The literature on play and learning attests many developmental benefits for children. The Australian curriculum endorses play-based learning (PBL) as an age-appropriate teaching pedagogy. However, what enables or prevents PBL in the classroom is not well documented. The present study examined the responses of 334 teachers currently employed in…

Past studies have shown that kindergarten teachers find it challenging to integrate science into their instruction, but little is understood about factors that influence their science teaching in Indigenous areas. Our study aimed to investigate the associations between kindergarten teachers' experiences, attitudes, self-efficacy, outcome…

Despite the urgent need to provide kindergarten teachers with professional development (PD) in music and movement, little is known about their needs, motivations, and preferences in this area. This interview study explores Hong Kong kindergarten teachers' prior music and movement educational experiences and their self-perceived usefulness of such…

This paper argues that whilst inclusive education in early childhood is gaining wider acceptance in the equity and diversity movement, the value and contribution of educators' voices about what is working and challenging are frequently ignored. This small-scale research explored five early childhood educators' understandings and experiences of…

This paper reports on findings from four case studies, as part of a large-scale study undertaken to evaluate the KindiLink initiative across Western Australia in remote, regional and metropolitan communities. KindiLink is an educator-led playgroup initiative in public school sites in Western Australia targeted at Aboriginal children and their…

Early childhood teachers have a myriad of possible employment options, with birth to eight years degree qualifications preparing graduates to work in a range of early childhood settings, including prior-to-school. At the same time, early childhood workforce policies in Australia, and elsewhere, are increasingly requiring degree-qualified teachers…

National Assessment Program for Numeracy and Literacy (NAPLAN) is the national assessment programme for literacy and numeracy in Australia administered to children in Years 3, 5, 7 and 9 each year. The testing process was introduced in 2008 and is described by the developers as low stakes, however, research has highlighted that this is not the…

This study documented how the teacher conducted one-on-one portfolio sharing conferences with the parents to help them understand their children's emergent writing performances. Data included the selection and analysis of children's writing samples, parent-teacher conferences, and teacher interviews. The results indicated that parents'…

Smooth transitions through the early years of education are recognised as pivotal to later personal and academic success. However, for children considered outside the mainstream, these transitions can provide extra challenge for them, their families and educators. This paper reveals the findings of two qualitative studies investigating early…