>> One thing that affects cognitive and language
and all other areas of development
in early childhood is early childhood education.
So, let's look a little bit at the different models
of early education that are out there
that parents might encounter so you can learn a little bit more
about on each of those.
And so, I guess first to start off
with is it's really important to look at quality.
So, your textbook lists ten different standards
from the National Association for the Education
of Young Children that parents should really examine
within the programs they're looking at for their children.
So, are those positive relationships amongst children
[inaudible] promoted?
Does the curriculum support learning and development
in all the different areas?
Are the teaching approaches developmentally, culturally,
and linguistically appropriate?
Do they use assessment to provide information
on how children are learning and developing?
Are the health and nutrition of children promoted,
and are they being protected from illness and injury?
Do teachers possess the qualification knowledge
and commitment to do their work?
Are there collaborative relationships
between the families and program?
Are there relationships with agencies and institutions
in the community to help support the program?
Are the indoor and outdoor environments safe
and well maintained?
And are the people that are in charge, the leadership
and management personnel well qualified effective,
and do they make sure everything stays in compliance
with licensure and maybe accreditation standards?
So, that those are really helpful guidelines for parents
to choose programs, but then you really have to look
at the philosophy behind the programs.
And so, the the textbook compiles some information
about some of the more popular programs.
And these are kind of overall guidance as to whether
or not a program is actually truly the model
that they're identifying with, that's not always the case
but this is good information to look at.
So, the Montessori method was created
by dr. Maria Montessori back in Italy,
a long -- quite a while ago.
And one of the main characteristics that it
that makes us stand out from their programs is
that they really prefer to use the word work instead of play.
So, children's work would be what we would call play,
but they refer to it as work.
There's a lot of focus on individual learning it was one
of the first times, when Montessori created the method,
that they looked at creating things that were children sized.
So, now that was pretty common but that was a hallmark
of the Montessori method.
Materials are carefully chosen
and introduced first by the teacher.
So, the the teacher gives a little lesson on how
to use the materials, and then the materials are provided
to the children to explore independently.
And you can see in the picture that the children are working
on tasks with different materials
that are Montessori material,
specifically self-correcting materials that are kind
of designed to be used a specific way that kind
of gives the child feedback about what they're doing.
And they're doing it on mats, and that defines their workspace
and so that is kind of their protected workspace.
And they use place mats when they do the work on the table.
Montessori method features mixed age grouping, and teachers
in true Montessori program would be certified.
The Waldorf method was created by Rudolf Steiner.
And it's a, tends to be a really beautiful aesthetically
appealing environment for children to be in.
It focuses on the whole child and really looks
at delaying some of the more academic type of experiences,
and that focus until children are a little bit older.
Really looks at connecting to nature,
the senses, and the imagination.
A lot of play, large blocks of time for that.
Protecting the children with the environment.
So, it's not uncommon to see the Waldorf programs ask parents
to keep their children off of screens and technology even.
They use looping so that children stay
with their teachers for several years.
And again it should be something that teachers are certified in.
So Reggio Emilia is actually a city in Italy,
and so it's important to note that that's not a person.
The Reggio Emilia approach was founded by Loris Malaguzzi,
and while we can't implement Reggio Emilia anywhere
but in Reggio Emilia, we can be influenced by it or inspired
by it, and so it's important to kind of recognize some
of the hallmarks of their approach.
One of those is that children
and teachers can co-construct the curriculum,
and they'll really look at it that is emerging
from what the children are engaged in.
Teachers are researchers and facilitators, so they're there
to kind of provide information and resources to children.
The environment is looked at as the third teacher
and really focuses on beauty and order.
And unfortunately, I couldn't find any licensed photographs
of classrooms in Reggio Emilia, so I just had to settle
for a picture of the city itself.
But I would encourage you to do some Googling and find some
of the images of Reggio Emilia classrooms.
Children's learning is documented
through the different methods,
including what they call The Hundred Languages of Children.
So, children don't just represent what they know
with their words, but they also may be able to create
that in different artistic formats, they might be able
to dramatize that, that might be able to sing that,
they might be able to do other things
that show you how they understand
and perceive the world.
And they have an atelier, which is an art studio
with an atelierista which is an artist that instructs the child
on how to use the arts.
And it's important to note
that this atelierista is not a teacher but an artist
that actually comes in
and teaches children really genuine art methods.
A hallmark of this is that they believe children are competent
and capable.
In this program children also stay together for three years.
Parents are partnered with the teachers
and the community is seen as an extension of the school.
So, you can see how some
of those qualities could be implemented
in a program anywhere, but those are really hallmarks
of the Reggio Emilia approach.
We also have the creative curriculum,
which is a commercial program.
This happens to be a classroom
on an Air Force Base that's using it I found an openly
licensed image for.
And it was created by Diane Trister Dodge
and then some other people have joined those efforts.
So, if you look at their materials now there are
additional authors on those.
The focus of this program is on children's play
and self-selected activities.
The environment is arranged into learning areas,
and they give large blocks of time for self-selected play.
Projects are the basis for their curriculum,
and it is a research base system
that includes an assessment system.
So, this is a one version of a boxed curriculum
that could be implemented in a developmentally appropriate way.
Often, we struggle to find curriculum like that
that is developmentally appropriate,
but this can be used
in developmentally appropriate ways.
We also have the Bank Street model, which was created
by Lucy sprog Mitchell.
It's also referred to as the developmental
interactionist approach.
And it is in a specific location in New York.
And so, this is the outside
of the school it's the only openly licensed image
that I could find for this PowerPoint and mini lecture.
But I wanted to kind of show you this.
The environment in this programs also arranged
into learning centers with a focus on hands-on experience
with long periods of time given
for children to explore and play.
The teacher uses questions to further children's exploration.
Blocks our primary material in the classroom
and they may actually take up a significant portion
of the classroom if the space is smaller.
And they use field trips frequently.
I remember finding an example that I used to share
with my children, or with my -- my children --
my students [laughs] that there were children
that were interested in creating a pizza parlor
in their classroom out of blocks.
But they didn't have enough context,
so because they're right in the middle
of the city the teacher took them down the street
to a local pizza parlor.
They took notes they had clipboards they took notes
on what they were, and then they went back into the classroom
and created a pizza parlor based
on that field trip and that experience.
And so, there's a lot of great information
from the Bank Street College
about their teacher education program,
and it also includes K through 12 educators.
So, I'd encourage you to explore that further
if your interest has been piqued.
And then I also -- one last method to look
at is the High Scope method.
And again I couldn't find any open images
of High Scope classrooms, but this is the Hutchinson House
and High Scope Education Research Foundation,
so for you to look at while I talk.
This program was created by David Weikart.
It also has defined learning areas,
and it has eight different content areas
with 58 key developmental indicators.
They really look at the consistency of daily routine
and they use a Plan, Do, Review sequence
in which children create a plan of what they're going
to do during their free choice time, they then act
on that plan, and then after that time period of playing
and exploring they reflect on the results
of their work and their plan.
Teachers are considered partners
and they use the child observation record
to help assess children and plan the curriculum,
and they have a six step process
that helps teach children conflict resolution.
And then the last program that I wanted to touch
on in this mini lecture and PowerPoint is Head Start.
So, Head Start is an income-based program
in which children you have to be income eligible to qualify.
It was part of Lyndon Johnson, President Lyndon --
Lyndon Johnson's war on poverty.
It serves about a million children,
there are more children that it could serve
but we don't have the capacity.
And it provides not only education to children
but services for families.
And there's kind of conflicting information about effectiveness
of Head Start, but really it was created to try and make sure
that children that come
from impoverished backgrounds don't start school behind
as they might if they didn't have
that intervention of early education.
Our book also talks a little bit about different areas
of learning that are influenced
by early childhood education including math,
reading, and brain maturation.