Pedagogical implications for practice

In my previous blogs I researched different implications that single parent families have. But the question that I would like to consider is the policies that educators can follow and implement to help and support single parent families. As my research has proved so far, being a solo parent is a lot harder than a family with two parents. I found that the need for an income to a single parent is more sought after. This means that their child has to be put in to early childhood care or someone to look after while the parent is at work.

There are support systems in place from the government to get free childcare. Ministry of Education (n.d.) states that from 1 July 2010 all three, four and five-year old children are able to go to early childhood education (ECE) services for six hours a day, 20 hours a week at no charge. But where does this leave the children under the age of three?

Most single parent families want to put their child in to care before the age of three, and return to work. Some parents like to stay at home and care for their children, but it depends whether they can afford to or not. 

Children will often show signs of distress, or emotional changes when going through a separation of parents. Because of this it tells me the role of the teacher is important. Early Childhood Australia (2010) gave points on how conflict in these situations impact children. These were:

• Children's development is influenced by the quality of their caregiving relationships.
• Children who witness intense/frequent marital discord exhibit higher levels of emotional and physiological reactivity.

From these points it shows me what teachers should focus on. Provide quality relationships, help children understand the world, nurture them and work to improve the child's development. Early Childhood Australia (2010) explains that children have higher emotional and physiological reactivity and higher cortisol levels (stress). 

Teachers don't just work with children, but also with parents and whanau. Feeny, Moravick, Nolte & Christensen (2010) explain that as a teacher you may find yourself being "a consultant, a social worker, an advocate, a teacher, a reporter, a mediator, and a social director' (p.7). Feeny et al (2010) also explain that when there is a major change in a childs life such as divorce it is best to keep their school life as normal as possible, that policies and procedures need to be established prior to a problem occurring. 

This shows that it is important to have policies in place in regards to pedagogy especially in regards to well being of the child and their family. 

"The first public policy response to sole parenthood came soon after New Zealand was      established as a British colony in 1840. It emphasised family responsibility for the support of the sick, the unemployed, the aged, deserted wives and unmarried mothers" (Goodger, p.3, 1998).   

In the 21st century, early childhood education policy aims for New Zealand children to participate in early childhood education no matter what family circumstance. 

The government currently funds for a range of parent support and development (PSD) programmes. They focus on developing the role of ECE centres, and is aimed at families at risk of poor health, education and social outcomes and who have children aged 0–3. (Munford, Sanders, Maden & Maden, 2007). From this information, it answers my question of 'where does the 20 hours ece free leave children under three years of age'.

Teachers have a code of ethics as a professional guideline. They have a moral obligation to work collaboratively with parents, guardians and family/whanau as well as children as learners (New Zealand Teachers Council, 2005). As seen in the figure below, you can see the four ethical  principals that weave together (New Zealand Teachers Council, n.d.).

From this information, it tells me that the politics and policies of New Zealand give early childhood educators supportive information to work with pedagogical implications. That if practices work together, and as a team, the best education for a child can be given.