Department of Education, Unit Catalogue 2010/11 |
ED10351: Early childhood and primary education |
 Credits:
| 6 |
| Level:
| Certificate |
| Period: | This unit is available in... |
| Semester 2 |
| Assessment:
| CW 100% |
| Supplementary Assessment: | Like-for-like reassessment (where allowed by programme regulations) |
| Requisites:
| |
| Description:
| Aims: The intention of this unit is to: * introduce students to curriculum frameworks associated with early childhood and primary education and the cultural, political, historical contexts in which they are embedded; * familiarise students with a range of national policies (UK and outside of the UK) and their agendas for children and young people. Learning Outcomes: In completing this unit students would be expected to: * be familiar with curriculum frameworks used in early childhood and primary education; * evaluate and interpret the concepts and theories underpinning curriculum models and assessment in early childhood and primary education, including any implicit assumptions about child development and childhood; * develop an awareness of the development of national policy concerning children and young people; * develop lines of argument related to theory, policy and practice associated with early years and primary education; Skills: * Develop and apply the skills needed for academic study and enquiry (T//F/A) * Apply strategies for appropriate selection of relevant information from a wide source and body of knowledge (T/F/A) * Analyse and evaluate policy initiatives (T/F/A) * Ask appropriate and critical questions to make judgements (T/F) * Effective oral communication (F/T) * Ability to organise and articulate opinions and arguments in speech and writing using relevant specialist vocabulary and concepts (T/F/A) * Be competent users of ICT in their study (T) * Ability to collaborate and plan as part of a team, to carry out roles allocated by the team and to keep to agreed responsibilities (F/A) Content: The course content will cover five main areas: curriculum frameworks, curriculum policy, teaching methodologies, assessment and meeting the challenges of national policies such as for example: Every Child Matters, and the equivalent policies on other countries such as USA and Australia * Defining a knowledge base for early childhood and primary education: what do we mean by curriculum? who defines the curriculum? * Early childhood curriculum models;: High/Scope Preschool curriculum, Montessori education, The Reggio Emilia approach, Rudolf Steiner and Waldorf schooling, Anti-Bias Curriculum, The Foundation Stage Curriculum - What does curriculum mean in response to the approaches? * The impact of changing theoretical perspectives of childhood and child development on early childhood curriculum models. * National contexts and policy agenda for early childhood provision: e.g. Every Child Matters and its implications for provision. * Transitions to primary school - the interface between non-compulsory and compulsory schooling including issues concerned with baseline assessment and profiling. * National Curricula - policy rhetoric and reality. * Dominant teaching methodologies in primary years - theoretical tensions in the pedagogy of primary education. * Assessment - Origins of assessment; recent developments; types of assessments, the relationship between curriculum and assessment and the tensions existing between them. * Diversity, inclusion and learning (and the implications of these for teaching and learning). |