Negotiating standards in the primary classroom : the teacher's dilemma / Carol Anne Wien ; foreword by Lilian G. Katz.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Wien, Carol Anne, 1944-

Series:

Early childhood education series (Teachers College Press)

Early childhood education series

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Early childhood education--Standards--Canada--Toronto--Case studies.

Early childhood education.

Early childhood education--Canada--Toronto--Case studies.

Early childhood education--Standards.

Canada.

Genre:

Case studies.

Physical Description:

xvi, 175 pages : illustrations ; 23 cm.

Place of Publication:

New York : Teachers College Press, [2004]

Summary:

This book takes you into the classroom to see how eight teachers struggled with the dilemma of how to balance a standardized curriculum with their understanding of sound early childhood educational practices. You'll see up-close how each teacher developed a variety of strategies in her efforts to respond to imposed standards and assessments, to the developmental nature of children, and to the challenge of diversity in the classroom.

Contents:

1 Early Childhood Teachers in Public Schools 1

The Context 4

The Standardized Curriculum and Reporting System 6

Eight Teachers in Primary Settings 8

2 Grace: Sustaining Community in a Developmentally Appropriate Kindergarten 13

The View into Grace's Classroom: An Image of Developmentally Appropriate Teaching 14

Grace's Stance Toward the Standardized Curriculum 25

Constraints, Choices, and Possibilities 29

3 Corrine: Teacher Direction or Developmental Appropriateness in Kindergarten 31

The View into Corrine's Classrom 32

Corrine's Stance Toward the Standardized Curriculum 41

Constraints, Choices, and Possibilities 45

4 Janet: The Resistance of a Developmentally Appropriate Teacher 48

The View into Janet's Classroom 49

Janet's Stance Toward the Standardized Curriculum: Displeasure and Resistance 53

Constraints, Choices, and Possibilities 61

5 Ann: Literacy as the Focus of Curriculum 62

The View into Ann's Classroom 63

Ann's Stance Toward the Standardized Curriculum 70

Constraints, Choices, and Possibilities 76

6 Susan: A Classroom On-Task 78

The View into Susan's Classroom 79

Susan's Stance Toward the Standardized Curriculum: Linear and Segmented 89

Constraints, Choices, and Possibilities 93

7 Ellen and Penny: Tension Between Meaningful Experiences and Pressure from the Standardized Curriculum 95

The View into Ellen and Penny's Classrooms 97

Ellen and Penny's Stance Toward the Standardized Curriculum: Tensions 98

Confronting the Tensions: Integration and Relevance 106

The Relation of Classroom Events, Expectations, Rubrics, and Report Cards 109

Constraints, Choices, and Possibilities 112

8 Beth: Science as the Focus for Expansive Frameworks that Integrate Curriculum 115

The View into Beth's Classroom: Integration of Standardized Curriculum 117

Beth's Stance Toward the Standardized Curriculum: Integration and Complexity 129

Constraints, Choices, and Possibilities 134

9 The Mechanistic Versus the Holistic: The Hope for Early Childhood Education in Prescriptive Settings 136

The Paradigms of Clockwork Mechanism and Holism 137

Four Approaches Toward the Standardized Curriculum 139

What Moves Teachers Toward the Mechanistic or the Holistic? 148

Implications 152.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 159-164) and index.

ISBN:

0807745111

0807745103

OCLC:

55633550