Looking beyond the academic and developmental logics in kindergarten education: the role of Schwab's commonplaces in classroom-based research

Abstract

Kindergarten has become increasingly academic in nature. One of the primary dilemmas arising from this shift is the tension between the use of developmentally appropriate practices and the obligation to teach academic standards. To gain a deeper understanding of how kindergarten is enacted in the evolving curricular landscape, we look beyond these competing perspectives to develop a theoretical framework informed by Schwab's conception of the eclectic and the four commonplaces. We re-envision the four commonplaces – subject matter, teacher, milieu, and learner – to align them with contemporary conceptions of educational purposes, practical theory, classroom climate, and childhood. Acknowledging that kindergarten is an eclectic space, we create a robust theoretical framework for researchers interested in classroom research. The application of this framework is explored using an ethnographic methodology that integrates data from classroom observations, teacher interviews, and photo elicitation interviews with the students in one kindergarten classroom.

Keywords:

• kindergarten
• teacher practice
• academic learning
• developmentally appropriate practice
• early childhood education
• curriculum

Acknowledgement

This work was supported by the Canadian Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council.

Notes on contributors

Angela Pyle is an assistant professor in the Dr. Eric Jackman Institute of Child Study at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education, University of Toronto, e-mail: [email protected]. Her interests centre on early years education and methods for meaningfully engaging young children in research.

Rebecca Luce-Kapler is acting dean and a professor in the Faculty of Education, Queen's University. Her research focuses on literary practices, particularly writing, and curriculum theory. She is author of Writing with, through, and beyond the text: An ecology of language and co-author of Engaging minds: Changing teaching in complex times.