Thank you, Deb and Nora for your insights. I think you, Nora, hit the nail on the head. It is NOT just educators, but the policy makers. I have been fighting this battle as an adjunct instructor at local colleges. I can at least convince my students that it IS possible to learn and meet standards through play because I make them visit me at my private preschool, which uses a Reggio-Inspired Approach. When college students leave my school they are inspired and encouraged and then.... deflated. They come to me with questions of how do I afford the equipment, tools, materials. Many discussions take place and sometimes they are still willing to believe that they can be developmentally appropriate. And then.... they get hired. This is the final straw.
New teachers with appropriate teaching philosophies are hushed once hired. They are told they are new and they will see that play doesn't really work. They are given piles of workbooks to complete by their administration and punished for being off their schedule. And they want to keep their jobs so they conform.
I believe this is because of two things (probably more)...
1. MOST elementary school principles are not developmentally appropriate. Furthermore, they often do not have any ECED knowledge. They rarely know of NAEYC.
2. The curriculum decisions and text books and topic and just about everything else is chosen by the school board.
I am a full time preschool teacher and part time college instructor, but my full time job is being a mother to 3 children (age 3, age 7, and age 10). It is volunteering in their elementary school that I have learned the most. Most of the teachers know they are not being developmentally appropriate. Most teachers would like to go off topic. Most teachers would like to tear down the stupid behavior chart on the board. But... they are not in control of their classrooms. The principle, board of education, and superintendent are.
After struggling with this battle and watching my 2 older children grow to hate school and complain about not being allowed to get up and move I decided that I am going to try something new. Politics. Lord help me, but I am running for our city's board of education. No one... NO ONE... currently on the board has any psychology or education background. I believe that is the biggest problem.
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Jackie Saggio
Co-Director
Parma Preschool, Inc.
Parma OH
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Original Message:
Sent: 06-30-2019 03:26 PM
From: Nora Krieger
Subject: Kindergarten play is being replaced by Academics, mixed findings
Yes, kindergarten is the new first grade.
I am quoting Ms. Schein: "And, how do we help a generation of educators understand what true play looks like…because that is a problem too….too much teacher guided activities and not enough freedom to really truly PLAY."
It is not just educators who are the problem. It is policymakers and wealthy foundations such as the Gates Foundation with their emphasis on big data and standardization. Children are not widgets and teachers are not machines or machine operators - give me directions and all the children will learn.
Curriculum writers respond to what they feel is in the wind - and that is an emphasis on academics with our youngest children. It is even happening in many prekindergartens that serve 3 and 4 year olds. I will use the universal "we" here and say that we, the professionals in early childhood education - teacher preparation folks, principals, and classroom teachers have allowed the focus of early childhood to be hijacked by those who have no idea about how children develop and learn, who have not spent a day in a classroom with young children. I sense fear in schools that I have visited, fear that if the children do not demonstrate what they know on the tests that they are given, their school will be in "trouble".
My two children, who are in their 40s, did not attend a kindergarten that emphasized academics at the expense of the arts or play. Formal reading instruction began in first grade. Those who could read already were able to continue that in kindergarten. They and all their friends went on to universities and even were valedictorians. I attribute their success to the nurturance of their imaginations along with the provision of experiences and activities that built a foundation for them to learn to read and do math as well as other academics. It nurtured their curiosity and their sense of agency.
Today, most kindergartens have relegated play to the edges of the curriculum for fear the children will not do well on standardized tests. At the same time, administrators have purchased packaged curriculum at great expense whose design and expectations are out of line with the development of our youngest children. Additionally, teachers are not provided time to think and are not prepared to defend appropriate practices for our youngest children. Teacher educators need to emphasize the reasoning behind the practices in the classroom, not just strategies to teach this skill or that. That is built up through professional development and experience. Those ideas can be found in the myriad education books published, including those published by NAEYC. We need to put professionalism back into the position of teacher, which begins by according teachers respect for what they do each day and for their expertise.
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Nora Krieger
Associate Professor Emerita/ Chair NJEEPRE
Bloomfield College/ New Jersey Educators Exploring the Practices of Reggio Emilia
Highland Park NJ
Original Message:
Sent: 06-29-2019 04:12 PM
From: Deborah Schein
Subject: Kindergarten play is being replaced by Academics, mixed findings
Thanks, Lynn, for bringing up this old problem of too much academics in Kindergarten. What I don't understand is how and why it is still happening. With all the research that supports children's need to play it simply does not make sense to me. We learn from brain researchers, psychologists, and educators that children are wired to learn and that children learn best using their senses while they are at PLAY – self chosen play where they can play uninterrupted for long periods of time. [And yes, children do have long attention spans when self-selecting and directing what they are doing.] We learn from nature research that children learn better when they have opportunity to be outdoors, exploring the world with friends, and taking risks to learn about their own inner selves and their ability to take risks and to be resilient. We learn from researchers like myself that children need to be nurtured spiritually (through connections, moments spent in wonder and joy, and growing in responsibility and respect of others, become kind and empathetic) all of which happen when children play. Play helps children to develop their own sense of who they are in relationship to the rest of the world. This is the work of a young child. It lays a foundation for becoming a teenager. Academic learning oozes from play if we let it occur naturally. In fact, learning happens alongside this important inner development and Kindergarten educators should not have to snick it in. Teaching only academics, in my mind, is a way of saying to the child, I do not trust that you can learn therefore, I must tell you what you need to know. I am saying, that children learn while they play because that is what they do! Of course, environment and caring adult companionship and friends are important too. But play is essential!
There is another discussion happening on Hello about stress. Naturally children are stressed. The world and the adults who live in it are not being particularly sound role models. On top of this, we are asking children to learn in a style that is not suited for their stage of development and they are robbed of playtime that might be a place not only for learning but also for emotionally release.
Here is my question…Why are we, as early childhood educators not listened to by those who write curriculum and impose those curriculums onto educators. When do we stand up to children's right to play?
And, how do we help a generation of educators understand what true play looks like…because that is a problem too….too much teacher guided activities and not enough freedom to really truly PLAY.
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Deborah Schein
instructor and consultant
Minneapolis MN
Original Message:
Sent: 06-28-2019 06:53 PM
From: Lynn Hartle
Subject: Kindergarten play is being replaced by Academics, mixed findings
Some children just finished their Kindergarten year...Yeah.. but it seems more like the First grade I knew. My daughter teaches Kindergarten and every day she shared what was required by the curriculum. Children found ways to play through the activities and my daughter had to sneak in some play... Wow!
Over the last 20 years, there are more academic requirements that have crept into the K curriculum and less play. Try to find a housekeeping corner in most K classes!
While I'm not opposed to some academics through engaging learning activities and play...exploratory and free play are still so important to young children's development.
Some researchers are concerned and others find that 5- 6 year old K children are just fine with the academics.
RESEARCH:
Bassok, D., Latham, S., & Rorem, A. (2016). Is Kindergarten the New First Grade? AERA Open. https://doi.org/10.1177/2332858415616358
Le, V.-N., Schaack, D., Neishi, K., Hernandez, M. W., & Blank, R. (2019). Advanced Content Coverage at Kindergarten: Are There Trade-Offs Between Academic Achievement and Social-Emotional Skills? American Educational Research Journal. https://doi.org/10.3102/0002831218813913
What do you think?
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Lynn Hartle
Professor of Education, The Penn State University, Brandywine campus
Media PA
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