EARLY CHILDHOOD PEDAGOGY AND PRACTICE II

Skills Development

Specific Foundation / Core

Upon successful completion of the course, students are expected to have developed specialized pedagogical, teaching, research, and scientific reasoning concerning different fields in their studies (for instance Science, Mathematics, Arts, and Music). They are also expected to be able to identify commonalities between different fields of knowledge and their particularities as well as to interrelate them, in order to create appropriate learning and social environments for preschool children.

For the academic year 2022-2023, students mainly attend and approach four consecutive disciplines/scientific fields, as follows: a) Arts, Mathematics, Music, and Science. Specifically, in Arts, students, after getting to know the basic principles of art learning, practice in the design of teaching activities while familiarizing themselves with modern teaching approaches to Arts for preschoolers. In Mathematics, they develop knowledge and experiences about the teaching of a mathematical field and the way it can be approached didactically. They also familiarize themselves with mathematical activities and supporting material of the field and are engaged in the design of activities based on the contemporary didactics of mathematics. In Music, through the critical view of music-music/pedagogical theory and practice, as well as through the triptych of listening, performing, and creating, students are engaged in the design, implementation, and evaluation of basic units of preschool music education such as a) communication, musical-sound explorations and familiarization with the properties of sound and musical concepts, b) voice and singing. In Science, students approach basic theoretical principles, tools, and strategies of the Didactics of Science in kindergarten as well as practice the design, implementation, and evaluation of teaching activities related to the approach of concepts and phenomena from the natural world for preschoolers. In particular, the course develops sequentially in three (3) phases for each subject, with distinct learning objectives and results: Phase A: observation, design, and implementation of learning experiences in a scientific object • Students attend lectures and seminars by the tutors of the subjects / scientific fields, in order to be aware of the special ways of targeted observation and approach of children in each framework. They use the experience of their Internship in the 6th semester incorporating the new information for their observations and making adaptations to the new classroom environment. • Undertake to design, implement as educators and evaluate with alternative approache specific learning activities, free and organized, to help children to enrich their experiences in the respective topics related to the above subjects / scientific fields. They adjust the content of their activities according to the needs and interests of the children and the classroom conditions. In this process they get to know and manage the new group and the conditions of the kindergarten classroom, taking into account the different needs of the children, the basic pedagogical principles and approaches, and the curriculum of the kindergarten. • During their preparation, they adopt professional practices as they search for information in scientific books and other sources, collaborate with the class teacher, create material that will serve their pedagogical goals, use tools such as drawing forms, keeping a diary of activities, and reflection, etc., for the evaluation of the educational process for small and large groups. They also collaborate with the class teacher. • They develop possibilities for wider pedagogical wondering through opportunities for reflection in relation to teaching and learning. Phase B: Investigation of actions with a combination of scientific fields With the experience of observation, design, and implementation of learning experiences in two scientific fields and the utilization of the material of their recordings, interdisciplinary actions are investigated and implemented in a combination of these fields. Interdisciplinary connections or extensions between different cognitive areas are systematically sought. The correlations, compositions, and generalizations that lead to the holistic approach to knowledge are strengthened. Phase C: feedback-reflection-writing deliverables The students develop and apply reflection, self-assessment, and peer-assessment procedures for teaching and learning at individual and group levels, utilizing the theory of each scientific field. They utilize the theory and compose individual and final deliverables as they process all their material and experiences from their Internship in kindergartens.

early childhood, pedagogy, practice, arts, mathematics, music, science

04-06-2023