With the widespread acceptance of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples as the traditional custodians of the land comes the simple proposition that we must change the date—the 26th of January is not an inclusive day of celebration for all Australians. And yet the controversy rages. There are many different views around the date of…
Every year on the 26th of January we celebrate what it means to be Australian. It’s a day when we welcome new Australians into the fold through citizenship ceremonies and we get together for barbecues, that most inexplicably Australian of meals. We mark the day in a myriad of ways and yet we continue to…
We have heard so many times in the last year that we are experiencing unprecedented times, and indeed we are. This quote from Monbiot (2017, p. 1), highlighted in the concluding chapter of Claire Cameron and Peter Moss’s new book, aptly outlines the situation: The old world, which once looked stable, even immutable, is collapsing.…
Childcare centres across Australia are suffering staff shortages, which have been exacerbated by the COVID crisis. Many childcare workers across Australia left when parents started pulling their children out of childcare due to the pandemic, especially casuals not eligible for JobKeeper. And when the federal government introduced its temporary free childcare package, centres struggled to get the…
Attuned routines give us the chance to reconsider our interactions and focus on pausing to be truly with a child. One opportunity for an attuned routine experience is nappy changes. Here Dr Katherine Bussey and Michelle Richardson share some insights for us as we reconceptualise this routine task. Reconceptualising nappy changes and toileting key times for learning requires…
Many of us are looking forward to celebrating the end of the year with friends and family—perhaps even more than usual after the stress and isolation of COVID-19. Hopefully, the New Year will bring more reasons for optimism and fewer challenges like those experienced by so many in 2020, due to natural disasters as well…
‘Being a professional requires you to exercise pedagogical judgment—every day. It does seem though we now have a ‘Christmas’ curriculum and it starts early.’ Karen Hope encourages educators to reflect on more than just the art and craft of Christmas in early childhood settings. I like this time of year and I celebrate Christmas. For…
Sixty accomplished women in science, technology, engineering and maths and technology have been announced as Australia’s newest Superstars of STEM. The Superstars of STEM program, supported by the Australian Government’s Department of Industry, Science, Energy and Resources, sets out to smash traditional stereotypes of scientists, engineers and mathematicians. The program provides women in these fields…
Catharine Hydon and Kerrie O’Neill share nine compelling reasons why now is the time for students studying early childhood education and care need to be in services doing placement. It’s been bubbling for months but do you realise the gravity of the problem? The niggling concern identified by the pre-service sector that many students have…
Michelle Carrick shares some of her experiences and observations of being an early childhood teacher for over 20 years. The focus in this piece is on research that underlines the importance of play and imagination as being critical components to overall academic success. I had the opportunity while studying Applied Imagination to reexamine my relationship…