Introduction
It is important to note the fact that the early stages of child development are a unique stage in a child’s life, where educational efforts can be highly resultative and lay a core foundation for future advancements. Therefore, understanding the underlying intricacies and specificities of early child development is crucially relevant for their education since it can determine the wide range of life trajectories of these young individuals.
Main body
The first video on the science of early childhood development by Jack P. Shonkoff addresses the notion of social development’s and cognitive development’s interdependency, where early experiences of a child lay the primary foundation for future knowledge and skill acquisitions. In other words, a child in a stressful and hostile environment might become impaired since children learn and develop on the basis of reciprocal relationships with adults. Therefore, social factors, such as neglect or abuse, directly impact the brain development of children.
The second video on early childhood science education by Peggy Ashbrook highlights the role of early firsthand experiences in the development of young children. The expert emphasizes that educational efforts should even be aimed at two-year-olds, which means that there is no strictly set age when children can be considered too young to be exposed to positive and healthy experiences. In other words, diverse experiences enable children to acquire solid background knowledge and develop healthy curiosity, which aids in future educational processes.
The third video on the science curriculum for early childhood education provides invaluable information on the E-I-E-I-O educational methodological framework to effectively structure science lessons. The abbreviation stands for “excite,” “introduce,” “explore,” “interact,” and “outcomes” (Great Lakes Science Center, 2014). The first phase of the framework is designed to generate interest among the learners, whereas the second stage introduces novel concepts on the basis of prior knowledge among children, where certain misconceptions are corrected along the way. The third phase focuses on exposing children to new knowledge or concept within a structured learning environment through the encouragement of observation and use of senses. The fourth stage solely encourages interactive behaviors through cooperation and collaboration with consideration of children’s individual needs. The last segment is designed to prompt learners to recall what was learned by posing questions and connecting the core ideas, and a teacher also identifies the concepts, which require revisiting.
Before watching the recorded material, I did not consider the early stage of a child’s development suitable or appropriate for educational interventions since I assumed that imposing educational efforts on them would result in ineffective outcomes and excessive stress. Now I know that educational approaches during such early stages can be highly effective if implemented correctly with an emphasis on exposure to experience, as was mentioned by several experts in the field.
Conclusion
In conclusion, these videos will profoundly influence my future practice since my educational efforts for young children will not only provide critical knowledge and skills but also lay a core foundation for these children’s future on a direct cognitive level. I will ensure that I will adhere to the E-I-E-I-O educational methodological framework. I believe that effective ways to form partnerships with families are to inform parents about the importance of early child development and how to directly determines a child’s future on a multitude of levels. I would create a caring community by focusing on providing valuable experience above mere information.
Reference
Great Lakes Science Center. (2014). Science curriculum for early childhood education [Video]. YouTube. Web.