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Planning in the context of the EYLF:Powerful, practical and pedagogically sound

Catherine Patterson and Alma Fleet

Research in Practice Series


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About Early Childhood Australia

Early Childhood Australia actively promotes

the provision of high-quality services for all

young children from birth to eight years and

their families, and supports the important

role of parents. Early Childhood Australia is

also the national umbrella organisationfor childrens services and a leading early

childhood publisher.

About the series

The Research in Practice Seriesis

published four times each year by

Early Childhood Australia.

The series aims to provide practical, easy to

read, up-to-date information and support to a

growing national readership of early childhood

workers. The books bring together the best

information available on wide-ranging topics and

are an ideal resource for childrens services

workers and others interested in the care and

education of young children.

Series Editor Roslyn Mertin

Edition Editor Joy Goodfellow

Graphic Design Nathalie Scott

Photographs Andrew Sikorski

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Research in Practice Seriesor any other

Early Childhood Australia publication,

please contact the Publications Section

for further information on the preparation of

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All rights reserved byEarly Childhood Australia Inc.

Material herein must not be reproducedin any form without the written permissionof Early Childhood Australia Inc.

Registered for posting as a publicationPP232100/00036ISSN 1440-5148ISBN10 1-921162-49-XISBN13 978-1-921162-49-7

Printed by Elect Printing, Canberra

About the authors

Dr Catherine Patterson has been teaching and coordinating programs within the Institute of Early

Childhood at Macquarie University for over two decades. She has a particular interest in facilitatingthe growth of student teachers in practicum units. Catherines research explores the realities

of teaching and learning for early childhood practitioners. She is able to use this research in

professional development seminars to inspire early childhood staff to re-think their daily practices

with children and adults.

Associate Professor Alma Fleet, formerly Head of the Institute of Early Childhood, enjoys teaching

those studying to work in the early childhood sector, as well as those who are furthering their

careers in this important area. She is interested in the nature of teachers work, processes of

educational change, and the lessons to be learned by walking alongside Aboriginal and Torres Strait

Islanders in Australia.

Alma and Catherine have been talking with the early childhood sector in Australia about

programming and planning for some time. The much anticipated arrival of the Early Years Learning

Frameworkhas provided another opportunity to engage with these ideas and to consider new

possibilities in professional practice.


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Planning in the context of the EYLF: Powerful, practical and pedagogically sound i

1 Introduction

4 Where do I start?

6What do I need to know?

9 Thinking through decisions today to plan for tomorrow

16 Common threads and distinctive features

19 Pulling it all together

24 How do I find out more?

27 References and acknowledgements

Contents


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Research in Practice Series Volume 18 Number 2 20111

We are in an exciting era in Australian early childhood history. Each of us working with

young children and their families can make a contribution to an evolving way of being an

early childhood educator in Australia. We now have an Early Years Learning Frameworkfor

Australia (EYLF) (DEEWR, 2009) which is perceived as something between a guideline

for best practice and a philosophical thinking piece which can be a provocation for those

engaged in this profession.

To begin this exploration of planning and programming, we turn to the EYLF which states:

Introduction

Planning in the context of the EYLFhas been written for everyone who is working

with the Early Years Learning Framework. Depending on your background and

qualications, some of the language may be more or less familiar to you. These ideaswill become more familiar as you discuss the EYLF with others.

As you read through Planning in the context of the EYLF, you might like to have a

copy of the Learning Framework and the Educators Guide nearby for reference.

The Framework provides broad direction for early childhood educators inearly childhood settings to facilitate childrens learning. It guides educators

in their curriculum decision-making and assists in planning, implementing

and evaluating quality in early childhood settings. It also underpins the

implementation of more specic curriculum relevant to each local community

and early childhood setting(DEEWR, 2009, p. 8).


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Planning in the context of the EYLF: Powerful, practical and pedagogically sound 2

Each person and planning team in a wide

range of early childhood settings must

think about how the Framework relates

to their practice. As a beginning, people

might turn to the Educators Guide to the

Early Years Learning Framework(DEEWR,

2010) which includes an overview of the

Framework and provides suggestions for

implementation. The Educators Guide

presents an overview of the components

that might be relevant to planning and

programming (in a traditional sense). It

might be helpful to think of the Framework

as three inter-related elements sitting

within the organising concepts of

Belonging, Being and Becoming. Thethree elements are expressed through the

Principles, enacted through Practice, and

observed through ve Learning Outcomes.

The Educators Guide explains that:

Belonging, being and becoming

and the ve Learning Outcomes

describe life competencies which

are dynamic and in a continual

state of becomingbecoming

more complex, richer and more

expansive. They are not discrete

skills to be achieved and ticked off

(DEEWR, 2010, p. 42).

With increasing experience with theseideas, educators will become comfortable

with planning and programming within

the Framework as described in the EYLF.

In the next few sections, we will invite

you to consider how these ideas might be

unfolding in your setting, how you might

grow in your understanding of possible

approaches and support those around you

to become more condent in their work

with the EYLF.


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We will begin with a story about an educator who we will call Philippa.

Philippas narrative :

Philippa has just walked into the room where the toddlers are playing with some new

blocks that have just been added to the construction area. In scanning the room to

observe which areas are attracting childrens attention, Philippa is acknowledging the

importance of considering the nature of childrens involvement.

As stated in the EYLF, Viewing children as active participants and decision makers

opens up possibilities for educators to move beyond pre-conceived expectations

about what children can do and learn(DEEWR, 2009, p. 9).

She then decides to settle nearby, chatting to another child while she watches the

play and listens to the conversations to gain some insight into the directions of the

play. In thinking about the Outcomes discussed by staff at their planning meeting theweek before, she is curious to see if this is an opportunity to strengthen possibilities

for cooperation and negotiation (as encouraged within Outcome 2). All had agreed

to look for opportunities to do this as there was some concern that unhelpful

behaviours were emerging in the group, increasing the prevalence of aggressive

resolution of disputes.


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Lets think about Philippas experience. How might it relate to you? You might start by

thinking how her decisions reect her philosophy, the beliefs and principles that underlie

her daily decision making. You know that it is important to have a personal professional

philosophy that will be a point of reference for your decision making.

This will be a combination of things that

you believe because of the way you

have been brought up and the things

that you have come to understand about

how young children and their families

relate to early childhood settings. Your

philosophy impacts on what your role

might be in the development of young

childrens wellbeing, intellectual, creative,

Where do I start?

social and perhaps spiritual selves.

(Note for example, Arthur, Beecher,

Death, Dockett & Farmer, 2008; Curtis &

Carter, 2008). You may also have rened

your ideas through further study. Write

down what you think is your current

personal professional philosophy; plan on

revisiting it from time to time to rephrase,

deepen or update some aspects of it.

What is a personal professional philosophy?


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How do I read the EYLF in terms of its

foundational philosophy?

The document has been framed to provoke discussion rather than to provide a list of

specic ways to proceed as an educator. This decision was made to strongly support

people working in early childhood settings to be thoughtful about the reasons for making

decisions, rather than simply managing routines and transmitting curriculum (that is,

giving children factual information as the major teaching strategy or being instructional

throughout the day).

Discuss the ve Principles in the EYLF with your staff team or others working in

a similar setting. As these Principles are considered to be key points of reference,

Principles to which you will refer in your work, talk about the philosophies that might be

evident in these touchstones for practice. What values and beliefs are associated with

these Principles? Write these down as a draft for further discussion.

Seeing connection between the two

Now that you have claried your own

personal professional philosophy, and

discussed the philosophies inuencing the

Principles in the EYLF, you can re-look at

the previous story and see the connection

between the two. For example, if Philippa

did not value playful engagement as

worthwhile curriculum, she might just

assume the children were playing happily

and go on to another activity in the room.

The beliefs of educators are a

major factor in how a curriculum

is planned, what goals are

established, and how relationships

and the learning environment

and experiences are established

(DEEWR, 2010, p. 14).

By assuming that the childrens engagement

signalled a possible direction for curriculum

planning, her beliefs are inuencing her

practice, and would lead to intentionalteaching as discussed on page 7.

The opening pages

of the EYLF are

crucial in helping the

reader understand

the whole document.

As is stated in the Educators Guide:


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The nature of the Learning

Outcomes, Principles and Practices

Over time, it is assumed that all early

childhood educators in Australia will

be familiar with and work towards the

Learning Outcomes in the Early Years

Learning Framework. To do that, of course,

it will be essential to revisit the Principles

and Practices described in the document.

This may be a useful task for a staffdevelopment session or for sharing with

others working in similar roles. The opening

pages of the EYLF are crucial in helping

the reader understand the whole

document. As new people join a teaching

team or begin working with young children,

it will be necessary to revisit these

foundational beliefs so that, for example,

newcomers are not misled into trying to

tick off Outcomes without understanding

the basic Principles.

The flexibility associated with

planning

As people in a variety of settings try to nd

a way to work effectively with the EYLF,

a range of approaches and strategies are

being explored. While working through

which ways of working with the Framework

will be most effective in your setting, it is

wise to reect on the ideas composing this

Learning Framework rather than succumbingto a template for recording. There is not

an expectation that grids will be set up to

tick the boxes for each component of the

Framework, rather the ideas are paramount.

There is an expectation that educators

will work in a professional and thoughtful

way, respecting what children and families

have to offer. Then, in reecting on the

experiences that have unfolded during the

week, for example, it will be possible to

identify the key threads as described in the

Principles and Practices. Different aspects

of everyday experiences will be able to be

reported in terms of the components of

Belonging, Being and Becoming.

What do I need to know?

The EYLF invitesall educators to re-

think their practices

and become

more in tune with

contemporary ways

of working


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Thinking about teaching intentionally

The EYLF describes intentional teaching

as educators being deliberate, purposeful

and thoughtful in their decisions and

actions (DEEWR, 2009, p. 15). Intentional

teaching is one of the eight key early

childhood pedagogical Practices outlined

in the EYLF. Many early childhood

practitioners develop intentional teaching

skills as they gain experience in working

with young children and reect on their

professional studies (see for example,

MacNaughton & Williams, 2009). Some,

however, are caught up in routine ways

of working and doing things the waytheyve always been done. The EYLF

invites all educators to re-think their

practices and become more in tune

with contemporary ways of working

with children and their families.

One of the more recent changes in many

early childhood services has been a move

towards emergent curriculum. Like many

new ideas, emergent curriculum has been

subject to misinterpretation to the extent

that some educators believe the curriculum

only emerges from the childrens

interests. Early childhood curriculum

may be derived from a range of sources

including staff interests and skills, parental

expectations, community and seasonal

events, child development knowledge,

care routines, unexpected events, social

justice issues and so on (for example,as discussed in Arthur, Beecher, Death,

Dockett & Farmer, 2008; Fleet, Patterson

& Robertson, 2006). Childrens interests

are only one item in this list of possible

sources for emergent curriculum.


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Rather than waiting for children to design

their own curriculum, it is more appropriate

to acknowledge the place of childrens

voices in curriculum decision making, and

take the responsibility to actively promote

childrens learning through worthwhile and

challenging experiences (DEEWR, 2009,

p. 15). While many learning experiences

should be based on childrens interests, the

intentional educator will plan opportunities

for intentional teaching and knowledge

building (DEEWR, 2009, p. 15). On one

hand, we have to accept that childrendo not necessarily need an adult to be

teaching them in order for them to learn,

grow, and thrive in a meaningful and

worthwhile way. Both the very young and

the older children learn from each other

and in conversation with materials. On

the other hand, an intentional educator

can extend childrens interests and foster

high-level thinking skills through thoughtful

decision making.

Provisioning the environment to sustain

and enrich childrens learning becomes a

key characteristic of intentional teaching.

The educator has a signicant role in

this learning environment and a range

of teaching strategies (such as listening,

questioning, modelling, explaining and

encouraging) can be used to extend

childrens thinking.

The EYLF (DEEWR, 2009, p. 47) has

adapted a denition of curriculum from

Te Whriki(the early childhood curriculumfor New Zealand) which explains that

curriculum is: all the interactions,

experiences, activities, routines and events,

planned and unplanned, that occur in an

environment designed to foster childrens

learning and development. The questions

for Australian educators are: If this broad

denition is accepted, how do we plan for

and record curriculum decision making?

How can we document and monitor

childrens learning as intentional educators?


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Every Child Vol.16 No.3Play and learning

Play and learning in early childhood education and care has new meaning thanks to the

Early Years Learning Framework(EYLF). Topics include play-based learning snapshots

of EYLF implementation the EYLF and families schoolyard play trialling

learning circles the arts and the EYLF.

Authors: Various. 36 pages

Pi: $14.95

Childrens resilience: Working with the Early Years Learning Framework

Resilience is a mix of key skills and characteristics of a person and the social supports

and environment in which they live. It is the ability to deal with and succeed in difficult

situations and events. The scientific understanding of resilience is specifically developed

in relation to young children who have experienced setbacks and is about what adults

can do to help them make the most of their lives. Resilience provides the underpinning

for all children to succeed in their education and in the rest of their lives.

Author: Pam Linke and Judy Radich. 27 pages.

Pi: $14.95

Learning and teaching through play:Supporting the Early Years Learning Framework

The Early Years Learning Framework: Learning and teaching through play focuses on The

Early Years Learning Framework (EYLF) for Australia and explains how educators examine

their understandings of play and how play-based approaches require intentional

planning and teaching in order to support and extend childrens learning.

Authors: Anne Kennedy and Lennie Barblett. 27 pages.

Pi: $14.95

Every Child Vol.16 No.4New directions

Featuring Early Childhood Australias 2010 national Conference Garla Bauondi: Fuelling the

fire, this edition ofEvery Childshowcases the inspirational ideas of nine Conference keynote

speakersClaire Warden; Wendy Lee; Lester-Irabinna Rigney; Dave Brown; Janet Robertson;

John OToole; Alan Pence; Sue Dockett and Johanna Einarsdottir. These articles offer the

reader a window into the wealth of ideas sustaining and enriching the evolving early

childhood education and care (ECEC) sector in Australia today.

Authors: Various. 40 pages

Pi: $14.95

www.earlychildhoodaustralia.org.auFor more InFormatIon:

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Research in Practice SeriesEarly Childhood Australia Inc.PO Box 86 Deakin West ACT 2600T: (02) 6242 1800 F: (02) 6242 1818E: [email protected]

Volume 18 No. 2 2011

9 781921 162497

ISBN 978-1-921162-49-7

ISBN 1-921162-49-X

Planning in the context of the EYLF:Powerful, practical and pedagogically sound

We are in an exciting era in Australian early childhood history.

Each of us working with young children and their families canmake a contribution to an evolving way of being an earlychildhood educator in Australia. We now have an Early YearsLearning Framework for Australia(EYLF) (DEEWR, 2009) whichis perceived as something between a guideline for best practiceand a philosophical thinking piece which can be a provocationfor those engaged in this profession.This book will help you understand:

the Early Years Learning Framework

implementation of the Framework into early childhood

examples from early childhood educators/using the EYLF in observations

Principles and Practises

Belonging, Being and Becoming

Framework Outcomes

questioning previous practice.

Planning in the context of the EYLFhas been written for everyone who is workingwith the Early Years Learning Framework. Depending on your background andqualifications, some of the language may be more or less familiar to you.These ideas will become more familiar as you discuss the EYLF with others.

As you read through Planning in the context of the EYLF, you might like to have

a copy of the Learning Framework and the Educators Guide nearby for reference.

While these are practical guidebooks for educators, they may also be of interestto families and others who work closely with young children.

Documents

Early Child Sample