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Welcome to the Office of Early Childhood Education
The OECE is a national organisation for the ECE sector and public adviser, championing high-quality education and care for every child
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- Provides membership support to ECE services, teachers, researchers, and community partners
- Actively contributes to sector analysis, research, and policy development
- Advances evidence-based best practices that prioritise children’s interests and wellbeing
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Teacher Member Posts
Boys Liking Feminine Things
Gender expectations on boys.
Young boys can love pretty and feminine things. They like to dress up in pretty clothes and be princesses, fairies, and play female roles.
But parents may worry that it could be an early sign of femininity and see that teachers who allow boys to dress-up in girls’ clothes are setting them up for ridicule.
Nappies – The Options and What’s Best in ECE
As professionals, teachers are often presented with situations that require them to consider what is important to the families of the children they are teaching, while ensuring that they are working in an environment where they are comfortable and where their training and experience is valued and appreciated.
In deciding how to approach the reus
Money – Teaching Children in ECE About Money
Teaching Children About Money
By Lucy Wood
Money. They say “it doesn’t grow on trees”, but also that “it makes the world go round”. They say “it doesn’t buy you happiness” although admittedly it’s very rare to see someone looking sad while on holiday in Paris! It’s a big topic and it affects life, and lifestyle, in lots of different ways.
In researching this article, I came upon a lot of advice saying that teaching our tamariki about money is important, and that we can’t start early enough. Even infants can begin to learn about the concept of delayed gratification, an important skill for managing finances later in life.
How can we as ECE kaiako help tamariki to develop positive attitudes about money, and to see themselves as capable and competent when it comes to things like saving? While conversations about money are something which likely will also be happening at home, in ECE spaces we can support this learning, in ways that are age appropriate, positive and empowering for our tamariki.
Female Teachers Annoyed at John’s Popularity as a Teacher
Male teacher popularity with children.
Why are kids always drawn to the male teacher? Our kids always go for John – it’s “Hi John” when they come in the door and they hang around him most of the day. We are feeling a bit peeved at his popularity I must say – and the fact that we are left with cleaning the tables etc. We often can
Service Provider Member Posts
Job Description for a Head Teacher, Room Leader, or Home-based Visiting Teacher
Job Description for a Head Teacher, Room Leader, or Home-based Visiting Teacher.
Here is a template to help guide you in preparing a job description that matches your service’s philosophy and reflects the position. This person will have additional responsibilities compared with other qualified and unqualified staff and educators.
If you wou
Child Complaint and Parent Feedback Forms
Complaint and Parent Feedback Form. Child Feedback Form / Questionnaire.
Children’s Voice.
For a form to document children’s views on the quality of your service and understand better how to meet their individual needs and expectations click on the button below
Child feedback form
Parent and Caregiver Voice.
Does your serv
Record of Meetings – Writing the Minutes
This explains why and how to keep a record of meetings and what to record when writing the minutes.
Why take Minutes
Keeping a record of meetings, by writing the minutes of the meeting, allows the time spent in a meeting to be productive, by stopping the same discussions and topics coming up that have already been well threshold. Records
Allegations Made Against a Teacher
Allegations against a teacher.
You have noticed a problem with a staff member’s behaviour, or someone comes to you with allegations of professional misconduct or harming a child. What can you do – and what should you do and why?
Responding to allegations against a teacher, investigation, and disciplinary meeting
Quietly assess if this c
Research Library – Today’s Featured Articles
The Descriptive Quality of Kindergarten, Kōhanga Reo, Childcare, and Playcentre
Most research on early childhood programmes focuses on developmental measures, but this study takes a values‑based approach instead. By examining the unique ‘heartbeats’ of eleven diverse services, it explores what truly makes programme quality distinctive.
Solo Fathers with Young Children and their Social Needs
Solo fathers are an ‘invisible’ group in society, although Census data suggests they make up almost 5% of families in New Zealand. No research other than a review of Census data in 1999 has been done on this family type in New Zealand, and there is also very little published research overseas, especially where it includes young children. This i
Beyond Partnerships with Parents in ECE: A Legacy of Adult Experiential Learning in Playcentres
Research on adult learning in ECE settings and outcomes for parents of being involved. Read the full paper below. Or to order a pdf copy of the article go to the main NZIRECE Journal page.
Why 100% ECE Qualified Teachers Matters for Children’s Learning Outcomes
Research comparing centres with full ECE‑qualified staffing to those with lower qualification levels shows that children benefit significantly when every teacher is trained in early childhood education. This article explains why one hundred percent qualified staffing strengthens conversations, complex play, intentional teaching, and continuity of care.
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