Wednesday, August 2, 2017
Research Around The W o r l d .
Early Childhood Australia: This is the Australian equivalent to the U.S. based NAEYC.
http://www.earlychildhoodaustralia.org.au/
WHAT ARE SOME INTERNATIONAL RESEARCH TOPICS?
A few international research topics that I found on the website above:
"Sustainability and intentional teaching in early childhood"
"Learning and teaching through play"
What surprising facts/insights/new ideas about early childhood did you gain from exploring this international early childhood website?
I learned many interesting new insights while browsing the articles on the website. Many young children around the world are becoming more aware of the importance of recycling and its impact on the the environment. The article regarding sustainability goes on to discuss the importance of EC educators incorporating sustainable living as a essential element of early childhood teaching. This article stated, "Despite these changes to curriculum and environmental education, recent surveys in local government services identified that many early childhood educators have expressed a knowledge gap in not only what to teach young children about sustainability, but how to go about teaching it" (City of Knox, Staff Survey, 2010). I have also come to understand that many Australian educators feel as though play influences cognitive development within children and is a very important part of growing and the overall development of children. I also learned that play can be associated with deeper creativity and strengthening language skills, empathy for others, as well as strengthening social and emotional skills. Play allows children to use their imaginations to explore the world around them however they may choose. it has also been found that play increases positive mental health, influences a healthier well-being and better overall physical health also. Recycling and the importance of play in children's learning environments promotes children's ability to learn complex ideas.
\What other noteworthy information did you find on this website?
Aside from providing informative research article this website offers leadership programs and resources to EC professionals as well as helpful resources for parents and families. The website list leadership conferences and events in Australia for EC professionals to attend and interact with other professionals as well as gain informative information regarding EC policies, development etc. One specific event offered on the website is the Early Childhood Australia National Conference "brings people together to recognize the impact of high-quality early childhood education on the lives of young children and their families, as well as the importance of investing in ongoing professional development for educators, teachers and sector leaders." Parents, caregivers and professionals can subscribe to newsletters on the site to stay current on events in the EC realm.
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Life skills are so important for children to learn. I thought it was very interesting for them to teach the children about recycling. I will be looking more into this webpage and read up on this. Great post!
ReplyDeletePassion,
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed your blog. I have always been keen with recycling and it makes me happy that there are countries around the world promoting the idea of sustainable living as an essential element of early childhood teaching. Truth be told, Panama is way behind in the initiatives to recycle materials. The school that I work for has recently (as of this year) set recycle bins around the school. I am glad children are starting to grow up with the habit of recycling. Thanks for sharing!
Hi Passion,
ReplyDeleteYou shared an interesting international topic: the importance of recycling and play in children’s learning.
The topic of play caught my attention. Any research on play and how it affects the wellbeing of children gets my interest. I want to be grounded in what researchers say about this topic and be able to share it with my colleagues. Thanks for sharing what you learned about the play. Play is a huge part of my childhood. I can speak from my personal opinion that play fostered creativity in my life.
Thanks for sharing the insights you gained from this website.
Sharon
Hello Passion,
ReplyDeleteThis is the first time I have visited your blog. It is beautifully done. I also chose to explore the ECA website. I did not read the article on play, but it sounds very interesting. I will have to go back and find it. Play is such an important part of early childhood; yet, I feel like I am always justifying "playtimes" to parents at school. Having information like the article you described is so helpful in validating the allotment of time reserved for free choice playtime in our day. Thank you for sharing this piece with us.
Elizabeth Dupin