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    Planning and assessment for two-year-olds : a kindergarten perspective : a thesis presented in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Education at Massey University, Manawatū, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2019) Underwood, Jennifer
    The present research study explored kindergarten teachers’ perceptions of how planning and assessment is utilised to support the learning and development of two-year-olds in kindergarten. The study was framed within an interpretivist-constructivist paradigm and used a case study design to investigate and explore teachers’ perspectives and understandings of planning and assessment practices with two-year-olds. Descriptive data was gathered through focus group interviews with 17 teachers from three kindergartens. The focus group interview questions were divided into three main areas. The initial questions focused on teachers current experiences with, and perceptions of, two-year-olds in the kindergarten setting. Planning for the learning for two-year-olds, within the context of the New Zealand early childhood curriculum Te Whāriki, was then considered; assessment for learning was also explored, including methods of assessment and documentation. Lastly, teachers professional knowledge and how this supported their teaching practice with two-year-olds was examined. Key findings suggest that the teachers were aware of the complexities of teaching two-year- olds and what was needed to support them in their own kindergartens. Teachers engaged with early childhood literature and professional development to support their knowledge and understanding of planning and assessment and how to support the learning of two-year-olds. The majority of the responses highlighted the positive perspectives of the teachers’ and their awareness of the characteristics pertinent to two-year-olds. Responsive and reciprocal relationships between teacher, child and parents and whānau underpinned practice with children. Within these relationships, teachers identified that primary caregiving was an important aspect of their practice in supporting the learning for two-year-olds. The findings provided a snapshot of the way in which teachers plan and assess for learning and suggest that planning the environment plays a significant role in the ways in which children’s learning and development were supported, as teachers navigate the characteristics of both older and younger children within the same space. Understanding how these processes can support two-year-olds is important in order for planning and assessment practices to be effectively utilised for decision making and implementation of the early childhood curriculum. The current study provides a valuable contribution in describing what teachers do to support learning for two-year-olds in a kindergarten context.
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    Changing times for young minds : declining class size and Shūdan Seikatsu ideology in Hokkaido preschools : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Social Anthropology at Massey University
    (Massey University, 2007) Burke, Rachael Sarah
    Preschool educators and parents in the West commonly express the hope that young children become independent, creative individuals. In contrast, Japanese preschools work to achieve a harmonious group of children whose views and behaviour are mirrored by those of their peers. Studies point to classes as large as forty as an effective way of introducing children to "life in the group" (shūdan seikatsu), and to Japanese social values that will become essential as youngsters move into adulthood. While numerous ethnographies have been written concerning preschools in urban Honshu, how does this representation echo or differ from the contemporary experience of children, teachers and parents in rural Eastern Hokkaido? This remote area of Japan is currently facing economic decline, a dropping birthrate and depopulation which has resulted in preschool classrooms with as few as two or three children. Based on participation-observation fieldwork at five diverse preschools, this study seeks to map the relevance of shūdan seikatsu ideology to Hokkaido educators, and to identify how demographic pressures are changing classroom dynamics.
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    Teaching toddlers to solve social problems : a thesis presented in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Education at Massey University, Manawatū, Aotearoa New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2016) Clarke, Linda Rose
    Toddlers’ peer conflicts, common in early learning centres, have the potential to be powerful learning events, however, the quality of learning is often dependent on how teachers respond. There is a paucity of research that explores how teachers can promote toddlers’ learning within the context of toddlers’ peer conflicts, especially in Aotearoa New Zealand. Prompted by this deficiency, this study explored teachers’ self reports of their roles, their teaching practices and the conditions that influence and, specifically support, teachers’ responses to toddlers’ peer conflicts, within the contexts of four early learning settings. The study used a mixed methods approach, with focus group interviews and a web-based questionnaire, to explore the perspectives of 31 toddler teachers. Findings suggest that the key teaching roles were to: protect toddlers, physically and emotionally; advocate for toddlers without judgment; and to role model and coach social-emotional skills. Through these roles, and by utilising conflicts as teaching and learning opportunities, teachers’ intentions were to empower toddlers and teach them social-emotional skills that they might later use independently. In this context, teachers’ professional decisions regarding how and when to intervene in toddlers’ peer conflicts were made in response to concerns for toddlers’ safety, both physical and emotional, and were guided by teachers’ knowledge of, and relationships with, the toddlers involved. Results suggest that effective teaching practices were supported by: positive, responsive relationships; teachers’ in-depth knowledge of toddlers and toddlerhood; professional learning; perspectives of toddlers as learners and of conflicts as learning events; teachers’ emotional awareness; and the desire to maintain toddlers’ dignity, esteem and mana.
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    Overcoming language barriers in early childhood education : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Sociology at Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2016) Beauchamp, Angela Katina
    New Zealand’s increasingly heterogeneous population places manifold demands on the education sector to educate and integrate children who do not speak English. Children of migrant background attending early childhood settings are assumed to benefit in English language obtainment from attending early years educational facilities, but does the mere placement in such settings achieve the desired outcome? Limited research exists into how minority language children acquire English whilst attending preschool settings, how this impacts on their first language, or on how teachers support their second language development. There is little insight into what motivates teachers in their interactions and decision-making, how they adjust teaching content, and whether they engage in language-specific teaching activities at all. To address this gap, this study considers questions regarding the relationship between early childhood teachers’ knowledge of second language acquisition and the type of support they report implementing. I investigate educators’ views and reported practices, as well as the influence of professional training, institutional policies, and philosophies. This research used a qualitative perspective and was benchmarked against comparative reflections of my own teaching experience. The inductive methodology involved semi-structured interviews of early childhood practitioners, covering a selection of educational settings in the Wellington region that practise distinct philosophies. Results show that teachers rely on their centres’ philosophies and socio-cultural practices as per Te Whāriki - the New Zealand curriculum - in their work with minority language children. The consensus was that early childhood education is to prepare language foundations through emotional confidence and cultural capability, not to set academic standards, and children’s perceived natural ability to learn by osmosis is accorded much credence. These findings suggest that teachers’ knowledge regarding complex language and cognitive processes could be significantly improved. Furthermore, support for te reo Māori and Pasifika first languages in New Zealand notwithstanding, practices tend to facilitate institutionalized monolingualism. Future research in all migrant language learning would add to the knowledge base about second language acquisition in New Zealand and the role of early childhood education in this dynamic. As well, there is scope for a discussion on language inequities and the possibilities of a plurilingual society.