Module Specifications.
Current Academic Year 2024 - 2025
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Date posted: September 2024
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Coursework Only Autumn assessment |
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Description The aim of this module is to develop students' systematic understanding of knowledge related to children and childhoods in diverse learning contexts and critique the implications of such childhood experiences for development and early learning. This interdisciplinary module which includes early childhood education, philosophy and psychology of education provides varying perspectives on how children and childhood have been constructed and contextualised over time. There is a focus on key philosophical theorists in education, from Plato and Rousseau through to contemporary theorists such as Freire, Matthews, Dunne and Badiou and students reflect on this philosophical legacy in current educational practice. Students’ emerging understanding of children's intellectual, social and emotional development is developed through critical awareness of the complex range of issues that require consideration in the process of teaching and learning. Students will be supported to become reflective autonomous professionals through the analysis of contrasting views of development in teaching and learning, while critically engage with a range of key theories, current policies, curriculum frameworks and pedagogies and their application in the teaching of learning of children from birth-6 years, with a particular focus on communication, languages, early literacy and numeracy development and the critical role play pedagogy has on the holistic development of the child. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Learning Outcomes 1. Demonstrate systematic and critical understanding of key theories, theorists, concepts, principles, policies and practices in relation to children in diverse learning contexts from the disciplines of philosophy of education, psychology of education and early childhood education. 2. Critique the ways in which various experiences, relationships, cultures and environments such as school, home and community shape children's childhoods and influence the future processes of childhood development. 3. Engage in independent thought and reflection on the emerging issues of diverse childhoods within a tradition of thinking philosophically and critically about education, themselves and of their position as teachers. 4. Demonstrate a critical understanding of children’s holistic development, the significance of teachers’ emotional awareness and the educational implications of fostering positive and reciprocal teacher–child relationships. 5. Evaluate and justify the implementation of an appropriate curriculum, pedagogy and assessment approaches that are informed by key early childhood education theory to support all children's communication, language, early literacy and numeracy development when teaching in an early years classroom. 6. Analyse and plan the environments, provision and pedagogy that can enable children to be agentic in their holistic learning and development in preparation for professional practice. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
All module information is indicative and subject to change. For further information,students are advised to refer to the University's Marks and Standards and Programme Specific Regulations at: http://www.dcu.ie/registry/examinations/index.shtml |
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Indicative Content and Learning Activities
Early Childhood EducationThis component of the module focuses on children’s holistic learning and development from birth – 6years, with particular emphasis on appropriate pedagogies in the early years of primary school that are underpinned by various theories of learning. Students will critique frameworks/curricula for early learning and will be supported in identifying knowledge, principles and recognising values in relation to promoting a culturally responsive and inclusive learning environment. There is an emphasis on language underpinning early literacy and numeracy and the central role of implementing a pedagogy of play to support teaching and learning in the early years classroom. Students will be scaffolded to plan meaningful, play-based activities that promote children's dispositions and skills development, while they will interrogate the role of the teacher in extending and challenging children's learning and development through reciprocal interactions in various teaching contexts. The students will work reflectively and collaboratively in workshops to gain first-hand, knowledge, understanding and experience of appropriate pedagogy in the early years classroom so as to support their planning and use of curricula in their professional practice. Key content includes: • Principles and key contexts for early learning and development • Frameworks for early learning • Children’s communication and language learning from birth-6 years • The relationship between language, thinking and mathematical development • Developing receptive and expressive/productive children’s oral language skills • The importance of reciprocal, respectful interactions • Using picture books to support co-constructive and mathematical discussion • Appropriate pedagogy including resources for early childhood mathematics education • Teaching and learning of number, measure, shape, space and algebra with young learners • The role of play in early learning • Developing a play pedagogy in the early years classroom including language play (story, rhymes, poetry, songs) • Planning and organising the indoor and outdoor learning environment for early learning and developmentPhilosophyPhilosophy is an academic discipline with a long tradition of inquiry dating back to the 5th Century B.C.E. It was the first discipline to insist on the importance of making claims on the basis of evidence and/or good arguments. This component of the module examines the history of ideas concerning children and childhood, noting changes in the way children have been perceived from ancient times to the present. Beginning with Aries' theses on childhood historically, this section considers childhood as something both universal and relative; and as something influenced by concepts of nature and culture. It considers four dominant perspectives on childhood historically, and examines issues of freedom and authority in the context of identity and agency. Key content includes: • Introducing the philosophy of education as a discipline • Exploring philosophical concepts in education – childhood, child centred education, concepts of the philosophical teacher, ethos, ethics, equality and social justice, interculturalism and comparative religion • Theorists in philosophy of education – Freire, Dewey, Critical Pedagogy, Marxism (Gramsci etc), Badiou, Ranciere, Postmodernism • Conducting Socratic dialogue in the classroom - critical dialogue as pedagogy- examples from school practice. Philosophy in schools, Thinking Time in Ireland (Donnelly, Dunne, Arista), International P4C (Lipmann, Fisher etc) • Philosophical critique of content from ethical and comparative religious curricula in the Irish context • Children and philosophy: wonder and learning (Dunne, Fox) • Children and childhood in historical contexts (Plato and Rousseau) • Children’s liberation: the agency debate (Matthews, Archard and Arendt) • Childhood, wholeness and citizenship (Flay, McLoughlin).PsychologyIn this component of the modules, students will be provided with the opportunity to reflect on the rationale for teachers being knowledgeable about psychological theories and research. Approaches to the study of child development will be critiqued and key issues related to psychological growth will be analysed. Students will be introduced to psychological theories of learning and development along with their classroom applications in diverse curricular areas and their educational implications. Specifically, they will learn about theories of language and communication, Piaget and Vygotsky's theories of development, and theories of attention and memory. Key content includes: ● Attachment theory ● Extraversion and Introversion ● School climate and emotional-relational teaching ● Emotional repression ● Behaviourist approaches to learning and motivation | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Indicative Reading List
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Other Resources 53432, Digital resources and supports, 0, Available on Module Loop page, 0, 0, Government of Ireland (GoI). (1999). Primary school curriculum. Dublin: The Stationery Office., 0, 0, National Council for Curriculum and Assessment (NCCA). (2009). Aistear: The early childhood curriculum framework. Dublin: NCCA., 0, 0, Department of Education and Skills (DES). (2019). Primary language curriculum. Dublin: DES., 0, 0, National Council for Curriculum and Assessment (NCCA). (2020). Draft primary curriculum framework. Dublin: NCCA., 0, 0, National Council for Curriculum and Assessment (NCCA). (2018). Primary mathematics curriculum draft specification junior infants-second class. Dublin: NCCA., | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Module Teachers: Fiona Giblin, Andrew O'Shea, Maeve Dupont | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||