Intentional Teaching

Essay by tzafarCollege, UndergraduateB-, November 2014

download word file, 5 pages 0.0

Intentional Teaching and its Importance in Early Childhood Education

Introduction:

'Education is not the filling of a pail, but the lighting of a fire.' - William Butler Yeats

Reflected by an early childhood educator, it is evident the response or idea everyone has when you mention to them that you are an early childhood educator; 'Oh, you get to play with children all day' or, in a particular tone, 'You must love kids'. Very limited is the understanding to how important the role of an educator is, more importantly how critical the role of an educator is in the development of a young child. Onlookers will see an educator involved in play with children but will never truly comprehend the purposeful planning that has been implemented nor the intentional teaching employed to inhibit learning. Similar is the thought process and understanding of most parents. The educators have to promote intentional teaching practices and help parents recognize its true purpose and value in supporting children's learning and development.

This essay aims to explain intentional teaching and its relation to early childhood education and care. This essay will also focus on removing or denunciating any confusion amongst educators questioning the need for intentional teaching or that the practice is a formal instruction in a play-based curriculum.

Intentional teaching- Definition and its placement in ECE:

'Intentional teaching: involves educators being deliberate, purposeful and thoughtful in their decisions and actions. Intentional teaching is the opposite of teaching by rote or continuing with traditions simply because things have 'always' been done that way.' (Intentional Teaching Practices, 2009, p.15) "The Early Years Learning Framework refers to the term 'intentional teaching' as one of the eight aspects of pedagogical practice, making it a part of early childhood professional language." (Houghton, 2013) The EYLF's envisions that children's learning...