![]() ![]() If you are an administrator, service provider or even a senior educator, you can support the process by creating: Developing a philosophy statement with your own team that addresses questions like ‘what do we believe’, ‘why do we hold such beliefs’ and ‘how can translate these beliefs into practice.While this could be something for children to look at and enjoy, you can primarily use it to educate parents with regard to your core values on play and learning. Yet another way an educator can practice critical reflection is by developing a Learning Journal that reflects your beliefs and practices about children’s learning. ![]() lend an ear and offer friendship when the process becomes too overwhelming.support, helping you to identify information, resources and processes to expand your inquiry.challenge you to explore why and how you do things in particular ways with questions, new insights and alternative perspectives.inspire, reminding you of the importance of your work and ongoing learning.If you are an educator, you can do this by identifying a ‘critical friend’ to support and challenge educators in their thinking and practice. Learning together makes it easier to experiment with new ideas and ways of teaching and caring, and to keep motivated about making a positive difference to children’s learning. When educators engage in collaborative reflective practices, they are more likely to usher in change.Are there other theories or knowledge – like the Ecological Theory of Bronfenbrenner or the Information Processing of Chomsky – that could help me to understand better what I have observed or experienced? How might those theories and that knowledge affect my practice?.What aspects of my work are not helped by the theories and guidance that I usually draw on – like Montessori, Reggio Emilia, Waldorf – to make sense of what I do?.What questions do I have about my work? What am I challenged by? What am I curious about? What am I confronted by?.Who is advantaged when I work in this way? Who is disadvantaged?.What theories, philosophies and understandings shape and assist my work?.What are my understandings of each child?.For all these reasons the EYLF suggests a few overarching questions that educators can use to guide their own reflective practices, like: It is much more challenging to reflect critically which requires educators to step out of cognitive zones of comfort and question their own long-held attitudes, beliefs and practices which may no longer be effective. Educators too, like others, may find it easier to engage in descriptive reflection that just describes details of an event like the children’s role-playing a visit to the doctor or a child’s action like playing with sand. Questions To Practice Critical ReflectionĬritical reflection is not something that comes naturally or easily to us – wired as the human brain is to seek out paths of least resistance and fall back upon familiar ways to meet the overall goal of spending less energy on challenging cognitive processes. The other way that critical reflection benefits service is by achieving a high-quality program, as it supports the kinds of questions that need to be asked in developing a Quality Improvement Plan as part of the National Quality Framework. By helping educators reflect on what they are doing right in their professional practice, how they can do better and seeking out support or resources that can help them do this, educators are actually creating the groundwork for their own professional growth. There is a reason why critical reflection is juxtaposed with ongoing learning in the EYLF Principles – the two go hand-in-hand. Through such thinking, educators can gather information and gain insights that support, inform and enrich decision-making about children’s learning. To put it very simply, critical reflection for educators is ‘thinking about why we do the things that we do’. According to the EYLF, the approved learning framework for children till five years in Australia, these principles are meant to underpin practice so that all children are supported to make progress in relation to the Learning Outcomes. ![]() While planning, educators may need to reflect critically on their own understandings of Learning Outcomes, personal attitudes and training lessons carried over from the past as well as a choice of learning strategies for the overall development of children.Ĭritical reflection makes up one of the five principles that reflect contemporary theories and research evidence concerning children’s learning and early childhood pedagogy. According to NQS Element 1.3.2: Critical reflection: Critical reflection on children’s learning and development, both as individuals and in groups, drives program planning and implementation. ![]() Critical reflection is mandated by NQS as part of the planning cycle. ![]()
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