The topic I chose was to learn more about is curriculum and assessment guidelines as it relates to early childhood education programs. Why I chose this topic is because not every early childhood education program has the same curriculum and are assessed the same, which cause me to want to research in depth to find out why and what is being done to insure that all children are being assessed accordingly and have a curriculum that is conductive to their success as an early learner. Emphasis is most often times placed on how teachers teach, while is still feel this is an important piece to receiving a quality education, we as advocate for children must not forget what we are teaching our children. Standardized test have been apart of assessing children for years, I am now pleased to see that steps are being made to performance-based assessments that more accurately reflect children's learning. Based on the research of ECLKC (1992):
National organizations call for schooling to place greater emphasis on:
- Active, hands-on learning
- Conceptual learning that leads to understanding along with acquisition of basic skills
- Meaningful, relevant learning experiences
- Interactive teaching and cooperative learning
- A broad range of relevant content, integrated across traditional subject matter divisions
Curriculum development should take into account the many sources of curriculum:
- Child development knowledge
- Individual characteristics of children
- Knowledge base of various disciplines
- Values of our culture
- Parents' desires
- Knowledge children need to function competently in our society (Spodek, 1988; 1977; in press)
I found these suggestions and practices to be very helpful when building an appropriate curriculum of quality, as well as an effective approach to assessing children. While researching this topic I see their I more to learn and if my colleagues have more insight regarding this topic please feel free to share.
Research:
What Does Research Say About Early Childhood Education (1992)
Alysia,
ReplyDeleteI am also researching the different curricula in early childhood education. I think it becomes confusing to children if they have been in a program since birth that allows them to explore through play then go to kindergarten and have to remain seated during lessons. It can be overwhelming for parents when they have to decided which program is best for their child, while hoping that their child is prepared to succeed in kindergarten. That is my goal to find a balance since there is not an established universal curriculum at this time.