Research Focus
|
The Early Learning Centre is committed to ongoing reform, innovation and development that is achieved through research and evaluation. A diverse range of early childhood issues have been investigated and debated through formal research and community-based projects. These have included: |
 |
- Coming Closer: sharing Australian Aboriginal stories through drawing, painting and words
- Children’s experiences of their sonic environment
- An investigation of the musical ability of three year old children
- Assessing the mathematical abilities of preschool children
- Empowering early childhood practitioners to critically examine their current practice
- Young children’s understandings of the world of work
- The relevance of preschool theory and practice for primary school teachers
- The integration of young gifted children into mainstream preschool programs
- The development of a community resource to aid literacy development for children aged birth to five years
- The role of the arts in the establishment of innovative teaching and learning
|
|
Research Projects 2011
|
EARLY YEARS COPING PROJECT: Phases I-IV
Chalmers, K., Deans, J., Frydenberg, E.,Tsurutani,H.
An overview of the Early Years Coping Project Publications, Samples, Outcomes and Implications...
|
An Exploration Into the Coping Strategies
of Preschoolers: Implications for
Professional Practice
Chalmers, K., Deans, J., Frydenberg, E.
The capacity to identify a range of coping strategies related to specific situations
has implications not only for theory development, but also for the design of effective prevention and
intervention programs to help children more effectively deal with life challenges...
|
|
|
Operationalising Social and Emotional Coping Competencies in Kindergarten Children
Deans, J., Frydenberg, E, Tsurutani,H.
In order to assess a child's competence in the social and emotional domains of development, specifically emotional recognition, regulation and expressiveness in interactions, it is necessary to have an understanding of the types of stresses and problems children face at that developmental age... |
|
|
Coping Competencies in the Early Years: Identifying the Strategies that Preschoolers Use.
Deans, J., and Frydenberg, E.
A three phase study to assess and help develop young children's coping skills... |
|
|
The Kindergarten
Children’s Chorus: a collaborative music project.
Acker, A., Deans, J. & Nyland, B.
This collaborative research project between RMIT and MGSE-ELC
investigated children’s engagement with choral
singing as part of the overarching educational theme of ‘sustainability’. The primary aim of the research was to
introduce the concept of choir performance as a method of
collective aesthetic communication, which would allow for
collaborative learning coloured by the powerful feelings and
emotions that singing can generate. |
| |
|
Research Projects 2010
|
Young Children and Musi.
Nyland, B. Acker, A., Ferris, J. & Deans, J.
This research is a continuation of collaborative research into children’s learning in music and the role of the music specialist teacher that has been undertaken at the ELC over the past five years. There is concern that the arts, in this case music, have disappeared from the early childhood teacher programs (de Vries, 2004; Music Council of Australia, 2009) and the 2010 research into children’s learning in music has been designed to explore the role and professional positioning of the specialist music teacher working with a group of 4-5 year old children and uncover both the content of learning and the children’s responses to the experiences offered.
|
|
| |
The Early Years Coping Cards.
Frydenberg, E. & Deans, J.
In 2010 the Early Years Coping Cards were finalized and a piloted program investigating the use of the cards, involving early years teachers and children aged 4-8 years in two settings was undertaken. This work was submitted for the DEECD Early Years Awards, short listed and awarded a High Commendation. The Early Years Coping Cards have been accepted for Publication by ACER early in 2011.
|
|
| |
Young Learner’s Project
Early Learning Practitioner Research - Brown, R., Deans, J., Nolan, A. & Scull, J.
Throughout 2010 the Early Learning Centre continued to make a significant contribution to The Young Learner’s Project. Funded by The Australian Scholarships Group and the Australian Research Council this large-scale longitudinal study (2007-2011) aims to identify factors that may have an impact on the early literacy development of 4-5 year old children, including preschool teacher beliefs and practices, home life and personal learning characteristics. A sub-study within the Young Learners Project undertaken by a group of researchers including Jan Deans and Robert Brown, is mapping how literacy is conceptualised and enacted by early childhood teachers in diverse early learning settings. The key questions for this study are: What beliefs and knowledge do early childhood teachers have in relation to literacy in the preschool and how are teacher beliefs and knowledge about literacy translated into practice? In 2010 the final phase of data collection was undertaken involving ten early childhood teachers. Researchers are now constructing comprehensive profiles of each practitioner drawing from surveys, interviews and video-recordings of practice. The outcomes of this work will be published and presented throughout 2011.
|
|
| |
Listening Abilities of Children - Department of Otolaryngology, Audiology, Hearing and Speech Sciences
Audiology, Hearing and Speech Science researchers from The University of Melbourne conducted a research study to assess a questionnaire examining the listening abilities of children with results collected from children with normal hearing to be used for comparison with the results of children with hearing loss using hearing aids or bionic ears.
|
|
| |
eClass Pilot Project
eClass is an initiative of the ELC and has been developed to enhance teaching and learning through innovative and effective utilisation of technology by providing online teaching and learning resources for academics, teachers, students, researchers and early childhood professionals. In 2010 the ELC has piloted the development of the resource through the collection of DVD exemplary teaching practice vignettes, teaching guides, lesson plans and a number of supporting multimedia products. These resources demonstrate exemplary cross disciplinary teaching approaches that aim to instill in children personal qualities such as empathy, integrity, respect and tolerance, and at the same time assist them to become confident learners who are flexible, open-minded and creative and able to navigate change and diversity in an increasingly complex world.
|
|
|
Research Projects 2009
|
Thinking, Feeling and Relating: Young Children Learning Through Dance.
Deans, J.
The purpose of this study is to investigate the effectiveness of a dance program in relation to the cognitive, social and emotional learning of 4-5 year old children. The data gathering process will be guided by the following questions:
|
 |
- Does involvement in dance support children's cognitive, social and emotional
learning and if so how? and
- How might the teacher structure and develop the dance program to accommodate
children's learning?
|
Research Projects 2008
|
Young Learners Project
Associate Professor Margaret Brown
Literacy is a gateway to knowledge, provides access to cultural interactions and services and is a measure of success and capacity. |
 |
The personal and community benefits of attaining high levels of literacy are widely recognized, as are the costs of low- or non-attainment. Yet evidence shows that many students leave school without attaining adequate levels of literacy.
How and when to redress the low levels attained by some students are questions of pressing national and international importance to educators and politicians. This project contends that, to ensure the best possible start to a childs introduction to formal literacy experiences, and to reduce the potential for failure, intervention or support in the preschool years is necessary.
The Young Learners Project is a longitudinal study with two aims:
- To identify the factors in a four-year-old preschoolers educational program, home-life or personal characteristics that are positively associated with high outcomes in literacy in their first and second years of school-education.
- To develop a primary level intervention (Pianta, 1990) where strategies will be developed for use by teachers and parents/carers to foster and support the factors that have been shown to have a positive association with high outcomes in literacy for young learners.
Operationalising Social and Emotional Coping Competencies in Preschool Children
Assoc Prof. Erica Frydenberg & Ms. Jan Deans
To assess a childs competence in the social and emotional domains it is necessary to have an understanding of the types of stresses and problems children face at that developmental stage. The purpose of this project is to further understand social and emotional development of 4 year olds, the differences between children, as well as to determine the consistency between parent, teacher and childrens own understandings. The aim of this project is to operationalise the socio-emotional competencies of early years children in order to enable the development of both assessment and curriculum.
In Perfect Harmony: singing and community practice in an early learning centre
Dr Berenice Nyland, Dr Jill Ferris, Ms Jan Deans
The aim of this research is to explore the role and professional positioning of the specialist music teacher in a general program of an early learning setting. In particular to study the impact of a staff choir, established by the music specialist, and its impact on teachers musical confidence. |
|
|
Early Years Coping Research (Survey) 2008
|
| To complete the Early Years Coping Questionnaire please click here
|
 |
|
Demonstration & Research Facilities
|
The Early Learning Centre offers early childhood professionals, students and researchers the opportunity to view exemplary programs. It provides lecture / demonstrations and program interpretation as well as tutorial and seminar spaces for visiting researchers and students. |
 |
Visits to the Centre include an introductory lecture, observations of two playrooms and a reflective summary. Bookings can be arranged during Victorian School Terms via Centre Administration.
Maximum group size is 35 persons.
Contact the Centre for information.
top of page
|
SAM
|
SAM is a Self Assessment Manual suitable for use by early childhood practitioners and pre-service practitioners. |
 |
 |
 |
Research on quality in early childhood has consistently shown that staff are the cornerstone of excellence, and that staff training makes a difference to services provided to children and families. There is also a growing awareness of the importance of adopting a planned approach to career development and that this begins with self assessment, and can be enhanced with guided reflection.
The Early Childhood Consortium Victoria (ECCV) has developed a unique theoretically-based framework, designed specifically to address issues of service quality through continuing professional development. A Self-Assessment Manual (SAM) has been developed around the framework and this has been applied in a number of early childhood settings both locally and internationally. By working through the process as outlined in the manual, early childhood practitioners and pre-service practitioners are empowered to critically examine their current practice and plan for their future in a more systematic way.
SAM: The Manual |
 |
Building Capacity: a Strategic Approach to Professional Development in Early Childhood (2006) by Bridie Raban, Manjula Waniganayake, Andrea Nolan, Robert Brown, Jan Deans & Christine Ure
The Self-Assessment Manual is now available as a book and accompanying CDROM. For details of how to purchase this book go to Thomson Learning Australia. |
Publications About SAM
- Raban, B., Nolan, A. Waniganayake, M. Ure, C. Deans, J. Brown, R. (2005). Empowering Practicitoners to Critically Examine Their Current Practice. Journal of Australian Research in Early Childhood Education, Vol.2, Issue 2, pp.1-16.
- Nolan, A., Raban, B. & Waniganayake, M. (2005). Evaluating a Strategic Approach to Professional Development Through Guided Reflection. Journal of Reflective Practice, Vol.6, No.2, pp.221-229.
- Raban, B., Waniganayake, M. Deans, J. Brown, R. Ure, C. & Reynolds, B. (2003). Quality Assurance in Practice: Developing a Framework. Journal of Australian Research in Early Childhood Education, Vol.10, Issue 1,pp.56-68.
- Raban, B. Ure, C. & Waniganayake, M. (2003). Multiple Perspectives: Acknowledging the Virtue of Complexity in Measuring Quality. Early Years, Vol.23, No.1, pp.67-77.
Contact Details
For further information about charges related to the mentoring service available by the ECCV in the use of SAM as a whole-of-centre approach to professional development please contact:
The Early Learning Centre
40 Clarke Street
Abbotsford
Victoria 3067
Australia
Ph: 61 3 94194089
Fax: 61 3 94194308
|
| top of page |
Centre Research