Exemplary early childhood educators at work: A multi-level investigation. Exemplary early childhood educators at work: A multi-level investigation. This project aims to inform strategies to better attract, prepare, recognise, support and retain a high quality workforce, by investigating the complexity of early childhood educators’ work. Seemingly entrenched workforce shortages threaten the objectives that governments and families seek through investment in early childhood education. Popular imag ....Exemplary early childhood educators at work: A multi-level investigation. Exemplary early childhood educators at work: A multi-level investigation. This project aims to inform strategies to better attract, prepare, recognise, support and retain a high quality workforce, by investigating the complexity of early childhood educators’ work. Seemingly entrenched workforce shortages threaten the objectives that governments and families seek through investment in early childhood education. Popular images of work with young children as easy and instinctual, or of teaching as only school based, mislead potential workforce entrants and erode the status of educators, leading to attrition. This project’s audit and description of exemplary educators’ work, across each level of mandated qualification, will inform strategies to sustain a high quality early childhood workforce into the future.Read moreRead less
Babies, ethnographies of belonging in 'at risk' communities, and the new compulsory Early Years Learning Framework. This project will develop new understandings about how a sense of belonging can be fostered in early childhood education settings, especially for babies and their families in marginalised communities. It will produce rich accounts of belonging to assist early childhood educators to implement the new compulsory national early childhood curriculum.
Building executive function in imaginary play. This project aims to develop a sustainable, play-based program to increase the executive functions of children in the year prior to school. Executive functions (EF) are cognitive processes that control an individual’s behaviour and cognition and include processes such as working memory, inhibitory control and attention. There is evidence that EF skills are critical to a successful transition to formal learning environments and future academic achiev ....Building executive function in imaginary play. This project aims to develop a sustainable, play-based program to increase the executive functions of children in the year prior to school. Executive functions (EF) are cognitive processes that control an individual’s behaviour and cognition and include processes such as working memory, inhibitory control and attention. There is evidence that EF skills are critical to a successful transition to formal learning environments and future academic achievement, and that they are amenable to early intervention. Improving children’s EF skills in the year prior to school could produce lasting benefits across the school years, particularly for more vulnerable children. This project intends to inform professional development programs in early childhood education.Read moreRead less
Education meets play: a sociological study of how the new compulsory national learning framework for children zero to five years influences educators' practice. New theorising about play and education in early childhood settings has challenged traditional notions of play. This project investigates how educators respond to the requirement for play-based learning by identifying characteristics of successful educators and professional leaders, and strategies and practices that merge education and p ....Education meets play: a sociological study of how the new compulsory national learning framework for children zero to five years influences educators' practice. New theorising about play and education in early childhood settings has challenged traditional notions of play. This project investigates how educators respond to the requirement for play-based learning by identifying characteristics of successful educators and professional leaders, and strategies and practices that merge education and play.Read moreRead less
Observe, Reflect, Improve: a tool to enrich Children’s Learning (ORICL). This project aims to address long-standing concerns about the quality of education and care for children during their critical first two years. It will introduce a promising, future-focused digital tool, co-designed with practitioners and providers of early childhood services, to support infant-toddler educators’ planning and practice. Building on ground-breaking pilot work, we will undertake a national implementation and e ....Observe, Reflect, Improve: a tool to enrich Children’s Learning (ORICL). This project aims to address long-standing concerns about the quality of education and care for children during their critical first two years. It will introduce a promising, future-focused digital tool, co-designed with practitioners and providers of early childhood services, to support infant-toddler educators’ planning and practice. Building on ground-breaking pilot work, we will undertake a national implementation and evaluation of the Observe, Reflect and Improve Children’s Learning (ORICL) tool. Expected outcomes include: enhanced pedagogical practices; enriched learning experiences for children birth-two; effective communication with families; and improved resourcing for providers of early childhood education and care services. Read moreRead less
Continuity and change in curriculum and pedagogies as children start school. This project considers the impact of the Early Years Learning Framework and the Australian Curriculum on transition to school in Australia. Through extensive interviews and surveys, it gathers evidence to influence theoretical, policy and practice approaches to transition to school and, hence, the future schooling of all Australian children.
Language for learning: Developing learning-oriented talk in long-day-care. This study aims to identify, for the first time, key features of infant-toddler long day care (LDC) environments that support or constrain the development and use of language as a critical tool for early learning. This project expects to generate new knowledge by investigating early LDC predictors of preschool language skills, and will deliver much-needed new evidence to inform LDC pedagogy and curriculum development and ....Language for learning: Developing learning-oriented talk in long-day-care. This study aims to identify, for the first time, key features of infant-toddler long day care (LDC) environments that support or constrain the development and use of language as a critical tool for early learning. This project expects to generate new knowledge by investigating early LDC predictors of preschool language skills, and will deliver much-needed new evidence to inform LDC pedagogy and curriculum development and practice and, ultimately, to improve long term educational outcomes. This will provide significant benefits, such as improving the quality of infant-toddler LDC programs, which stands to enhance children’s learning and life-long outcomes.Read moreRead less
Quality in adult-child interactions during digital experiences. This project aims to address the digital phenomenon with young children by investigating possibilities for adult-child interactions, guidance for educators and ways to measure quality in interactions. The project intends to influence how mobile technologies and applications are created and used in early childhood contexts. Expected outcomes include theory and evidence-based guidelines for adults about how to interact with children d ....Quality in adult-child interactions during digital experiences. This project aims to address the digital phenomenon with young children by investigating possibilities for adult-child interactions, guidance for educators and ways to measure quality in interactions. The project intends to influence how mobile technologies and applications are created and used in early childhood contexts. Expected outcomes include theory and evidence-based guidelines for adults about how to interact with children during digital play. The findings may have implications for educators and families supporting children’s digital experiences as well as app designers creating digital opportunities. The project can therefore contribute to a global agenda focused on young children and technology.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE230100065
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$419,237.00
Summary
Navigating Uncertainty & Evidence: Teaching for Epistemic Cognition. We are facing an epistemological crisis, grounded in changing technologies, fake news, and a distrust of experts. Developing capability to navigate uncertainty, disagreement, and evidence is one of the most pressing social issues of our time in order to develop a sustainable society, ensure inclusive and equitable quality education, and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all. Despite relevant research, little is known ....Navigating Uncertainty & Evidence: Teaching for Epistemic Cognition. We are facing an epistemological crisis, grounded in changing technologies, fake news, and a distrust of experts. Developing capability to navigate uncertainty, disagreement, and evidence is one of the most pressing social issues of our time in order to develop a sustainable society, ensure inclusive and equitable quality education, and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all. Despite relevant research, little is known about the crucial practices of educators in supporting learning towards these capabilities. This project will bring classroom practice and a practical theory of epistemic cognition into synchrony, developing new knowledge and strategies for students to learn how to navigate uncertainty, disagreement, and evidence.Read moreRead less
Investigating the efficacy, complexity and sustainability of teacher change. This project aims to investigate the path from professional development to changes in teaching practices and student achievement. As a randomised controlled trial, this study integrates sophisticated quantitative and qualitative methods, driving innovation in educational research. Expected outcomes include significant insights into how professional development can impact measurably in ways that benefit the ongoing renew ....Investigating the efficacy, complexity and sustainability of teacher change. This project aims to investigate the path from professional development to changes in teaching practices and student achievement. As a randomised controlled trial, this study integrates sophisticated quantitative and qualitative methods, driving innovation in educational research. Expected outcomes include significant insights into how professional development can impact measurably in ways that benefit the ongoing renewal of Australia's teachers to enhance student outcomes. This project will provide evidence to inform teacher development policy and practice in order to enhance student outcomes.Read moreRead less