Te Whāriki is a curriculum document that was released by the Ministry of Education in 1996 to “provide a curriculum framework that will form the basic for consistent curriculum and programme in early childhood centres” (Ministry of Education p.10). This means that now early childhood centres across Aotearoa will have the information and standards to make sure children grow and learn in a safe and nurturing environment. Joce Nuttall’s research has shown that the curriculum is made up of three parts: The overt curriculum which is the curriculum that is planned by the teachers, the hidden curriculum is made up of the children’s experiences which are unplanned and undocumented by the teachers, and the null curriculum includes any programme content that is systematically excluded from the children’s experience.
Te Whāriki has four principles that relate to the five strands. The first is Empowerment- Whakamana which is defined by the Ministry of Education as “curriculum which empowers the child to learn and grow”. Empowerment is connected to the theory of B. F. Skinner (1904-1990) about children learning through positive reinforcement. Skinner’s theory showed that a child’s behaviour was likely to be repeated if the child receives positive encouragement and rewards like when a child washes his hands and then receives a stamp and compliments every time this is done which is promoting Te Whāriki strand well-being- Mana Atua strand, goal 1: “Children experience an environment where their health is promoted” (Ministry of Education, p.48).but after a while the child will then wash their hands by their-self even without a stamp afterwards so through Empowerment this child learnt how to self-care and self-help. Implications that exist when...
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...02). Negotiating the meaning of ‘curriculum’: Can we awaken the ‘sleeping beauty’? Early Education, 28, 5-10.
Nuttall, J. (2003). Weaving Te Whāriki: Aotearoa New Zealand’s Early Childhood Curriculum Document in Theory and Practice. Wellington, New Zealand: Printlink
Richie, J. (1999). The use of te reo Māori in early childhood centres. Early Education, 20, 13-21.
The Open Polytechnic of New Zealand. (2008). The Open Polytechnic of New Zealand- Diploma of Teaching- (Early Childhood Education. Te Matauranga mo nga Kohungahunga I Roto I nga marautanga/ Te Whāriki: Early Childhood Curriculum and Early Childhood Education. Wellington, New Zealand: Author
Wright, L. (2003). The core ingredients: Embeddedness, relationships, and identity as components of home-based curriculum, Paper presented at Eighth Early Childhood Convention: Palmerston North, New Zealand.
(Australian Institute of Family Studies, 2016). As a Pre-Service Teacher specialising in Early Childhood Education, it is imperative to understand how Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities were treated in the past and the impact that this may have on Indigenous families in the
Connected to this theme is the development of a shared, lived experience, where students and teacher are involved in an ongoing negotiation of curriculum. In the first 13 chapters, Paley’s central focus is to develop a learning community within the safety of the classroom. In the second half of her book, Paley illustrates how the combination of these two themes in turn offers an opportunity for what we call an opening up of the definition of curriculum. This review is an analysis of these three themes within the organizational framework of Paley’s book. The theme of children and teachers as co-creators of curriculum is established in the first chapter when Paley says, “Each year I wait to be reawakened by a Reeny … something to ponder deeply and expand upon extravagantly” (p.10). Reeny responds to this call by asserting herself early on as a curriculum leader in Paley’s classroom. Because children themselves are curriculum makers and leaders, curriculum cannot be imposed upon the learner. Ultimately, this opening up of the discussion of what curriculum means is established by Reeny in the last lines of the book when she announces: “But I’m thinking, why don’t you stay and we’ll talk about it. Don’t fly away. See we can keep talking about it, okay?” (p. 99). It is in Reeny’s utterance that we understand—the curriculum conversation must necessarily begin with students’
Marples, R. (2010). What should go on the curriculum? In Bailey, R. (Ed.), The philosophy of education: An introduction (pp 33-47). London: Bloomsbury
The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) curriculum in England differs greatly in structure and content to the Te Whariki curriculum in New Zealand; this therefore makes for an interesting comparison. The EYFS was introduced in England, in 2008, by the DfE as a framework that ‘sets the standards for learning, development and care of children from birth to five’ (DfE, 2012). Alternatively, Te Whariki was founded in New Zealand, in 1996, based on the aspirations for children ‘to grow up as competent and confident learners and communicators, healthy in mind, body, and spirit, secure in their sense of belonging and in the knowledge that they make a valued contribution to society’ (Ministry of Education, 1996). Throughout this essay, the EYFS and Te Whariki curriculums will be compared and contrasted to give a greater understanding of the similarities and differences between England and New Zealand regarding their beliefs about young children’s needs.
Origin from a city in the north of Italy, the Reggio Emilia approach in Early Childhood Education is adopted by multi-countries over the past decades. This approach has a core philosophy, that children should play a leading role in education. Children are seen as full of knowledge and intelligence, with full capabilities to express themselves if only given the proper ways to do to so. They are protagonists of their own learning and have a say in what topics and problems they will study and research. Teachers provide resources to assistant children’s learning and developing. The curriculum is emergent, meaning the teachers choose topics and projects based on careful listening and observations of their student’s interests, needs and inquiries. Children are encouraged to use materials and media to demonstrate their learning and understanding of a topic or project. Documentations and environment have direct influences in helping children’s learning. Parents and community also play a supportive role in children education (O.E.C.D, 2004).
A colleague of Jones and herself wrote a book over investigation of early childhood curriculum. The Reggio Emilia preschool had been created in the 1960s by Loris Malaguzzi and had become a world-renowned model of the documentation of children’s active learning at play and work and an emergent curriculum built on the strengths of the child by the 1990s. Like the Reggio educators, they collected stories of emergent curriculum in practice where ever they traveled as consultants working with teachers in the classroom. The goal of emergent curriculum is to respond to every child’s interests and it is suppose to be open-ended and self-directed. It depends on the teacher’s
It is this collective dedication to the children and young people of today and tomorrow that gives hope that progressive ideals will continue to underpin educational practices in New Zealand for many years to come, maintaining a strong legacy (Mutch,
Introduction Curriculum can be outlined as “the creation of a flexible, informal, planned learning environment where young children are actively, safely and happily involved in a range of formative and learning experiences, and where the role of the adult is that of guiding supporting and mediating the environment” (Report on The National Forum for Early Childhood Education, 1998, p. 47). Educators use curriculum to purposefully plan methods for children to construct and assemble knowledge to make sense of their experiences. An age appropriate curriculum in early education emphases the development of physical; social, emotional and creative expression. The Regio Emilia approach is a unique approach to early childhood education which recognises
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.
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.
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
Ministry of Education. (1996). Te whāriki early childhood curriculum: He whāriki mātauranga mō ngā mokopuna o Aotearoa: Early childhood curriculum.Wellington, New Zealand: Learning Media.
“Family involvement and engagement should be built into early childhood program curriculum and pedagogy. Early childhood educators can complement and influences home environments and families”. (C. Gestwicki, J. Ber...
...S., … Killen, R. (2009). Professional Practice in Primary Education. South Melbourne, VIC: Cengage Learning Australia Pty Limited.
Aotearoa is the home to Te reo Maori where is should be promoted and encouraged. In fact, Te Whāriki and New Zealand Early Childhood curriculum acknowledge Te reo Maori by encouraging the teachers to promote and implement it in early childhood settings allowing all children the opportunity to understand and develop an understanding of Maori heritages; Te reo, and partnership to Te Tiriti of Waitangi(Ministry of Education [M...