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Chapter 2 - Theory, research and the early childhood curriculum

Claire McLachlan ,
Marilyn Fleer  and
Susan Edwards
Claire McLachlan
Affiliation:
Massey University, Auckland
Marilyn Fleer
Affiliation:
Monash University, Victoria
Susan Edwards
Affiliation:
Monash University, Victoria
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Summary

In the first chapter it was noted that early childhood teachers are often confused by the term ‘curriculum’ because of the different ways this term is used, as noted by Kiri, Kelly, Gemma and Anna:

Kiri: Most countries have some type of written curriculum document. Surely the people who wrote those documents knew what they were on about?

Gemma: But aren't those documents just a guide to what we do in the classroom? I don't think that our curriculum – Te Whāriki – is very specific about the actual stuff I will do with children every day.

Kelly: Isn't the curriculum how you plan the environment, and sort of based on your own national curriculum and the sorts of things it says that children should experience?

Anna: But on my last teaching practice, my Associate Teacher told me that the curriculum was in her head and that she didn't take much notice of the curriculum she was using. She said that she just uses the curriculum as a source for ideas and then the real curriculum is designed on the trot as she interacts with children.

In this chapter we seek to unpack some of the ideas put forward by Kiri, Gemma, Kelly and Anna through introducing you to conceptual knowledge about curriculum, as well as through examining fundamental principles of curriculum design. The term ‘curriculum’ is defined and the major philosophical and theoretical positions that underpin modern conceptions of early childhood curriculum are examined.

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Chapter
Information
Early Childhood Curriculum
Planning, Assessment, and Implementation
 , pp. 8 - 33
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2010

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