Relating Philosophy to Pedagogy Essay

Within any early babehood education (ECE) place linguistic context the pedagogy of the educators allow have great impact on the programmes and philosophies which the children at bottom that setting will be influenced by. Teachers have a responsibility to material body and maintain authentic, open, reciprocal bloods with children, families and the community (Gailer, 2010).This is non only an integral get off the ground of the early childhood curriculum Te Whariki which has relationships as atomic number 53 of its quadruplet implantation principles (Ministry of Education MoE, 1996) plainly too part of the didactics standards and ethics. As a teacher I relish in the chance to ca-ca relationships with many different children, every curious in their culture, strengths, ideas and focusing of being. The importance I place on relationships sits well with both Vygotskys and Bronfenbrenners socio heathenish theories. Vygotsky emphasised the importance of the people surroundi ng a child, sightedness them crucial for geting and enhancing the childs development.Bronfenbrenner extended this into a modelling of contextual factors, using ideas approximately five kinds of contexts surrounding the individual child including their micro- and meso-systems where the interactions of their daily realities occur (Drewery &amp Bird, 2004). These theories have been vital in the development of New Zealands early childhood curriculum, Te Whariki, and so my understandings of these and with my individualized philosophy I hope to have the acquirements to be competent to build respectful reciprocal relationships with all learners. Building these relationships however is non as easy as people outside of the profession a good deal assume.Appendix 2 shows Suzie Gailers (2010) obligate on being professional, the article discusses how professional integrity of put is reliant on teachers having a point set of value, respect, authenticity, empowerment and transparen cy. The moving picture of the child is culturally constructed and spliceed to our snip and place in history, the image I have as a teacher today of children is very different to that of which I was viewed as a child. My image of the child has altered as I have gained both practical and theoretical teaching run into.In my first practicums I did not necessarily sack out what to expect about building initial relationships with children but as I have gained knowledge I now know that children raise be trusted to build these relationships in timeframes which are rightfield for them. Te Whariki (MoE, 1996) presents the image of children as competent learners and communicators and I now wield this image in my teaching practice and as a produce (Appendices 3, 4 &amp 5), along with the values of respect which I have articulated through the following of Magda Gerbers work.From my own relatively limited practical beat and theoretical knowledge I can relate to the notion of Edwards &amp Nuttall (2005) where the pedagogy, or the act of teaching, is not only mediated by educators understandings about the children, skill, and the curriculum their understandings about the fond settings in which they work, their personal have intercourses beyond the workplace and their engagement with the shopping malls wider community all have a aim in determining the educators actions (p. 36).My own underlying beliefs, values and philosophies all impact on my teaching style and, although often unconsciously, on the way I relate to individuals. Commitment to theoriseive practice, the personal philosophy I have articulated and the desire for professional development will help me in holding true to a pedagogy which is responsive in time as well as to individuals. This pedagogy with its identified aspects of assessment, supplying, murder and evaluation is influenced by my values and experiences and I attempt to explain and reflect upon these in this essay.The main assessm ent process I use is learning Stories, an approach developed by Dr. Margaret Carr. Learning stories show a nip of a learning experience which has been shared out with the child or children gnarly and are a record of the interests and strengths of the child. Research shows that learning is more trenchant when it is derived from interests, encouraging motivation and the sense of confidence that comes from working inwardly ones own strengths.The learning story framework is establish on the belief that developing good learning dispositions is the most important skill in early childhood and this fits well with my values of respect and having the Te Whariki image of the child, a confident, competent learner and communicator. The foundations of learning stories are the dispositions found in Te Whariki and in my own learning stories these are highlighted, present fellow educators, parents and whanau how I work to support childrens learning in all aspects of the programme and curriculu m (Appendices 4, 6 &amp 7).Upholding this image of children in practice is however met with challenges. Woodrow (1999) describes how there are resulting constructions of childhood based on how individuals experienced childhood, on cultural artefacts and on professional knowledge, Ellen Pifer (2000) also describes these conflicting images in her book Demon or Doll (Appendix 8) which has authentically opened my mind to ways of seeing individuals. Other teaching professionals may hold different images of children such as the child as innocent or as an embryo adult and this will impact on the way they act around and towards children.Having a commitment towards reflective practice and regularly evaluating my personal pedagogy will allow me to deal with these challenges, freehanded me the skills to explain my viewpoint and understand that of another(prenominal)s so that the best possible issue is achieved. To undertake such assessment it is important to build a relationship with t he children and these reciprocal relationships are another key part of my philosophy.This value has changed with my experience and theoretical knowledge, in my initial practicum I was unsure about how to go about building relationships that are both respectful and reciprocal (Appendices 9 &amp 10) but my confidence in this has, and will continue, to elicit (Appendix 11). I cerebrate that building a reciprocal relationship representation sharing aspects of my life with children and not expecting them to reveal themselves without the favour being returned. I have a huge passion towards animals and I have shared this with the children on my last two practicums by taking along my greaseball pigs (Appendix 12).The children feel aspects of empowerment and trust as I allow them to be intimately involved with a very important part of my personal life. Building such relationships prior to undertaking assessment highlights the spiral constitution of teaching and the aspects of pedagog ies. Taking the guinea pigs to the centre required planning and studious implementation, including discussion with staff and families to ensure cultural needs were met. Some cultures do not agree with the keeping of animals as pets and in order to sanction the respectful image of the child and relationships with the family and community I needed to evaluate and respect this belief.The centre policies and legislation also play a role in planning and implementation, health and hygiene regulations needed to be considered for this natural action and for others many different policies will come into play. For further assessment and planning the involvement of colleagues and whanau in the learning stories and other documentation would play a vital role in the continuation of the interest but regrettably the short nature of the practicum did not allow for this.Cultural needs and matches cant everywhere heavily in the planning and implementation stages of my pedagogy. This is linked t o all the values in my philosophy relationships, respect and equity. These values mean that I believe in focussing on skills and talents rather than on deficiencies to create learning environments, for example respecting that crying is a valid attempt at colloquy and can be a qualified learning experience (Appendix 11). Nyland (2004) describes how the lodge rights and contexts of infants knowledge can be overlooked in childcare settings.on-line discussions with fellow students regarding this reading give support to the idea that disrespectful environments adversely affect the identity and participation of children. What happens in an environment when an identity is absent altogether and children are faced with images of white middle class equal to(p) bodied members of nightspot? What message is that giving to these children and their families? You wear downt become? You are not a real member of our society? We dont value you? The environments we plan for the children speak vol umes about how we view society and the people we respect and value (Ellis, R. , Fuamatu, P. Perry Smith, A. M. Moodle September 2011). During planning I and then need to think ahead about resources which reflect the cultures within the setting and the community. This can be achieved through communication with other educators in the setting, parents, and other members of the community such as kaumatua or the local priest. Planning for social occasions is also important to me as I feel they link the ECE setting with the wider community and social values. This includes events such as Mothers and Fathers day (Appendix 13) as well as cultural occasions such as the Lantern Festival, Diwali and Pasifika events.Although during such planning I am mindful of the goals and learning outcomes which Te Whariki and the teaching standards present I also constantly remind myself of the holistic nature in which the learning will occur. Lawrence (2004) describes the shift in thinking and programme pl anning in ECE settings over the past two decades, from keeping children busy to planning cycles and then Te Whariki. Lawrence clarifies that although the word planning is still used it is not in the conventional sense of the word but rather can be seen as reflectively responding to childrens thinking (p. 16). An example in her rticle shows how the learning experience of children can be very different to that pre-planned or expected by the teacher (Appendix 14). A challenge presents itself where teachers have been trained and had experience in times where different planning programmes were utilised, disagreeing views and beliefs can lead to conflict within teaching teams and a dedication to reflective practice is required by all parties if favourable outcomes are to be reached. This reflective practice is a vital part of the evaluation process of my pedagogy. What worked? What didnt work? Where do I go from here?Schon (2002) described how the entire process of reflection-in-action, where our keen is in our action, is central to the skill practitioners have in dealing with situations of uncertainty, unbalance and uniqueness as well as valuing conflict. Holding true to a value where children are respected as individuals and valued for their own unique set of skills, uncertain and unique situations are inevitable in the day-to-day practice of an ECE setting. With the set of reflective skills I now possess I hope to be able to turn these situations of uncertainty into ones of learning, for both myself and children involved.With move professional development and an ever increasing amount of practical experience I feel I am in good spatial relation to continue my career as an early childhood educator and support the children within my influence to grow up in line with the aspirations of Te Whariki, competent and confident learners and communicators a valued contribution to society.