NAEYC Standard 1

NAEYC Standard: STANDARD 1. PROMOTING CHILD DEVELOPMENT AND LEARNING

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Candidates prepared in early childhood degree programs are grounded in a child development knowledge base. They use their understanding of a) young children’s characteristics and needs, and b) multiple interacting influences on children’s development and learning, to c) create environments that are healthy, respectful, supportive, and challenging for each child.

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Brief Description of Evidence:

During the spring semester of 2022 during my ECED 130-Developmentally Appropriate Guidance in a Cultural Context course, I spent a lot of time learning about how to incorporate multiculturalism into the classroom and how to identify and address implicit biases. Learning about these two topics helped me to understand positive guidance and why it is important in early childhood education. From there, I created a digital Guidance Plan. Within the Guidance Plan, I summarized my Philosophy of Education, created a Philosophy of Guidance, listed theorists whose view’s coincided with my views on positive guidance and I listed challenges that may arise while practicing my definition of positive guidance. Further along into the plan, I listed 3-5 personal, family and student goals in maintaining consistency in positive guidance. Lastly, I discussed a behavior management plan and system for my future classroom.

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Analysis of What I've Learned:

As I prepared for this project, I began examining myself. I wanted to understand the ways that I discipline and guide. I noticed that I wasn’t fully taking the time to truly observe and ask why a child may be reacting the way that they are. When dealing with challenging behaviors, I think it is important to remember that these children are just beginning to learn many new skills. Some of these skills include sharing, playing with others, listening and more.

I think it would become easy for children to become overwhelmed or feel stressed out which may bring upon challenging behaviors. Helping children understand what they are feeling and how to handle hard situations is an important job of educators.

I have learned through this course and more specifically through this project that my role in positive guidance as an early childhood educator, centers around building a mutual relationship of trust, respect, and love. Through caring for children and operating in consistency, we are showing them that they can trust us to keep them safe, that they can rely on us and respect us.

Overall, I have learned that guiding behavior is a continuous act of modeling positive behavior and creating a safe and reliable classroom culture that encompasses each child and his or her norms.

I have used the information that I have learned to positively retrain how I guide behaviors. I have found myself pausing more before reacting and exploring reasons for why the child may have become overstimulated or upset. I have also found ways to arrange the day more routinely so children in my care can expect consistency and in turn may feel a sense of confidence and joy.

I also studied theories and how they related to positive guidance in early childhood education. I found that in modeling positive guided behaviors, we are teaching within Lev Vygotsky’s Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD), which occurs when children can almost perform a task, but not quite on their own without assistance. 

As educators we are showing children how to solve problems peacefully, how to recognize emotions, how to interact with others by modeling these behaviors. As the children observe their teachers, they begin to model some of the same behaviors without assistance. As they continue this practice, they begin exiting the Zone of Proximal Development and entering a dwelling of positively guided behaviors.

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How This Artifact Demonstrates my Competence on the NAEYC Standard:

My competence in child development knowledge is proven by my drive to be sure that I am creating a safe and enriching space for my students. I can do this by addressing any implicit biases, offering a diverse space and my dedication to not only the child's needs but the needs of families as well.

Understanding each child’s characteristics and needs is a form of developmentally appropriate practice. I believe that developmentally appropriate practice is meeting each child where they are and teaching in a way that best fits them. It is important to learn each child as unique individuals and be responsive to them socially and culturally. By getting to know the children more personally, educators are better equipped to understand certain behaviors, customs, developmental progress, and growth.

Through exploring biases, multiculturalism and positive guidance I have learned that there are multiple interacting influences on children’s development and learning. I understand that child development and positive guidance, includes outside factors such as family dynamics and routines, cultural norms, learning environments, what they eat, how they spend free time, and more. 

My Philosophy of Education states that I will provide a safe environment for my students, fostering an atmosphere of love, growth and success while building healthy and supportive relationships with each student and their families. I strive to instill cultural inclusiveness, independence, and an eagerness for learning into each student.

By striving for these things, adding several multicultural aspects while remaining unbiased and addressing implicit biases, I believe that I am creating an environment that is healthy, respectful, supportive, and challenging for each child.