International perspectives on early childhood curriculum changes in Singapore and Australia

Early Childhood Curriculum Reform in Saudi Arabia Conceptualization of Theories in Early Childhood Curricula: Three Models

“…This argument has taken place in various documents discussing whether or not ECE should be restructured to align with political demands, and providing evidence that raise caution of going towards this direction (Cheeseman, Sumsion, & Press, 2014;Haslip & Gullo, 2018;Moss et. al., 2016;Nitecki & Wasmuth, 2017;Nyland & Ng, 2016;Urban & Swadener, 2016;Wood & Hedges, 2016). The supporting views of political and economic demands have ignored the long lasting inheritance of EC philosophies and practices, which have a worldwide impact on curriculum frameworks, explaining how children think and learn.…”

“…Detailed curriculum and control over teachers' everyday practices would put them under pressure and restrain their independence, motivation and inspiration. To the contrary, teachers should be considered as change agents in field reform projects, since they are the ones who transform theoretical perspectives into practice, and work as mediators of change for all parties in the field including parents (Nyland & Ng, 2016;Choppin, McDuffie, Drake, & Davis, In press).…”

“…However, lack of clarity causes a source of struggle when new directions are presented. The designers of the curriculum might not share the same point of view with practitioners, which affect implementation process and takes it to different intention other than the designers' (Choppin, McDuffie, Drake, & Davis, In press;Nyland & Ng, 2016;Oats, 2010). Choppin et al (In press) describe the complexity faced in new conditions during practice.…”

“…Yet, curriculum reform can be informed by reviewing and comparing quality systems. On the other hand, there is a caution that the original meanings of theoretical perspectives and practices could be changed or interpreted differently over place and time (Nyland & Ng, 2016). Therefore, authentic reform does not apply by just putting the meant polices into practice.…”

Enhancing the quality of kindergarten education in Singapore: policies and strategies in the 21st century

“…In a similar fashion, the influence of Western philosophies and theories on how children learn and should be taught in Singapore's NEL Framework has been claimed to run counter to the traditional cultural beliefs and the inherent curriculum priorities held by teachers and parents in a largely Chinese society with Confucius influence (Ang 2006(Ang , 2014Lim-Ratnam 2013;Lim and Torr 2008). There is thus a concern that efforts to downplay a formal and academically focused kindergarten curriculum are at odds with the premium value Singaporean parents placed on academic achievement and their expectations of their children to be well prepared for primary school in order to meet the demands of a highly (Ang 2006(Ang , 2014Ebbeck and Chan 2011;Nyland and Ng 2016). Moreover, as the relationship between play and learning is not always apparent, parents and even preschool educators are not fully convinced on the educational value of a play-based approach to learning.…”