Reconceptualising Professional Experience in Early Childhood
Teacher Education
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Why change?
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Background Students believe that practicum has a profound
effect on their preparation for teaching Increasing market
competition for quality practicum centres/schools in which there
are opportunities for negotiated flexible professional experience
arrangements Dwindling resources, and increasing expense of
sustaining practicum programs The Flinders Early Childhood
commitment to integrating the professional experience more fully
into its courses
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Early childhood education is a field in transition.
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What we do in teacher education can either contribute to that
transformation or it can recreate what we already have.
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If we continue to do what weve always done, we will continue to
get the same as what we have now.
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Early Childhood Education at Flinders University Bachelor of
Arts/Bachelor of Education (Early Childhood) First intake of
students in March 2007 4 year undergraduate award Education and
arts subjects studied concurrently First graduates will enter the
field in 2011 Master of Teaching (Early Childhood) First intake of
students in March 2009 2 year postgraduate award Students enter the
award already having completed an undergraduate degree First
graduates will enter the field in 2011
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Professional Experience Principles Enhanced learning for
children as the focus of the centre/school -university relationship
Reflective inquiry that connects practice and theory Student
teachers, mentor teachers and teacher educators working together as
'learning partners' in the authentic context of centres/schools, to
better understand and enhance teaching and learning in the early
years Teaching in all aspects of the courses constructed so student
teachers become researchers of their own practice Opportunities
made available for centres/schools and student teachers to pursue
collaborative curriculum inquiry, curriculum development and
investigation into teaching and learning in the early years.
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Changing relationships This required a change in the
relationship between the university and the communities it
serves.
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Distinctive Features Collaboration with centres/schools in
program delivery and design A small number of full time staff whose
responsibility is to ensure that links are made between different
aspects of the program located at the university and in centres and
schools Associated sessional staff committed to the principles
philosophy of the program, working as part of the teaching team,
actively involved with the on campus and in centre/school
components of the program Management of professional experience by
the program team to provide links between content, curriculum and
teaching knowledge and the art of teaching Focus on reflection,
critical analysis, research and informed judgement Focus on the
development of intellectually challenging teaching approaches that
support quality early childhood education.
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Operational Changes Allocation of centres/schools to a
University Liaison as opposed to an allocation of students to
supervise. Academics engaged, owning and valuing professional
experience
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What is a partnership? Partnerships are a social practice
achieved through and characterised by trust, mutuality and
reciprocity among pre-service teachers, teachers and other
centre/school colleagues and teacher educators. Trust: the
commitment and expertise that each of the main stakeholders brings
to the partnership in the expectation that it will provide them
with the benefits each seeks Mutuality: the extent to which the
stakeholders recognise that working together does lead to the
benefits valued by all the partners Reciprocity: that each
stakeholder recognises and values what the others bring to the
partnership.
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The Power of Language: Constructing different roles University
Supervisor - University Liaison School Practicum Coordinator -
School Experience Coordinator Supervising Teacher - Mentor Teacher
Student Teacher
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Characteristics of sustainable partnerships 1.A focus on
learning: childrens learning is central everyone is learning 2.
Altered relationships which are sustained by communication about
shared concerns: relationships are built between: student teachers
and children student teachers and their mentors student teachers
and their peers student teachers and teacher educators mentor
teachers and teacher educators 3. New enabling structures which are
sustained by institutional resources.
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University-centre/school partnerships bring together teachers,
pre-service teachers and teacher educators in open, respectful,
collaborative and hopeful inquiry and action about important
educational questions.
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A system is not the sum of its isolated parts but is dependent
on the interactions among institutions, agencies, and people Lobman
& Ryan, 2008, p. 531 Images from: FreeDigitalPhotos.net
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Pre-service educators are recognised in our courses as
individuals who bring their own unique knowledge, feelings,
experiences and current thinking to their placements So instead of
assessing students against conventional, competency-based criteria,
we ask them to reflect on their contributions on placement
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So our mentors dont end up with additional responsibilities
Instead our students become valuable members of their teaching
teams who contribute rather than add to our educational
navigations!
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Selfishly (we) teacher educators also benefit As teacher
educators can be blind-sighted about: how contemporary practice is
evolving; and, how this evolution may influence and form our
teaching, learning and research. So partnerships help us to grow
and develop professionally (and we can continue to be contributing
members of the profession as a result!)
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Collaborative Inquiry: More than supporting the nexus between
theory & practice what it means to learn as a function of being
part of a community... (Newman & Ashton, 2009, p. 96) Enables
us to mentally and physically immerse ourselves in jointly
developed, authentic problems and practices Blurs boundaries
between academic and practical knowledge to offer new
opportunities, perspectives and solutions Re-shapes educator
identities, beliefs, theories and practices Sustains our commitment
and persistence
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Inquiry and research Whose agenda is driving the research? Who
are the subjects and how is that negotiated? How are the subjects
positioned, as participants or as recipients? Who gets to know
about who? Does the research take a perspective of proving a theory
or one of reducing ignorance? Who owns the data? What counts as
data? Who has access to the data? Is there a commitment to
feedback? How is this to be done? How are interpretations to be
negotiated?
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What does that look like in an early childhood teacher
education program? Students co-located in larger groups to provide
a service e.g. a curriculum project Students and teachers working
together to produce curriculum materials/resources that are then
trialled in a centre/school Clusters of centres/schools working on
a common project with students contributing to that project
Students co-researching with teachers in centres and schools on
curriculum priority projects Students undertaking key task for a
centre/school for example, collecting data with parents, preparing
portfolios for students, etc. Student teachers undertaking
investigations for example, early childhood community needs Student
teachers mentoring select groups of students Student teachers
working with professionals from other agencies on integrated
projects Student teachers supporting new employer initiatives and
innovative projects for example, the implementation of the Early
Years Learning Framework.
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Our Work: breaking down traditional divisions How much could we
teach each other .adults with the experience and children with
their freshness how full both our lives could be? ( Rinaldi )
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The opportunities for educators to work in different ways
within communities creates space to create identity, make meaning
and co-construct education that is emancipatory there is a
potential for new societal forms of collective action and thus an
enlargement of democracy in complex societies (Dahlberg, Moss &
Pence (1999)