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Approved by University Studies Sub-Committee. A2C2 action pending. University Studies
Course Approval Department or Program: Education Course Number: 410 Semester Hours: 3 Frequency of Offering: Every semester Course Title: Foundations
of Early Childhood Education Catalog Description: This is the introductory course in ealry childhood education
examining the history, theory, trends and contemporary issues in early childhood education
as well as the role of the early childhood educator. This is an existing
course that has previously been approved by A2C2. Department contact person
for this course: Melanie Reap Email:
mreap@winona.edu
The proposed course is
designed to satify the requirements in Flagged Courses – Writing.
University Studies
Writing Flag Objectives:
EDUC 410 is
designed to fulfill a portion of the writing flag for Early Childhood Education majors.
The completion of a 10-15 page research paper on an early childhood education theorist or
a social policy issue in early childhood education is the capstone activity of the course
and counts for fifty percent (50%) of a student’s grade. Students are allowed up to
three revisions of the paper and also receive instructor and classmate feedback on those
revisions.
Specifically,
EDUC 410 allows students to meet the University Studies Writing Flag requirements in the
following ways: A. Practice
the process and procedures for creating and completing successful writing in their fields.
The paper is
developed over the span of the semester and requires several drafts to be submitted.
Students also have one-on-one conferences with the instructor to discuss topic choice and
the progress of their writing. All drafts must also be read by a classmate and signed
before submitting them to the instructor for feedback. A grading rubric is provided at the
beginning to help guide students in their writing. Format and citations follow APA
standards. B.
Understand the main features and uses of writing in their fields. and C.
Adapt their writing to the general expectations of readers in their fields. The
paper is designed to provide students with the opportunity to study a facet of early
childhood education in more detail. To develop the paper students must delve into the
current and historical literature in early childhood education. This process is of great
use for the students who generally have had, until this course, little or no exposure to
these journals and texts. While using the writing in early childhood education to develop
their papers, students are also becoming versed in the standards of writing and the main
issues in their field. The required reviews and revisions provide opportunities for
adapting/changing papers to better meet the standards for papers in early childhood
education journals and literature.
D.
Make use of technologies commonly used for research and writing in their fields. and E.
Learn the conventions of evidence, format, usage, and documentation in their fields.
Students will
need to use education databases such as ERIC and Wilson Education Full Text as well as
general resources such as Lexis-Nexis and FirstSearch. Personal interviews with current
early childhood educators are considered appropriate resources. It is essential that
students also become familiar with the use of historical documents and the original
writings of early childhood theorists. Students will use APA format for paper structure
and source citations.
Course Syllabus College of Education Winona State University Spring Semester, 2003 Education 410 This course applies to the Early Childhood License and the Preprimary option of the Elementary License. This class is a prerequisite for all other early childhood classes and Education 416. Instructor: Dr. Celeste Miller 136 Gildemeister Tel. 457-5875 cmiller@winona.edu Office hours: T, Th, 9:30 to 2:00 Textbooks: Learning from the Past, (2000). Jennifer Wolfe (required) Developmentally Appropriate Practice, (1997). Bredekamp (optional, required for ECE majors)
Course Description: This course covers the foundations of early childhood education, as well as the community relationships and resources needed to support physical, social, emotional, language and cognitive development. Major theories and theorists are explored including Comenius, Rousseau, Pestalozzi, Froebel, Montessori, Hall, Skinner, Dewey, Vygotsky, Chomsky, Bandura, Gardner, Malaguzzi. Contributors to the forward advance of developmentally appropriate practice are also studied including Katz, Paley, Bredekamp and others. Modern social policy and issues that affect the health and safety of children are also included in the course content. Course Objectives: Students will become familiar with the history of current educational theory in early childhood education. Students will be able to identify the origin of currently popular ideas in the education of young children. Students will be able to apply their understanding of the theoretical foundation of early childhood education in classroom observation reports. In addition, students will learn to research and write a 10-page paper on a theorist or theory of the foundations of education. This course will provide background information for the study of curriculum theory and instruction. Graded Assignments:
Paper
on theorist or social policy issue
50
points
PowerPoint
Presentation
5
points
Montessori
observation
5
points
Preschool or K observation
5
points Kindergarten observation
5
points
Attendance
5
points 2 Tests
20
(10 points each)
Take
Home Final Exam
5
points
A
Special Note To Students University
Studies Writing Flag Objectives:
EDUC 410 is
designed to fulfill a portion of the writing flag for Early Childhood Education majors.
The completion of a 10-15 page research paper on an early childhood education theorist or
a social policy issue in early childhood education is the capstone activity of the course
and counts for fifty percent (50%) of a your grade. You are allowed up to three revisions
of the paper and will also receive instructor and classmate feedback on those revisions.
Specifically,
EDUC 410 allows you to meet the University Studies Writing Flag requirements in the
following ways: A. Practice
the process and procedures for creating and completing successful
writing in their fields.
The paper is
developed over the span of the semester and requires several drafts to be submitted. You
also have one-on-one conferences with the instructor to discuss topic choice and the
progress of their writing. All drafts must also be read by a classmate and signed before
submitting them to the instructor for feedback. A grading rubric is provided at the
beginning to help guide you in your writing. Format and citations follow APA standards. B.
Understand the main features and uses of writing in their fields. and C.
Adapt their writing to the general expectations of readers in their fields. The
paper is designed to provide you with the opportunity to study a facet of early childhood
education in more detail. To develop the paper you must delve into the current and
historical literature in early childhood education. This process will be of great use to
you because until this course most students have had little or no exposure to these
journals and texts. While using the writing in early childhood education to develop your
paper, you are also becoming versed in the standards of writing and the main issues in
early childhood education. The required reviews and revisions provide opportunities for
adapting/changing papers to better meet the standards for papers in early childhood
education journals and literature.
D.
Make use of technologies commonly used for research and writing in their fields.
and E.
Learn the conventions of evidence, format, usage, and documentation in their fields.
You will need to
use education databases such as ERIC and Wilson Education Full Text as well as general
resources such as Lexis-Nexis and FirstSearch. Personal interviews with current early
childhood educators are considered appropriate resources. It is essential that you also
become familiar with the use of historical documents and the original writings of early
childhood theorists. You must use APA format for paper structure and source citations. Course Outline:
Week
One 1/13 - Orientation to the field of ECE 1/15 - Giftedness, Video/Quick Write 1/17 - Constructivism - Why These Kids Love School Week Two
1/20
- Holiday
1/22
- Teacher Roles in ECE
1/24
- Library Research on topics Week Three 1/27 - Plato, the Socratic dialogues and higher order thinking
skills, Chap. 1 1/29 - Comenius, Chapter 2 1/31 - Library Research on topics Week Four
2/3
- Comenius - Activity
2/5
- Rousseau, Chap. 3 - Preschool/K observation Due
2/7
- Library Research on topics
Week
Five
2/10
- Pestalozzi, Chap. 4
2/12
- No class - Assessment Day
2/14
- Pestalozzi - Paper Topic and Outline Due
Week
Six
2/17
- Froebel, Chapter 5
2/19
- Froebel
2/21
-Test #1
Week
Seven
2/24
- Montessori, Chapter 8
2/26
- Montessori - Video
2/28
- Montessori - Montessori Observation Due
Week
Eight
3/3
- Dewey, Chapter 7
3/5
- Kindergarten 1910 - 1950, Chapters 9 - 11
3/7
- Kindergarten l950 - 2000 Week Nine
Spring
Break Week Ten
3/17
- Opening paragraph workshop
3/19
- Vygotsky and Language Learning Theory
3/21
- Headstart Week Eleven
3/24
- NAEYC
3/26
- Early Intervention/SPED
3/28
- Conclusion Workshop Week Twelve
3/31
- Reggio Emilia - Thousand Languages of Children
4/2 - Reggio
Video
4/4- Reggio for infants and Toddlers Week Thirteen
4/7
- Shichida
4/9
- Brain Studies
4/11
- Test #2 Week Fourteen
4/14
- Foundations and Agencies in the field of ECE
4/16
- Class Discussions on Observations - All 3 observations due by this date
4/18
- Work on paper outside of class Week Fifteen
4/21
-Presentations
4/23
- Presentations
4/25
- Presentations
Week Sixteen
4/28
- Presentations
4/30
- Presentations
5/2
- Presentations
Papers are Due on 5/2/03 Attendance Policy:
Missing
3 or more classes will lower your grade 1 grade; six misses will lower your grade by 2
grades, etc. Grades 94 - 100 are an, etc. Possible Paper Topics to select from. If you don’t find something of interest here,
suggest a topic. Comenius Pestalozzi Dewey Montessori Froebel Malaguzzi (Reggio) Vivian Paley (author and researcher of kindergarten classrooms) An aspect of Developmentally and or culturally appropriate
practice (see Bredekamp book) Social action agencies such as the Children’s Defense
Fund, I AM Your Child Foundation Shichida - right brain education (info available from Dr.
Miller) Head Start A Kindergarten issue Brazelton/Greenspan - Irreducible Needs of Children In-depth research into a period of history of an aspect of early childhood education Sesame Street or other TV programming for children, i.e.
Teletubbies ,Cartoons Format for Paper for Education 410 Winona State University Dr. Celeste Matthews Content: Good teachers are often curious about topics of interest in the foundations of our modern educational system. This 10 to 15-page paper provides you with the opportunity to study a facet of our educational heritage in more detail. You will also be able to improve your professional communication skills. Pick a topic that interests you enough to spend the time you will need to craft an interesting paper which reflects your unique intellectual journey. Number of References The number of references you find will depend a lot on the topic you select. There is no magic number of references or sources of information that you have to have. Everyone needs to consult the ERIC database to see if there is relevant information to your topic. There may not be, in which case you will have to turn to more creative ways of finding information. Lexis-Nexis may help you find sources or the Index of Periodicals may be another resource. This is not meant to be an exercise in wild goose hunting, so if you run into trouble please consult me before you give up a really good topic. You will probably be able to find between 5 and 10 good references. Interviews with “real” people are also acceptable as well as electronic sources. A textbook bibliography can be a goldmine of references to follow up on as well. Suggestion for Taking Notes Make copies of the articles, or print off hard copies of information you place on disk. This way if you lose your disk you will still have your references. Clearly write the reference on your hard copy so that you can source your ideas properly. There is nothing more time consuming than rereading text trying to find where you got a piece of information from in the first place. You can speed up your note taking by assigning a number to each reference, keeping a master key of which numbers go with which reference and just putting the number on your information as you go rather than writing out the whole reference each time. Note cards may or may not be an efficient way for you to organize information. Cutting and pasting articles and information can also work, as can entering information into the computer directly from your sources. Suggestions for Writing Your Paper A ten to fifteen page paper will probably have about 5 to 6 key ideas with several pages elaborating each of these ideas. You will need an introduction and a conclusion, which will take between one and two pages approximately. That leaves you with 8 to 13 pages of text. If you plan on a couple of pages for each key idea you easily have a 10 to 15-page paper. You should use headings in the middle of your paper to help the reader know when you are shifting gears so to speak and moving onto another of those key ideas. This many pages are too few to write about a general topic. You will need to pick an aspect of the general topic you have selected. For example, Vygotsky’s concepts of language development in 3 to 6 year olds (doable) as opposed to Vygotsky’s Contributions to Education (too broad). Likewise, Vygotsky’s concepts of the ZPD would be too narrow a topic for an undergraduate paper of this length. Once you have narrowed down your topic and selected some key concepts you want to discuss, organize the paper with a brief outline and begin to write putting in your references as you go. Format for Citing References If a source is used for paragraph after paragraph you still have to cite the same reference. If you are giving information and not personal ideas you will need a reference at the end of every paragraph. If you think the information you are giving is common knowledge, than you do not necessarily have to cite it. (a) Short term memory is believed to have a capacity of 5 to 7 bits of information (Miller, l956). (b) Calfee (l976) suggests that there are three aspects of attention. You do not need a page number unless using a direct quote. (c) Matthews (2001) said, “Relax and you will enjoy this assignment a lot more” (p. 2). Block any quotation of 40 or more words by indenting on both sides of the paper and typing the quote as a block of text. Source page(s) at the end of the block. You do not need to type quotation marks when you block. Reference Pages Check the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association published by the American Psychological Association, Washington DC, 1995. Copies are available in the Bookstore, the library and in my office. All references used in the body of the text need to be included on the reference page. There is no set format for citing Internet sources. Just be consistent whatever format you select. Allow at least an hour to type the Reference page and plan to have access to the APA guidelines when you do get ready to finalize this page. It will go a lot smoother. If you get stuck you can go to the Writing Center in Minne 340 or see me after class. I want you to be successful. I will read rough drafts and you can make corrections to your paper up to the end of the semester if you are not satisfied with your product. You can turn out a paper you will be proud to include in your portfolio to showcase your research and writing ability.
Paper Format Education 410 This page should be the first page of your paper. Name: Date: This paper fulfills the writing flag requirement for the education department under the new University Studies curriculum. Deficient 1 Proficient 2 Refined 3 Score
Paper Grade _____
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