The family–centre partnership disconnect: Creating reciprocity

Abstract

The purpose of this article is to examine the disconnect happening in relation to family–centre partnerships. Developing partnerships with families is hotly debated and provides challenges for educators teaching in the early childhood sector. Using a comparative case study analysis, several research studies conducted in the states of New South Wales and Victoria, Australia, are examined to illustrate these disconnects. These issues are examined within Belonging, Being and Becoming: The Early Years Learning Framework for Australia, a national framework that is common to all programs across Australia, which identifies practice, principles and learning outcomes for young children. This disconnect is related to the language that is used by the early childhood staff and misunderstood by the parents, the ways communication occurs and its ineffectiveness. The article argues that there is a need to move beyond the current rhetoric of engaging in partnerships with families to a space that allows for transparency, reciprocity and new language.

Early childhood education and care in the app generation: Digital documentation, assessment for learning and parent communication

“…The potential for app-based information sharing and two-way communication may support ECEC services to meet requirements for family engagement and partnerships, such as Quality Area 6 of Australia’s National Quality Framework (Australian Children’s Education & Care Quality Authority, 2020). While it is generally accepted that positive engagement between families and ECEC settings is beneficial for children, the meaning and purpose of partnerships, involvement and engagement with families are contested in the literature (Hadley & Rouse, 2018). It is perhaps unsurprising, then, that services may look for new methods of communicating and engaging with families, particularly when both parents are employed and feeling separation anxiety from their young children (Gallagher, 2018).…”

Capturing the Complexities of Collaborative Partnerships in Early Childhood Through Metaphor

“…The complexities outlined in the literature could be likened to assembling the bicycle, with a limited understanding of how design components fit together to achieve balance for forward motion. We argue that this is similar to the lack of clarity around mechanisms of family engagement (Sheridan et al, 2019;Vlasov & Hujala, 2017), and the limited articulation of role expectations in how collaboration and partnership are conceptualised (Hadley & Rouse, 2018), that is surfaced in the literature. This ambiguity has a flow on effect to poor quality partnerships in education settings (Rouse & O'Brien, 2017).…”

“…The literature (Cottle & Alexander, 2014) highlights that the relationship of families and educators goes up and down, seeking a point of balance, like a seesaw. Families are recognised as a child's first educator, bringing with them competencies that reciprocally support the educator in their role (Hadley & Rouse, 2018, 2019Rouse & O'Brien, 2017). In reciprocal relationships the balance of power shifts gradually, like two children playing on a seesaw, as in Fig.…”

The Technique for the Development of Basic Preschool Teacher and Parental Competencies

“…Наиболее близки целям нашего исследования работы португальских педагогов T. Bertram и C. Pascal [20], австралийских ученых F. Hadley и E. Rouse [21], а также американских авторов A. Turnbull, E. Erwin, J. Epstein и M. Benjamin [22][23][24].…”

“…F. Hadley и E. Rouse также указывают на эффективность взаимодействия родителей и педагогов дошкольной организации [26], однако подчеркивают, что партнерские отношения этих сторон возможны лишь при выходе за пределы риторики в пространство прозрачности и взаимопомощи согласно документу «Принадлежность, бытие и становление: рамки обучения в первые годы обучения в Австралии» (EYLF). Этот документ определяет семью как самого важного и влиятельного первого педагога ребенка.…”