For my ECE Program System Delivery class we were asked which approach better reflected our educational beliefs and why?
As for my personal philosophy I feel that the Social Pedagogy approach better reflects my educational beliefs. This is because this approach “focus on broad developmental goals as well as learning is stressed, interactivity with educators and peers encouraged and the quality of life in the institution is given high importance” (Shalimo, 2013).
I personally feel that as educators we should be preparing children for life readiness rather then school readiness. Yes, arithmetic’s is important but if a child does not have the foundations to learn from the beginning then how can they learn to be ready to for school? Life ready is important to build a foundation for children to base their perviously learned knowledge and pair it with their new knowledge which is known as schema’s.
This approach also has “goals [which] are broad; outcomes for each child are set by negotiation (educator-parent-child) and informally evaluated unless screening is necessary (Shalimo, 2013). As Educators our goal is to put THE CHILD FIRST. And this approach allows one to do so very well.
I believe that children want to play and learn, but if you force them to learn they will not be able to develop the feeling of wanting to learn as much. I also feel that by providing a play-based learning environment will children give a gift of exploration, imagination and a world full of knowledge.
Surprisingly this is not a new approach, if one looks back into the history they will find that Plato was a big believer in this approach. Plato believed that “play was central to children’s learning – experiential learning- The most important part of education is right training in the nursery. The should of the child in his play should be guided to the love of that sort excellence in which when he grows up to manhood he will behave to be perfected” – Laws (Anderson, 2012).
The following quotes strike me the most from Plato’s belief on education are:
“Someday, in the distant future, our grandchildren’s grandchildren will develop a new equivalent of our classrooms. They will spend many hours in front of boxes with fires glowing within. May they have the wisdom to know the difference between light and knowledge” (Plato Education Quotes & Sayings, 2013).
AND
“The most effective kind of education is that a child should play amongst lovely things” (Plato Education Quotes & Sayings, 2013).
I feel that these to statement reflect the true meaning of Social Pedagogy.
Reference:
Plato Education Quotes & Sayings. (2013). Retrieved from Search Quotes : http://www.searchquotes.com/Plato/Education/quotes/
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I totally agree. I am an educator but totally believe that I must nurture the desire to learn first and foremost before challenging pupils educationally. This usually takes me 2-3 months with a new class, then I see the grades improve dramatically. So many kids are down on themselves or instantly go to say ‘I can’t do it…’ or ‘I’m rubbish.’. My aim is to get them to say, ‘I’ll try’ or ‘If it’s wrong I’ve learnt that I can improve it’. I just wish the rest of the UK education system would allow the time for this process.
I understand what you mean. But we as educators should also take children’s temperament into consideration. Every child has their own temperament. If you Read the book Quite by Susan Cain. It has great insight on introverted children, and how its okay to be introverted. Our society puts so much pressure on children to be extroverted that we forget to cherish those little ones who make this world cain, and wonderful with their own ideas.