Being an Early Childhood Educator

Bringing theory and practice together

Felicity McArdle, Lyn Zollo, Megan Gibson

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2020
• Print ISBN: 9780367717544
• eBook ISBN: 9781000256345
• Topic: Education
• Subtopic: Early Childhood Education

'This book will be an invaluable resource for pre-service early childhood educators as they prepare not only for their placements but also their future careers. The examples, activities and reflection points are realistically representative of events and contexts across the birth to 8 years age range. These features effectively scaffold the pre-service teacher's preparation and thinking for socially just early childhood teaching.' - Associate Professor Susan Krieg, Early Childhood Program Coordinator, Flinders University

Making the transition from pre-service teacher to professional can be challenging. From field experience placements, or 'pracs', to the early years in the classroom, this text provides a comprehensive and practical guide to help every early childhood student develop their professional expertise and confidence.

The authors prompt students to bring together theories learned at university with ways of working with real children in real settings, framed by the principles of recognising equity and diversity. There is clear guidance on how to be successful 'on prac', including understanding the many roles pre-service teachers will be expected to take on, and the important relationships they need to build. Lesson planning, understanding curriculum documents and fail-safe strategies for teaching in a wide range of situations and with children from wide-ranging backgrounds are all covered in depth. Suggestions for tutorial activities and further reading accompany each chapter, prompting students to engage in critical reflection and self-evaluation, while the 'On track on prac' feature will help pre-service teachers monitor and review their progress. Readers are also provided with insights from 'real world' pre-service students and professional teachers who have mentored many different students on prac.

This is an essential text for all students undertaking practicums and preparing for the first years of their professional careers.

1 Becoming, being, belonging: So you want to be an early childhood teacher?

In this chapter you will find:

• ‘big picture’ mapping of your program of study
• brief descriptions of the various types of settings and services in the field of early childhood care and education
• some histories of how the early years have come to be defined
• worldviews and standpoints
• information about starting your portfolio.

Penny wants to be a teacher so she can make a difference. She still remembers her preschool teacher, Miss Honey, who used to hold her hand and help her say goodbye to her mum when she dropped her at preschool on her way to work. Penny also recalls a teacher she had in Year 8, who really made his students think; on reflection, she remembers that teacher as being scrupulously fair to all students. Penny wants to become a teacher who is kind, helps children to learn and is fair and just.

Henny doesn’t really know why she has enrolled in a teacher preparation course. She hasn’t really thought about it actually. The choice was more from a lack of any other idea than from a deliberate decision. People have told her that the hours are good, the holidays are great—and how hard can it be? She knows all about education, since she has just been through twelve years of it herself, so she’s hoping the study is not too demanding… actually, it’s young children, not rocket science, so she pretty much knows what they need to learn anyway.

A supervising teacher’s thoughtsWho do you think will do better on prac: Henny or Penny?

Well, it’s a bit early to say … I was a bit like Henny myself when I started … I hadn’t really given it much thought, and it seemed like a good idea at the time. But, I can tell you this … I must have had close to a hundred student teachers in my classrooms over the years, and I would much rather Penny any day. She sounds like she is more thoughtful, more reflective and she cares about children. That’s all 1 expect really. It’s more of an attitude than what they’ve actually learned at uni. When I have a student who is keen, and cares about the work … then that’s a help. If I have a student who I have to keep my eye on the whole time, and who never does anything without being asked/told, then it makes my work harder … and that’s not always fair to the children.

—Joanne, Head of Curriculum, 2010

Research and experience both tell us that a teacher can make a difference. This book does not contain ‘all you need to know to become a good teacher’, nor does it reduce the task down to a ‘Teaching for Dummies’ instruction book. Instead, it will be a companion to all the other learning you do about teaching.

Look at Figure 1.1, and consider the ‘big picture’ of what it takes to be a good teacher. According to theories of teacher preparation, teachers need to know and be able to do a number of things.

Activity 1.1

Make a list of all the things you think good teachers need to know and be able to do.

Figure 1.1: A map of what teachers need to know and be able to do

Source: McArdle (2010).

As you make your way through your teacher preparation program, whether you are enrolled in a one-, two-, three- or four-year program, this book can act as a map, guiding you towards the goal of graduation and transition to a teaching career. Like any good travel guide, this book offers choices in routes, with a number of pathways weaving their way through to the destination … and beyond. We suggest that at the beginning of your course, you study the ‘map’ in Figure 1.1, work out where you are going and what you need in order to get there, then chart your progress as you make your way through the many roads, side tracks, and loops and turns. Find out what you need to know, and discover how you can acquire the skills, knowledge and attributes you need. Keep records of your milestones so you can show what you can do. You will need an impressive portfolio of your achievements when you eventually graduate and take the next step: seeking employment.

A common view of teacher preparation programs is that students learn ‘theory’ at university, then spend some intensive time in classrooms or other educational settings ‘practising’ their skills. In more recent times, teacher preparation programs have become more complex, with opportunities for ‘practice’ beyond the so-called ‘prac’ periods, and building partnerships through which universities and schools and centres work together with shared goals of preparing quality professionals for the field. Becoming a teacher is not a simple question of ‘balance’ between theory and practice. Many students say they want more ‘prac’ in their programs, but an apprenticeship model alone is not the answer.

From a reading of the map in Figure 1.1, it is possible to see that there is both an art and a craft to teaching. The craft requires teachers to develop a ‘toolbox’ of ‘never-fail’ strategies that help manage behaviour, plan and stage learning, assess and evaluate. When on prac, additions to the ‘toolkit’ are specific to the prac situation—for example, managing behaviour when you are a visiting ‘practising’ teacher is a different proposition from managing behaviour when you have an established relationship over time with the children in your care. The art of teaching is knowing when and what to do, based on a depth of knowledge of theories, reading situations, contexts and people, making informed decisions and ‘bringing it all together’ in a way that supports success for all children. This is complex, difficult, demanding and pleasurable, rewarding and exciting!

Taking it further

Place a large box within your study space. Every time you experience success as a teacher, collect an artefact and keep a collection in the box—take a photo, make a copy of a child’s work with their permission, keep a copy of positive feedback from your supervising teacher. If you prefer, do this electronically, and keep all the material in a file on your desktop.

Activity 1.2

I wish there was more prac in our course.

I learned more on prac than I ever did at university. (Madeline, student teacher, 2011)

Consider Madeline’s statement. Why do you think she says this? Do you agree? What part do you think the university program plays in teacher preparation? What would your prac experience be like without any university input? Where does ‘prac’ fit in the map shown in Figure 1.1?

Becoming an early childhood teacher

In Australia, the early childhood years are taken to span a child’s life from birth to 8 years. This means that early childhood education and care (ECEC) encompasses contexts prior to school and the early years of primary school. Within this age range, a number of different ECEC contexts offer programs and services for children and families. While the terminology used for these contexts varies, there are some common shared understandings, both within Australia and internationally. Some of the different contexts that operate within ECEC are outlined in Table 1.1, and key elements of the programs and the operational features are listed. While not all contexts are included, this table provides a good overview of programs and services. These contexts are clustered as prior-to-school contexts (up to approximately 5 years of age) and school contexts (the lower years of primary school, encompassing up to 8 years of age, or Year 3).

Table 1.1: ECEC contexts at a glance

Prior-to-school context	Operation
Child care/long day care/ early childhood education and care centres	Terms used interchangeably. Centre-based education and care for children from birth to 5 years, though may also include outside school hours care for children up to 12 years of age. Operate for a minimum 48 weeks a year, and open up to 12 hours per day.
Kindergarten/preschool	Program offered the year prior to primary school—children generally aged 3-5 years (some variation of ages between states and territories). The program usually operates during school hours and during school terms. The name may vary across states and territories e.g. in Queensland it is kindergarten, while in New South Wales it is preschool. These programs generally operate from 9.00 a.m. until 2.30 p.m., and some may include sessional kindergarten for shorter days (for example, 9.00 a.m.-12.00 p.m.). Children generally attend for two to three days per week. Increasingly, kindergartens are offering ‘after’ or ‘before’ care to meet the needs of working parents.
Family day care	Home-based care for children aged from birth to 12 years provided by a carer who is registered with a family day care coordination scheme. Generally, three to five children attend at the same time and hours are flexible.
Private home-based care	Private or informal care that i...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Endorsements
• Title
• Copyright
• Contents
• List of figures and tables
• Introduction: How to use this book
• 1 Becoming, being, belonging: So you want to be an early childhood teacher?
• 2 What is prac? Preparing for success across different settings
• 3 Think like a teacher: Pedagogies, values and ethics
• 4 Act like a teacher: Being professional
• 5 Work like a teacher: Understanding curriculum documents, documentation, leadership and mentoring
• 6 Stepping up, stepping out: Your employability
• 7 Young children, different settings: Managing and connecting across contexts
• 8 Your teaching toolkit: Never-fail strategies, tips and reminders
• References
• Index