In this article the authors explore the issue of quality education in the early childhood environment and how former policies and governments have had an influence on the quality of early childhood education. The authors use with in this article the methodology of analysing past policies as well as past early childhood quality discourses to examine how the issue of quilt education was introduced in the Australian early childhood environment. The article specifically looks at the impact Bob Hawke’s speech in 1990 had on the policy of quality education for the early childhood environment. From this first speech of Hawke’s it created a ‘need’ for quality education, seeing not just government funded schools but also private Childcare centres.
This all started as privately owned centres were seen to be only making the minimum requirements when it came to qualified early childhood educators. Privately owned centres would only hire barely qualified educators to maximise profit as they would not have to pay these young ladies as much. The issue of government financial assistance also had an effect on quality and from this their was also a creation of another policy by the Labor party to help make education accessible for all. The article also discusses how from these policies the development of the national quality standards flowed on from these as educators, parents and the union seen the need for these to be put on place to make education in the early childhood environment fair for all. From reading this article a main question that is apparent is why did the quality of early childhood education only become recognised and really set into motion only in 1990? Early childhood education is an important part if any child’s development. As well as how privately funded early childhood centres were able to employ under qualified staff to look after and educate a large amount of young children. This article presents as a good starting point on the history of the quality of early childhood education and how the government and policy have great amount of control over this. From this article there is also this sense of importance for being an advocate and bringing the needs for quality child education to the governments attention. This is highly important to help with the education and rights for all children in an early childhood setting. Quality in any child’s education especially in the early childhood environment should not be something educators or parents should fight for though in our society today we all need to advocates to achieve the quality every child deserves.
Prochner, L. & Howe, N. (2000). Early Childhood Care and Education in Canada. Vancouver & Toronto: UBC Press.
The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) was implemented in England in 2008 and applies to all children aged 0-5. This new curriculum combined existing government ideas regarding the care of under 5s including the 'Every Child Matters' (ECM) policy: children's services have to respond to 5 outcomes for all children from birth to 18: being healthy, being protected from harm and neglect, being enabled to enjoy and achieve, making a positive contribution to society, and contributing to economic well-being. The statutory EYFS document stated a need for a 'coherent and flexible approach to care and learning' (DfES - Department for Education and Skills 2007; cited in Palaiologou, 2010, p.11 ), and ensures a quality experience for children regardless of the pre-school setting. EYFS and its direct predecessors were introduced based on the realisation that quality of teaching and management of schools play a central role in children's quality of learning, not socio-economic and educational background, as was previously thought. Pre-school education was seen as a method of helping children 'break the cycle of deprivation' (Baldock, 2009, p.20). However, research by Potter immediately prior to the inception of the EYFS concluded that due to 'insufficiently rigorous conceptual underpinnings, particularly in the area of language and communicatio...
I am a firm believer that the quality of the child care directly affects the child’s development in the classroom. By eliminating the need for competing preschools to continue to improve their curriculum and to remain relevant in the field of early childhood education, we risk falling into the same trap K-12 education has fallen into. In other words, individual classroom freedom will be lost when teachers are forced to follow the governments blanket and mandatory regulations. I choose this concept because I feel it is important to allow a wide variety of options to families in order for them the find the right fit for their
Tickell, C., 2011. The Early Years: Foundations for life, health and learning. An independent report on the Early Years Foundation Stage to Her Majesty’s Government. London: HMG
Overall, I believe I learned a lot from completing this assignment. In regards to quality environments, I now can see that there are many different types of classrooms that I will encounter in the future. My classroom I’m placed at this semester seems to be a more typical classroom compared to a place like the Child Development Center in Kent. The CDC seems to incorporate more natural and recycled materials rather than Indian Trail, which is more store bought items and nothing related to nature or recycling. This assignment has already impacted me in the classroom this semester. I’m starting to notice more things throughout the classroom that may not be up to standards or that could potentially be changed for a better quality classroom. This being said, the Early Childhood Environmental Rating Scale will definitely impact me as a teacher. These are things I will unquestionably be taking into consideration when starting my career as an educator.
From the perspective I have at this stage in my journey in the early childhood education field, I would like to share what I have come to value and believe in regards to early learning and care by looking at my philosophy statement. To begin we will look at the statement and highlight three key features and find out why they are important to me, then we will see what they will look like in my practice, and lastly we will examine these ideas closely by looking at where they originated. By taking an in-depth look at my philosophy statement we will better understand the motivation behind my practice which I hope to continue to refine and refresh as I gain more knowledge and experience.
While walking through the front gates of County elementary school, you see children of all ages playing while they wait for the school bell to ring. Walking to the classroom that I will be observing you see students with their parent’s line up waiting to get signed in. The students are to be signed in by a parent or guardian for safety precautions, and shows that the child was signed into school. As a visitor, I am to sign myself in, this shows I was in the classroom, at what time was I there, and reason for visiting the classroom.
Demonstrate a strong understanding of current Australian early childhood education and care reform agenda in Australia since 2007. The Australian ECE and care reform agenda was initiated, in 2007, due to a concern for the wellbeing and increasingly poor outcomes for children in several key areas. Evidence confirmed the importance and impact of a child’s health, well-being, development and learning in the early years, therefore the need for an NQF and NQS was initiated. The impact of social change over recent decades has shown families struggling to function and aid in their child’s development.
As an early childhood educator it is my job to ensure that my classroom provides a safe and secure environment that is easily supervised with enrichment activities that are rich in play, teaching, people and experiences for all children within the classroom. Things that need to be considered when building an environment for children include space, equipment used, outdoor space needed and a flexible schedule that allows you to move in and out of the areas with smooth transitions.
Care and education have become a part of children’s daily lives in Ireland and England outside the home in childcare services. The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) is the statutory curriculum framework for children up to the age of five in England. It was first introduced in 2008 and on the 1st of September 2012 a new revised document was published. Aistear, published in 2009, is Ireland’s first early year’s curriculum framework for children from birth to six years of age. A curriculum framework is a scaffold or support for the development of a curriculum that can be used in childcare settings. A curriculum framework can also be used in partnership with parents when developing a curriculum. This paper will compare and contrast these two curriculum frameworks in relation to philosophy, content, pedagogical practices and expected/targeted outcomes for children. Due to the limits of this paper, it will only be possible to develop an overview of the similarities and differences.
Most researches about child development focuses on the typical development or typical environment. However, the environment that surrounding children varies, and even little differences could make large developmental different in each children. For example, it is believed that children have an ability to communicate with others if they learn language. However, there are many children who cannot communicate with others because of lack of language development. Especially, children with disabilities often have developmental delays and the delay influence their entire development. In addition, the environment influences on children’s development. Therefore, the influence
There are two perspectives we must consider and understand before we can firmly criticize governments on putting their own national interest and economic growth, before acting on environmental concerns of the global community. In reality we have environmentalist clash heads with political candidates in various governments.
There are many documented theories about early childhood development, contemporary research still concurs with some of these theories. It suggests, however, that we should be thinking more holistically, taking into consideration; respect for diversity, the wider community and equity, play based curriculums, intentional teaching and ongoing reflective practices when planning for optimal educational experiences for children (Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations, 2009). I acknowledge that ongoing professional learning and reflective practices are a key element of the Early Years Learning Framework (DEEWR, 2009). I accredit working and collaborating with other teachers, families and local communities collectively contribute
Rouse, J., & Tarrant, L. (2001). Quality in early childhood education. Wellington, New Zealand: Early Childhood development.
Ministry of Education. (1998). Quality in action te mahi whai hua: Implement the revised statement of desirable objectives and practices in New Zealand early childhood services. Wellington, New Zealand: Learning Media.