What do psychologists have to say about how kids develop? Several different child development theories focus on different areas of growth and development. There are five major theoretical perspectives guide the study of child development: the psychodynamic, behavioral, cognitive, contextual, and evolutionary perspectives.

What Are the Basic Concepts of the Psychodynamic Perspective?

The psychodynamic perspective is exemplified by the psychoanalytic theory of Freud and the psychosocial theory of Erikson. Sigmund Freud originated the psychoanalytic approach based on his experiences in his psychiatric practice and developed a technique called free association, which requires a patient to relax and report everything that comes to mind no matter how trivial or how strange it might seem. Using this technique, he found that patients often revived painful memories reaching back even to early childhood.

Erikson identified eight distinct stages of development,

Stage 1: Infancy (birth to 18 months): Trust vs. MistrustStage 2: Early Childhood (2 to 3 years): Autonomy vs. Shame and Doubt

Stage 3: Preschool (3 to 5 years): Initiative vs. Guilt

Stage 4: School Age (6 to 11 years): Industry vs. Inferiority

Stage 5: Adolescence (12 to 18 years): Identity vs. Role Confusion

Stage 6: Young Adulthood (19 to 40 years): Intimacy vs. Isolation

Stage 7: Middle Adulthood (40 to 65 years): Generativity vs. Stagnation

Stage 8: Maturity (65 to death): Ego Integrity vs. Despair

What Are the Basic Concepts of the Behavioral Perspective?

Behavioral psychology is a perspective that focuses on learned behaviors. Behaviorism differs from many other perspectives because instead of emphasizing internal states, it focuses solely on observable behaviors.

There are many different ways of thinking about human behavior. Psychologists utilize a variety of perspectives when studying how people think, feel, and behave. Some researchers focus on one specific school of thought, such as the biological perspective, while others take a more eclectic approach that incorporates multiple points of view. There is no single perspective that is 'better' than another; each simply emphasizes different aspects of human behavior.

What Are the Basic Concepts of Cognitive Perspective?

A cognitive personality theory may explain individual differences in behavior concerning differences in the way people think and process information. Cognition refers to thinking and memory processes, and cognitive development refers to long-term changes in these processes. One of the most widely known perspectives about cognitive development is the cognitive stage theory of a Swiss psychologist named Jean Piaget. Piaget created and studied an account of how children and youth gradually become able to think logically and scientifically.

Cognitive neuroscientists seek to identify locations and functions within the brain that are related to different types of cognitive activity. Imagine that a college student makes little effort to achieve good grades in college courses. One possible cognitive explanation for this low achievement motivation is that the person has low self-efficacy. The person may believe that he or she cannot achieve good grades, and thus the person makes little effort.

What are the basic concepts of a contextual perspective?

Contextual perspectives consider the relationship between individuals and their physical, cognitive, and social worlds. They also examine socio-cultural and environmental influences on development.

Lev Vygotsky believed that social interaction plays a critical role in children's learning; through such social interactions, children go through a continuous process of scaffolded learning.

Three themes are often identified with Vygotsky's ideas of sociocultural learning: (1) human development and learning originate in social, historical, and cultural interactions, (2) use of psychological tools, particularly language, mediate the development of higher mental functions, and (3) learning occurs within the Zone of Proximal Development. In summary Vygotsky's sociocultural theory emphasizes the central influence on cognitive development exerted by social interactions between members of a culture.

Urie Bronfenbrenner developed the ecological systems theory to explain how everything in a child and the child's environment affects how a child grows and develops. He labeled different aspects or levels of the environment that influence children's development. Bronfenbrenner's bioecological approach focuses on the microsystem, mesosystem, exosystem, macrosystem, and chronosystem.

What are the basic concepts of an evolutionary perspective?

The evolutionary perspective attributes behavior to genetic inheritance from our ancestors, contending that genes determine not only traits such as skin color and eye color but also certain personality traits and social behaviors. Individuals who reproduce pass their traits on to their children. The children with the traits that are best adapted to survive are more likely to pass their traits on to the next generation. Over multiple generations, the traits that offer the best chance of survival and reproduction spread across an entire population.

In different environments, different adaptations are beneficial for survival. Over time, the organisms in different environments begin to evolve into different species because different adaptations are being selected for by natural selection.

What theory and/or approach do you most agree with and disagree with and why?

Piaget studied many children, and this study led him to develop the theory that all children progress through four stages of cognitive development. While all children advance through the stages in the same order, some progress more rapidly than others. Theory also is leaving out the social (e,g.. Marxist ) and historical factors of the development. Piaget's 4 stages of development theory did not focus on how applied within education, and ambiguities in the theory have made.

Piaget did, however, advocate hands-on learning, and these practices are often used in preschool and primary classrooms where children are encouraged to learn by discovery. In general, all teachers as well as others who work with children can benefit from an awareness of these stages of development. Knowing when a child needs a practical application of an idea versus being able to use abstract reasoning can determine what information is presented and how it is presented. The use of symbols to represent an abstract idea, for instance, is not a skill that younger children will have, so presenting information before a child is ready will result in frustration and an unwillingness to engage in an activity. Understanding these stages of development can aid the teacher in planning age and developmentally appropriate activities and lessons that will keep children engaged and active in their learning environment.

Why is it important to understand a child's typical course of development for a career in early childhood education?

Early childhood education is a term that refers to the period from a child's birth to when they enter kindergarten, It is an important time in children's lives because it is when they first learn how to interact with others, including peers, teachers, and parents, and also begin to develop interests that will stay with them throughout their lives.

A solid understanding of milestones and developmental pathways across each domain of children's development can benefit child care providers in several ways.

Benefit 1: The best foundation for planning for a group of children.

Benefit 2: The best starting point for planning for a new child.

Benefit 3: Help to plan the next steps for supporting children's progress.

Benefit 4: Create a curriculum and environment that aligns to state standards/guidelines for early childhood programs.

Benefit 5: Help providers feel confident that their professional practice has a solid basis that aligns with the larger child care professional

In summary, knowledge of child development and learning and when you see all the early childhood development milestones and changes unfolding, you can see why support networks matter so much. Since every child is different, the most effective teachers know how to look for patterns and milestones while working with families.

Cite this page

Certification of Authorship: I certify that I am the author of this paper and that any assistance I received in its preparation is fully acknowledged and disclosed in the paper. I also have cited any sources from which I used data, ideas, or words, either quoted directly or paraphrased. I certify that this paper was prepared by me specifically for the purpose of this assignment, as directed.

Instructions

Your responses to each section are limited to 15 pages each, not including references. There are two sections to the comprehensive exam. Part 1: Early Childhood Specialization; Part 2: Research. In your response to each section, please include the comprehensive exam question at the top of the page, your response, and a reference list for your response. Thus, there will be two separate reference lists following your response to each section. Be sure to submit ONE document as your comprehensive exam. Page numbers are required for the total document. The comprehensive examination must be submitted as a Word document.

Part 1: Early Childhood Education Specialization

Please use the scenario for answering the three (3) questions below. Please be specific and detailed in your responses.

Scenario: Transforming Half Day Pre-K and Kindergarten to Full Day with Implementation of Early Learning Standards/Common Core State Standards (CCSS)

You are a newly assigned assistant principal/director of Paul Robeson Academy. Due to underutilization of the facility and poor academic performance, the District closed the doors of Robeson School last year, which was a neighborhood elementary school, serving Grades K-5. Robeson Academy will be reconstituted this year as a start-up school with new administration and will serve Pre-K-Grades 5. You are responsible for leading the Pre-K through Grade 2 team.

Robeson Academy will serve families from the neighborhood and will serve families transferred from other neighborhoods. During this first year you are responsible for developing a Pre-K full day and transitioning the Kindergarten program from half day to a full day while implementing the Early Learning Standards/CCSS.

Every early childhood professional should develop a philosophy that encompasses his or her own view of early childhood learning and education. Discuss your personal educational philosophy as it relates to early childhood education and how it will impact your work as an assistant principal/director. Use specific examples of theorists and their beliefs and ethics which support your philosophy. How will your personal educational philosophy inform your response to parents and the principal of the school?

(NAEYC Standards 1, 2, 6)

According to the parent letter, these parents are concerned about how academic rigor will be accomplished and the students be ready for first and second grade if the Pre-K and Kindergarten will be developmentally appropriate environment. They are concerned that play will be added to the schedule which will mean less focus on paper and pencil work

activities to gage student performance. Review With the addition of the Early Learning Standards/ CCSS, assessment will also be part of the expectations while meeting the NAEYC domains (social/ emotional, cognitive, language, and literacy and physical). What is your position on the role of assessment in teaching and learning of developmentally appropriate early childhood practices? Cite sources that will support your position and those arguments that are likely to arise in opposition to your position. (NAEYC Standard 3, 4, 5)

C. Action Plan: Create an action plan with a workable timeline that will transform the Paul Robeson’s Academy by transforming the Pre-K and Kindergarten to full day programs. The programs will align with your personal professional educational philosophy about early childhood instruction and the role of assessment in the teaching and learning of children birth through age eight. In this plan, consider the following:

• Pedagogy theory and practice
• Curriculum models
• Assessment
• Home/school connections
• NAEYC learning domains (social, emotional, cognitive and physical)
• Classroom environments
• Play
• Culturally and linguistically diverse learners

Determine who will:

• · Be involved in implementing this action plan
• · Develop a timeline for implementation.

Early Childhood Philosophy

The early years of life are critical for the development of young children. These years are considered the foundation for later success in school and life in general. Because of that, education has become one of the fields that changes and evolves rapidly depending on the needs of young learners. The needs of a particular generation differ from the other due to the changes in the environment, lifestyle, technology, expectations and more. Adapting to these changes in education will always be aligned with the importance of the diverse developmental domains including; physical, cognitive, social/emotional, communication/language, and self-help(cite). Using the appropriate tools to enhance and enrich the child’s learning experience is a life-long investment for the upcoming generations. Therefore, educators have to expand their knowledge about the learning of young children as the field of early childhood is a ocean that will never dry.

The social constructivism paradigm has shaped my philosophy in education. Galbin (2014) page) defined Social Constructivism as:” A theory of knowledge of sociology and communication that examines the development jointly constructed understanding of the world”. A researcher will react to knowledge through his/her understanding of the world. These individual experiences are the key to creating complex thoughts and deep knowledge. According to Creswell & Poth (2018), in social constructivism, individuals obtain understanding of the world they live in by developing a personal meaning of their experiences (p.24).

My philosophy in education is inspired by two legends in the field of early childhood education; Piaget and Lev Vygotsky. Piaget focused on the development of children from birth through adolescent with the assumption of that children learn by nature through their own experiences without influence of adults (Fowler, 2016). On the other hand, Vygotsky rejects Piaget’s assumption of separating learning from the social context (Mahn & John-Steiner, 1996). Moreover, Vygotsky believes that learning occurs in the collaboration between the learner and others including the environment which was explained in Vygotsky’s sociocultural theory (Freeman, 2011).

Learning the theories will contribute to giving teachers and educators a solid foundation in the field of early childhood education which will allow them to accommodate theories and best practices to reach all children. My philosophy is a result of combining the work of the theorists mentioned earlier which I believe will enrich the education experience of young children. Therefore, my philosophy consists of the following elements: 1. Establish the best educational experience, 2. Promote teachers’ professional development and training opportunities, 3. Incorporate Play and Project based learning, 4. Create friendly and safe environment, and 5. Establish family, school, and community partnership.

Establish the best educational experience: Education of young children has shifted to the child centered approach which focuses on the child as whole. The preoperational stage (age 2-7) by Piaget explains how children are driven by their curiosity to learn (Fowler, 2016). As children grow, their cognitive and language development evolves which will allow them to ask questions and communicate with others seeking answers. Moreover, communicating with teacher, peers, and family members will enhance the process of finding the information as these individuals will expand the search to different directions. Having said that, Vygotsky sustained the idea of socio-cultural learning by explaining that social learning experience happen before learners can adopt new understanding, which will affect what children learn and how they learn to think. Moreover, the learning activity occurs when it is associated with communication through language and other symbolic systems (Mahn & John-Steiner, 1996).

According to Darling & Kim (2009), Vygotsky believes that the socio-cultural paradigm involves interpersonal exchanges of ideas. Furthermore, Vygotsky indicated that learning is bordered by series of capabilities and competencies known as the zone of proximal development (ZPD) (Darling & Kim, 2009). The ZPD is shaped by the interaction between the child and teacher or peer interaction (Scrimsher & Tudge, 2003). For instance, when a child is unable to perform a certain task like zipping and unzipping the jacket after several trials, he/she will ask for the teacher’s assistance. In this situation, the teacher might model the task to show the proper way to zip the jacket, or she/he can delegate this responsibility to other children who already have mastered the task. Thinking of the stages of development by Piaget and the zone of proximal development by Vygotsky, I believe that the Reggio Emilia approach combines these two components in its curriculum.

The Reggio Emilia approach nurture the children’s curiosity as this approach focuses on the child as researcher which is align with their developmental needs (Goffin & Wilson, 2001, p.229). Luri Malaguzzi, the founder of the Reggio Emilia approach, was inspired by Piaget, Vygotsky, and other theorists. Teachers in this approach observes children’s desires and then guide them through the process of finding the information. Promote teachers’ professional development and training opportunities: Teachers have an important role in the educational experience. They have an enormous impact on their students for a lifespan period. Therefore, teachers must be prepared and continuously trained to be able to deal with students through interaction, communication, cooperation, and connection. Part of my philosophy is to provide teachers with opportunities that meet their needs to enhance their teaching methods as it is essential in coping with the educational wheel of change. Effective professional development is the key to teachers learning and purifying pedagogies required to guide them through teaching variety of skills like problem-solving, self- regulation, and collaboration (Ayisibea, Gadegbeku, Mahama, Owusu-Bempah, & Tackie-Ofosu, 2017).

The National Association of the Education of Young Children NAEYC position statement on the DAP, in early childhood programs serving children from birth to 8 years old, highlights the teachers’ knowledge and training in the field of early childhood education especially in making good decisions that are valuable for children’s needs (NAEYC, 2009, p.8). Because teachers have a major role in delivering the curriculum and by creating lesson plans and activities, they need continuous hands-on sessions that assist them while enhancing materials used in the classrooms. My philosophy includes assessment which is a tool to monitor and control quality of the curriculum and child’s performance (Hearron & Hildebrand, 2011, p.323). As an assistant principal, I will make sure that teachers understand the developmentally appropriate practice as it stands for educational practices that are aligned with the stages of development (Goffin & Wilson, 2011, p.122). Therefore, teachers will also be able to conduct the proper assessment that will allow them to predict students who need further assistance. Off course, assessment is not the only way to measure students’ success as every child is different, but it is an effective and reciprocal tool to find out what the student needs also to find out what is expected from the students. Our mission is to look at every student as whole then help him/her in every way possible.

Incorporate Play-based learning: Play is a major part of my personal philosophy due to its role in the development of young children. Bateson (1972) and Rubin, Fein, and Vandenberg (1983) have defined play as “an intellectual and emotional frame of mind in which children come to an agreement with one another that things are not to be taken literally.” (as cited in Pianta, 2012, p.260). Looking at this definition, we can say that play starts from the mind where all the magic happens. Moreover, play can take the form of any activity during free-choice time either in the classroom or anywhere. An example of that is the activity of building blocks, solving a puzzle, pretending, coloring, and more. When children play, they develop language and social competence; as they will be thinking and talking about objects and people while solving problems within the play content (Pianta, 2012, P.260).

According to Pianta (2012), “The Trust-in-Play approach” recommends that children play freely by choosing what they want. The involvement of adults can be evident by preparing the environment with materials and asking interesting questions that trigger the child’s curiosity to learn (Pianta, 2012, p.261). Thus, adult’s involvement is important as well to facilitate the learning process. During the play time, consolidating a variety of choices enables teachers to have a better understanding of a child’s interests and learning style. Diane Ackerman said: “play is our brain’s favorite way of learning” (GoodReads, 2018). We do not realize that through play we are exploring the world using our brains. In fact, this is how we learn. Vygotsky is an advocated for play and how it contributed to the growth of young children. Ferholt & Nilsson (2014) have interprets Vygotsky’s theory of play by stating that play is an early form of the artistic and scientific endeavors of adulthood. Furthermore, Vygotsky highlights the importance of imagination and realistic thinking while playing as it opens the door for future creativity and invention (Ferholt & Nilsson, 2014).  Pretended play is an excellent illustration of the recent claims. Thus, richer language skills, enhanced social skills, and greater imagination are all expected characteristic of children with quality play choices. Therefore, children who play more in different types of play have richer language skills, enhanced social skills, and greater imagination.

Create a friendly and safe environment: Planning a friendly and safe environment for children should include everything in the school like the budding, playground, kitchens, bathrooms, offices, and classrooms. Also, not forgetting equipment’s and furniture with paying attention to continuous maintenance (Hearron & Hildebrand, 2011, p.208). Choosing trained staff for every department is important to keep the fitting environment in action. My philosophy is to create a healthy safe environment by creating emergency procedure plan that includes a list of emergency contacts like fire, ambulance, police in every classroom in case of an emergency. In addition, train teachers for Basic Life Support license, which I believe is mandatory specially in child care programs. Moving to the playground which is the place where children feel free like birds. It is the place for imaginary flying dragons that children escape from by climbing the monkey bars. However, this could be very dangerous if it lacks supervision. Therefore, one of the safety procedures is to increase the number of trained and educated staff at the playground time to reduce the number of injuries (Schwebel, 2006, p. 146).

Establish family, school, and community partnership: Family is the window that a child uses to interact with the world.  Because families play a critical role in the child’s life, it is important for teachers and the school to collaborate with families to promote a healthy child’s development (Cappio, Caspe, DeLorenzo, Kennedy, and Seltzer, 2013) One of the major goals of DAP is to establish a concrete relationship between schools and families (NAEYC, 2009, p.8).  My philosophy is to establish a good rapport with families. This relationship will be based on mutual respect, communication, and collaboration. My goal is to understand parents’ expectations and priorities for their children first. Afterwards, I will guide families in seeing the bigger picture by aligning their expectation with what is developmentally appropriate for their children.  In addition, I will reach out for families who do not speak English and make them feel as important as every family in this school.

Our team is available to provide services for all families. As a school that nurture DAP, we want to involve families to be aware of everything related to their children. Conducting an orientation about variety of topics including; health, education, new practices…, etc, will make families feel that they have the knowledge to interact with their children. The program will also invite families to volunteer in participating in the classroom with their children. Participating could be in reading a story, crafting a project, share a cultural event, or creating a meal. Besides, including families in child assessment as they will be a great assist in increasing the child performance afterwards (Cappio et al., 2013).  Reaching out for the community is similar to engaging the family because children and families are part of the community. Having members of the community to come and share their knowledge will add to the children’s experience. For example, children can visit of invite firefighters to know about their profession. This visit will spot the light on these brave men and women who dedicated their lives to help others. Through this experience, children will learn about uniforms, materials used in extinguishing the fire, and more.

Role of Assessment

Here in Paul Robeson Academy, we treat each child as an individual who is unique and different. Our team believes in Gardner’s multiple intelligence theory in which highlights multiple sources of learning. Teachers are trained to understand their students’ learning abilities and they are qualified to create activities that nurture their students’ individuality throughout the learning experience. Every developmental stage requires different strategies depending on the child’s needs. For example, a child in Pre-K need positive relationships with adults who participate in responsive conversations and foster the his/her interests while reading, writing and playing.

While creating curriculum activities, teachers are trained to include activities that cover all developmental domains like physical, cognitive, and social/emotional. An example of a physical and cognitive activity is counting the jumps. In this activity, children will move their bodies while learning to count. We believe that children are here to be heard, so we always encourage children to share and reflect on their experiences not only at school but everywhere.

To assess something is to measure its quality, quantity, or weight. In our case, we are assessing children to evaluate to find out where they are developmentally. Through assessment, teachers will understand where the child stands and will be able to witness his/her progress throughout the year. Using ongoing assessment like portfolios, photos, artwork, checklist, and observation is part of our assessment tools as a Reggio Emilia inspired school. Moreover, engaging families in the process is one of our goals. Engaging families is going to be through parent conferences, daily documentation of students’ work in the classroom, and preferred tools of communication suggested by parents. In Paul Robeson Academy, our use of assessment is compatible with DAP as teachers use or create assessment tools putting in consideration the alignment of these assessments with the Common Core Standards CCS and NAEYC Domains as well.

In a study conducted in 1991, Jipson indicated that teachers in the study noted that DAP failed to recognize the roles of culture and with the increasing number of immigrant families, teachers were unable to understand the background of these children and how to teach them (Jipson, 1991). In response to this claim, the latest modification of the DAP guidelines (NAEYC, 2009) features the cultural component is decisions linked to curriculum and teaching strategies (Ayisibea, Gadegbeku, Mahama, Owusu-Bempah, & Tackie-Ofosu, 2017). 

As a school that is adapting the concept of DAP aligned with NAEYC domains, we collaborate as a team to nurture the diversity of our students including children with special needs by providing a safe, friendly, and respectful environment. At Paul Robeson Academy, we continue to value every child’s growth, personality, and culture.

Action Plan

The transformation of Paul Robeson Academy is critical. With providing a strategic planning agenda, our team will be able to move forward to working in an energetic, optimistic, and supportive environment. The plan will ensure that all our teachers and staff are fully trained and informed of the new changes. Moreover, the plan will include steps that will help parents and children adapt to the new changes applied in the academy.  In Paul Robeson Academy, we aspire to be a child-centered facility, where children, families, and educators collaborate to create an effective learning experience. With the implementation of the (DAP) in our Reggio Emilia inspired classroom, children will be surrounded by a believing, nurturing, and reciprocally supportive environment where enjoyment, play, and learning are honored.

The core of the action plan is guided by the implementation of CCSS, which is designed to improve educational outcomes for students, that meets all NAEYC’s developmental domains. Our agenda is constructed through the collaboration between all stakeholders in order to implement changes effectively. specific duties and roles will be distributed among the committee for quality assurance. The project timeline will start with four conference meeting through the summer to prepare teachers and staff members for the new modifications. Moreover, an orientation will be scheduled, two weeks before the Fall semester begins, for students and families to visit the school and meet teachers.

Pedagogy Theory and Practice

Having a clear pedagogy is the key to creating a successful curriculum. As I previously mentioned, my philosophy is inspired by the work of Piaget in the developmental stages and the work of Vygotsky in the ZPD. With the addition of the current research about play-based learning, the collaboration of these three components have ensured that our curriculum is following the DAP and is meeting the CCSS and NAEYC’s domains. This collaboration has helped in the transition stage that the Paul Robeson Academy is going through. The developmental stages by Piaget have inspired teachers to understand the development of young children and allowed them to choose activities that encourage children to expand their knowledge. Moreover, Piaget viewed the child as a scientist who is engaged in series of inquiries about the world (Kausar, 2010, p. 257).

The four developmental stages, sensory-motor, pre-operational, concrete, and formal, are considered a guideline in creating age appropriate activities for children. For example, the sensory- motor stage includes children from birth to two years of age. In this stage children learn by using their five senses (Kausar, 2010, p. 257). A teacher can use different materials like pasta and place it on a container where children can reach and train to grab the pasta and play with it. Through this activity, children will have the opportunity to learn using the sense of touching. Activities will advance and change depending on the developmental stage the child is currently in.

On the other hand, Vygotsky’s sociocultural theory of learning and development includes the missing piece of the puzzle which is the social image of the child (Goffin & Wilson, 2001, p. 241). Vygotsky’s work emphasized the importance of social interaction in the learning process. He believed that social relations and social structure lead to the development of mental function (Freeman, 2011) The moment children are born, they interact with the world around them. The small conversations with parents are the foundation for the development of the social structure in the child’s life. Vygotsky also developed the concept of ZPD that requires the interfere of adults or peer to assist the child in completing a task. In fact, the ZPD is the bridge between what the learner is able to do independently and what they need support in achieving (Freeman, 2011). For instance, if the child tried several times to build a house, in blocks corner, the teacher can give the child some instructions and show the child the balanced areas where the blocks can stand without falling.

Finally, the implementation of Piaget, Vygotsky, and the play-based learning model are the highlight of the transformation process. Understanding the pedagogy of DAP and making the connection between it and the previous three elements is our way to success. Our ultimate goal is to provide children with opportunities using every component of the academy to allow them to develop, explore, and discover the world. We value all children, and we want to be the hand that lead them to a brighter future. 

Curriculum Models

Our curriculum is based on a special combination that brings the DAP alongside with the Reggio Emilia approach. The Roggio Emilia approach consists of elements that highlight the developments of young children. The elements of the Reggio Emilia approach are; the image of the child, the emergent curriculum, the project-based learning, the role of the teacher, the role of the environment, parental involvement, and documentation. Our goal is to create lesson plans and activities that deliver meaningful connections to the children’s interests nurturing their culture, personality, and individuality.

The implementation of the curriculum will include three stages. The first stage is conducting intensive professional development sessions that are held during the summer. In the professional development session, teachers will be introduced to the model and will participate in creating lesson plans, activities that meet the standards. The second stage is the feedback session where teachers share their experiences, concerns, and challenges they have towards the model. All these issues will be discussed and resolved with the assistance of professionals to prepare teachers for the academic year. Finally, the third stage is the real implementation of the model by the beginning of the fall semester.

The full-day program starts at 7:00 am and ends at 4:00 pm. The program includes; free play, breakfast, carpet/circle time, centers learning activities, lunch, story time, naptime, snack, outdoor activities, instructed and uninstructed play. During carpet/circle time, the teacher will start with assigning classroom jobs, that rotates among students, which is considered the best way to teach self-regulation and responsibility. After that, the teacher will ask questions and engage in small conversation with children. Conversations will include sharing daily routines, important events, and interesting topics that will lead to long-term educational projects. Children are encouraged to engage in the educational process through completing tasks like drawing, singing, dancing, or responding to questions.

Throughout the day, children will be participating in outdoor and indoor play where they socially interact with their peers and learn about the world around them using interesting responses and asking questions. Furthermore, social interaction will be evident during lunch time where children share personal experiences with teacher and peers, and when they ask for their food choices. The curriculum also includes the assistant of other professionals like the special education teacher and the speech therapist. These professionals will help in reaching out students who need additional help. We believe that early intervention is the best tool to solve concerning issues that prevent children from joyful learning.

Assessment

Assessment is a tool to measure and evaluate progress (Hearron & Hildebrand,2011, p.324). It is a tool to ensure the quality and effectiveness of the program. Educators assess children to track their progress and locate areas of improvement. Moreover, assessment will give an overview of the student success throughout the academic year. Our assessment goal is to choose the proper assessment tool that respect and honor children’s development, individuality, and culture. Since we are a Reggio Emilia inspired school, we view assessment from the social constructivist point of view, where assessment is based on observation and documentation in its different forms. The practice of documentation supports the learner to participate in looking at his/her own learning to construct and re construct deeper thoughtful understanding (Edwards, Gandini & Forman, 2012, p.275).

Documentation could include, but not limited to; drawing, photography, videos, painting, writing, completing projects, checkpoints, and others more. observation is considered authentic as it captures what a child can do in real life situations. Teachers are trained to carefully observe children and provide immediate feedback that would enhance the direction of the educational experience. All of the students’ work is part of the documentation process and it will be kept in portfolios that students will take home by the end of the semester. Besides the report cards and portfolios, a special website page will be developed for the sake of communicating with parents. Teachers will be observing children and collecting data throughout the day, then use the website page to share students’ work and to give feedback on areas of improvements to parents in private conversations. 

• Home/school connections

One of the most important goals in the transformation of the Paul Robeson Academy is to build a solid partnership with families as they have a tremendous role in the child’s life. During the first stage of the transformation process, the school will invite families to an orientation session to explain our vision and mission. Also, parents will be introduced to staff and faculty members to create an alliance that supports and reinforces children’s learning. The alliance will include a “Parents’ Educational Program” where parents can learn more about different topics that support the growth of young children.

The administrator will make sure that parents are able to receive weekly newsletters, phone calls, emails, and emergency messages. The administrator will also guide families through the campus and provide them with additional services brochure that explains other services from the school like special education teachers.  Monthly meetings will be scheduled to form a bridge between parents and teachers for the purpose of aligning expectations and providing feedback about the child’s progress. We believe that learning starts at home; therefore, our goal is to encourage parents to participate in their children’s’ education at school. Parents can participate by helping in a project, reading a story from their culture, or sharing a family song.

• NAEYC learning domains

The Academy will ensure that the curriculum meets the NAEYC domains as they will be established in lesson plans and daily activates. We will nurture our children’s appropriate development by encouraging them to explore the world through playing, interacting, thinking, and communicating. Staff and faculty will learn about the implementation of NAEYC domains through the professional development session and through the weekly teachers meeting where all members share their experiences and discuss ways of improvements.

• Classroom environments

The environment of the school, classroom, playground, and common spaces play a precarious role in the Paul Robeson Academy. As a Reggio Emilia inspired school, we view the environment as the third teacher. Therefore, we focused on creating a proper environment that fosters children learning and creativity. During the summer, all maintenance task will be completed prior to the opening period of the school. Our school environment will be fully equipped with safety measures that wave all concerns. The school environment will consist of natural lighting, indoor play area, outdoor gross motor area, library, kitchen, bathrooms, and resource room. On the other hand, our classrooms have spaces filled with real-life materials, windows, and mirrors.

Teachers will be able to implement what they have learned in the professional development session in their classrooms. The environment of the classroom encourages and support social, emotional, cognitive, and physical growth through its areas. For example, the sensory-motor area has a soothing board that contains different sensory tools where the student can explore their senses. Learning corners are structured in a way that supports children’s learning. The library corner contains different books that educate children about morals, animals, family, and other topics. Moving to the dramatic play corner where children are provided with different costumes that allow children to pretend and learn about different occupations and roles.  All toys and materials are age, culture, and gender appropriate to ensure that no one is offended. Lastly, all materials including the different areas in the classroom are tools that assist teachers to create activities that meet the CCSS and the NAEYC developmental domains.

• Play

According to the Reggio Emilia approach, play is one of the one hundred languages of children (Edwards, Gandini & Forman, 2012, p.275). According to Pianta (2012), “play is viewed as mediator in the development of cognitive, social, and language development of young children” (p.259). Because the Paul Robeson Academy values the concept of play, we are ambitious to create classroom environments that allow children to learn through play. After receiving parents’ concerns about implementing the play-based curriculum, we will include a formative presentation, during the orientation and throughout the Parent Education Program, about our approach that is supported with research to educate parents about the importance of play, and how it would affect the development of young children. As mentioned previously, every classroom has variety of corners that allow children to play. Solitary play and collaborative are witnessed when children play in learning centers alone or with others. Whereas dramatic corner is the place where children participate in more complex play. Structured play will take place when the teacher distributes roles among children and together, in which will create the theme and the roles of the game.

• Culturally and linguistically diverse learners

The number of immigrants is increasing yearly. Around 44 million immigrants are living in the United States in 2016 (Batalova, Hallock & Jie Zong, 2018).  It is our obligation as educators to foster all children without discrimination. The Paul Robeson academy addresses the needs all children with respect of their culture, gender, language, ethnicity, and religion. We are here to celebrate and embrace diversity by reflecting children’s cultures in the classrooms and activities. One of the foundations of teaching culturally and linguistically children is to learn about their culture and language. Our teachers are trained to create an environment that nurture differences between children and building bridges that allow these differences to work in harmony together. Additionally, teachers use multicultural books and materials that fosters cross-culture understanding. Families and members of the community can aid in the process by sharing social and personal stories that will allow children to reflect on their identity, culture, language, and history.

Cite this page