Early Years 2008

Sharing Visions for Early Childhood

For the second year running, the MA Education Ltd early years team welcomed delegates and exhibitors from all over the UK to Parkstead House, in the grounds of Whitelands College, Roehampton University, for their annual conference, exhibition and awards – Early Years 2008.

We were confident that this year’s programme would be the best yet, and so it proved having received excellent feedback from our delegates. The depth and scope of the conference, and the quality of speakers is unrivalled in the early years sector, and we are confident that the event will go from strength to strength in future years.

Early Years 2008 focused on Sharing Visions for Early Childhood. With the advent of the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS), it provided a timely look not only at the challenges ahead for the workforce in England, but also at the challenges and developments in Scotland, Northern Ireland, Wales and Jersey, where early years frameworks are being developed as we speak.

Just as we can learn from practice in other countries around the world, we can also learn from our close neighbours and many eyes will be on the EYFS and the Foundation Phase in Wales, just as those in England and Wales should be watching with interest how new ways of working are developed and implemented in other parts of the UK.

Friday opened with Margaret Edgington reasserting that there are many diverse ways of offering and developing early education, and that we can learn from each one. What remains constant are the needs of young children and our responsibility to offer them freedom and risk, as well as learning and care.

Sue Palmer, who will need no introduction, began Friday’s keynote speech by telling the delegates that she wrote Toxic Childhood, because of her work with the National Literacy Strategy.

Lesley Staggs provided a unique perspective on the early years. Having been appointed as the first National Director for the Foundation Stage, a post she left in 2006, Lesley was involved in the policy development that led to the EYFS. More than anyone she knows what is right with the EYFS and what opportunities were missed.

Owenna Davies told delegates that it forms just part of an education system that re-aligns its age groups and forms a national skills framework from three to 19-years-old: Flying Start (0-3), Foundation Phase (3-7), Revised National Curriculum (7-14) and a 14-19 curriculum.

Bronwen Cohen, chief executive of Children in Scotland, then explained how, under the SNP, an early years framework is being developed according to Nordic models of early education. Ministers have been taken to other countries to see how provision compares with a focus on early intervention and prevention issues for children from birth to eight-years-old.

Elizabeth Jarman also dealt with language development, this time focusing on engaging parents and carers and how to promote the right environment using the Communication Friendly Spaces™ approach. Delegates were given the chance to discuss ways of changing the learning environment to effectively support the development of speaking and listening skills.

Vicki Charlesworth had people up and dancing and singing as she explained the Critical Skills Programme that is being used to great effect on Jersey. Critical Skills has much to offer in terms of developing problem solving, decision making and collaborative skills in young children.

Day two kicked off in fine style with Tim Gill discussing how we have become a risk-averse society and how this is damaging children.

Next up, Yasmine Thebault, provided an insight into how the States of Jersey aspire to building lifelong learning on the island. By taking a bottom-up approach and by putting both children and parents at the heart of everything that happens Jersey is building a learning community.

We then heard from Carla Macgregor about a different approach to education, that of the home educator. Under the 1996 Education Act, a parent has a right to decide where their child is educated, and parents in increasing numbers and for a wide variety of reasons, are choosing a system that involves no curriculum, no testing, no criteria and no tick boxes.

Day two’s workshops continued the excellent quality established through the rest of the programme. Janni Nicol introduced the Steiner Waldorf early education approach, which is based around the idea that is important to educate the whole child.

Julia Sargeant and her team introduced the concept of Forest School before inviting everyone outside to sample and take part in some of many activities children experience in that environment. From toasting bread on an open fire to wood whittling, delegates got active, got involved and got inspired.

Delegates in Kay O’Brien’s workshop on inclusive practice were up and moving, exploring the difference between integration and real inclusion through games and activities. There was certainly plenty of activity as well as discussion and by the end of the allotted time the lunch break was well earned.

Saturday afternoon began with Heather Marsland exhorting early years practitioners to take the initiative for early education, now that the EYFS had placed it in the national spotlight. Early years provision can go one of three ways: First, the funding runs out and we are left with what we have now, something fragile and new, but with no money to maintain and advance it. Second, funding continues but at the expense of autonomy being replaced by increased centralised governmental control. This will not only breed resentment in the older generation of practitioners, but create a new class of non-thinking, homogenous factory-produced practitioners leading children’s learning with pre-programmed and packaged learning. This will lead to a curriculum of content, and greater learning by rote.

The third option, and hopefully the way forward, is that we cherish our best practice and use it as a basis for future provision. Highly trained staff are given time to reflect upon and consolidate practice. Research messages continue to feed policy. We need to get children to fall in love with ideas and we need to offer the benign neglect that Tim Gill spoke about. There must be attachment between staff and children - professional love - we must get to know them and find out how they tick. We cannot let the first two scenarios happen.

After two fantastic and highly informative days it was left to Margaret Edgington and Ros Bayley to sum up the key messages from the conference. They highlighted six points: We must respect children (moving to reverence); we must trust ourselves; we must take personal responsibility for ensuring our work is always done in the best interests of children - no-one else; we must build networks of correspondence and networks of partnerships; and we must, more than anything, have passion for what we do. If we work to these six points we can ensure the EYFS sticks to its four main principles and that it never gets swamped by other agendas.

If you wish to see the full text of the conference, please click on this