ERIC Number: EJ1018195
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2013
Pages: 11
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1463-9491
EISSN: N/A
Will the Early Years Professional Please Stand Up? Professionalism in the Early Childhood Workforce in England
Chalke, Joy
Contemporary Issues in Early Childhood, v14 n3 p212-222 2013
This article explores, through a review of a body of literature, whether it is possible to create a new understanding of what it means to be a professional in Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) in England. It reviews some competing views of the nature of professionalism and then explores the distinctive attributes and qualities required by practitioners through discussing the demands required of both care and education. The article reconceptualises professional identity in ECEC in England using three themes identified from a "ground-up" study of professionalism undertaken by Dalli in New Zealand--(a) pedagogical style, (b) specialist professional knowledge, and (c) practices and collaborative relations. The discussion is situated in the framework of government initiatives in the United Kingdom that have formulated a more "technicist" approach to professionalisation through the graduate status of the Early Years Professional.
Descriptors: Foreign Countries, Early Childhood Education, Professional Identity, Professional Recognition, Child Care, Child Caregivers, Preschool Teachers, Teacher Education, Teacher Collaboration, Teacher Qualifications, Literature Reviews
Symposium Journals. P.O. Box 204, Didcot, Oxford, OX11 9ZQ, UK. Tel: +44-1235-818-062; Fax: +44-1235-817-275; e-mail: subscriptions@symposium-journals.co.uk; Web site: http://www.wwwords.co.uk/ciec
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Information Analyses; Reports - Evaluative
Education Level: Early Childhood Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: United Kingdom (England)
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A