The recent extremely reactionary articles in the national press about the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) possibly represent the worst nightmare for early years practitioners, from the youngest nursery nurse to the most experienced professionals - negative publicity by ill-informed people when a change process is about to be implemented.
Such alarmist reporting on new materials, before they have been launched or introduced to the people who will be using them, puts everyone on the back foot. Informing staff and families is crucial to the success of any project in the early years sector. Change is difficult enough to manage at the best of times, but negative comment makes an uphill struggle into a mountain climb.
Helping to care
The EYFS is about helping carers to care for children to ensure they are provided with what they need. There are people who do not know that it is all right for a baby to gurgle, coo and make noise. They do not know that by doing this, babies are going through the first stages of working their mouths, tongues and vocal chords, all which will help them to develop the ability, for example, to talk and chew. This lack of understanding is evident when you see some parents popping a dummy into a child's mouth the instant they make a sound - just in case this sound turns into a cry or, oh dear, their child needs attention. With the huge numbers of children being looked after by other people now, we must do all we can to help carers have a good understanding of how children develop.
This brings me to my second point - managing expectations. Unless a parent or carer has a good knowledge of how children grow and learn, it is difficult to know what to expect from a child's actions or how to respond.
I overheard one parent saying, 'Oh, he is getting much too old for cuddles'
after a three-year-old ran into the arms of his carer on arrival at nursery.
The newspaper reports also refer to a 'curriculum' (dictionary definition being 'course of study'), but this could not be further from the truth.
Most early years documentation consists of guidance and examples to ensure children are properly cared for and are provided with suitable toys, equipment and activities. The framework allows staff to recognise that sitting quietly, being still and resting is acceptable - children should not be constantly 'rushed'. Children can make choices about what and who to play with.
Planning ahead
Clearly, early years work needs to be planned for. Staff need to observe the children to ensure that the provided resources and activities are appropriate. Equally, if they notice through observations that the set-up is not working, then they will change it. Reflecting on the children is based on what they can do rather than what they cannot do, however comforting it is to know that if a child is falling behind, then this will be picked up and acted upon.
Areas of development are not meant to be 'ticked off' in a particular order. It is recognised that children develop at different rates, and so the EYFS contents are a guide that gives a wide range of examples.
Much of our education system is outcome-based, but within the early years it is the processes (experiences) that are more important. Most children develop into competent individuals during their early years and the first few years of schooling. Appropriate transitions and communication between parties are critical to this.
All adults should (and need to) be role models contributing to instilling the values of 'good citizenship' - honesty, integrity, kindness, awareness of others - in all children. What is so wrong about a plan that tries to introduce this to children at an early age?
The EYFS starts in September 2008. This long lead time will enable the changes to be fully implemented by informed individuals. This is refreshing. The timing coincides with the rolling out of Early Years Professional Status - committed, enthusiastic and knowledgeable people who will be able to lead the new process. This will help make sure that the EYFS principles will be applied and that, contrary to the news reports, children and their families will benefit. NW