Professional Early Childhood Teacher
Centres for early learning and childcare offer vital support services. When parents go to work, they want their child to be under a dependable custodian. This need resulted in a rise in early childhood care and education demand. If a child undergoes quality early learning, they construct a solid foundation for future education and lifetime. The standards for early learning in New Zealand is among the highest globally. The focus of this paper is on the responsibilities of a professional teacher of early childhood in caring and educating of children, family and the wider learning community.
Almost every child in New Zealand attends an early education provision for a continuous period. The joint care by early childhood services and home is becoming a common practice for families and children. Services of early childhood education (ECE) comprised of society-based kindergartens operated by instructors and parent-managed play areas. The benefits of early childhood education and care (ECEC) depends on the quality of education delivered. Structuring early childhood services whereby children experience high-quality education and care needs consideration of various related procedures and essential variables (Ministry of Education, 2017). They require professional teachers, supportive settings, and ideal critical variables.
Even though the standard qualification level and qualified staff proportion varies in countries, skilled teachers lead to a better quality tutoring environment and positive results intended for children (Dalli et al., 2010). Suitable qualified carers aid in bridging inequity by offering children from low or at-risk socio-economic settings with experiences both economically and socially which foster successful training. Early childhood services with better resources and more significant numbers of qualified staff are known to offer the best care, and education quality and kids who attend these centres make better progress (Sammons, 2010). Mainly, qualified tertiary teachers yield the paramount reasoning outcome on students within their centres. In New Zealand, the commissioner of the children’s office requested policies which back providing of early care and education services by a workforce which is skilled and well-informed. They recommended that the Education minister directs the ministry’s officials to account on the level to which services of early infancy are offered through registered and qualified educators (Carroll-Lind & Angus, 2011).
The relationship between young children and professional early childhood teachers displayed better outcomes in the social development and literacy. This outcome is because professional teachers employ more complex language and words while communicating with their children. These teachers also use better sustained joint thinking periods which relate with positive effects. As a skilled teacher of early childhood, there is a need for offering generally better relationships between children and teachers and a more advanced suitable stimulation. A review on the qualifications of teachers and its impacts on children identified specific characteristics such as children performed better on expressive language, applied problems, and language understanding. They also displayed improved eagerness to go to school and more substantial thinking effects (Norris, 2011). They also participated in more difficult reasoning and social play.
Even though other essential variables can influence quality, children experience quality through behaviours of their caregivers, interactions between children and teachers, and educational activities. These qualities will possibly be positive if teachers of early childhood undergo training and education. While various practice aspects are partly responsible for useful knowledge, the interdependence among these features that reinforces the superiority of provided service of early years in a child’s life (Education Review Office, 2010). The trainings, skilled knowledge and education of experts are vital factors. The practice used by teachers is what advances the quality of teaching and maximizes the academic achievements of the children. In Aotearoa New Zealand, professional teachers used a blend of explicit and implicit knowledge while tutoring toddlers but based on future experiences and prior training (Dalli et al., 2011).
Determination of the service quality is by how the qualified teachers interact and relate with the young kids, suitability and deliberation of familiarities offered for the kids, their partnerships with parents and the behaviour they practice with their fellow teachers and model to children. These professionals are to uphold the learners’ welfare and shield them from harm. They do this by treating learners with respect, creating and fostering a safe learning environment which promotes the emotional wellbeing and dignity of the children. Teachers need to employ proficient and principled relationships with their students by taking active phases to create and retain positive but professional relationships dedicated to their welfare and education.
There are specific codes of skilled duty and values for the training profession that guide these early childhood teachers. Teaching experts, teachers and leaders crafted these codes and standards to articulate the aspirations and expectations of this profession. The laws has set high standards of ethical behaviour expected of every teacher, honours teaching as a profession of integrity and high trust, and offers the learners, their families and the society with confidence and trust in teachers and the job (Educational Council New Zealand, 2017). A skilled teacher of early childhood has individual commitments to themselves, learners, family and the society.
Professional teachers are to value collaborative and respectful relationships with their colleagues to deliver high-quality teaching and learning. They can do this by promoting a workplace culture that is inclusive, supportive by respecting the differences in each other’s culture, identity, language and heritage. They can also support new teachers and colleagues with mentoring and coaching to assist in improving their practice. A professional needs to uphold public trust and confidence in teaching by proving a pledge to top quality and effective tutoring to empower learners to reach their maximum potential.
A review of past literature by Norris (2010) acknowledged the variety of practices which can be attributed to the competition of a teacher’s qualifications. He identified that qualified teachers displayed more congruence between their observed and reported practices and the appropriate development beliefs linked to teaching young children. They also tend to hold lesser strict opinions concerning the care of kids and therefore employ a new wholesome approach of constructive and sensitive care having increased active involvement with the children. As a qualified teacher, there is need to partake in improved communication between a child and an adult, spending additional time in activities that promote the development of language and more teacher articulations with the children during their free-play periods. Additionally, qualified teachers also display solid backing of education which is child instigated with the ability to report rationales that are cognitive for the practice they implement. Low adult-child ratios, well-articulated curriculum and the qualifications of staff are among the aspects that are linked to constant relations amongst children and adults, and progressive results children measures.
Another responsibility of a professional teacher of early childhood education is incorporating the participation of family/ whānau. This incorporation requires a partnership that is collaborative between the family and the early childhood education provider to develop and strengthen the learning capabilities of young children. According to prior studies, the relation between the available care based-practices and professional learning made an apparent reference that the qualification of teachers, their practices and their collaboration with the children’s family provide quality care outcomes that are expected by parents which also carers continuously purpose to deliver. The comprehension of parameters associated with the superiority of child maintenance in addition to the care effects on the advancement of children’ understanding is core for its implementation.
Caregiving is backed by the achievement of professional qualifications in addition to improved learning which provides an essential base of learning for toddlers and their relations regularly. As a skilled teacher, there is a tendency to fix more exceptional practice principles, therefore, taking note of the existing diversities in present families, and the overwhelming evidence poising that the children’s achievement is based on parental expectation. This indicates that skilled teachers should be responsible for establishing a collaborative relationship with the diverse children’s families/ whānau. Even though there are different opinions on what determines the better outcome, a professional teacher is preferred by the family because they associate them with the success of their children.
Aotearoa in New Zealand has an exclusive ECE system. Te Whāriki, first introduced in 1996 is the leading curriculum which obligated the individuals in control of execution to incorporate multicultural outlooks keen on the ECE aspects. Since the teacher’s qualification and regulatory requirements consist of Te Reo me ona Tikanga Māori (the Māori culture and language), the teaching in Aotearoa, New Zealand must incorporate multicultural actions. These activities can be integrated into the administrative and pedagogical aspects in their daily activities and curriculum (Ministry of Education, 2017). The comprehension of Te Reo me ona Tikanga Māori, and Te Tiriti o Waitangi is also essential as it is also essential in both regulatory and ethical front for the implementation of a bicultural model of education. To build and develop this model, early childhood education should be in the forefront to foster this model. However, this education model has been poorly adopted.
In another comprehensive study of Māori students studying to be early childhood teachers, the students showed great interest and appreciation of the kaupapa Māori characteristics and features of their courses. They include Te Reo me ona Tikanga Māori being incorporated during the programme and Māori pedagogy”. The upcoming Māori educators are to have the ability to provide skills and leadership in kaupapa Māori practices in different school settings hence meeting key characteristics and aspects of the Te Whāriki.
Conclusively, as an early childhood teacher, my qualifications are linked with the quality of fellow teachers and additionally to the quality of provision, which, when summed up, result in constructive effects on young kids. The literature with proof from Aotearoa, New Zealand demonstrates that as skilled educators, we can tap into our educational understanding to relate in fundamental means with a positive outcome for the kids. Experienced educators can also vary in their practice methods beginning from the untrained teachers and display the capability to associate theory to practical aspects. In Aotearoa, New Zealand incorporates the bicultural perspectives of Te Whāriki hence superior quality of practice and early childhood education.
References
Carroll-Lind, J., & Angus, J. (2011). “Through their lens: An Inquiry into Non-Parental Education and Care of Infants and Toddlers.” Office of the Children’s Commissioner. Wellington.
Dalli, C., White, E.J., Rockel, J., & Duhn, I. (2010). “Quality Early Childhood Education for Under-Two Year Olds: What Should It Look Like?” Institute for Early Childhood Studies. Victoria University of Wellington.
Dalli, C., White E.J., Duhn, I., & Craw, J. (2011). “What’s Special about Teaching and Learning in the First Years? Investigating the ‘What, How and Why’ of Relational Pedagogy with Toddlers and Infants.” TLRI Summary Report. Wellington: NZCER.
Educational Council New Zealand. (2017). “Our Code, Our Standards: Code of Professional Responsibility and Standards for the Teaching Profession.” Education Council New Zealand. pp. 11-12.
Education Review Office. (2010). “Quality in Early Childhood Services.” Education Review Office. Wellington. Retrieved from www.ero.govt.nz
Ministry of Education. (2017). “Te Whäriki.” Report from the Ministry of Education.
Norris, D. J. (2011). “Raising the Educational Requirements for Teachers in Infant Toddler Classrooms: Implications for Institutions of Higher Education.” Journal of Early Childhood Education. 31(2), 146-158.
Sammons, P. (2010). “Does Pre-School Make A Difference? Identifying the Impact of Pre-School on Children’s Cognitive and Social Behavioral Development at Different Ages.” Early Childhood Matters: Evidence from the Effective Pre-School and Primary Education Project. Oxford, Routledge.