Nursery Schools. 3-6 years

Sustainable Development Goals (SDG)

• 4. Quality education
• 5. Gender equality
• 16. Peace, justice and strong institutions

Objectives

The focus of the subject is to give to the students a practical knowledge about the approach to Early Childhood Education (ECE) stage. With different supports and methodologies, the processes related with the organisation, the planning of the classrooms and the educational attitudes of the professionals of stage 3-6 will be presented. The contents of the subject are promoting the analysis of the reality of the preschool 3 to 6 and of the educational context.

Objectives (Goals)

1. To attain (reach, get to know) a significant representation of the peculiarities (distinctive traits, features, characteristics) of the preschool and to recognise infancy (early childhood) like a stage of basic development and with own educational value.
2. To promote and to facilitate the learning processes in the early childhood from a globalising prospect (point of view, outlook) and integrating different dimensions such as cognitive, social and emotional, psychomotor ones, within the framework of a close relationship between school and family.
3. To understand the process of learning and teaching in the stage 3 to 6.
4. To deep learning pedagogical methodologies in kindergarten through analysis, reflection and comparison. Make innovative educational proposals.
5. To acquire cooperative and communicative skills.

Learning outcomes

• Identifies the role of the teacher and the family in the first stages of development and their relationship with the educational process. (LO1)
• Uses play as a didactic element in early childhood education. (LO2)
• Organises educational spaces, times and materials attending to different educational purposes and according to the principle of globalisation. (LO3)
• Knows the basis of the feeding and nutrition process in the infant stage and applies strategies for its development. (LO4)
• Identifies the main frequent health problems at school as well as the main risk and safety factors in the classroom. (LO5)
• Uses different resources for the acquisition and development of habits in the 0-3 stage. (LO6)
• Gathers and interprets data and information on which to base his/her conclusions, including reflections on social, scientific or ethical issues. (LO7)
• Proposes interventions in coherence with democratic values and sustainability showing respect for fundamental human rights. (LO8)
• Assumes different responsibilities in individual or collaborative work and evaluates the results obtained. (LO9)

Competencies

Specific skills

• Identify and understand the key elements and the general characteristics of child development for educational interventions that address the special needs of this stage.
• Integrate and promote overall practices based on the principles of educational psychology, methodology and education and on a positive relationship with adults and peers in a way that is consistent with theories of learning at this stage.
• Manage and promote teaching and learning processes through tutoring in the early childhood classroom in a climate of tolerance and affective communication.

Basic skills

• Students have demonstrated knowledge and understanding in a field of study that builds on general secondary education with the support of advanced textbooks and knowledge of the latest advances in this field of study.

Core skills

• Display professional skills in complex multidisciplinary contexts, working in networked teams, whether face-to-face or online, through use of information and communication technology.

Content

1. Reflections on Early Childhood Education
   • Introduction on the Early Childhood Educational System in Catalonia
   • The rights of the child (1989, NY)
2. Methodological criteria
   • The construction of knowledge. Functional learning
   • The globalisation of learning
   • Diversity and individual differences
   • Assessment, learning and teaching
   • Activity and interaction (doing, thinking and talking)
   • Rhythm, variety, repetition
   • Playing
   • Role of the adult and the pedagogical documentation
3. Organization of the educational environment
   • Time
   • Spaces
   • Materials
   • Grouping of children
4. The Curriculum 3 to 6
5. Building the school-family relationship
   • Welcoming of children and families
   • Communication
   • Interactions
6. Basic methodological strategies
   • Working through projects/Global projects
   • Centres of Interest
   • Workshops
   • Corners
   • Environments
   • Conference
   • Service learning
   • Assembly

Evaluation

The final mark (grade) of the subject will be the result of different partial marks:

• Attendance and active participation: 15%
• Tasks (individual and group): 30%
• Final task and oral presentation: 30%
• Exam: 25%

In the schedule of the working plan, which will be handed to the students during first session, tasks as well as deadline and possibility to redo them will be specified. If, after the extra-activities of assignments, the global result of the subject is not passed, it will remain pending for the next academic course. All assignments must be handed in and passed.

Methodology

The contents of the subject will be approached starting from the understanding and the analysis of the information coming from teachers' lessons and lectures, debates, conferences, oral expositions of the students (presentations, explanations), reading of articles, videos, visits to the Teresa Buscart Laboratory for Training and Research on ECE of the UVic-UCC, and visits to preschools. Realisation of works in group and individual works will be asked to the students in order to broaden and to relate the contents of the subject.

In the different time slots during the weekly sessions, the school class (teaching period) will be made; time will also be used for the preparation of the debates and individual oral expositions and for the elaboration of the works in group that the Sessions of Directed Work (STD) foresee.

Strategies to be employed during the semester:

• Reading and understanding pedagogical texts
• Lecture of images of educational contexts
• Sharing specific vocabulary ECE
• Preparation of documentation to be used in school (i.e. interview with parents, power point for parents-teachers meeting, planning a school activity, etc.)
• Short readings in small groups and shared reflections
• Short written productions on main topics of the subject
• Visiting a preschool: preparation of guidelines for on-site observation. Feedbacks on observed reality (written task individual / small groups) and presentation to the rest of the classroom.
• Attending to conferences: attendance to the presentations of meaningful school projects carried out by school teachers (active listening and participation).

Bibliography

Key references

• Domus Academy/Reggio Children (1999). Children, spaces, relations, Reggio Emilia. Reggio Children Publisher.
• Rinaldi, C. (2006). In dialogue with Reggio Emilia. Listening, researching and learning. Routledge.
• Vecchi, V. (2010). Art and creativity in Reggio Emilia. Exploring the role and potencial of ateliers in early childhood education. Routledge.

Further reading

Teachers will provide complementary bibliography and compulsory reading throughout the course via the Virtual Campus.