Investigating Quality in Early Childhood Education and Care
Group Activities
Current Activities
We have an exciting portfolio of research projects underway. Our current projects include a mix of Australian Research Council funded and other externally funded projects, internally funded projects, unfunded seed projects, and Masters and doctoral research. They fall within six broad themes:
- Transition to School
- Children's voices in research
- Mathematics in early childhood
- Child care, families, and children
- Quality in long day care
- Children with speech impairment
Grants
Congratulations to the following RIPPLE members on their successful grant applications:
ARC Linkage
Prof J Sumsion; A/Prof LJ Harrison; Ms F Press; A/Prof S McLeod; Prof BS Bradley;
Dr J Goodfellow, What is life like for babies and toddlers in childcare? Understanding the 'lived experience' of infants through innovative mosaic methodology. With collaborating/partner organisations Family Day Care Australia and KU Children's Services.
Awards
Associate Professor Sharynne McLeod has been awarded the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) Fellow Award for her distinguished performance and contributions to the profession in the areas of Teaching, Research & Publications, and Service to Speech-Language-Hearing Associations and Related International Professional Organizations.
IQECEC has had two linked symposia accepted for presentation at the Annual Conference of Australian Association for Research in Education in Brisbane, November 30 - December 4, 2008. The first symposia focuses on conceptual issues in investigating quality in ECEC, while the second focuses on developing a mosaic of research evidence in investigations of quality.
IQECEC will be hosting a three day visit by eminent international researcher Professor Peter Moss from the Institute of Education, University of London in September. Details are yet to be finalised but we anticipate that Peter's visit will involve a public lecture and invited seminar focusing on Integrated Service provision, as well as discussions with IQECEC researchers about current and future projects.
Completed Activities
Early Years Learning Framework
We are happy to advise that the Charles Sturt University-led consortium which was awarded a competitive tender to develop the Early Years Learning Framework (EYLF) for the Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations (DEEWR) and the Council of Australian Governments (COAG), have met their deadline and submitted the final draft of the Framework in early May 2009. It was only October 2008 when the Rudd Government announced that they would fund the CSU-led team to develop the Framework, and much work has been accomplished in the intervening eight months.
The project is a wonderful example of what can be achieved with research collaboration. The Consortium was led by Key Researchers from the Research Institute for Professional Practice, Learning and Education (RIPPLE), Professor Jennifer Sumsion and Associate Professor Linda Harrison. The RIPPLE consortium brought together a large and diverse team of early childhood academics from Charles Sturt University, Macquarie University, Flinders University, the Queensland University of Technology, the University of Western Sydney, and Batchelor College NT, as well as specialist consultants and representatives from peak professional bodies including Family Day Care Australia, SDN Children's Services, Gowrie Child Centres, Community Child Care, Early Childhood Australia, and Social Justice in Early Childhood.
Professor Jennifer Sumsion is Foundation Professor of Early Childhood Education at Charles Sturt University, where she leads the Investigating Quality in Early Childhood Education and Care (IQECEC) multidisciplinary research group within RIPPLE. Jennifer has published widely about professional practice, early childhood workplaces, and quality in early childhood education and care. Jennifer was co-leader of the EYLF Consortium, and a member of the core group writing. In that capacity, she made a major contribution to the writing of the Framework and the Educators' Guide to the Framework.
Associate Professor Linda Harrison was co-leader (with Professor Sumsion) of the EYLF Consortium. Linda has a thorough understanding of current international and national practices and challenges in early childhood education and care settings, which is further grounded in her work in undergraduate early childhood teacher education. She is also known for her contribution to the design, implementation, and analysis of large research studies investigating aspects of infant/toddler child care, preschool, and the early years of school. Linda coordinated and collated information from the trialling of the EYLF in 29 case study sites representing early childhood services and schools across Australia.
The Federal Government plans to implement the Framework from July 2009.