All over the world there are many different approaches and perspectives when looking at the Early Years sector. Many different countries have different ways in which they run things; much of this is due to their cultural viewpoint. This essay will take a look at and compare the Irish early childhood sector to that of Sweden’s and then it will compare and evaluate which of the two is better and why. The essay will view the history of provision; types of services; staff; curriculum; pedagogy; quality and inclusion in the two countries.
History of Provision
In 1854, the first infant crèche was opened. The key function of these early programs was to offer cheap care to disadvantaged children whose mothers had a job outside the house. In 1944, when limited public support was established, the term “crèche” was changed to “day care centre”, and the National Board of Health and Welfare become the new supervisory authority. In the early stages, the main purpose of the day care centres was to offer different choices to placement in foster homes. Foster homes, day care centres, and family day care homes were connected by a familiar purpose. Professionals working in day-care and the pre-school class were expected to have comparable training and work on related content for children of all ages (Gunnarsson et al 1999). In Sweden by law children from the ages of one-twelve years have a right to a place in a pre-school.
The demand for formal childcare in Ireland began to grow in the early 1970s, related with the tendency for women to stay in employment after marriage. At that time, the provision of formal childcare was very narrow and existed mostly as pre-school educational opportunities in very small and moderately unstructured setti...
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...he Swedish National Curriculum: Play and learning with fundamental values in focus. [online] Available at: http://www.earlychildhoodaustralia.org.au/australian_journal_of_early_childhood/ajec_index_abstracts/the_swedish_national_curriculum_play_and_learning_with_fundamental_values_in_focus.html [Accessed: 20 Mar 2014].
Start Strong OECD (2004) Five Curriculum Outlines. [online] Available at: www.oecd.org/dataoecd/23/36/31672150.pdf [Accessed: 22 Mar 2014].
Webgate.ec.europa.eu (2014) Sweden:Early Childhood Education and Care - Eurypedia. [online] Available at: https://webgate.ec.europa.eu/fpfis/mwikis/eurydice/index.php/Sweden:Early_Childhood_Education_and_Care [Accessed: 22 Mar 2014].
Wexfordchildcare.ie (2014) Aistear & Siolta. [online] Available at: http://www.wexfordchildcare.ie/index.php/providers/aistear-a-siolta [Accessed: 13 Mar 2014].
Prochner, L. & Howe, N. (2000). Early Childhood Care and Education in Canada. Vancouver & Toronto: UBC Press.
In this essay I will outline the curricular systems for the 0-5 age group in England and Scotland. I will examine in detail the planning and assessment provisions of these systems which allow early years practitioners to gain insight into children's learning and to aid them in that regard. I will draw comparison between the practices of these two countries where possible, and provide criticism of each.
Walter Milton Myers was born August 12, 1937 in Martinsburg, West Virginia but he was raised in Harlem. His father's name was Geoorge Ambrose and his birth mother's name was Mary Myers. Walter Myers was an only child. He didn't really know his family.Walters mother died when he was very young, about 3 years old. His father was very poor. So Walter was raised as a foster child by the Dean family, which is where he gained his 2nd last name. He was adoped by Herbert Julius, who was a shopping clerk, and Florence Dean who was a factory worker.
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
Preschool Programs Tread Thin Budget Ice. Education Week, 28(35), 18-22. Tejada, E. (2010). The 'Secondary'. The Promise of Preschool: From Head Start to Universal Pre-Kindergarten.
The results of quality preschool programs can be seen early after they begin. Children learn many important life le...
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.
This has led to children having a poor start to life, which carries on through their learning and is the leading cause of behavioural or emotional problems (Commonwealth of Australia, 2015). Therefore, the Australian Government inaugurates an ECE and care reform agenda. The key components: • Australian Early Development Census (AEDC) • Early Years Learning Framework (EYLF) • Early Years Workforce Strategy •
Teaching young children is becoming more complex and the demands placed on educators are increasing. By taking part in continuing education, and integrating current research and practices, educators and administrators will be better able to promote innovation and improvement in both managing, and teaching. Since early childcare educators are keenly aware of the needs of children and are able to see trends in early the child care and development system and their impact on children and families, they have a responsibility to engage in informed advocacy for children (Mevawalla & Hadley, 2012). By getting involved in the public policy-making process, they can help educate the public and build support for early childhood issues that will help improve the lives of children and families. Early childhood professionals have many important roles and responsibilities. “Teaching young children is serious work that requires high-quality, dedicated, professional teachers who see the importance of what they do and are eager to increase their effectiveness, knowledge, and skills” (Phajane, 2014, p.
National Center for Children in Poverty. Early childhood education. n.d. - n.d. - n.d. Retrieved 08 2010, from Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Early_childhood_education&oldid=377988928. Erikson’s Stages of Development. a.
The idea of taking children to day-care is unacceptable by a good number of people. They probably think this way, because daycare involves putting someone else in the ‘parenting’ picture; as far as spending time with, and caring for the child is concerned. However, this is not exactly negative. This is because day-care provides care for little children while their parents attend to other matters, such as attending school or working to earn a living. It is important for those people who discourage day care to realize that not all parents can afford to stay at home with their children all day, as much as they would like to. This is because they need to attend to other pressing matters. In the end, the child benefits from this as the living earned by the parent during this time, or even education earned during this time, will benefit the child in future.
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.
Early childhood education plays a key role in a child’s academic development because he or she learns soft skills, job skills, and develop positive traits. Preschool is not like kindergarten, but instead a stepping-stone that prepares young students for the years of schooling they will have later in life. As more schools began to open families wanted to be able to verify that programs would benefit and protect their children. In response, the National Association for the Education of Young Children was made to help families find the best care for their children, by providing the early childhood educators with training and ensuring the quality of children’s daily experiences. (“NAEYC”5).
The purpose of early childhood education is to firstly learn about one’s self and agency, how one’s actions can affect and impact others; to develop a sense of identity; who you are and how you fit into this world. Experience a sense of belonging through interactions with peers and teachers whilst celebrating and sharing diverse cultures whilst embracing others. Children need to have opportunities to explore, experiment, to gain insight and knowledge in numeracy, literacy, science and social structure through innovative and richly supported curriculums (DEEWR, 2009). I have very high expectations of all children as I believe that this assists in building self-confidence and
Nóirín Hayes explains in her research paper Perspectives On The Relationship Between Education and Care In Ireland (2007), how demand for early years education in Ireland has increased in the last two decades for a multitude of reasons. Due to this growing demand for quality early years education the NCCA (National Council for Curriculum and Assessment) introduced Aistear as the early childhood curriculum framework for 0-6 years in Irish early years settings in 2009. Aistear was introduced as the curriculum framework which when practiced alongside Síolta, the quality guidelines for the early years settings environments (introduced by the NCCA in 2006), creates a nurturing and safe environment which caters to the individual developmental needs of each child within the setting. Aistear means journey as Gaeilge and symbolizes the learning process and search of knowledge as a journey. Aistear’s framework is based on four themes - Well Being, Identity & Belonging, Communication and Exploring & Thinking - as a means to develop the child in a holistic way. (Aistear principle and themes: introduction).