And finally we wonder what support and understanding these propositions might reeive in the current cultural and educational approach toward children's learning of today.
This encapsulates the importance of our evolving inquiry with children. Change is constant and will not wait, we must keep looking forward.
Technology brough the camera, the tape recorder, the video recorder. the photocopy machine, the computer, and so on into theatelier. The school continually needs more tools, appropriate architectures, and wider spaces; it cannot risk falling behind.
This statement goes directly with the BJS Digital Studio video. Children are at risk of being consumed by digital technology, they need to be in partnership with it, and it is the educators responsibility to provide opportunities where children can grow in this partnership to be creators and responsible users of technology.
the importance of preschools, and offer proof of his beliefs
If we want to change the public perception about early childhood education, we must make our learning visible, tangible, and show its importance for the development of life skills! This makes visible the importance and magnitude of children's rights, as well as the importance of early childhood educators.
seek public support
This is so vital for schools. Not only does it involve the opportunity for the students to experience their communities, but it shows the community that even it's youngest members have a sincere interest and voice.
visiting other preschools
I am interested in visiting other progressive classrooms in our community. I think observing other classrooms and inviting others to observe ours will create a positive and collaborative partnership with educators across our community.
Children are born with many resources and extraordinary potentials, which never cease to amaze us. They have autonomouscapacities for constructing their own thoughts, questions and attempts at answers.
As educators we must recognize how innately intelligent children are from birth. They have the ability to teach us how and where to guide our efforts, if we only listen the the 100 languages they are expressing.
full potential as a learner
What a beautiful way to look at teaching!
It demands that we value the unknown, and overcome the feelings of emptiness and precariousness that we experience when ourcertainties are questioned.
This causes very uncomfortable feelings for me. But if I am to truly listen to children, to partner with them and embrace the unknown, I must face this.
When you realty listen, you getinto the time of dialogue
I noticed this when I started to give children time to process my questions, by counting to 20 inside my head. I realized that if I am truly listening, the timing of the conversation became easier for me to understand. Sometimes conversations with children last a few brief moments, and sometimes they can continue over several activities during the day.
Children know this; they have the desire and the ability to search for the meaning of life
This is the second time the search for the meaning of life has been brought up this semester. I never applied this practice to children before. I always thought middle aged people do this during a midlife crisis or someone who has devoted their adult life to spirituality. But why not children? The more I read about this, the more it makes sense to me that children begin to search for the MEANING of life as soon as they are born.
their "whys" orient our search
The opportunity to teach lies in the child's persistent question, "why?". When the child searches for meaning and understanding, educators must partner with the student to help them find the answer to their questions.
this attitude cannot be limited only to this emergen
This is a powerful warning. In regards to anti-racist work, citizens with good intentions interact with the greater community to fight social injustices that dominate their current social landscape. They participate in rallies and non violent protests, they donate, and sign petitions. But far too often, once the dust settles people go back to their lives. Unfortunately for many, the fight against these injustices is ongoing, quietly, in the background. If we are to really are to oppose racism and oppression of people, we must maintain an attitude of equality and justice. Not only reserving it for when a particular emergency dominates the media.
Systematic documentation allows each teacher to become a producer of research—that is, someone who generates new ideas about curriculum and learning, rather than being merely a consumer of certainty and tradition
Helping to break down barriers between the traditional roles of student and teacher.
Their goal is not so much to “facilitate” learning in the sense of “making smooth or easy” but rather to “stimulate” it by making problems more complex, involving, and arous-ing
If we give children the answers, why would they reach any further? Making life easy is not the way, students need to get their hands into the quest for knowledge, and to search and be stopped at dead ends. Their fire for curiosity needs to be lit by challenges!
Yet another version of responsive teaching involves providing a next occasion for the children to follow their conjectures or probing children’s drawing of how something works to help them clarify their theories
Educators need to walk a thin line of deciding what to provide and when to provide a next occasion. Sometimes children will naturally take the provocation further or in another direction, if left to explore the activity long enough. Sometimes they will stall out, then it is the role of the educator to re-invite them to the occasion. Maybe they can revisit their old attempts and with the help of the teacher tweak their investigation to ignite a spark to continue their research.
they gain new nuances of meaning seen through their distinctive ways of talking
It is interesting to see how by looking deeper at the roles of the North American teachers, educators in Reggio Emilia have evolved them. The role transformations give educator multi-faceted approaches to involve the community within the educational context. They become not only part of the learning process, but they also learn from it as well, becoming a reciprocal student who shares ideas and knowledge with other students and educators.
does not belittle feelings or what is not logical
As educators, by looking at our own biases, we can learn from children and take the time to listen to them. Even if the statement we hear may not make sense, and could easily be brushed off. We can ask deeper questions to understand what the child may be saying. It may be very important to them, and it is important for us to listen!
children's ability to hold different viewpoints in balance
An example of the intelligence and capability of children.
attentiveness to the here and now,
Slowing the day down to listen to the children when they are in the here and now, catching all the little nuances in the moment. So critical to meet the children where they are at!
Children's unfamiliarity with abstract terms and their more concrete use of language can impede child-adult understanding
This is so important for educators to keep in mind when documenting. Listening to the entire communication, not just the conversation. The child could be saying something non verbally and the educator could miss out on this important moment if they are only focusing on a certain type of communication.
young children have important insights into the issue of children's rights and how it pertains to their own lives.
It is so important to listen to children, adult interpretations of children rights could be vague or assumed. Children need to speak on behalf of themselves, and adults need to let them advocate on behalf of themselves.
"What is a right?
This can be subjective and left up to interpretation to the individual. When it's asked in a group context, the meaning may change or evolve depending on the direction of the conversation.
Being intellectually engaged and challenged
I think a child who is truly engaged and challenged in their learning is first interested in what he or she is being taught, or discovers through inquiry and collaboration.
perform well on test of academic skills
Doubtfully taking into account different learning styles and whether or not they offer different forms of the "standardized" tests to different types of test takers.
'benchmarks' for all children within that age group.
Gosh, setting common benchmarks seems damaging for children who don't meet the criteria. If they continually "lag behind" other children who are meeting the standards, they may develop anxiety and low self esteem.
Children with special rights (rather than using the term specialneeds) have precedence in becoming part of an infant/toddler center or a preschool
Children with special rights are in integral part of the learning experience. It is so important to maintain an inclusive environment within schools. Not only for the children with special rights to be included in the same learning environments, but also for other students to learn adaptation and form relationships and connections with everyone.
Oncethese documents are organized and displayed they help to make parents aware oftheir children's experience and maintain their involvement.
Parental support of the program is expected and vital within the Reggio approach to child education. Their support helps maintain a connection between the child's home life and school life.