Early Years Foundation Stage Setting - Essay Example

?Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) Setting Early years foundation stage (EYFS) setting Introduction This paper summarizes facts about the processes that are involved in the implementation of Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) and assess the extent to which the early years curriculum it proposes has been implemented. According to Palaiologou (2010, p4) and the Department of Education (2012, p.1), under the EYFS setting, each and every child must be helped acquire the best possible start in life and this refers to every child early years development. EYFS suggests a standard policy and curriculum that, in the view of the Department of Education, ensures that every child has enjoyed its rights to equal treatment whether the child requires special care or not. EYFS outlines the fundamentals of a child’s early years curriculum that every practitioner, providers and/or responsible carers must be committed to ensuring that children are safe and healthy, children achieve various EYFS goals, equal treatment of the children irrespective of their background whatsoever (Goffin & Wilson, 2001, p12; Palaiologou, (2010, p6); Department of Education, 2012, p1) is observed, the children performance reflects their individual abilities (Pound & Hughes, 2005, p33), and that every child is dealt with as a unique entity in the context of learning. The respective institutional administrations must ensure that EYFS guidelines are followed to the letter and so are implemented. But, according to Callaway (2005, p.19), Carr (2005, p7), Silberfeld (2009, p27), Glazzard, Chadwick, Webster and Percival (2010, p51), EYFS is a policy just like other existing policies and it is subject to failure especially as it comes to implementation. Important as it is, however, implementation of EYFS is crucial as it concentrates on the welfare of the children, that the efforts used in handling the children, in this context, determine the ways a particular child grows into adulthood and how such a child relates to its environment in the future. In other words, if EYFS could be defined as a policy, then it is a special kind of policy that must be implemented. But uniformity in implementation may not be a reality (Pound & Hughes, 2005, p38). While thus implementation becomes important a subject, this study assesses how various children handlers implement EYFS curriculum guidelines. By doing so, various observations and conclusions are made as the study advances. Various EYFS guidelines: summary The EYFS supposes that every child must be helped to grow and develop fast and the various early year providers must ensure that this is attained (Palaiologou, 2010, p8; Department of Education, 2012, p1). The key goals of EYFS it to provide quality and consistency, equal learning opportunities at all levels, partnership between carers and academic practitioners, and anti-discriminating practice. EYFS also introduces specific areas of learning, goals and assessment criteria that must always be adhered to. It specifies educator-children ratios under different circumstances and other key requirements such as the essence of a key person for every child and the qualifications of various child educators. All these are coined in as being of paramount and equal importance in the learning and developmental processes of any child (Pound & Hughes, 2005, p53; Palaiologou, 2010, p17). Implementation strategies, analysis and critique of EYFS Curricula The curriculum provides a wide range of guidelines regarding various childhood requirements. The respective authority in the education sector ensures compliance as far as implementation of the curriculum is concerned. For example, all practitioners must make normative assessments and make each child’s profile detailing its abilities, achievements, areas of strengths and those of weaknesses and so on. While such a strategy may prove a cutting edge in this respect, only about 73% of public early years settings and 55% of private year settings fully comply with the curriculum (Goffin & Wilson, 2001, p5). The biggest reason for this, perhaps, is the differences there is, of motives of different children handlers. Research shows that even the early education practitioners do not actually willingly comply; they only do what is asked and therefore there is a possibility of making beautiful reports that are total lies (Goffin & Wilson, 2001, p15). Similarly, while EYFS gives guidelines to educators for all kinds of children, some educators overlook some of specifications that are apparently difficult to fulfill. The vital areas of the curriculum that are sensitive to each child background cover the following areas; Communication and language Ability to communicate and learn a different, common-use language is fundamentally important among early years learners. According to Mooney (2000, p7) and Mayall (2002, p17), it is communication ability of a particular child that helps the child to interact with the surrounding society and too, be understood well by the responsible educator. Communication ability and achievement enables the educator to understand motives of every child. But it is the role of the educator to ensure that every child is able to communicate with his or her peers, the educator and the parent. EYFS states that at the end of a learning period, each child must show the ability to listen, challenge and comment on various teaching materials such as stories and so on. The educator must understand that each child is unique in terms of its abilities in this context. Understanding The children must clearly indicate an understanding of different phenomena they meet each day. In particular, they must be able to follow simple instructions and to differentiate different actions and their consequences. Ideally, the children must be able to answer ‘why’ and ‘how’ questions, say after a narration (Department of Education, p9). Speaking It is the role of educators to ensure that each child is able to express itself effectively. At this rate, the children must be helped to speak out what the listener or audience wants to hear. This means that such children understand the feelings of the inquirer (Department of Education, p9) Physical development EFYS outlines that every child must be engaged in physical activities such as playing in the field and running. Taylor and Woods (2005, p6) and Wood and Attfield (2005, p5) say that it is wrong for both parents and educators to restrict child play, as some do, since physical exercise not only reduces morbidity, but also it is necessary for brain development. EYFS also coins in the necessity for the educators to ensure children learn to take care of their health needs and understand the essence of hygiene “including dressing and going to the toilet independently (Department of Education, 2012, p9)”. Personal, social and emotional development Finally, the child handlers must ensure that personal, social and emotional development of each child is prioritized (Department of Education, 2012, p9). While making reference to this requirement, Beckley, Elvidge and Hendry (2009, p31) note that some child handlers fail to recognize that each child is unique and needs emotional support and professional guidance so that he or she responds appropriately to the environment and the society altogether. This is what the Department of Education refers to as fundamentals for “managing feelings and behavior (p9).” Addressing diversity It is a firm stand of EYFS that every child matters irrespective of its diversity. EYFS prepares child handlers to ensure each child gets the best education and developmental needs by informing them that they should understand beforehand that each child they deal with is unique. The educators must derive profiles and records for each child detailing the child’s progress and personal challenges they encounter. Implementation of this element is catered for because the so composed children profiles and reports must be submitted to the relevant authorities. At the same time, EYFS necessitates the need for educator-parent collaboration in raising complaints and challenges of individual child and for finding solutions to these effects. As a matter of fact, Beckley, Elvidge and Hendry (2009, p37) say, the role of ensuring that a particular child properly learns and develops is not a one party issue. Conducting assessments Assessments of child progress are vital (Coates & Faulkner, 2013, p123). Anyhow, according to Glazzard, Chadwick, Webster et al (2010, p8), there would be no need for setting goals at the beginning of a learning session if the learning outcomes will not be measured. For early years learners, EYFS suggests use of formative assessment as opposed to summative assessment. Formative assessment is effective since the educator deals with a wide range of children’s aspects of learning and development. This assessment method involves each and every time child assessment (may be hourly, daily and so on) of every child in say a class and this offers real time analysis of each child’s motives, challenges, achievements, ability, adaptability and behavior (Miller & Pound, 2011, p33; Rodger, 2012, p21). Key person (childminder) EYFS puts it that each child must be allocated one key person who is the childminder (Rodger, 2012, p36; Department of Education, 2012, p11). The roles of the key person is more or less to supervise child’s progress and acts as the child’s mentor and private carer. Beckley, Elvidge and Hendry (2009) commends EYFS for the inclusion of a key person for every child especially in realization that each prevalence of a key person derives child’s sense of belonging and self-worth. In fact, Beckley, Elvidge and Hendry (2009) note, not every child will be comfortable with the educator and thus children need an alternative person who can address specific problems pertaining to such a child. Child profile and records documentation According to the Department of Education (2012, p12), each child’s progress profile must be completed at the end of learning year. These profiles and other records must be properly documented per child and the reports must be submitted to the relevant authority. This serves a key supervising utility that ensures the educators are accountable and responsible all year round (Beckley, Elvidge & Hendry, 2009, p41). Critiquing One of the key strategies to ensuring that EYFS is always properly implemented that EYFS setters probably overlooked is to increase the number of registered early year educators. This is due to the need to satisfy the various educator-child ratios enshrined within EYFS. For example, if a particular practitioner can only handle four children at in a day, it follows that a group of forty two early age learners will require 11 educators (Miller & Pound 2011, p36; Rodger, 2012, p26). This is the biggest challenge and various scholars have deduced (Gray & Harcourt, 2012, p222). Similarly whereas EYFS directs that each child must have a key person who controls the child’s learning and development, such a group of learners will require a similar number of key persons. Edwards and Knight (2001, p43) say that numbers of educators and those of children have not ever been achieved for any existing policy in any country. This observation, at empirical levels might raise an alarm as an erroneous observation especially where a particular early year academic institutions observe the given guidelines to the letter (Naughton, 2003, p16). But it is national uniformity for this role that has been hard to achieve. In many institutions and community set ups, there is always a conflict between the need for every child’s right, in this context, to be enforced and the available number of qualified educators (Pugh, 2009, p47; Gray & Harcourt, 2012, p221). In other words, every child born in a society is entitled to quality education and development whether the numbers of educators available are not sufficient. As Edwards and Knight (2001) observe, there has been another bigger challenge even when the numbers of educators and those of key persons are balanced: the exact purposefulness of these educators and key persons is not fulfilled. All these notwithstanding, as the study has shown, EYFS coverage as far as the welfare of young children is concerned is commendable. If successful strategies are utilized, perhaps EYFS could be the best early year curriculum guide there can be. It has addressed most if not all key issues surrounding the welfare of young children in the modern world (Coates & Faulkner, 2013, p123). Reflection and conclusion Basically, I commend the EYFS implementation strategies such as ensuring each child’s profile is created, underpinning the necessity of parent-educator collaboration, covering all the essential needs for early years learners, appreciating diversity among children (Pugh, 2009, p49), giving clear cut directions as regards different curricular entities, and ensuring that early childhood educators are qualified. However, there are a number of considerations that must be considered or researched on. First is the reality of the shortage of qualified children handlers (educators) (Pugh, 2009, p72). EYFS gives a particular educator-children ratio that must be adhered to. Implementation of this requirement may prove to be an uphill task bearing in mind that there are other special abilities that particular children handlers must possess. The second issue is the problem of controlling educators’ motives regarding their duties and responsibilities. In other words, are the educators really dedicated to child care or they literally just want to fulfill their daily duties (Naughton, 2003, p9)? Are there ways to determine the truth of the contents in the children’s profiles and the reports thereof? Research on this latter topic needs to be conducted so as to answer these questions. Anyhow, the NYFS implementation measures currently in place are commendable. References Beckley, P., Elvidge, K. & Hendry, H. 2009. Implementing the Early Years Foundation Stage: A Handbook. McGrawHill: Open University Press. Callaway, G. 2005. Early Years Curriculum: A View from Outdoors. London: David Fulton Publishers. Carr, M. 2005. Assessment in Early Childhood Settings. London: Paul Chapman Publishing. Coates, E.A. & Faulkner, D. 2013. International Perspectives on Progress, Change and Development in Early Childhood Education and Care, 1993 to 2013. International Journal of Early Years Education, 21: 2-3, pp. 121-124. Department for Education. 2012. Statutory Framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS). Setting the standards for learning, development and care for children from birth to five. London: Department for Education. Edwards, A. & Knight, P. 2001. Effective Early Years Education. Teaching Young Children. Buckingham: Open University Press. Glazzard, J., Chadwick, D., Webster, A. & Percival, J. 2010. Assessment for Learning in the Early Years Foundation Stage. London: Sage.  Goffin, S. & Wilson, C. 2001. Curriculum Models and Early Childhood Education. 2nd Ed. New Jersey: Prentice Hall. Gray, C. & Harcourt, D. 2012. Introducing children's participatory research in action: challenges and dilemmas. International Journal of Early Years Education, 20: 3, pp. 221-223. Mayall, B. 2002. Towards a Sociology for Childhood: thinking from children’s lives. Buckingham: Open University Press Miller, L. & Pound, L. 2011. Theories and Approaches to Learning in the Early Years (Critical Issues in the Early Years). London: Sage. Mooney, C. 2000. Theories of Childhood: An Introduction to Dewey, Montessori, Erickson, Piaget and Vygotsky. USA: Redleaf Press. Naughton, G. 2003. Shaping Early Childhood. Learner, Curriculum and Contexts. UK: Open University Press. Palaiologou, I. 2010. The Early Years Foundation Stage: Theory and Practice. London: Sage. Pound, L. & Hughes, C. 2005. How Children Learn: From Montessori to Vygotsky - Educational Theories and Approaches Made Easy. London: Step Forward Publishing. Pugh, G. (ed.). 2009. Contemporary Issues in the Early Years: Working Collaboratively for children. 3rd Ed. London: Paul Chapman. Rodger, R. 2012. Planning an Appropriate Curriculum in the Early Years. 3rd Ed. London and New York: Routledge Silberfeld, C. 2009. UEL Early Childhood Studies Reader. London: Sage  Taylor, J. & Woods, M. (eds). 2005. Early Childhood Studies: An Holistic Introduction. 2nd Ed. London: Arnold Wood, E. & Attfield, J. 2005. Play, Learning and the Early Childhood Curriculum. 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