Assignment Sharing Web Resources #2
The website that I have been looking at is Early Childhood Australia. This week, I took a look at their
Everyday Learning series. They had topics ranging from play, friendships,
dealing with anger to going green. These articles are meant for parents or
anyone who cares for children. However, you have to pay for the articles. Next,
I explored the link called Child Development, Family, Health, and Education Research. which brought me to a list of topics
and ages. I clicked on infants to see what was available and then clicked on play. This brought me to a list of websites
sharing articles about the importance of play. I will bookmark this page for
future reference.
The next link I clicked on was called supporting best practice. This led to more lists of topics and fact sheets from other websites. Some useful links are babies, toddlers, early childhood practices, Diversity and inclusion, and assessment and evaluation.
I didn’t come across anything I thought was controversial. Many of their standards for quality care are similar to ours here in the US. I found an article under the link, "Every Child Magazine" called Cultural competence - ensuring individuality is integral to equity, fairness and
social justice.
Australia has recently implemented universal quality standards. This approach is partly an economic investment, but this article expresses the importance of individual children and families and respecting their strengths and diverse backgrounds. “In finalizing the logistics of National Quality Framework implementation (and what
a major initiative and achievement!) we must keep ‘deep understandings’ about children, development and learning in the early years at the top of our ‘to do’ lists. Regulations, rating and results are important, but at the core of quality programs are children and their relations with others.” I thought this quote and the full article were interesting because our discussions were about the perspectives of economists and politicians and the unintended consequences of looking at early childhood programs as strictly a financial investment.
Other than implementing universal standards, I did not find any other information about trends that are different from the US. In both countries early childhood professionals care about high quality, inclusion and diversity, ending the cycle of poverty, professional development, inequality etc. This website has many resources, but a lot of them are for members only or you have to buy individual articles. I wish more of the resources were free, but there are still some links I haven’t explored. The resources I was able to view show a commitment to the well-being of young children.
The next link I clicked on was called supporting best practice. This led to more lists of topics and fact sheets from other websites. Some useful links are babies, toddlers, early childhood practices, Diversity and inclusion, and assessment and evaluation.
I didn’t come across anything I thought was controversial. Many of their standards for quality care are similar to ours here in the US. I found an article under the link, "Every Child Magazine" called Cultural competence - ensuring individuality is integral to equity, fairness and
social justice.
Australia has recently implemented universal quality standards. This approach is partly an economic investment, but this article expresses the importance of individual children and families and respecting their strengths and diverse backgrounds. “In finalizing the logistics of National Quality Framework implementation (and what
a major initiative and achievement!) we must keep ‘deep understandings’ about children, development and learning in the early years at the top of our ‘to do’ lists. Regulations, rating and results are important, but at the core of quality programs are children and their relations with others.” I thought this quote and the full article were interesting because our discussions were about the perspectives of economists and politicians and the unintended consequences of looking at early childhood programs as strictly a financial investment.
Other than implementing universal standards, I did not find any other information about trends that are different from the US. In both countries early childhood professionals care about high quality, inclusion and diversity, ending the cycle of poverty, professional development, inequality etc. This website has many resources, but a lot of them are for members only or you have to buy individual articles. I wish more of the resources were free, but there are still some links I haven’t explored. The resources I was able to view show a commitment to the well-being of young children.
Tiffany-
ReplyDeleteI appreciated you sharing your insight on how the unintended consequences of recognizing relationships is less important than meeting standards and educational outcomes. I find it fascinating that so many other countries share the same issues as the US. Thanks for sharing!
Tiffany, I really enjoy reading about Australia. I did not know about their standards. My parents just visit Australia last year and was surprise with some of thier standards and policies. Do you think they have become more diversity in they last couple of years in their school system?
ReplyDeleteDarrell Sallam
It's interesting to know that quality programs doesn't just exist in the U.S. Children no matter where they live in the world should have that opportunity before them to be in a quality program. Thank you for sharing.
ReplyDeleteBrenda
Thank you for sharing so much information about Australia. It is very nice to learn new things from different countries. Every country has their different standards when referring to early childhood education. I never imagine learning about early childhood education in Australia. They have many difference as much as similarities but the important thing is being there for the children and providing a safe, healthy, loving environment. great post!
ReplyDeleteTiffany, it is really interesting to learn that education in Australia is similar to the education in the U.S. Thank you for your post. I look forward to learning more about education in Australia.
ReplyDeleteThe information that you provide about Australia is very interesting. The quote was very interesting. As I continue to learn more about Australia through your blog there are a lot of similarities that we share in the US and in my town when it comes to standards and early childhood. Great Post!
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing information about early childhood from Australia. It is always interesting to find out how programs are set up in other countries. I found this information very interesting and informative. I think in the end all people involved in the early childhood field want the same thing for our children, which is to learn in an environment that they can flourish while being safe.
ReplyDelete