|Early Years Learning Framework|
The Australian Early Years learning Framework is generally quite similar to Te whaariki. Interestingly, the EYLF explicitly pays tribute to the discourse of developmentalism. It affirms that play as open-ended, with a child-centred orientation. Play is defined as "providing opportunities for children to learn as they discover, create, improvise and imagine." The pedagogy is informed by the idea that the child and the child's experiences should be the centre of all learning.
At the same time, the EYLF acknowledges a range of theoretical perspectives, including the cultural-historical and post-structuralist movements. Against the background of developmental perspective, the curriculum tries to highlight the role of teachers in child-centred play. While the children are acquiring knowledge themselves through play, the teachers have an important role to play to initiate interactions with children in their play, bearing in mind the learning outcomes, such as desirable knowledge, skills, understanding. Effective interactions help make meaningful connections in which learners refine and reflect on their knowledge and skills. In planning for play-based learning, the role of teacher is to take into account the children's cultural experiences and funds of knowledge. For example, the teacher will connect play activities to particular conceptual and content-based ideas, so the children are able to acquire the desirable content knowledge. Within a play-based framework, the dynamic relationship between children, teachers and content knowledge is affirmed.
To sum up, the EYLF outlines play as a pedagogical practice, informed by a traditional view of the child-centred approach. In addition, it suggests that teachers "provide a balance between child led, child initiated and educator supported learning" through intentional teaching, which is "deliberate, purposeful and thoughtful". With the notion of intentional teaching, the EYLF reconciles the dichotomy of play-based learning and teacher supported learning.
More about pedagogy in coming posts...