Minority-world professionals in majority-world early childhood contexts: How do international field experiences promote intercultural competence or reinforce “professional” ethnocentrism?

2018 ◽  
Vol 19 (2) ◽  
pp. 199-205
Author(s):  
Samara Madrid Akpovo ◽  
Lydiah Nganga
Keyword(s):  
Early Childhood ◽  
Intercultural Competence ◽  
Teacher Educators ◽  
Field Experiences ◽  
Early Childhood Teacher ◽  
Teacher Education Programs ◽  
Education Programs ◽  
Majority World ◽  
Early Childhood Professional ◽  
Childhood Professional

This colloquium problematizes the use of early childhood international field experiences as a tool for professional development with Euro-Western pre-service and in-service teachers. The authors critique experiences where minority-world educators teach or implement internships within majority-world contexts. It is critical for Euro-Western teacher education programs to provide pre-service and in-service teachers with opportunities to expand their global views of the early childhood professional through international field experiences. But how can this be done when conceptions of the “professional” are constructed in Euro-Western images, ideas, curricula, ideologies, and privilege? The authors make a call for early childhood teacher educators to reconsider, deconstruct, and re-examine themselves and their pre-service and in-service teachers’ rationale for engaging in international field experiences.

Implementing an Early Childhood Professional Development Course Across 10 Sites and 15 Sections: Lessons Learned

NHSA Dialog ◽  
2011 ◽  
Vol 14 (4) ◽  
pp. 275-292 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jennifer LoCasale-Crouch ◽  
Marcia Kraft-Sayre ◽  
Robert C. Pianta ◽  
Bridget K. Hamre ◽  
Jason T. Downer ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Professional Development ◽  
Early Childhood ◽  
Lessons Learned ◽  
Early Childhood Professional ◽  
Childhood Professional ◽  
Early Childhood Professional Development ◽  
Development Course

The Perceptions of Principals on their Leadership Role in Pre-primary

1998 ◽  
Vol 23 (2) ◽  
pp. 26-30 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elizabeth Stamopoulos
Keyword(s):  
Professional Development ◽  
Early Childhood ◽  
Primary School ◽  
Primary Schools ◽  
Developmentally Appropriate ◽  
School Principal ◽  
Leadership Role ◽  
Early Childhood Professional ◽  
Childhood Professional ◽  
Appropriate Practices

The incorporation of pre-primary centres into Western Australian government primary schools has shifted the responsibility for leadership from the kindergarten director to the primary school principal. Concerns have been raised that principals who are responsible for appraisal of pre-primary teachers are providing inadequate educational leadership to these teachers because of their lack of theoretical and practical background in early childhood. They have not been provided with professional development to adequately support them in this role. However, to date, it seems that principals have not been asked for their views about their capacities concerning the pre-primary sector. For these reasons this study investigated the question: How do primary school principals perceive they fulfil their administrative, managerial and educational roles in respect to pre-primary centres? The majority of principals in the district surveyed indicated that they considered administration/management to be their most important role in relation to pre-primary education. A greater number of principals indicated inadequate performance in dealing with educational issues. The majority of principals said the system should require pre-primary training for principals, provide each school with materials that outline developmentally appropriate practices; and provide early childhood professional development courses for principals.

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