Early Years Learning Framework Essay

Practitioners work in partnership with parent’s families, as they are the child’s first and most enduring carers and educators

Curriculum plays a significant role at school as it guides the structure and process of the teaching and learning experience. Every school will have its unique curriculum, usually guided by the national curriculum, which reflects the school philosophy and guides its strategic plan in teaching. The purpose of this essay is to explore and critique the Early Years Learning Framework(EYLF) curriculum by identifying how this curriculum links to City of Kingston- Edithvale Family and children center’s philosophy and Good Start’s strategic plan.

My philosophy of Early childhood education is based on research that indicates that a child’s growth is developmental. Every child is unique in terms of life experiences, developmental readiness, and cultural heritage. A high quality early childhood program that provides a safe and nurturing environment, which promotes physical, social, emotional, language and cognitive development will ensure a positive continuation of the child’s education process

In the book Early Childhood Education Today 11th Edition, we read that “Family-centered practice is one of the cornerstone features of early childhood special education. This follows the fundamental notion that children’s development is influenced by their environment: their family, teachers, school, town, media, governmental systems, and so on.” (MORRISON, 2009) The first thing we as teachers must do is acknowledge that the children’s families are the first and most important teachers of their children and recognize the long-term effect families have on the attitudes and accomplishments of their children . For the edification of today’s youth there are potential positive responses to be obtained through working with a child’s parents as

The National Quality Standard includes standard 1.1 states that ‘An approved framework informs the development of a curriculum that enhances each child’s learning and development’. This is where the Early Years Learning Framework (EYLF) is introduced. This framework is included in the National Quality Standard to help ensure the consistency in the delivery of learning programs within Australia. Within the EYLF is the Early Childhood curriculum framework which guides early childhood educators to develop quality early childhood education programs. This framework describes the principles, practice and learning outcomes which support and enhance young children’s learning from birth to five years old, and then their transition to school.

Throughout the years from the age of 3 years of age to five years, these may be seen as an exhilarating time for the children and their families. We aim to make the child’s time at the centre educational. The main thing Little Joeys is working towards in the year of 2016 are for them to become confident within themselves and develop their use of communication skills and have the readiness of being able to transition into school. The centres philosophy is coherent with the Early Years Learning Framework (EYLF) which is used with the educators interacting with the children.

The webcast that I chose for this module is titled Preschool for ELLs. This webcast was separated into four different categories which cover the following topics; language instruction, curriculum, professional development, and family outreach. I decided to watch Preschool for ELLs because the topic is very dear to me as an elementary education teacher. The first video began with describing how English Language Learners develop the language skills they needed to become successful readers. The speaker went on to discuss the importance of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs in English Language Learners, and how it’s development plays a vital role in the child’s language development. Another point the

Respecting each family’s cultural identity and regimes as an educator requires the continuity between home and the childcare, meaning that as an educator you must communicate with the family to understand the specific needs of the child.

The framework recognises that all children have the right to relationships, and environements to help children meet their needs, the framework particularly benefits chidren and families who tries to deal with children’s whose needs are affected by unemployment, poverty and poor health which can effect a child’s experience and development. Framework also helps children and young people become confident individuals and successful learners which can lead to improved life. The Early Years Framework makes it important to understand that all national and local agencies working together can help children’s outcomes in life. The framework focuses on childrens interests from pre-conception to support them and their families with what they need to succeed in life and live a happy and healthy one. One of the priorities of the Early Years Framework is the need for play areas and greenspace this will help improve the health of children and encourage children to exercise by offering them more play opportunities around their area. The framework still has some work to do but they will continue to develop and collect data to ensure that its all facts and gives an un-biased representation of how the framework are delivering for children and their

According to Powell (2003) relations between parents and early childhood educators in the United States represent a mixed picture. Parents have the primary responsibility for educating their children. As the child’s first and most important teacher, parents provide the experiences that promote life skills, abilities, and attitudes that promote school success (Pelletier & Brent, 2002). The family significantly impacts children’s development and is influential in shaping every aspect of their lives (Ortiz & Flanagan, 2002). Parents’ values and perceptions concerning their child’s education are embedded in their cultural system and are multigenerational.

Good communication between families, teachers, and the school is crucial in early childhood education as it allows teachers to invite, and support, caregivers active participation in a child’s education. It also can provide the link between classroom and at-home learning activities (Loughran, 2008). That is why it is essential that a great deal of effort be made to ensure that communication is both ongoing and effective so that partnerships with parents can be established and maintained (Sanabria-Hernandez, 2008). Occasionally, schools fail to connect with families due to hurdles such as language or cultural differences. These obstacles can be easily overcome through tools such as a translator or doing a little research regarding a family’s cultural practices (Berger & Riojas-Cortez, 2016). Numerous studies have shown that improving parental involvement in the classroom can increase children’s academic success and lead to improvement in schools in general. In order for teachers and schools to connect effectively with parents, they must have knowledge about parents’ concerns and questions regarding their child's education and development. Being proactive in addressing these worries is not only a positive way to engage parents and establish productive home-school relationships, but will also circumvent potential problems (Sanabria-Hernandez, 2008).

Parents’ involvement in the Early Childhood Program is very important to enrich the quality child care program. Some family may show lot of enthusiasm and interest while others may show little interest to involve in the program. As mentioned by Essa and Young, “Regardless of the extent or type of involvement, an involved parents is a far greater asset to the program than an uninvolved one, since planning, implementing, and evaluating becomes a team effort” (2003, p. 184).This program is a team work where three important players children, parents and teacher work together to achieve the goal of the program. Parents might contribute to the program in the following ways:

The topic I have chosen to focus my research on is family involvement within early childhood environments, and how this can foster the development of children. I have many reasoning’s behind my choice. Firstly this is an area of weakness for me, although I am comfortable with the everyday talk with families I find it difficult to include them in their own children’s learning. Secondly as an early childhood educator I think it is important to be able to build positive relationships with families that will help get them involved within their child’s environment as there should be connections between all worlds of the child. And lastly I believe that by choosing this weakness and completing this action research I will be able to improve my teaching practices within this particular area.

The purpose of this research paper is to investigate the issue of Preschool to determine if children who participate in structured preschool programs are more successful in kindergarten or first grade.

Cohen, DH & Stern, V. 1978, 1983, 1996. Observing and recording the behavior of young