Research Paper: International Curriculum Frameworks
Salwa Zahra
Introduction
This paper reflects and compares the report of Dr. John Bennett regarding the framework of the city of Dubai, with the standard goals and principles of the international and the Canadian curriculum framework. The “Early Childhood Education and Care in Dubai” is an illustration of a policy framework that is researched and prepared by Dr. John Bennett. “Dubai is the most populous city in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). It is located on the southeast coast of the Persian Gulf and is one of the seven emirates that make up the country” (Dubai, 2015, para. 1). “Established in December 1971, the country is a federation of seven emirates. The constituent emirates are Abu Dhabi (which serves as the capital), Ajman, Dubai, Fujairah, Ras al-Khaimah, Sharjah, and Umm al-Quwain. Each emirate is governed by an absolute monarch; together, they jointly form the Federal Supreme Council. One of the monarchs is selected as the President of the United Arab Emirates. Islam is the official religion of the UAE, and Arabic is the official language, although English is widely used” (United Arab Emirates, 2015, para. 2). In this document Dr. Bennett discusses the importance of early childhood development for the city of Dubai specifically and for the whole country in general. The author discusses the two main early childhood education programs in Dubai: kindergarten and nurseries. According to Dr. Bennett, over 90 % of children in Dubai are attending either private or public kindergarten classrooms, which displays the families’ understanding of the important relation of early childhood education and a successful academic attainments later in life (Bennett, 2009, p. 12). Though the attendance of children is higher compared to other OECD (Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development) countries, the author displays his concern regarding the varied quality provided by the kindergarten programs and the need to improve and maintain a high quality care for all children. As stated by Dr. Bennett, “Almost 90% of nursery users in Dubai are non-nationals and less than 5% of Emirati children aged 0-4 years are in nurseries.” Though Emirati mothers are showing an interest in early childhood education for their children, they seem to be unsure of the quality and safety of these centres to a degree were they might replace it for the familiar traditional home-care. Also, the author states his concern regarding the use of English language by the educators in the vast majority of nursery centres, which undermines the use of Arabic as the main mother tongue for the most of these children and their families. Moreover, the author addresses the issue of near non-existent government funded nurseries, where “all nurseries are private and for-profit, except for two government-run nurseries that serve 43 children” (Bennett, 2009, p. 8). According to Bennett, “the percentage of Emirati females employed is 24.3%, compared with 86% of expatriate women in work and 59% of national men employed” (Bennett, 2009, p. 4, para. 12). Though the average rate of working women is lower compared to other OMEC countries, it is a high number considering the lack of government funding and the demand on such services by working families.
ECEC Framework Description
This document aims at forming a cohesive framework curriculum that underlines the main principles of international early childhood education. The document is organized in a pyramidal structure; it is assessing current practices and is suggesting new insights and improved practices that model the international ECEC.
The author starts by stating and explaining the importance of early childhood care; by highlighting its critical association to the holistic development of individual children and to the collective accomplishes of the entire state. According to Dr. Bennett, “The total population of Dubai in the year 2008 was 1.646 million, making up approximately one-third of the population of the UAE. Of this population, 1.48 million (89%) are expatriate and 158,000 (11%) are nationals” (Bennett, 2009, p. 12, para. 2). The vast majorities of families who live and reside in Dubai are expats and are mostly there for work; which explains the urging need of an affordable, high quality childcare. The author lists and explains some of the major factors that influence early childhood education in the UAE such as, social and cultural aspects, financial funding, lack of knowledge and awareness amongst families of the importance of early childhood education, and the lack of an all inclusive governing entity that oversees all the polices, framework and inspections of early childhood education facilities.
The author explains the influence of social and cultural background and its direct relation to the early childhood education; resulting from the traditional concept of women as the main caregiver and responsible for raising and educating children. In addition, the author sheds the light on the remaining population of the city of Dubai who are nationals, and who tend to rely on the inexpensive nanny services or traditional homecare (Bennett, 2009, p. 12).
Dr. Bennett suggests four crucial factors to a healthy and safe child development. First, the importance of early years nurturing interactions to the socio-emotional and physical effects on the children later in life. Second, providing longer maternity leaves to insure a healthy and secure attachment between the parents and the child, which guarantees a healthy brain development and a relationship built on trust and love. Also, emphasizing on developing and maintaining a high quality childcare services, where the child can grow and learn in a nurturing environment. Finally, the economical benefits of investing in early childhood education, where “Governments benefit from the investment through more people working, higher taxation returns, more social cohesion at community level, less reliance of families on social security, less criminality, and better quality of intake into the compulsory education system” (Bennett, 2009, p. 17, para. 3)
The author discusses the relationship between government funding and the importance of a unified governing system that is solely responsible for constructing and securing an affordable, high quality early childhood education. In addition, the author indicates the importance of creating a standard policy that outlines the goals, principles and standards of all public and private early childhood facilities; the “Dubai Women’s Establishment, Standards for Early Childhood Care (DWE)” is a document that outlines such goals and principles. The document states eight main standards: “Licensing and administration, building and equipment, child care organization, care and learning activities, safety and security, health care, nutrition and partnership with parents” (DWE, 2009, p. 5 & 6). Ultimately, Dr. Bennett debates the importance and benefits of investing and funding in early childhood development for individuals, the public and eventually the country. Funding longer maternity leave, subsidizing childcare, supporting personal development programs for educators. In addition to supporting early education awareness campaigns for the public, investing in mental as well as physical health and wellness of children and their parents in the early years of life.
ECEC Framework Analysis
The image of the child is not discussed in a clear and concise manner within the document. Although, based on previous readings and analysis and the cultural and social aspects of the city of Dubai, the image of the child seems to be the innocent child.
According to the document, it is difficult to determine a general approach towards education, since the public and private sectors do vary in the structure of their curriculum; according to the author private childcare centres are entitled to choose their own curriculum. Public KG classrooms operate under one unified framework that combines the infant school approach with the social pedagogy approach. Though, the focus is mainly towards academic achievement, “…free access to materials is not always possible for children as much teacher-directed group work takes place”. Also, private centres seem to use commercial products rather than supporting the children’s creativity and exploration through natural and loos items. (Bennett, 2009, p. 35, p. 1). In
Ultimately, though some centres may choose to follow a play-based approach such as Montessori or Reggio Emilia, it is difficult to confirm the reliability of such centres due to the lack of standard framework curriculum. Therefore, I believe that the image of the child as innocent implies the use of the teacher directed and centred style, which is the infant school.
Theorists
As stated by Dr. Bennett, “Quality within an early childhood system can be significantly raised by a culture of voluntary quality improvement. Such a culture can be supported by district co-ordination: documentation; reflective practice; self-evaluation; formative evaluation; accreditation exercises and the use of sensitive rating systems” (Bennett, 2009, p. 36, para. 2). I believe that the author is focusing and is stressing over the importance of the role of the educator within the childhood development setting. This focus reminds me of Dewey’s work, where he focused on the profound influence of educators as role models and co-learners. Also, Dewey was an observant theorist who valued and stressed the importance of a knowledgeable, observant and reflective educator.
In addition, the author stresses the importance of the children’s relationship to the environment and the people. I believe this emphasis on relationships is greatly influenced by Jean Piaget, who is wildly known for his theories and research regarding the influence of the physical and emotional aspects and his work on the stages of development. According to the author, “Young children from about the age of one year can benefit from caring, high quality programs, run by early childhood professionals. When of high quality, such programs help to develop children’s knowledge and socio-emotional attitudes (such as trust, self-confidence, curiosity and teamwork), skills that are critical for contemporary knowledge societies.” (Bennett, 2009, p. 17, para. 1)
Finally, the author addresses the role of the educator as the most important factor towards achieving a high quality, constructive early childhood education system. The author discusses the value of the educator as a caregiver and a role model. More over, Dr. Bennett stresses over aiming into highly qualified trained educators who are knowledgeable in early childhood theories and development. Also, the author addresses the gap difference in salaries and qualifications between the public and private nursery programs. Finally, the author discusses the importance of funding and supporting the improvement and advancement of the knowledge and expertise of educators through training shops and courses available at local colleges and centres. (Bennett, 2009, p. 44, para, 2)
Conclusion
The author lists and describes five main principles that are called “Aspects of Quality” which include the following: Learning environment standards, Language and culture, Creating a culture of quality, Attention to parents, Children with special needs (Bennett, 2009, p. 34). These principles are close in comparison to the six ELECT principles; which highlight the following: The importance of positive experiences, Partnership with families, Respect for diversity, Planned learning programs, Learning through play and finally, Knowledgeable, responsive and reflective educators. (How does learning happen?, 2014, p. 10)
The apparent difference would be overlooking the importance of play as a right outlined by the UN, and on it’s profound effects on the children’s development and future development. The document seemed to be channelling all factors towards the construction of a framework that is parallel to the countries image of the child as innocent and blank slate and following the infant school approach. In conclusion, I have learned that the city of Dubai doesn’t have an established framework curriculum in place yet, and this document is an evaluation of the current efforts and programs available at the time. I personally believe that this document trying to accomplish certain goals at a time, such as funding, knowledge and reflective educators, suitable learning environments and most importantly cooperating with families in order to spread awareness regarding the importance of high quality early childhood development. Once these goals are achieved I believe it would be more appropriate to introduce learning through play.
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