3 Review(s)

Studying early years in the work place in order to gain further qualifications and awards provides many exciting yet challenging opportunities for practitioners. In order to become a reflective student and a practitioner researcher, you need to think critically and analyse, explore and evaluate key ideas or concepts in more depth. This book provides a framework for developing these important skills as well as providing support for the challenges and changes that early years practitioners face on a day-to-day basis. It provides ideas and strategies for identifying your own learning style in order to use your work experiences effectively for variety of work-based assignments. The author recognises that early years practitioners studying for work-based qualifications come from diverse backgrounds and settings. Using 'real life' examples from students' experiences, and case studies as exemplas to work through, she provides a link between theory and practice, enabling you to develop the skills you need and to relate to the challenges you face. Anne Rawlings encourages practitioners to become reflective and independent learners by providing a Key Components Framework (KCF) for work-based learning. It supports you in coming out of your 'comfort zone' and taking risks in your learning. The three strands of the KCF provide opportunities to: Reflect upon how external factors - such as government initiatives - can influence and impact on practice Consider how personal factors - such as cultural background - can impact on learning and practice Acknowledge the 'hidden skills' - such as ability to problem solve - that early years practitioners need in order to achieve in today's rapidly changing early years sectorStudying Early Years is an essential guide for all those studying early years and particularly those studying work-based qualifications such as the Early Years Foundation degree.