Welcome to the 2021 Bachelor of Early Childhood Education (BECE) Symposium. The Symposium celebrates the final thesis projects of BECE students by sharing their research with the early childhood education community.
Social-emotional learning, Well-being & Burnout
Social-emotional learning, well-being, and educator burnout are particularly important topics of research given the current pandemic and the focus of the student projects below. The ability to explore and express our emotions, foster relationships with others, maintain positive wellbeing, find and offer support to one another are particularly important abilities for children and adults alike.
Mindfulness
Mindfulness as a pedagogical practice within early childhood educaiton is a topic that deserves more research focus.. Mindfulnesss can be considered as ‘the basic human ability to be fully present, a sense of awareness or attunment to one’s environment, without be overly reactive or overwhelmed by what’s going on around us’. These student projects focus on exploring educator perceptions, resources, and benefits of mindfulness in ECE.
Literacy, Toys, Parents’ Roles
Young children’s development is greatly impacted by their early childhood environments and contexts. Multiple factors are part of the ecology of children’s environments, including the resources provided as well as the interactions within those contexts. Understanding the unique relationship and impact on children’s development, play, and learning (e.g., home literacy, family income, children’s toys) was the focus of research projects listed below.
Equity, Inclusion, Exceptionalities, Shyness
All children have a right to be included within early childhood programs. Planning inclusive curricula for children with exceptionalities or indvidual needs (e.g., children with ADHD, children who are shy) requires knowledgeable and well supported educators. The projects in this theme address ideas of equity, inclusion, exceptionality, and shyness.
Nature Connectedness, Risky Play
Children’s connection to nature is a hallmark of well-being and holistic development. Risky play in the outdoors offers particular benefits for children’s confidence, resilience, executive functioning abilities and even risk-management skill. Two projects explored the themes of nature connectedness and risky play.
Curricula & Pedagogies
Two important themes were explored in the following projects, online learning, and music and movement curricula. Understanding the unique contributions of online learning or the arts is particularly significant during the pandemic. Understanding the complexities of curricula and pedagogies within ECE is particularly relevant in designing quality and intentional programs for young children.