Early Learning Standards: A Huge Problem or A Huge Possibility?

1. Early Learning Standards:A Huge ProblemorA Huge Possibility? Sharon L. Kagan, Ed.D. Santa Monica, CA November 19, 2005

2. Overview • The History of Play in ECE • The Importance of Play to Development • Contemporary Context • Defining Standards • Different Types of Standards • Early Learning and Development Standards • Using Standards • Standards in Action • Concluding Thoughts

3. I. The History of Playin ECE

4. The History of Play in ECE • The commitment to play dates back a long, long time in early childhood education • Froebel and Pestalozzi were pioneers in advocating the use of play in childrearing and education • Piaget viewed play as the mode by which children understand their experience and development

5. The History of Play in ECE • Since then, leading scholars in early childhood education have all recognized that play is the basis of good early childhood pedagogy and practice • Moreover, play is THE fundamental cornerstone for children’s development

6. II. The Importance of Play to Development

7. Domains of Development • About 10 years ago, the National Education Goals Panel was assigned the task of determining what the research said about the most significant domains of development for young children • Groups of scholars and teachers reviewed decades of research and hundreeds of articles and concluded that:

8. Domains of Development • There are five major domains of development: • Physical Health, Well-Being and Motor Development • Social and Emotional Development • Approaches Toward Learning • Language, Literacy and Communication • Cognition and General Knowledge

9. Domains of Development • Since then, these five domains have been widely accepted, and have been used for a variety of purposes • Today, we are going to use the five domains to answer two questions:

10. Domains of Development • First, How can and does play help children’s development progress in each of the domains?

11. The Importance of Play to Development • Physical Health, Well-Being and Motor Development • Indoor play equipment can promote gross-motor skills • Steps, balance beams, jump ropes, bean bag toss, hollow blocks, strollers for dramatic play • Outdoor play improves motor fitness • Manual dexterity is enhanced by activities such as drawing and painting, working with playdough, and constructing with Legos • Sensorimotor skill development is also enhanced through play • Coordinated movement such as kicking a ball

12. The Importance of Play to Development • Social and Emotional Development • Symbolic role taking of dramatic play provides children opportunities to identify their own feelings and others’ • Contact with playmates helps children develop cooperative, reciprocal relationships and gain mutual understanding and trust • Pretend play helps children form their personalities and develop social skills

13. The Importance of Play to Development • Approaches Toward Learning • This domain encompasses efforts that enable children to approach learning tasks with confidence and zest • These goals derive from a variety of efforts, many of them involved with representation through play and the arts • Representational activity evokes major cognitive benefits • Allows child to make permanent what could be fleeting • Allows child to edit or perfect work • Allows child to make ideas public • Enables “flexible purposing” – the ability to set a goal and shift gears when necessary

14. The Importance of Play to Development • Language, Literacy and Communication • Play has been found to accelerate communication • Play fosters the three basic functions of language: communication, expression, and reasoning • Symbolic play is related to understanding written language

15. The Importance of Play to Development • Cognition and General Knowledge • Play is the primary vehicle for concept development and problem solving • Play provides opportunities for contact with multiple stimuli, inducing the development of categorization, generalization, and conceptual acquisition skills • Play contributes to a vast range of specific cognitive processes and to generic functioning

16. The Importance of Play to Development So, we see that PLAY does enhance children’s development in all domains… BUT, the BIG, BIG question is: Can we maintain fidelity to all domains and play AND have early learning standards? YES, YES, YES Indeed, the ONLY way to preserve play is via early learning standards

17. III. Contemporary Context

18. Contemporary Context • To those outside ECE, play is always suspect. • Today, there is even more concern about play, because:

19. Contemporary Context • Press for standards and accountability is changing education and placing more demands on student accomplishment • Emphasis is being placed on the more easily measured domains of language and cognition, at the expense of the other three domains • Focus is on getting kids academically ready for the more rigorous curriculum in K-3

20. Contemporary Context • The consequence is that more people have more to say about ECE, • And they are calling for more Rigor, not realizing that Play is Rigorous!!!

21. Contemporary Context • The problem is that they are confusing the • ENDSof ECE: [what they want children to know and be able to do] • PROCESSof ECE: [Play]

22. Contemporary Context • We need to focus on both: the ends (or the standards) and the means (or the process) of early education, which is play • Play is a known given!!! • Standards are unknown…so we need to turn to them to understand them better…

23. IV. Defining Standards

24. Defining Standards What are standards? Statements that are used as a basis of comparison in measuring quality, value, or quantity.

25. Defining Standards Common Standards… The weight a child should achieve at birth to be considered healthy

26. Defining Standards The grades a student receives to be considered competent Report Card A+

27. Defining Standards The skills one demonstrates to be certified as a teacher, plumber, doctor, driver, etc.

28. Defining Standards Standards are a part of our daily life—so routine, we may not even recognize them as standards.

29. Defining Standards Why are standards important? • Lend precision to vague constructs • Help to clarify what we want to achieve • Provide an opportunity to build consensus • Establish a base for measurement • Can produce more equitable outcomes • Can advance an agenda like school readiness

30. BUT… There are many different kinds of standards related to school readiness.

31. V. Different Types of Standards

32. Different Types of Standards I. II. III. Early Learning & Development Teacher Standards Program/School Standards Standards IV. V. VI. Social Indicators Access to Services Systemic Effectiveness

33. I. Defines what children should know and be able to do. Early Learning & Development Standards Example: Four-year-old children will be able to state name, where they live, parents’ names, and siblings’ names. Note: These are usually manifest in children’s behavior or discourse.

34. II. Defines what teachers should know and do to advance their students’ learning. Teacher Standards Example: All teachers should know how to assess their students’ competence and report such findings to parents. Note: These are usually the basis for teacher preparation programs.

35. III. Defines the nature of the program or school. Program/School Standards Example: Every program will have indoor and outdoor space. Example: Every program will have appropriate developmental materials for children. Example: Every program will welcome families.

36. IV. Defines the nature of the social context in which the child exists (family and community conditions). Social Indicators Example: The percentage of children who live in poverty. Example: The percentage of children who are born malnourished. Note: These are usually phrased in terms of risk factors.

37. V.Defines the nature and amount of children who have access to diverse services. Example:The percentage of children who have access to high-quality child development programs. Example:The percentage of children who have developmental screenings upon entry to preschool programs. Note:These are usually defined for a geographic catchment, area, city, town, or neighborhood. Access to Services

38. VI.Defines the degree to which elements or disparate services work together. Example: The cost savings that are realized when programs buy supplies jointly. Note: This is the least well-developed area, and is often quite problematic for nations and states with highly diverse delivery systems. System Effectiveness

39. We are focusing on Bucket One: Early Learning & Development Standards: Standards that specify what children know and can do Different Types of Standards I.

40. VI. Early Learning and Development Standards

41. Early Learning & Development Standards Statements of expectation for “what children should know and be able to do”

42. Returning to the NEGP Domains and the Second Question: • Physical Health, Well-Being, and Motor Development • Social & Emotional Development • Approaches Toward Learning • Language, Literacy & Communication • Cognition and General Knowledge What are examples of standards?

43. Physical and Motor Development • Run around obstacles and corners • Walk up and down stairs, alternating feet, without assistance • Throw and catch large balls • Kick ball forward • By age four, children will be able to…

44. Social & Emotional Development • By age four, children will be able to… • Take turns and share with peers to have fun playing together • Show understanding of the consequences of own actions on others • Describe how own actions make others feel and behave • Show empathy for hurt child

45. Approaches Toward Learning • By age four, children will be able to… • Invent new activities or games • Use imagination to create a variety of ideas • Make up words, songs, or stories • Express ideas through art, construction, movement, or music • Engage in pretend play

46. Language, Literacy & Communication • By age four, children will be able to… • Speak clearly enough to be understood by most listeners • Use multiple-word sentence(s) to communicate needs, ideas, actions, and/or feelings • Repeat works or ideas to be sure information is communicated • Draw a picture with objects and people to communicate an idea or event with assistance

47. Cognition and General Knowledge • By age four, children will be able to… • Explore various ways to solve a problem and select one option • Seek assistance from another child or an adult to solve problems • Modify actions based on new information and experiences

48. VII. Using Standards

49. Your Standards are the BASIS for Many Diverse Uses: Evaluate Programs Improve Parenting Skills and Behaviors Improve Instruction Early Learning & Development Standards Improve Diagnostic Screening Improve Public Knowledge of Children’s Development Improve Teacher Preparation Monitor National Progress

50. Some of the Uses Directly Benefit Individuals • Improve parenting • Improve diagnostic screening • Improve teacher preparation • Improve instruction