The Loop Spring 2015 web.pdf

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Writing our obs’? Or shaping identities? We email these notes to families regularly and as they occur. As we write we consider the importance of what we are writing. It is for the family, and we know it is equally for the child. We think deeply about the relationships we have with families and how we are partnering with them in their child’s life; perhaps even having an impact on their perspectives as parents. We honour that they have entrusted us with helping shape their child’s path and we know that the time we take to write and share is an incredibly important part of our work. When we have this important audience for our writing it causes us to be more personal in our transcribing. We have found that somehow it seems easier to write our observations in this way and allows our personalities and relationships to flow through. We think more deeply about a strength’s based purpose. We think about the identity and credibility of the child, the family and ourselves as we write. When you read these observations you begin to know the child for who they truly are, the things that make them unique, that delight them and inspire them. We share with families the ideas we and their children have for more learning and we open the dialogue for sharing and celebrating the work of children and of our early learning spaces. We understand that long letters are sometimes harder to find the time to read and for that matter, to write, so we are concise and meaningful. We know that families love this regular rejoicing and honouring of their children. They will often share the emails far and wide with family and friends all over the world, and they will often return email with thoughts about their child’s learning and importance. We share these email trails amongst our relevant teaching teams to allow a more full understanding of how educators, families and children feel and what we are all learning. Most importantly for us we hear many stories of how families share our carefully chosen words and pictures alongside their children. Each time I hear this I can picture them at home pouring over the images with their children on their laps, creating special family moments. The children are able to explain the experience to their families, placing them in a position of being empowered and knowing, and creating a new space for reflection and extended learning alongside their families. For us the documentation process is not simply an ‘add on’ to our work, it is firmly embedded as a process to develop communication, connections and relationships within our community. These days it is standard practice for early education and care settings to write records of children’s learning. There are few early childhood settings that would not freely share this documentation with the child’s family. It seems timely that we reflect critically on what we are recording and the real reasons we are recording and sharing. Does this work really inform our collective ways of knowing about children and indeed for children to know about themselves? Do we look back on what we have written to inform our journey and to celebrate the growth? As an educational leader in our setting I have the fortunate position of reading each of the notes to families before I email them on. I must say that I am often moved by what I am reading. It is in part because of the joy of what I am seeing the children being and achieving, however it is also because of the lens with which the educators view this work of children and themselves and the way it is meaningfully and sensitively written from the heart. As early childhood educators we are in a privileged position to support children as they form their identities. What we continuously choose to do and say with a child can be really influential in terms of shaping their views of themselves, what they feel they can do and how they feel valued by the people around them. We are equally in a privileged and somewhat powerful position to support families to celebrate who their child is, what they are capable of and the potential they have. Apart from the brief conversations with families at drop off and pick up times, the way we are most powerfully communicating our views of children’s uniqueness, capabilities and potential is almost always within the recording of our observations. It is for this reason that we must look beyond questions of templates and planning models. The essence of meaningful documentation does not lie in the how, but rather in the what. We must spend time critically reflecting and forging professional conversations about the real value of our observations and the impact on collective learning. Perhaps that time we spend writing our ‘obs’ is in fact a platform for our professional voice, a place to honour the depth and journeys of children, and a place to celebrate alongside families the joy of their offspring. Perhaps it is a powerful instrument for shaping identities. Recently my 22 year old son and I sat down to read a communication book that had been compiled by his early childhood educator when he was three years old. It was innovative for an early childhood setting to write this type of documentation at that time. My husband and I had also written in this book alongside the early childhood educator. It was an important way for us to communicate his needs and his learning. The writing in the book is not flashy or long winded, there are no pretty stickers, borders or templates. It is concise, simple and real, and it tells a story of who he was. It also tells a story of who we were and who his early childhood teacher was, of how we viewed him and worked alongside him. It is so valuable to us. It is the only substantial written recording of his young life that we have. 6 IN THE LOOP
NEW REQUIREMENTS FOR ENTRY INTO TEACHER EDUCATION PROGRAMS For educators interested in becoming an early childhood teacher, various pathways into teaching are available depending on your existing qualifications and experience. One pathway to becoming an early childhood teacher is through further study in teacher education at a Queensland university. Completing a teacher education program approved by the Queensland College of Teachers can also lead to teacher registration. From 2016, applicants for primary and early childhood teacher education programs will need to meet new prerequisite requirements. School leavers will need to meet these prerequisites on entry. Applicants, such as educators who hold diploma level qualifications, may receive conditional enrolment into a course. Conditional enrolment means you will need to complete an acceptable bridging course within the first 12 months of the program. The new entry requirements call for applicants to demonstrate at least a ‘Sound Achievement’ in the subjects of Senior English, Mathematics (A and/or B and/or C) and Science. The subjects must be authority subjects as determined by the QCAA (Queensland Curriculum Assessment Authority) or an acceptable equivalent subject or bridging course. If you have been thinking about enrolling in an early childhood teaching qualification, you should contact your preferred university. They can assist you in determining your requirements. WORKFORCE.ORG.AU 7
Page 1 and 2: Spring 2015 Spring 2015 HELPING CHI
Page 3 and 4: IN THIS ISSUE In May this year, the
Page 5: Imagine for a moment that we are te
Page 9 and 10: We then asked Margaret and Giulia w
Page 11 and 12: We viewed children’s behaviour as
Page 13 and 14: Noah’s Ark Resource Centre PERL -
Page 15 and 16: Would you like to explore strategie
Page 17 and 18: RESEARCH METHOD Action research inv
Page 19 and 20: CRITICAL REFLECTION Part of Everyda
Page 21 and 22: Some examples of provocations inclu
Page 23 and 24: ATTENDING AN EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCAT
Page 25 and 26: SO NOW LET’S LOOK AT WHAT “TOOL
Page 27 and 28: NOW YOU HAVE THE BOOK IN YOUR CENTR

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