Exploring the teaching beliefs of pre-service early childhood teachers in relation to the Principles of the Early Years Learning Framework for Australia.

Abstract

In Australia, the national Early Years Learning Framework guides the preparation and practices of early childhood teachers. The beliefs of individual teachers are also known to shape teaching practices, yet very little is known about the beliefs of pre-service early childhood teachers and how their beliefs relate to the Principles underlying the Early Years Learning Framework. The purpose of this study was to explore the beliefs of students at the beginning of their early childhood degree and assess the alignment of these beliefs with the five Principles expressed in the framework. Data were collected from 90 pre-service early childhood teachers at the start of their degree at two different education institutions, via a questionnaire containing both closed and open-response questions. The closed questions used a Likert-Scale to gauge their level of agreement with statements relating to the Principles of the Early Years Learning Framework. The open-ended questions explored beliefs about the characteristics of a good early childhood teacher and the challenges they would face. The findings of this study revealed that students who chose to enrol in those early childhood education degrees shared a high level of agreement with most of the Principles in the Early Years Learning Framework but had some uncertainty or disagreement with the Principles regarding the need for partnerships with families and catering for cultural diversity in children. The beliefs of students around the challenges of being an early childhood teacher were varied, though concerns about possessing adequate knowledge of child development, communication skills and strategies for managing children’s behaviour were prevalent. Knowledge of the beliefs of pre-service early childhood teachers and their alignment with the Principles of the Early Years Learning Framework, at the beginning of their studies, can inform the design of effective learning experiences to prepare for the future implementation of the framework. The questionnaire developed for this study provides a tool for other early childhood educators to investigate the beliefs of their students.