Exploring And Celebrating The Early Childhood Practitioner

This exciting new book celebrates, interrogates and re-imagines the complex and demanding role of the Early Childhood Practitioner. Exploring the many different facets of the Early Childhood Practitioner’s (ECP) role, it challenges normative constructions of practitioners and how they have been shaped by assumptions of history, culture and policy. Drawing on a range of theoretical presumptions and debates, the chapters champion the multidimensional power and potentiality of the ECP, arguing for greater respect and recognition for a role that supports and enables at a crucial time in a child’s life. With opportunities for reflection, key topics include: The specialist pedagogical expertise of the ECP The key role that ECPs play in the child’s holistic wellbeing The ECP as diplomat across many professional contexts, effectively communicating with families and professionals The creative ECP, pushing traditional, normative boundaries of practice The ECP as so much more than they are customarily perceived as being. This latest addition to the TACTYC series will be valuable reading for Early Years students – particularly on Masters level courses – as well as those working and researching in the Early Years sector.

This book frames content in a way that defines the " what, why, and how" of becoming an early childhood educator. It prepares readers for the variety of roles (advocate, facilitator, planner, mediator, etc.) they must assume in working with children, parents, colleagues, principals, administrators, and the community at large. Its innovative coverage focuses on helping readers fulfill these roles in a caring, competent, knowledgeable manner, through case studies, verbatim comments, and numerous opportunities for reflection. Organized around the twelve essential roles and responsibilities of effective early childhood educators as delineated by the NAEYC "Guidelines for Preparation of Early Childhood Professionals (2000)," coverage includes demographic changes in families, advances in psychology, political influences, cultural diversity, and issues of inclusion. For future teachers of children from birth to age 8.

This book aims to encourage early childhood practitioners to provide for young children’s all round well-being.

This book frames content in a way that defines the " what, why, and how" of becoming an early childhood educator. It prepares readers for the variety of roles (advocate, facilitator, planner, mediator, etc.) they must assume in working with children, parents, colleagues, principals, administrators, and the community at large. Its innovative coverage focuses on helping readers fulfill these roles in a caring, competent, knowledgeable manner, through case studies, verbatim comments, and numerous opportunities for reflection. Organized around the twelve essential roles and responsibilities of effective early childhood educators as delineated by the NAEYC "Guidelines for Preparation of Early Childhood Professionals (2000)," coverage includes demographic changes in families, advances in psychology, political influences, cultural diversity, and issues of inclusion. For future teachers of children from birth to age 8.

Once the Cinderella of the education system, early years education has evolved into a much more substantially funded sector with staff experiencing greater opportunities for higher-level training and education as well as increasing demands. This book reflects practitioner debates about fundamental questions such as whether or not their field of work is a profession at all. Two key arguments are presented. The first is that early years education has matured to the point that pedagogical and regulatory frameworks have been introduced and linked to a terminology of professionalism. This has opened up a space for early years practitioners – as insiders of this historically undervalued sector – to question the nature of their practice. The questioning leads to the second argument: the need for a new future for early years education marked by a ‘critical ecology’ of the profession. This is a future in which educators maintain an attitude of critical enquiry in all aspects of their role, assessing the genuine needs of the sector, factoring in the different political and cultural milieux that influence it, and acting to transform it. In exploring the issues, this book begins by recording in detail the daily work of early years educators from six countries: Australia, England, Finland, Germany, New Zealand and Sweden. These case studies explore what it means to act professionally in a particular context; perceptions of what being a ‘professional’ in early childhood education means (including practitioners’ self perceptions and external perspectives); and common features of practice in each context. It moves on to analyse the wider socio-political forces that affect this day-to-day practice and recommends that practitioners act as transformative agents informed by the political and social realities of their time.

Anti-bias education begins with you! Become a skilled anti-bias teacher with this practical guidance to confronting and eliminating barriers.

This book uniquely describes the work of two Early Years Professionals, drawing on their narrative accounts as they robustly describe and analyse their work with young children. Against a backcloth of increasing regulation and inspection of early years care and education, Kathy Gooch emphasizes the importance of building authentic relationships with children and their families, explores how play can be promoted as the central site for learning, and shows how professionals can use play to account for children’s development and learning. In analysing the Early Year Professionals’ narratives, this book explores key themes including: Traditional notions of ‘teaching’ and how they can be redefined The significance of talk in children’s lives Teachers’ professional identities How children’s potential in learning can be achieved through play Celebrating knowledge, skills and understanding and re-defining what it means to be a teacher, in its broadest sense, this fascinating book brings together research and literature from across disciplines. Containing a foreword by Tricia David, it will be of interest to academics, early years educators and students on early childhood education degree programmes and initial teacher education courses, as well as others concerned with the over prescriptive nature of early education.