Early Childhood Curriculum

A Constructivist Perspective

Nancy Amanda Branscombe, Jan Gunnels Burcham, Kathryn Castle, Elaine Surbeck

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2013
• Print ISBN: 9780415895279
• eBook ISBN: 9781136671364
• Topic: Education
• Subtopic: Early Childhood Education

Through its unique integration of curriculum and learning principles, Early Childhood Curriculum: A Constructivist Perspective, 2nd Edition fosters authentic, developmentally appropriate practice for both preschool and early elementary classrooms. The constructivist format of this book encourages active involvement on the part of readers by asking them to observe, question, reflect, research, and analyze, thus allowing readers to create their own knowledge through their responses and actions.

Early Childhood Curriculum examines curricular goals such as autonomy, development, and problem solving and links those goals with constructivist principles of learning. It explores ways teachers can create meaningful learning environments and choose curriculum tasks appropriately—in all content areas—that are linked to the learning and development needs of young children. The text provides a wealth of practical detail about implementing constructivist curriculum as the authors discuss classroom climate and management, room design, play, and cooperative learning, among other topics. The book also includes information about how teachers can meet required mandates and national and state standards in appropriate ways as they plan their curriculum, and examines the early childhood educator's role with community agencies, reform and legal mandates, and public relations.

Special Features:
• "Curriculum Strategies" highlight models for developing curriculum, including projects, curricular alignment, integration of various subject matter areas, and types of knowledge.
• "Constructions" promote problem solving by allowing students to explore, revisit, examine, and learn from first-hand experience.
• "Multiple Perspectives from the Field" provide interviews with teachers and other early childhood professionals, offering students a realistic look at the profession from a diverse group of educators.
• "Teacher Dialogues" explore a wide range of student concerns, including curriculum, learning environments, assessment, and documentation, representing a collaborative support group for pre-service teachers and readers.

PART 1 WHAT ARE CONSTRUCTIVIST AIMS AND ASSUMPTIONS?

DOI: 10.4324/9780203808849-1

The aims and guiding principles of a constructivist curriculum are based on construc-tivist explanations of how children learn and the nature of the knowledge to be learned. The work of Jean Piaget and his followers provides the theory and research for those explanations. The three chapters in Part 1 of this book offer perspectives on the aims of a constructivist curriculum and the theory and research that support those aims. Chapter 1 introduces the aims of a constructivist curriculum. Chapter 2 provides an overview of how constructivist assumptions guide practice and introduces the constructivist components that will be detailed in later chapters. Chapter 3 explains the theoretical tenets of constructivist teaching and details how learning takes place. All three chapters provide a constructivist foundation for the constructivist teacher so that decisions about curriculum are based on theory and research rather than personal opinion.

1 THE AIMS OF CONSTRUCTIVIST CURRICULUM

DOI: 10.4324/9780203808849-2

Chapter 1 is designed to help you understand the basic concepts and aims of constructivist curriculum. When you finish reading and discussing the material in this chapter, you should have a better understanding of the following topics and be able to explain them to others:

• What is meant by curriculum
• Curriculum sources
• What constructivism means
• Some basic principles of constructivist practice
• How constructivist curriculum differs from other curricula

Because Chapter 1 is an introductory chapter, these topics will be addressed only briefly. Subsequent chapters and your own reflections and constructions will help you understand each topic more thoroughly.

First, let's meet six teachers who are interested in learning more about constructivist theory and how it may apply to curriculum in their classrooms. They are composites of real teachers in real schools and were once in teacher preparation programs such as yours. Like you, they continue to learn in order to provide the best education possible for children. Although they are already licensed to teach, they continue to create new understandings for themselves. You will follow them throughout this book as they learn from others and as the result of their own reflections and risk taking. We hope you will join them by sharing your thinking with your classmates and by listening to their ideas.

Introduction

Six teachers have gathered in the teachers' lounge of an elementary school at 3:30 on a September afternoon. The building is fairly quiet now, and the teachers are seated around a table, looking somewhat tentative.

Kenisha: Well, I guess I'll start, since this was my idea. I invited each of you to my school today so that we can consider whether we can help each other. Although I've been teaching kindergarten for such a long time that one of my former pupils is now a teacher, I still feel the need to keep modifying what I do in the classroom. New issues are facing our children and families and—well, I'll stop there. Let's hear from the rest of you.

Jennifer: I need help, but I don't see how I'm going to get it by sitting around talking. I teach third grade in an inner-city school. I practically have to force them to learn, but they've got to learn; I'll see to that. What I need is an assistant to drill them on math facts and sight words.

Matt: I teach in a first- and second-grade multiage class in the suburbs, and our kids probably are different from yours in some ways, Jennifer. But don't think they don't have problems, too. I grew up in the inner city with a single mom who worked two jobs so my three brothers and I could eat. But when I look at some of my students, I know my life was better than their lives. We didn't have any money, but we were always there for each other—still are, as a matter of fact.

Ron: I guess in a way I'm the one who really needs this group. You all seem like you know what you're doing. I don't. I thought I did, but it's obvious I don't. Last year at this time, I was a student teacher with a wonderful mentor, Ms. Gleason. Children in her class did all kinds of projects. They worked independently, and they learned so much. I'm now a first-grade teacher, and I'm wondering if all the construc-tivist theory and principles I learned in college have anything to do with teaching. But then, I remember that in Ms. Gleason's room, those constructivist ideas guided her. Why doesn't it work for me? When Ms. Williams—Kenisha, I mean—called me, I didn't even want to come. She's the reason I became a teacher. I loved being in her kindergarten all those years ago. And now…

Parul: It's sometimes overwhelming at first.

Kenisha: Sheila, we haven't heard from you. Tell us where you teach.

Sheila: Oh, I'm just a Head Start teacher in the next county. It's pretty rural out there. I probably shouldn't be here.

Jennifer: Most of my kids went to Head Start, and I'd like to hear more about it.

Parul: Sheila, my children are even younger than yours. I have infants and toddlers in a child-care center. So, we're really all in early childhood education.

Kenisha: Absolutely! But let's take some time to figure out whether we can all benefit from meetings like this one. I met each of you at various workshops and conferences, and we talked a little bit about our teaching on those occasions, but why don't we just talk informally about how we could support one another. I brought some snacks, and there's coffee and a vending machine here in our lounge.

What is Curriculum?

Curriculum is defined in a variety of ways. Since you started school, you have been taught according to a curriculum of some sort. You may have realized some time ago that a curriculum has something to do with what you are supposed to learn in school. Box 1.1 provides sample definitions of curriculum.

BOX 1.1 SAMPLE DEFINITIONS OF CURRICULUM

“The set of courses offered by an educational institution; A set of courses constituting an area of specialization” (Merriam-Webster Dictionary, www.Merriam-webster.com).

“All the organized and intended experiences of the student for which the school accepts responsibility” (Ryan & Cooper, 2000, p. 308).

“Educational objectives that are applicable to a specific academic area or area of study” (Spafford, Pesce, & Grosser, 1998, p. 67).

“The organized experiences designed to provide formal and informal opportunities for learning to children in a school setting” (Spodek & Saracho, 1994).

“A definition of what is to be learned. The origins of the word are from the Latin curriculum , a racing chariot, from which is derived a racetrack, or a course to be run, and from this, a course of study” (Ross, 2000, p. 8).

“An organized framework that delineates the content children are to learn, the processes through which children achieve the identified curricular goals, what teachers do to help children achieve these goals, and the context in which teaching and learning occur” (Bredekamp & Rosegrant, 1992, p. 10).

Notice that the last definition in the box, provided by the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC), is broader than most others in that it goes well beyond content. Our approach, too, goes well beyond content.

Teachers Plan Curriculum

Good teachers recognize that an appropriate, worthwhile curriculum involves much time and thought on their part. They think first about their overall objectives for children. Some objectives that relate to constructivist theory have been developed by Kamii and DeVries (1993). (See Box 1.2.) They think about large chunks of time and then move down to smaller periods. Teachers plan what they want to help children learn during the year, the semester, several weeks, a day, and even a particular time period. Even if teachers are provided with curriculum books or predetermined curriculum, they must plan how they will use these materials and what, when, and how they will help their students learn. They know that most worthwhile learning is constructed over time rather than in one class period.

BOX 1.2 CONSTRUCTIVIST TEACHING OBJECTIVES

Socioemotional Objectives

For the child to

1. become increasingly more autonomous within a context of generally noncoercive relationships with adults.
2. respect the feelings and rights of others and begin to cooperate (through decentering and coordinating different points of view).
3. be alert and curious and use initiative in pursuing curiosities, to have confidence in his ability to figure things out for himself, and to speak his mind with conviction.

Cognitive Objectives

For the child to

1. come up with a variety of ideas, problems, and questions.
2. put objects and events into relationships and notice similarities and differences (Kamii & DeVries, 1993).

Curriculum Development Is a Shared Enterprise

Teaching can be an isolated profession, particularly when teachers work alone in their own classrooms with few opportunities to discuss issues of substance with other teachers. Even when teachers work in teams, the focus often tends to be on planning the curriculum, troubleshooting, and taking care of administrative details rather than larger issues. You might ask yourself, “How do I feel about working with other teachers? Am I open-minded about sharing and accepting ideas? What examples can I provide from my experiences?”

When there are opportunities to discuss substantive issues, to work through and clarify new thinking, then teachers grow and change. In the same way, children need many opportunities to discuss their thinking and to support one another as they work out their understandings. Skilled teachers know how to arrange and sustain such a supportive environment for their students and for themselves. Teachers grow and change when they discuss issues with other teachers.

CONSTRUCTIONS

1. Research

Find out what standards your college or university must meet. Who imposes those standards? Who imposes those standards? Who determines whether the standards are met? How? What would happen if the standards were not met?

2. Research

What standards will you have to meet in order to be a licensed teacher? Who determines these standards?

3. Writing

Write a paper on standards in education. Use either the research questions here, or relate your paper to standards in a particular content area.

Curriculum Is Based on Standards

In designing curriculum, teachers think about the content that children are expected to know. Those expectations may come from a governmental body such as a local board of education, from state and/or national standards, from professional organizations, from textbooks, and certainly from teachers' understandings of children, their interests, and their current and emerging abilities. Teachers must be familiar with and knowledgeable about a variety of standards.

Teachers need an organized framework as they develop day-to-day curriculum. Such a framework differs from a prepackaged curriculum, which delineates what is to be done in classrooms all over the country in a fair amount of detail and in a particular sequence. Teachers consider the context, as well as the content, as they design curriculum. As teachers refer to standards, they must be aware of their value and of the possibility of misusing them as day-to-day teaching guides. Standards are not intended to give teachers a specific teaching plan. Rather, they provide guides for considering areas to be addressed within the curriculum that knowledgeable teachers design for the children in their own classes.

The work by the National Science Teachers Association (NSTA) and the National Research Council (NRC) is a good example of professional organization standards. In 2011, after completing in-depth study and research, the NRC released A Framework for K–12 Science Education: Practices, Crosscutting Concepts, and Core Ideas. This document, which outlines the key scientific ideas and practices all students should learn from kindergarten through twelfth grade, became the foundation for the development of new K–12 education standards: Next Generation Science Standards (www.nsta.org). The development of these standards, as with most national organization standards, occurs through extensive review by experts in the field as well as open, public review.

Beginning in 2010, the National Governors Association and Council of Chief State School Officers led the development of the Common Core State Standards. The effort led to the development of a “single set of clear educational standards for kindergarten through 12th grade in English language arts and mathematics that states voluntarily adopt” (www.corestandards.org). As of 2013, 45 states, the District of Columbia, four territories, and the Department of Defense Education Activity have adopted the Common Core Standards. The widespread adoption of the Common Core Standards is leading many professional organizations and educational systems to look at ways to appropriately implement and meet the intended outcomes of these standards.

With all of these standards and expectations being imposed on teachers and educational systems, teachers, themselves, must first develop their own understandings. Teachers will still find themselves reaching new thinking about scien-tific or mathematical principles as they exchange ideas with their students, even when their students are quite young. The curriculum strategies listed below suggest ways to incorporate one Common Core State Standard (CCSS) in math, the measurement and data category, at the kindergarten level.

CURRICULUM STRATEGIES: USING STANDARDS

Standard: (CCSS.Math.Content.K.MD.B.3) Classify objects into given categories; count the numbers of objects in each category and sort the categories by count.

Strategy:

• Help individual children develop questions to research. Example: Do you have a pet? If so, what animal is your pet?
• Provide a child with a clipboard and encourage the child to ask the question of each child in the class and to record responses.
• Guide the child to demonstrate the results using the interactive white board or pencil and paper.
• Encourage the class to analyze the whole data set and components of the set.

Following the lead of early standards development, many professional organizations have developed standards for teaching and learning. A list of some of the curricular standards appears in Box 1.3. Some of these standards are well researched,...

Table of contents

• Cover Page
• Half Title Page
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Dedication
• Table of Contents
• Preface
• PART 1 What are Constructivist Aims and Assumptions?
• PART 2 What are Key Components of Constructivist Curriculum?
• PART 3 What are Constructivist Practices?
• Glossary
• References
• Index