Community of professionals sharing ideas and knowledge on all things to do with early childhood education, quality and professional practice in ECEC in Ireland and beyond. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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"On Topic” is a 10-episode series of conversations with experts and authors on important issues that face Alaska. It is produced in collaboration with the University of Alaska and the University of Alaska Press and is hosted by University of Alaska President Jim Johnsen. President Johnsen is a lifelong learner and naturally curious. He’s interested in getting to know the people behind topics that are of interest in Alaska.
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S4Ep5: The Graduation Ceremony - Who is it for?
36:46
36:46
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We discuss the end of year preschool graduation ceremony. Should we do it, how should we do it? Is it adult led or child led? Whose needs are we meeting and how can we find a balance to meet the needs of all stakeholders, children, parents/caregivers and educators? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.…
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S4Ep4: STEAM in the Early Childhood Environment
39:48
39:48
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In this episode we talk about STEAM (science, technology, engineering, the arts and maths) in early childhood education. How and why would should we incorporate more STEAM into our ECEC practice, thinking of technology as more than screens, recognising the STEAM we already 'do' and intentionally extending children's STEAM learning using language an…
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S4Ep3: Risky Play and Guns in Early Childhood Education
45:59
45:59
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We have a really interesting chat with Leah Russell, early childhood lecturer, about what risky play is, how to provide for risky play and whether or not toy guns and gun play should be incorporated into the early childhood education setting. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.…
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S4Ep2: What is the Appropriate Age to Start Primary School?
28:40
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With our guest. primary school teacher Dee O'Toole, we discuss the appropriate age for children to transition from early childhood education to primary school education. Why do children in Ireland start at 5 when most other OECD countries children start at 6 or 7. We wonder why some children don't avail of their second free ECCE preschool year and …
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We discuss implementing and maintaining quality standards in early childhood education and how Paula's new book "Síolta in Practice" can help educators make sense of the Síolta standards and how they are already implementing many of them in their daily ECEC practice. Paula's insightful and practical book has lots of great suggestions highlighting h…
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S3Ep3: Establishing a New ECEC Service in Ireland
39:13
39:13
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Ever thought about opening up your own preschool ECEC setting and/or afterschool SAC setting in Ireland? Then this is the episode for you! From finding the right location and building to getting planning permission and Tusla certification - we chat about the important practical steps involved in opening up a new setting and making the transition fr…
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S3Ep2: Updating Aistear the Early Childhood Curriculum Framework
38:30
38:30
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In this episode we have an engaging and critical discussion as we review the proposed draft for updating the Aistear curriculum framework. We talk about the positives and provide our opinion on the changes including suggestions which we feel we would like to see incorporated into the forthcoming update. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for mo…
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S3Ep1: Implementing a Publicly Funded Childcare Model in Ireland
38:55
38:55
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In this episode we discuss the recent calls within the media for a publicly funded childcare (ECEC) model in Ireland. We discuss what it might look like and how it might be implemented and compare Ireland with Norway who already have a publicly funded model in place. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.…
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S2Ep5: Is there a Role for Artificial Intelligence in Early Childhood Education?
30:08
30:08
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In this episode we discuss the possibilities and pitfalls for using artificial intelligence (AI) as a tool in early childhood education and care. We think about how AI could potentially save us precious time on planning and documentation, the possibility of using facial recognition for parent or child access to the building or calculating our atten…
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S2 Ep4: Fostering Professional Confidence with Lewis Fogarty
27:14
27:14
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Our guest, Lewis Fogarty, joins us for a really interesting conversation about what professional confidence is and why it is an important skill for ECE educators to have. Lewis runs two early years settings in the UK so we chat with him about his journey as a man into a female dominated sector and how he fosters professional confidence and leadersh…
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In this episode we discuss the emerging area of mindfulness based practice in ECEC with our guest Leesa Flanagan who is undertaking PhD research on this topic. Leesa tells us all about what mindfulness it, her journey to a mindful approach both in her life at home and in her ECEC practice and how we can use simple strategies to begin to introduce m…
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In this episode we discuss how ECEC children can become involved in their communities, active citizenship and bringing the community in to the ECEC setting. We consider the barriers to Community Involvement and how to overcome them and we also hear about how Celine and her ECEC children get out and about and involved in her locality! Hosted on Acas…
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S2Ep1: ECEC or ELC? Does the terminology matter?
33:12
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In this episode Paula and Celine discuss how the name for the early childhood education and care sector (ECEC) in Ireland was changed to early learning and care (ELC) by the Government department with responsibility for the sector back in 2019. The internationally accepted term is ECEC, so why are we different? We take a look at the various issues …
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S1Ep11a Men in Early Years - chat with Mick Kenny
30:11
30:11
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In our last episode for 2022 we chat with Mick Kenny from the Men in Childcare network and the Association of Childhood Professionals on two topics: men working in early years and children who are experiencing disadvantage. Come back for season 2 in 2023! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.…
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S1Ep10 The Key Person Approach - A Critical Analysis
41:34
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In this episode we take a critical look at the key person approach and ask if it is still the best approach to underpin interactions and relationships in ECEC and if it perhaps meets the needs of the adult more than the children? Although they key person approach was initially intended to support educators to meet the needs of the child we wonder i…
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In this episode we talk to the wonderful Meredith Rose from Nottingham Trent University about pedagogical leadership. We explore what it actually looks like in daily ECEC practice and consider the factors which both impede and help promote pedagogical practice. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.…
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Paula and Celine engage in a lively discussion on the topic of a degree led ECE workforce. We wonder what is the driving force behind the decision to pursue a degree? Is it because practitioners want to do it or feel they have to do it? Do we need a 50% degree qualified practitioner workforce across the entire sector? What about the knowledge and e…
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S1Ep7 Thriving in Nature with Gillian Powell
23:53
23:53
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In this episode Paula and Celine interview Gillian Powell, author of the Thrive series of books on outdoor play and nature and ECE lecturer. We discuss why access to nature and the outdoors is vital to children's mental health and wellbeing and is a fundamental part of quality ECE. Gillian gives her insights into what a quality outdoor area in ECE …
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S1Ep6 The Canadian Early Childhood Sector.mp3
46:58
46:58
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We chat with Canadian Childcare Federation CEO Don Giesbrecht about Government funding of ECEC, the $10 a day childcare plan and professionalisation. So interesting and lots of parallels with the Irish sector as Canada are on a similar trajectory. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.…
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S1Ep5 If I was the Minister for Education .mp3
1:03:33
1:03:33
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What are the similarities and differences between ECEC and Primary Education. How Aistear was rolled out and implemented differently in both sectors. Should children stay in ECEC until 6? In conversation with Simon Lewis on his podcast called "If I was the Minister for Education". Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.…
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S1Ep4 Researching Education for Sustainability in Early Years
39:33
39:33
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Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.By Paula Walshe & Celine Govern
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S1Ep3 The Child is the Only True Curriculum
27:10
27:10
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We discuss whether, by aligning an early childhood setting with a specific curriculum model such as Montessori, Steiner or Reggio, we can truly provide an emergent child led curriculum. Instead we consider a "patchwork curriculum" approach where various elements of many curricula are blended together to create a unique curriculum for each individua…
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Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.By Paula Walshe & Celine Govern
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S1Ep1 A Community of Practice 05-17-22 20:57:51
17:02
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Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.By Paula Walshe & Celine Govern
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Alaska Natives in Culture and Film with Princess Daazhraii Johnson
31:30
31:30
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This week’s guest is Princess Daazhraii Johnson, creative producer for the new PBS KIDS show "Molly of Denali." This episode explores her role in making the animated children’s program a reality and discusses the representation of Alaska Native peoples and cultures in film. “When WGBH first reached out about the project MOLLY OF DENALI, I was so ex…
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This episode’s guest is Michael West, Alaska’s State Seismologist, a UAF Research Associate Professor, and Director of the Alaska Earthquake Center. Mike received his PhD at Columbia University in 2001, and has an undergraduate degree in physics from Colorado College. His professional service focuses on advocacy for earthquake and tsunami preparedn…
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The Process of a Poet with Linda Schandelmeier
35:13
35:13
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Linda Schandelmeier grew up on a family homestead six miles south of Anchorage in the 1950s and 60s. She moved north in 1967 to attend the University of Alaska. Her collection of poems, Coming Out of Nowhere is part memoir and part historical document. The poems celebrate the unique and nurturing aspects of homestead life, but do not shy away from …
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Writing as Social Justice with Paula Mathieu
34:50
34:50
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This episode’s guest is Paula Mathieu, English professor in the Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences at Boston College, and Director of the First-Year Writing Program, and Founder of the Writing Fellows Program there. Paul is the author of the ground-breaking book “Tactics of Hope: The Public Turn in English Composition”, a book that is especiall…
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We hear a lot about climate change and the massive swings in our weather patterns these days. This episode’s guest is John Walsh, the Chief Scientist at the International Arctic Research Center at the University of Alaska Fairbanks. He’s focused his long and distinguished academic career on Arctic climate weather variability. John was a convening l…
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This episode’s guest is Erwin Chemerinsky, the Dean of the Law School at the University of California, Berkeley. Dean Chemerinsky is the author of 10 books, including the timely and influential “Free Speech On Campus” with his colleague Howard Gilman. Chemerinsky writes a weekly column for the Sacramento Bee, a monthly column for the American Bar A…
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This episode guest is Jaime Casap, Chief Education Evangelist at Google. In his work at Google, Jaime focuses the powers of technology and the web on pursuit of promoting inquiry-driven learning models. Jaime collaborates with school systems, educational organizations, and leaders to build innovation into our education policies and practices. Jaime…
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