Dispositional development as a form of continuous professional development: centre-based reflective practices with teachers of (very) young children

Abstract

The nature of professional development in early childhood education has recently been reconceptualised, with accompanying changes in policy and practice. This paper draws from teacher education literature to define the components of continuing professional development practices in the context of early childhood education practice. By relating these components to one another, the authors describe a central concept for the growth of early childhood educators: dispositional development, the process by which teachers develop professional dispositions that are intertwined with their daily practices. Analysis, reflection and documentation of teacher work within the sociocultural context of children and families they work with shape these dispositions. The paper provides two detailed examples of the dispositional development practices the authors participated in as early childhood faculty within a university-centre partnership in the Midwestern US. The authors envisage that dispositional development responds to the concerns of early childhood teachers and orients them in a professional and conceptual process for growth.

Keywords:

• professional development
• dispositions
• reflective practices
• university–school partnership
• infant–toddler teachers

Notes

1. In this paper, we use the phrase ‘continuous professional development’ instead of the more common phrase ‘continuing professional development.’ The distinction being drawn is that when professional development is continuous – ongoing with a specific focus connected to daily practices – teachers and children benefit more.

2. The term ‘special rights’ has been appropriated from educators in the municipal infant, toddler, and preschool centers in Reggio Emilia, Italy. They use this term to recognize and embrace the differences within the makeup of each individual child (Gandini, 2012; Soncini, 2012). ‘In our view, a disability is just one of the possible differences a particular child could have … [because each] child has his or her own exceptionality’ (Soncini, 2012, p. 190). The authors use the term in this paper to refer to seeing all children, even those identified with learning or developmental characteristics that would benefit from extra support or intervention, from a strength-based perspective.