Meeting with Department of Education today

Today I was with a co-hort of universities across NSW  meeting with Claire Britt and others from the NSW Department of Education. We were discussing future research possibilities to support children in early childhood education and care in NSW.

Here are some public statistics that they shared about the NSW Department of Education:

• 1.2 million + learners in early childhood, public schools and training
• 94,000+ teaching staff
• 47,000+ school-based support staff
• 2,200+ principals and schools
• 6,000+ early childhood education and care services 

 

Integrated early years Aboriginal family support: A strengths based approach

Thank you to Nikki Simone for presenting her PhD research to the CVC team today. It was inspiring to hear of her important work titled "Integrated early years Aboriginal family support: A strengths based approach". We also looked fabulous in our Melbourne Cup attire!

Congratulations Tamara - Australian Children's Education and Care Quality Authority National Workforce Forum

Congratulations to A/Prof Tamara Cumming who is an invited member of panel discussion on Culture, Educator Wellbeing and Children's Outcomes at the two-day National Workforce Forum hosted by the Australian Children's Education and Care Quality Authority.

https://www.acecqa.gov.au/sites/default/files/2021-10/ShapingOurFutureChildrensEducationandCareNationalWorkforceStrategy-September2021.pdf

Cultivating Collaborative Practice to Sustain and Retain Early Childhood Educators

Congratulations Belinda on the acceptance of your article from you PhD

Downey, B., Gibbs, L., Letts, W., & McLeod, S. (2025). Cultivating collaborative practice to sustain and retain early childhood educators. Education Sciences, [Manuscript accepted for publication]. 

Early childhood education and care: Productivity Commission Report

The Early childhood education and care: Productivity Commission Report has been tabled https://www.pc.gov.au/inquiries/completed/childhood/report

From the website:

"This report outlines what a universal ECEC system would look like, and the significant reforms necessary to achieve it. These reforms tackle issues that affect ECEC availability, inclusion, affordability, quality and equity. The report's recommendations aim to remove barriers to ECEC access and support better outcomes for children and families." 

The review included consultation with children:

• Children’s Perspectives of Early Childhood Education and Care (PDF 3.8 MB)
• Making the Invisible Visible: Consulting with Children (PDF 5.0 MB)

I am so glad that Jane Delaney was able to represent speech pathologists' perspectives at the April 2024 Joint Roundtable with Academy of Social Sciences (volume 3, p. 20) since I was overseas at the time. Her input enhanced the submission made by Speech Pathology Australia. https://www.pc.gov.au/inquiries/completed/childhood/report/childhood-volume3-appendices.pdf

AARE seminar - Impact of Cultural-Historical Activity Theory (CHAT) on STEM

I learned a lot from attending the Australian Association of Research in Education (AARE) seminar titled "Impact of Cultural-Historical Activity Theory (CHAT) on STEM (Science, technology, Engineering and Mathematics) Research and Education Practice from Early to Primary years" 

Here is the description: 

STEM education research has received enormous attention all over the world because the 21st century requires STEM-skilled humans. CHAT emphasises that children’s learning and development process, from lower form to higher mental functions, requires valued social or cultural experiences (Vygotsky, 1997). While STEM education has been researched in many ways, CHAT offers a unique/ valuable theoretical perspective because it helps to understand children’s conceptual (STEM) learning and development as a dynamic process (Vygotsky, 1987) where conceptual learning occurs in everyday contexts. To provide participants with insight into the value of using CHAT in STEM education research, this seminar (finishing with a Q&A), will provide: a background on CHAT examples of how this theory can be used when researching STEM education. The seminar combines presentations from a research expert and two PhD students to offer diverse perspectives on using CHAT in STEM education research. 

• Presentation 1: Laureate Professor Marilyn Fleer, Monash University, Australia Rising to the concrete: Concept development of children from infancy to end of primary school in Conceptual PlayWorlds (Laureate Professor Marilyn Fleer) 

 

 

• Presentation 2: Ms Jenny Dwyer, Charles Sturt University, Australia How can children’s mathematical graphics provide a steppingstone for children’s development of everyday and scientific (mathematical) concepts? (Ms Jenny Dwyer, PhD Candidate) 

• Presentation 3: Ms Winnie Chen, University of Canterbury, New Zealand Exploring the potential use of cultural-historical activity theory to unpack early childhood teachers pedagogical practices regarding children’s digital play. (Ms Winnie Chen, PhD Candidate) 
• Moderators: Dr Shukla Sikder, Senior Lecturer, Charles Sturt University, Australia and Dr John Cripps Clark, Senior Lecturer, Deakin University, Australia 
  

Contributing to policy discussions about early childhood education and early intervention

Over the past week I have had a number of opportunities to contribute to policy discussions about early childhood education and early intervention.

I was invited to contribute to the submission by the Academy of the Social Sciences in Australia (ASSA) to Productivity Commission Inquiry into Early Childhood Education and Care: https://socialsciences.org.au/publications/submission-productivity-commission-inquiry-into-early-childhood-education-and-care/

Here is a key recommendation that I was involved in crafting:

"Recommendation 6: Ensure universal access to early intervention within ECEC with proper oversight, consistency and coordination to reduce inefficiencies in across sectors, reduce vulnerabilities, and support children’s life outcomes."

I also had a long conversation with Jane Delaney, Early Childhood Policy Advisor for Speech Pathology Australia while in Hobart at the Speech Pathology Australia National Conference.

Both conversations included the importance of providing accessible and universal early intervention for children to enable them to thrive throughout life.

Conversations with Jane Delaney at the SPA conference

 

Submission to the Productivity Commission Inquiry into Early Childhood Education and Care

I was invited to be a member of the Academy of the Social Sciences in Australia experts who will write a submission to the Productivity Commission Inquiry into Early Childhood Education and Care. The meeting was chaired by ASSA Fellow, Prof Susan Danby and included Prof Marilyn Fleer, Dr Tara Robertson, Dr Chris Hatherly (ASSA) and Dr Andi Verdich (ASSA). Prof Suzie Edwards, Prof Fiona Stanley are also on the team. We will work on this over the next month. It is a very important submission.