Reinventing the Wheel
You will work with many people and resources to shape the early childhood curriculum of the future. Intergenerational professional relationships can be very important and helpful, as this is one of the ways in which we pass along practical curriculum wisdom (Henderson & Kesson, 2004) acquired over many years of teaching.
As a new teacher, you will likely be so focused on your day-to-day work that you might not think you will ever have time to think about the “big picture” or take a long view of what is happening as you work with curriculum. However, keeping the big picture in mind is critical to teaching from a metacognitive stance. Consider the following suggestions for things you can do to develop a reflective approach to your work:
- Seek out a mentor who models reflective teaching.
- Keep a journal and write in it regularly.
- Maintain a file of questions that arise about different aspects of curriculum.
- Engage in regular conversations with your students.
- Find and read resources related to your questions.
- Join a professional association, such as one of those listed in Feature Box 1.2, and attend conferences to network with others and develop a perspective on the context in which you work.
Five Key Questions
As we proceed in our exploration of early childhood curriculum, five key questions provide the organizing elements for the twelve chapters in this text. Together, they represent a coherent philosophy of education and a practical framework for reflection:
- What is the purpose of curriculum? (Chapters 1 and 2)
- What are children like and how do they learn? (Chapters 3 and 4)
- What is my role as a teacher? (Chapters 5 and 6)
- What do children need and want to know and learn about? (Chapters 7 through 11)
- How should curriculum be implemented? (Chapters 7 through 12)
If you begin to think about these questions now and revisit them regularly, you will establish habits of mind that will serve you well and help you make sense of triumphs and challenges you encounter.
Chapter Summary
- Curriculum is a structured framework for teaching that is articulated with varying levels of specificity.
- Early childhood educators have substantial responsibilities and varying degrees of flexibility about how to implement curriculum depending on the curriculum they use and the context in which they work.
- While curriculum for young children is based on principles consistent across the span from birth to age 8, the needs, abilities, and interests of children at different times affect what curriculum includes and how it is implemented.
- Many individuals have contributed to our understanding of how children learn and the methods and environments that best encourage the learning process. Among some of the most influential are Maria Montessori, John Dewey, Jean Piaget, and Lev Vygotsky.
- Factors such as social values, socioeconomic conditions, politics, research, and culture contribute to individual and social world views, which in turn are reflected in different perspectives about what curriculum should include and how it should be implemented.
- Through the work of professional organizations like NAEYC, early childhood educators advocate for developmentally appropriate practice as a framework for curriculum development. Teachers use knowledge about how children grow and learn to make decisions about curriculum and how to adapt to changing demands that affect their work.
- Good teachers engage in regular and thoughtful reflection and inquiry about their work to integrate theory and practice.
Discussion Questions
- Choose one of the influential thinkers profiled in this chapter and explain why you might want to know more about his or her work and ideas.
- Which of the 3 T’s (transmission, transactional, transformative) perspectives comes closest to describing your own view? Why?
- What do you think could be some of the most difficult obstacles in the way of implementing developmentally appropriate practices? Why?
Key Terms
Click on each key term to see the definition.