The Early Years Learning Framework

The Early Years Learning Framework (EYLF) is the new educational focus for early childhood.

 

This information gives you the basics of the framework and a summary of the EYLF.

 

The Early Years Learning Framework embraces a vision for a new Australia:

• a future that embraces all Australians
• a future based on mutual respect, mutual resolve and mutual responsibility
• a future where all Australians, whatever their origins, are truly equal partners, with equal opportunities and with an equal stake in shaping the next chapter in the history of Australia

To this end, the Framework is built around a number of key concepts and principles

 

A major feature that distinguishes Australia from all other countries in the world is the ancestral relatedness of Indigenous people. This relatedness forms the world’s oldest living culture. Acknowledgment of Indigenous ancestral relatedness, its values, and how these are realised is distinctly Australian.

 

The key concepts of the EYLF are, Being, Becoming, Belonging: (the 3 B’s of the name of the Centre).

• Belonging – knowing where and with whom you belong – is integral to human existence. Children belong first to a family, a cultural group, a neighbourhood and a wider community. Belonging acknowledges children’s interdependence with others and the basis of relationships in defining identities. In early childhood, and throughout life, relationships are crucial to a sense of belonging. Belonging is central to being and becoming in that it shapes who children are and who they can become
• Being - Being recognises the significance of the here and now in children’s lives. It is about the present and them knowing themselves, building and maintaining relationships with others, engaging with life’s joys and complexities, and meeting challenges in everyday life. The early childhood years are not solely preparation for the future but also about the present
• Becoming Children’s identities, knowledge, understandings, capacities, skills and relationships change during childhood. They are shaped by many different events and circumstances. Becoming reflects this process of rapid and significant change that occurs in the early years as young children learn and grow. It emphasises learning to participate fully and actively in society
• Respect for diversity also underpins the Framework:
  • personal history, experiences and values
  • professional pathways and qualifications
  • beliefs about childhood, children, learning and curriculum
  • journey and drive for cultural competence

 

In essence early childhood education now focuses on anchoring the child within her/his family and immediate community, so that the child is then able to live in the moment and play, while being able to begin developing his/her personality and values