Philosophy of Learning:
Every child is unique and has his/her own learning style. As educators, our responsibility is to facilitate their social, emotional, mental, and physical growth in a safe, happy, positive, and inclusive environment where every child feels loved and respected. As teachers, we should love and care for them for who they are and not for who we want them to become.
The education we provide should be accessible to all students irrespective of caste, color, financial status, or gender. Furthermore, the curriculum should be based on an in-depth research of child development practices and theories, the materials provided should be structured to fit developmentally appropriate practices for children in the age group of 3 to 8 years, and continuous professional development should be provided to the teachers so that we can offer a quality learning experience to our students with the right balance to develop 21st Century Skills.
Type of Program:
Center Based program which will be partly funded by the government and partly by the owner. For every student that pays the complete fee, there will be one student who will receive these education services at 1% of the fee. This is based on my belief that human beings do not value a free service. Therefore a minimum fee will have to be paid by students from underprivileged backgrounds.
The center will have full day programs from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. to support working parents.
Physical Space:
The center will have indoor and outdoor spaces that will provide the appropriate stimulation and encouragement for safe, engaging, challenging, and fun learning experiences. Play based learning will be a large part of a regular school day, so there will be areas which are safe and big enough for free-ranging activities, which will encourage learning through exploration and investigation. The space will include:
Indoor Classrooms - Well organized, spacious classrooms allowing for movement and play.
The general layout of the classroom will look something like this:
The classroom will have a Blocks Center for creative play.
Curriculum:
We will use the HighScope Curriculum which is focused on active learning where students learn through their interactions with the environment, people, and situations.
Learning is focused on the following content areas.
· Approaches to Learning
· Social and Emotional Development
· Physical Development and Health
· Language, Literacy, and Communication
· Mathematics
· Creative Arts
· Science and Technology
· Social Studies
It is a resource rich, detailed curriculum with complete lesson plans. A detailed lesson plan can be found here.
Schools that follow the HighScope curriculum have teachers who are active, and enthusiastic partners in growth and learning rather than supervisors or managers. Teachers, as much as students, are leaders and followers, speakers and listeners. Adults share control with the students by focusing on their strengths, forming strong relationships, supporting their play ideas, and helping them to resolve conflict.
Staffing:
Center In-Charge or Director – The person responsible for the overall management of the center. This person will need to have previous Early Childhood Education and management experience.
Classroom Teachers - The teacher student ratio will be one to five. Each class will have a homeroom teacher and a teaching assistant. The center will have a mix of local and international staff. Staff working with children directly will be required to have the stipulated child care and teaching certifications.
Community Liaison Officer – This person will look after all new parents, families, and staff communication, and orientation. Additionally, he/she will be responsible for regular communication between teachers and families.
Cleaning Staff – There will be one cleaning person for every ten students. These people will be responsible for the regular cleaning and upkeep of the center.
Family/Community Partnerships:
The center will work very closely with parents and caregivers to facilitate an environment of progress through partnerships. Some of the initiative taken will be as follows:
Beginning of the year parents and/or caregivers’ orientation – This will be a half day orientation where the center staff will first make presentations on school procedures, practices, expectations etc. This will be followed by a classroom visit where parents and/or caregivers will spend time going through some daily activities. This will give them an idea on how things are done in the classroom. The center will send monthly videos from the classroom to the families which will include step by step details on how concepts are taught in class through play-based activities and dramatic play, among others. This will help parents feel empowered and equipped to help their children at home.
Family picnic day – This will facilitate an environment where the school community can get together and to know each other.
Half Yearly Parents Teachers Conferences where parents/ caregivers will be apprised of their child’s progress. This will also be utilized as an opportunity to receive feedback from parents/caregivers about things that the center can do better.
Quarterly programs for families to come and see their children’s work. These could be Author’s Tea, Expos, Performances etc.
Professional Development for Staff:
Staff will go through two professional development programs every year. The topics for training will be determined based on staff needs and management assessments. Some of the training that will be included are:
Beginning of the year center orientation and expectations.
Classroom Management
Managing Aggressive Behavior
STEAM Activities in the classroom
Sharing success stories and exemplary projects.
References:
Ata, S., Deniz, A., & Akman, B. (2012). The physical environment factors in preschools in terms of environmental psychology: A Review. Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences, 46, 2034–2039.
https://www.communityplaythings.com/resources/articles/2019/high-quality-early-learning-environments
Highscope Preschool Curriculum. HighScope. (2021, December 28). Retrieved December 29, 2021, from https://highscope.org/product/highscope-preschool-curriculum/
Comments