shaped by the society and its culture and not independently constructed by the young child. Play Theory One of the views that is being advocated for in writings of early childhood development is that play is the work of the children. If play is viewed or theorized as work, it comes out as a form of social control and a channel for the society to pass on its principles and postulations as regards to childhood. The workers or young children in this case can be modeled according to the principles that govern the work environment in terms of what will be the input, the desired output and how efficient the work should be. The child works on being a youngster with the parent or adult being a supervisor or manager. The idea that children need play in order to grow up healthy in physical and psychological ways emphasizes the need to observe and learn of a child’s daily experiences (Morris, 2002). This observation is done because of its contribution to the structure that the young child has for development. The characteristic of particular plays and their purpose move the view of play from that of it being the work of the child to it being the work of the individual who comes up with the rules of the play. Therefore, the concept that there is free play is no longer accurate since the mode of the play is often predetermined by the adult supervisor (Morris, 2002). In addition, the adult may have to make some adjustments to ensure that the results that have been predetermined come to pass. The process of a young child’s play is produced by a reorganized view of the child’s activities. Contemporary literature critiques the categorization of play as good or bad as a projection of groups that may not accept play as an educational part of childhood development. Discussion The theory on constructivism and development applies to cognitive development of children and has been utilized historically in forming the curriculum of early childhood development. The curriculum chosen may or may not allow for the critical absorption of knowledge at different levels of development (Bredekamp & Copple, 1997). The realization of this fact takes place only when the mind is also prepared to realize this fact. For instance, while undertaking post graduate studies, I made the realization that I could have analyzed the knowledge I had gained previously with a critical mindset rather than just deal with that which I had been handed. Constructivism is where one can independently come up with knowledge. This means that the child does not need any outside influences like the society to come up with knowledge. In my years, while learning to be an educator, I have come to realize that this argument is true to some level, in that, an individual may be able to come up with knowledge independently but only at some point in their lives like during post graduate education. Developmental theories hold a view that children gain knowledge from the experiences they have as part of a society and in the society. I employed these theories in the teaching curriculum I had for the children. The focus I had was on providing the children with play based teaching methods that spoke to their experiences and also provide them with open ended learning experiences that would also allow them to form their own conclusions. Developmental theories view that after a child has gained knowledge from a particular source or sources, they internalize the information and interpret it in their own way then project their interpretations onto the world in psychological and physical planes. Coming into the field of early childhood education, Piaget’s theory had good principles and it made sense to give children knowledge that they were developmentally ready for. However, only focusing on this developmental theory was not appropriate and it lowered my standards as an early childhood educator. I would come to assumptions that were not true because the theories I employed did not cover a broad spectrum of situations. For instance, if one of my students did not sit still while I read out to them, I would interpret it as a sign that the child may not have been ready for what I presented without considering the child’s environmental factors. When it comes to early childhood education, something being good is relative and not eventual to one definition. Integrating Understandings The field of early childhood education presents individuals with a complex area of though with numerous beliefs, principles and knowledge as to how things work or should work. The traditional beliefs or theories about learning and development and the association they have with observing and planning that is involved in the education of young children are considered to be the result of the speed with which these children develop in their early years. The resulting argument is that the theories that exist about development and learning in early childhood should provide information for those dealing with approaches that will be employed for giving information or delivering curriculum. The main focus of attention in this case is the work that young children are given. The work should relate to the development theories and also should include input from what has been observed about the child in order to plan an effective curriculum that will facilitate the learning of the child. Observing and planning present structures for theoretical and philosophical techniques that describe the possible ways that one can undertake the task of educating a young child. At the same time, educating young children can be informed by the theoretical explanations of child development (Penn, 2004). The processes of learning and development are dynamic in nature. Since every child is unique and perceives things the same way, adults and educators should strive to understand these qualities. They should observe the children who are under their instruction keenly and closely and learn of their likes and dislikes, their strong and weak areas, their interests and needs. After gaining this knowledge about the children, they should reflect it in the plans that they make as pertains to their curriculum. This will help them move forward and gain more knowledge since the education that they will have gained has happened through experiences and activities that have given them an edge in their altering capacities as learners and challenged them. Instructors get to understand the fact that children are active learners who make up or construct knowledge (Penn, 2004). This knowledge is constructed from the experiences of development and learning that are facilitated by interaction between the children and other children or other people in the society. The most influential mode of interaction between children going through early childhood education is play. It is at this point after adequate observation has been done that teachers should utilize the developmental theory of play to plan for the best way to facilitate play. Play among children provides a context for them to go through the developing processes of development and just like they are dynamic, play is a dynamic field too (Bredekamp & Copple, 1997). Adults who are in charge of planning play time should provide the children with play activities that will contribute to them gaining knowledge and also to their cognitive development. Philosophy The curriculum I will choose will put the children’s needs ahead of everything else. The environment that they will utilize while learning; will be one that contains things that interest them so that they get opportunities to be involved in learning activities. By providing them with varying material, they can get more chances to feel successful and to challenge themselves. A more hands on approach is more effective because the young children get more opportunities to work with material and objects and manipulate them in different ways to achieve desired results. The foundation of my curriculum is teaching young children through play centered approaches. By utilizing this approach, the children can learn to be good communicators, to handle conflicts, to chare, to voice their opinions, working with many people, making decisions, build esteem by expressing themselves, taking risks and initiating ideas. Teaching children should involve motivating them to act on their own and come up with their own ideas and conclusions. By giving them experiences that are of interest to them, they will be motivated to learn more and acquire skills and relevant information. Children will respond more positively to the learning experience if the method they are using to acquire knowledge means something good to them. The curriculum being utilized will be reflective of experiences that the children go through every day. This is so as to enrich them with general and numerical knowledge before they embark on formal education. The learning environment will be relaxed and the children will be allowed to gain knowledge at their own paces as they grow biologically and mentally. This will make for a friendly atmosphere where the children will be allowed to input their ideas and the adults will treat them as important to create a value balance. The play they engage in will help boost their self esteem and social skills. It will also provide an opportunity for the children to meet with nature and learn important environmental lessons. The children will be happy and their emotions will also be founded on happiness and warmth. Conclusion In conclusion, early childhood educators should approach their duties with open and dynamic minds since the fields they are dealing with keep changing from time to time. Early childhood education should be approached from different perspectives including that of theorists who focus on development and those who focus on observation and planning. Since both sides advocate for their views, the work of an educator is to advocate for what will work best for the child. Combined views work best, in this case, covering for the flaws that may be in other theories. Incorporating play into curriculum is the best approach towards achieving the beast results in early childhood education. While this may be so, the play also needs to be formulated after careful observation and planning so that it interests the child and leads to them gaining knowledge of some kind. Constructivism and development theory and play theory all address the issue of child development. The theories cannot be effectively applicable on their own and the relevant points from each should be combined to come up with a philosophy of teaching that will benefit young children most in their education. Instructors and early childhood education professionals should approach teaching with a mindset that is prepared to absorb new information and modify old ideas according to new needs of the children (Dahlberg, Moss & Pence, 1999). References Bredekamp, S. & Copple, C. (1997). Developmentally appropriate practice in early childhood programs (rev. edn). Washington, DC: National Association for the Education of Young Children. Dahlberg, G., Moss, P. & Pence, A. (1999). Beyond quality in early childhood education and care: postmodern perspectives. London: Falmer Press. Hatch, A., Bowman, B., Jordan, J., Morgan, C., Hart, C., Soto, C., Lubeck, S. & Hyson, M. (2002). Developmentally Appropriate Practice: continuing the dialogue, Contemporary issues in early childhood, 3(3), 439-457. Lubeck, S., Jessup, P., De Vries, M. & Post, J. (2001). The role of culture in program improvement, Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 16, 499–523. Morris, B. (2002). Play in the 21st Century. Playcentre Journal, 113, 12-13. Penn, H. (2004). Understanding early childhood: issues and controversies. Maidenhead, Berks: Open University Press. Ch. 3. "Not Piaget again", pp. 37-59. Vygotsky, L. (1978). Mind in society. New York, NY: Harvard University Press. Vygotsky, L. (1986). Thought and language. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press. Read More