Course Title: Comparative Issues and Contexts in Early Childhood

Part A: Course Overview

Course Title: Comparative Issues and Contexts in Early Childhood

Credit Points: 12.00

Terms

Course Code

Campus

Career

School

Learning Mode

Teaching Period(s)

TCHE2569

Bundoora Campus

Undergraduate

360H Education

Face-to-Face

Sem 2 2018,
Sem 2 2019,
Sem 1 2020,
Sem 1 2021

Course Coordinator: Julie Carmel

Course Coordinator Phone: +61 3 99257804

Course Coordinator Email: julie.carmel@rmit.edu.au

Course Coordinator Location: 220.04.17

Course Coordinator Availability: By email appointment


Pre-requisite Courses and Assumed Knowledge and Capabilities

None


Course Description

This course focuses on current educational debates, changes and reforms at local and international levels.  You will investigate new and emerging early childhood educational priorities, policies and practices. You will explore the global flow of ideas about early childhood education and care through the comparison of issues and systems. You will examine how policies and practices can be shared across contexts and how they change from one place to another.  You will use existing knowledge and research about learning and teaching to investigate and analyse assumptions informing new directions in education.

In this course you will extend your knowledge of curriculum theory, diverse pedagogies and assessment strategies. You will also be introduced to the politics and economics of early childhood education policy and practice.  By focusing on current events and trends in education, your capacity to critically interpret reform and your own experience as a reflective practitioner will be enhanced. 


Objectives/Learning Outcomes/Capability Development

.


Upon successful completion of this course you will be able to:

  • Critically analyse contemporary issues and contexts in early childhood education
  • Reflection on your professional knowledge and experience to analyse new directions and trends in early childhood teaching and learning
  • Collaborate with peers in researching educational reforms in a range of early childhood education settings and apply theoretical perspectives
  • Apply knowledge of teaching practice of new educational practices locally and internationally
  • Engage in professional debates in early childhood education in an informed way.

 


Overview of Learning Activities

You will engage in learning that involves a range of activities both face to face and online such as lectures, tutorials, group and class discussion, group activities and individual research.


Overview of Learning Resources

RMIT University will support your access to learning resources for this course. Readings from current educational literature will be provided through your online course site and will be drawn from highly regarded academic journals, books and conferences as well as reports, websites and other online resources.

The University Library provides extensive scholarly resources to supplement your suggested readings and research and is able to request books or articles from any library in the world. Guides to the literature in your discipline area are available from http://rmit.libguides.com/sb.php?subject_id=67929

Assistance with referencing and avoiding plagiarism is available here http://www1.rmit.edu.au/library/referencing

The Library and the Study and Learning Centre are also on hand to support and assist in the development of your academic skills to make best use of such resources within your academic studies. http://www1.rmit.edu.au/library


Overview of Assessment

You will be assessed on how well you meet the course’s learning outcomes and on your development against the program learning outcomes.

Assessment will be both theoretical and practical in nature.  A range of formative and summative assessment types will be incorporated into the course. 

There will be two assessment tasks in this course

Task 1: Research Report (50%) CLOs 1,2,3,4

Task 2: Practitioner article (50%) CLOs 1,2,4,5

Feedback will be given on all assessment tasks

If you have a long term medical condition and/or disability it may be possible to negotiate to vary aspects of the learning or assessment methods. You can contact the program coordinator or the Disability Liaison Unit if you would like to find out more.

Your course assessment conforms to RMIT assessment principles, regulations, policies, procedures and instructions which are available for review online: http://www.rmit.edu.au/policies/academic#assessment