Abstract
The landscape of Early Childhood Education in India underwent a significant transformation with the introduction of a formalized syllabus and curriculum under the National Education Policy (NEP) of 2021, with a particular focus on the National Curricular Framework for Early Childhood Education (NCFFS) in 2022. Despite these advancements, the training of early childhood teachers has yet to adapt to effectively impart the new and ambitious play based curriculum. Our research delves into this gap in teacher education by conducting interviews with 20 early childhood educators (in Hyderabad, India) from diverse socioeconomic backgrounds, including two international schools catering to higher SES children, one serving the middle-class income group, and another addressing the lower middle SES group. Serving as a pilot study for a larger three-phased project aimed at developing micro credentials for teacher training in India, our investigation explores how teachers’ values, often rooted in non-western and contextual perspectives, influence the ways in which early years children are prepared for formal schooling. The findings shed light on the responsiveness of teachers’ educational values to the societal and economic needs of Indian parents, reflecting their aspirations for the academic readiness of their children in the early years. Project funded by Australia India Research Student (AIRS) Fellowship for Early Career Researchers.
Presenters
Vijaya TatineniLecturer in Early Childhood Education, Institute of Education, Arts, and Community (IEAC), Federation University Australia, Victoria, Australia
Details
Presentation Type
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session
Theme
KEYWORDS
Indian EC, Teacher Beliefs, Pedagogy, Curriculum
