Learning and Teaching in Early Childhood: Pedagogies of Inquiry and Relationships

Learning and Teaching in Early Childhood: Pedagogies of Inquiry and Relationships is an introduction for early childhood educators beginning their studies. Reflecting the fact that there is no single correct approach to the challenges of teaching, this book explores teaching through two lenses: teaching as inquiry and teaching as relating. The first part of the book focuses on inquiry, covering early childhood learning environments, learning theories, play pedagogies, approaches to teaching and learning, documentation and assessment, and the policy, curriculum and regulatory requirements in Australia. The second part explores relationships in early childhood contexts and covers topics such as fostering meaningful and respectful relationships with children, and working with families, staff and the wider community. Written by well-respected academics in the field, Learning and Teaching in Early Childhood is a vital resource for those entering the early childhood education and care profession.

Table of Contents:
Part I: Teaching as Inquiry; 1. The early childhood teacher; 2. Working within early childhood learning environments; 3. Co-constructing learning with children; 4. Approaches to teaching and learning; 5. Agentic documentation and assessment in the 21st century; 6. Advocacy with early childhood policy, curriculum and regulatory requirements; Part II: Teaching as relating; 7. Fostering meaningful and respectful relationships with children; 8. Engaging with families and working in partnership; 9. Working collaboratively with staff; 10. Being with and connecting to community; 11. Sustainability and connecting to nature; 12. Inquiring and relating in the everyday life of an early childhood teacher.

About the Author :
Wendy Boyd is Associate Professor in Early Childhood Education at Southern Cross University, Australia. Wendy's research has focused on the provision of quality early childhood programs to support the optimal development of all children. This has cut across parents' views of early childhood programs; the effectiveness of the early childhood workforce; and the provision of sustainable practices in early childhood education and care. Prior to entering academia, Wendy was the director of a large early childhood centre for twenty-five years, catering for eighty children aged from six weeks to six years in long day care, and fifteen school-aged children in outside school hours care per day. At each assessment and rating point, the service was consistently assessed as providing high-quality early childhood education and care. Nicole Green is Senior Lecturer in Early Childhood at the University of Southern Queensland. Nicole chose a career in early childhood because of her grandmother's beautiful storytelling and the love she created with family, friends and the community. Nicole seeks to teach and research through narratives and relationships across early childhood contexts. Having worked in preschool, early primary and tertiary settings as a teacher and researcher in rural, regional and city locations in Queensland, New South Wales, Canada and Singapore, Nicole values her work as a curriculum inquirer. She is interested in everyday life in early learning environments and how curriculum is perceived, how curriculum is enacted, and how children, teachers and families experience curriculum. Jessie Jovanovic is a preschool teacher with Gowrie South Australia, and former Senior Lecturer of Early Childhood Studies at Flinders University. Acknowledging the classed and gendered histories of the discipline, Jessie aims to work collaboratively with teaching and learning communities to explore critical pedagogies with an agentive, democratic-participation focus. Her interests include co-constructed documentation with young children, multimodal learning, the workplace worth and wellbeing of early childhood educators, and the mechanicians of integrated services delivery in the early years. Jessie is currently exploring connectivist thinking in her pedagogy, discovering how it shifts the creation, ownership and distribution of knowledge; and recognising ways that remote and online learning offer new forms of communication, connection, efficacy and access to grow.