Reflective practice with early and middle childhood education and care professionals

The research project was a collaboration between Child Australia and Semann & Slattery. The research was undertaken, in part, to try and bridge the gap between theory and practice, which is often cited as a challenge in early and middle childhood education and care. The difficulty in sourcing Australian based research to support program provision and policy is a challenge for Australian policy makers and practitioners. This research was undertaken with early and middle childhood professional across Western Australia and the Northern Territory. However, this report makes a contribution more broadly, providing local, state and territory perspectives that are relevant across Australia in the areas of inclusion, diversity and difference. The research will support the development of policy and of effective strategies for addressing inclusion, diversity and difference at both the level of management and of everyday practice. The findings have also informed the development of a professional educational resource package, comprised of three plays, or performed ethnographies, based on action research with early and middle childhood professionals located across Western Australia and the Northern Territory. This resource aimed at early and middle childhood educators and other professionals addresses key issues around diversity, difference and inclusion. The research is timely given the principles prioritised in The Early Years Learning Framework (EYLF), which include equity and respect for diversity. These principles are central to developing quality children’s services. The EYLF also recommends reflective practice as a core principle and means of enhancing programs within the early childhood sector. This research project incorporated a focus on developing and enhancing current early and middle childhood professionals’ skills in this area through their involvement in relevant localised action research in their workplaces. Davies and Robinson, the chief investigators in this project, developed a mixed methods approach (qualitative and quantitative) to this research, including the following: 1. Online survey for early and middle childhood educators across Western Australia and the Northern Territory (n=138); 2. Online survey for Inclusion Support Facilitators, Indigenous Support Unit Facilitators, and Child Australia staff, (n=31); 3. Focus groups with early and middle childhood educators, Inclusion Support Facilitators and Indigenous Support Unit Facilitators (n=2); and 4. Supervised action research projects covering a range of issues around inclusion, diversity and difference (n=7 completed).