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Welcome to the Office of Early Childhood Education
National and public adviser on ECE, the OECE is a sector body representing teachers and all types of licensed services driving safer, higher‑quality education 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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Education Bulletin and Sector Notices
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Teacher Member Posts
Doing a Folder, Collecting Evidence, and Sorting out Good Mentoring
Becoming a Certificated Teacher.
The Teaching Council guidelines are clear and it’s easy – and no cost – to set up your own folder and follow the process. The article below explains how.
We also discuss mentoring and how to choose a suitable mentor.
We recommend you also read about the Professional Growth Cycle (PGC) that is
Multi-Cultural Activities
Multi-Cultural Activities.
Most early childhood education services include bi-cultural elements in their teaching and learning, but with New Zealand becoming an increasingly multicultural country it can be interesting for children to learn about other cultures as well, particularly if there are children from these cultures within their communi
All Together Now – Providing Family Learning Sessions
Family learning sessions highlight how much parents shape their children’s development and how early childhood teachers can strengthen that impact by meaningfully engaging families. This article is essential reading for New Zealand ECE teachers because it shows why adopting these approaches can deepen partnerships with parents and enrich learning beyond the ECE setting.
Rocket Making and Launching Rockets
The children were showing interest in aliens, rockets and space. Teacher, James had a water bottle rocket launcher at home, which he brought in. Sadly, this rocket only survived a few launches before the rubber seal broke and could not be replaced.
A week or two later James was reading about an air rocket made from a wine cork and car valve.
“You pump the bottle up until the pressure in the bottle was greater than the friction holding the cork in and in a reverse of a champagne cork the plastic bottle shoots off.”
James then thought about water being in-compressible, so if we fit a hose pipe to the wine cork, the water would flow in and compress the air inside the bottle until the friction failed and launched the bottle.
Service Provider Member Posts
Supervision While Eating – What the Requirements Mean and the Indicators to Help You Meet Them Confidently
The “supervision while eating” criterion is often misunderstood, especially the fact that it covers not only high‑risk choking foods but also allergic reactions, which can create real confusion about what supervision in practice looks like. This article explains the core requirements and provides practical indicators so you can keep children safe, protect yourself from allegations of harm, and ensure your service remains fully compliant.
Visiting Teacher Forms for Home Visits
The Visiting Teacher forms we have provided here in sample format are for you to modify according to your service and community. The forms include:
To make a record of a child observation. A letter to thank the child for your visit. Evidence of the home visit and supervision of the educator (the administration record).
Child Observati
Trusted Woman ECE Centre Teacher Engaged in Sexual Exploitation of Children
Indecent pictures of children, including bathroom pics, were taken by teacher “K” at her early childhood centre, using her mobile phone and shared online.
Shade and Outdoor Planning for Sun Protection
Below are tips and recommendations for creating and maintaining effective and acceptable shade in outdoor play areas. This is important in conjunction with other methods for protecting children’s skin and eyes from the harmful effects of the sun over summer.
Attention is drawn here to different problems such as tree branches breaking and falli
Research Library – Today’s Featured Articles
A Look into Montessori: Embedding Literacy in an Early Childhood Education Programme
The efficacy of a Montessori approach to the development of literacy skills in four year olds in the context of current research around pre-literacy skills development in early childhood education was investigated. This paper presents the findings.
The State of Play in Early Childhood Policy: A Note from Australia
FULL REFERENCE: Press, F. (2014). The State of Play in Early Childhood Policy: A Note from Australia. NZ Research in Early Childhood Education Journal, 17, 11 – 20.
Log-in to read the full research paper below. Or order a pdf copy of the article from the main NZIRECE Journal page.
ABSTRACT: This brief country note on Australian early childhood education and care (ECEC) policy commences with an outline of the types of services that comprise the sector. A brief overview of the history of Australian early childhood education and care follows, including the challenges faced by the sector in the years leading up to the introduction of the Reform Agenda for Early Childhood. The changes instigated by the 2007 Early Childhood Reform Agenda and their significance are then explained and current policy and funding arrangements summarised. The paper concludes with a précis of the opportunities and challenges facing the early years’ sector.
KEY WORDS: Policy reform; quality; accreditation; parent involvement.
INTRODUCTION
At the time of writing Australian early childhood policy is in a state of flux. A newly elected national government (the Coalition) has indicated that it will slow the pace of reform instigated by the Reform Agenda for Early Childhood introduced by the previous Labor Government (Ley, 2013). However, the nature of future changes is not yet known. To date, the Government has requested the Productivity Commission1 “undertake an inquiry into how child care and early childhood learning can be more flexible, affordable and accessible and responsive to the needs of today’s families and children” (Australian Government Department of Education, 2013) with the final report due in approximately 12 months. Hence, while the following overview is as current as it can be at the time of writing, some aspects of policy may be superseded by the time of publication.
The services that comprise the system
This paper focuses on services within the Australian Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) sector that cater to children who are not yet at school. School entry age in Australia ranges from 4.5 years (when children can commence school) to 6 years (the age of compulsion for all jurisdictions except Tasmania, where it is five years of age) (ACARA 2009). The ECEC sector is made up of a variety of services, including:
Pre-school (sometimes referred to as kindergarten). Traditionally provided as sessional care and education, pre-school is available to children for one or two years before the commencement of school. Pre-school may run as a morning or afternoon session; or as a short day (usually 6 hours). Stand-alone pre-schools (i.e. those not integrated with a childcare programme) keep the same opening weeks as schools. Providers of preschool vary. In some states and territories pre-schools are predominantly provided by departments of education, however they may also be provided by community based agencies. Few pre-school programmes are privately provided, unless they are incorporated into a long day care programme.
Long Day Care (centre based) (sometimes referred to as childcare centres). Full day education and care programmes, often available to children from 6 weeks of age to the commencement of school age. Long day care services operate for a minimum of 48 weeks of the year, and are open 10-12 hours a day. Long day care centres are provided by for-profit businesses (small and large), community-based associations, non-profit umbrella agencies (such as SDN Children’s Services, KU Children’s services, C & K), social enterprises (e.g. Goodstart), and local government.
Family Day Care (FDC): Home-based education and care often available to children from 6 weeks of age to the commencement of school age. Family day care educators are affiliated with and supported by a FDC coordination unit. FDC schemes are often provided by local government, community-based organisations, or for-profit businesses.
Mobile Children’s Services: Mobile children’s services provide itinerant services to children and families experiencing social, geographic, cultural or economic isolation. They operate in urban, rural and remote areas of Australia, moving from location to location to provide programmes for children and parents, which may include: advice and support to parents; playgroups; preschool programmes; and adjunct childcare.
Multifunctional Aboriginal Children’s Services (MACS): MACS are not‐for‐profit community based Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander specific early childhood services that offer a range of programmes to their local community, depending upon need. Services include long day care with at least one additional programme such as outside school-hours care, preschool, or parenting support.
Integrated Child and Family Services: Integrated services offer a range of care and education programmes in conjunction with additional supports to families including, for example, child health services, family support and early intervention programmes.
Playgroups: Playgroups are informal gatherings for family members, caregivers (including, for instance family day care educators) young children and babies. They provide a space for adults and children to interact with others. Supported Playgroups are those facilitated by an agency and provide on-site support for those attending the playgroups.
Advanced Empathy in the Early Years – A Risky Strength?
FULL REFERENCE: Hodgkins, A. (2019). Advanced empathy in the early years – a risky strength? NZ International Research in Early Childhood Education Journal, 22(1), pp. 46-58.
Log-in to read the full research paper below. Or order a pdf copy of the article from the main NZIRECE Journal page.
ABSTRACT: Empathy is commonly accepted as an essential skill for early childhood practitioners and the importance and benefits of empathy are widely understood. However, there is evidence to suggest that the use of advanced empathy techniques can lead to stress and ‘compassion fatigue’ in some practitioners; thus, it can be a ‘risky strength’. The aim of this study was to identify the use of advanced empathy among practitioners and to then identify the emotional impact of this work on their lives. This small-scale research suggests that there is indeed an emotional cost to practitioners and that many practitioners are struggling to find a work-life balance. Although the participants described a wide variety of coping mechanisms there is clearly still a need for focussed and consistent support within the profession. There is also a need to include emotional resilience education in training and professional development courses.
Key words: Empathy; early childhood; professionalism; compassion; stress; coping.
Introduction
The ability to empathise with others has long been accepted as a valuable aptitude for those working with people. Empathy has positive consequences for successful social interactions and relationships (Panfile & Laible, 2012) and it enables us to build supportive relationships with others. Empathy is one of the ‘core conditions’ illustrated by Carl Rogers (2004), along with ‘congruence’ and ‘unconditional positive regard’. Rogers (1980) described empathy as the “sensitive ability and willingness to understand the client’s thoughts, feelings and struggles from the client’s point of view” (p. 85). Being able to understand how another person may be feeling, to ‘see the world through his/her eyes’, to ‘walk a mile in his/her shoes’ is acknowledged as contributing to successful relationships. This ability to recognise how people feel is important in all aspects of personal and professional life (Akers & Porter, 2003, p. 66) and there is much literature about the use of empathy in nursing, social work and teaching (Cameron & Maginn, 2007; Hoisington, 2003; Irving & Dickson, 2004; Morse, Bottorff, Anderson, O’Brien, & Solberg, 2006; Pierce, 1982) not solely in counselling therapy. The requirement for students/trainees learning to ‘demonstrate empathy’ in the profession they aim to join is found across these disciplines.
Educator Perceptions of Risk-taking, Safety and Resilience in the Outdoors: A Rural ECE Study
FULL REFERENCE: Rouse, E. and Wishart, L. (2021). Educator perceptions of risk-taking, safety and resilience in the outdoors: a rural early childhood education and care case study. NZ International Research in Early Childhood Education Journal, 23(2), 63 – 77.
Log-in to read the full research paper below. Or order a pdf copy of the article from the main NZIRECE Journal page.
ABSTRACT: The national quality agenda across the Australian early childhood education and care (ECEC) sector has led to a renewed focus on the outdoor environment as a crucial component in children’s learning and development, where many ECEC settings are redeveloping their outdoor spaces. This paper draws from a study investigating outcomes for children arising from a redesign of one outdoor environment in an ECEC setting, located in rural New South Wales (NSW), Australia, that purposefully incorporated affordances to support children to take risks in their play. Using Rogoff’s planes of analysis, this study highlights that an educator’s enactment of a purposeful pedagogy of beneficial risk-taking is informed by their own lived experiences and the surrounding culture of their professional practice context. This study illustrates that educator attitudes to children’s risk-taking in active outdoor play are not simply shaped by overarching regulatory discourses of safety and supervision. Rather, educators may be apprenticed into ways of thinking and acting that reflect the cultural consensus of their specific context of practice. In this case a (rural) communal culture that valued risk-taking in children’s outdoor play and saw children as capable of making judgements about their risk-taking behaviour.
Key words: Risky play, active play, outdoor environments, early childhood pedagogy, affordances, Rogoff’s planes of analysis.
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