Monday, April 22, 2013

So, Have YOU Read the NQS - Quality Area 1?!?!


How many of us have actually read the NQS ~ Quality Area 1? Come on, hands up ... Well, you know who you are ...

Ok, I have ... Originally it was a year ago ... and then I thought I might look at it again about 5 months ago, and then I got distracted, and last week I thought, no, damn it, I’m going to do this! So I did. Wow. It looks different (well, not really, it’s the same, I am different. “It’s not you (NQS), It’s me.”).

So, do we read and know and educate ourselves? Or do we simply blindly do what our management (directors, owners, area managers, CEOs etc) tell us to? And where do they get their information? I’ve read on the world wide interwebz that people are being asked to not only link their observations and planning to the EYLF (Principles, Practices and the Outcomes) and now the NQS. One person said that their Assessor commented at their Assessment Visit upon their NQS linking practice as favourable. Please do not lead us all down that track again.

Come on people! READ!!!

Don’t always do as you are told! Be independent thinkers (The irony here is that this is what we are supposed to be teaching children!).

People are going to tell you lots and lots of (I’m going to swear, look away if you’re sensitive) bullshit (ok, you can look back now). It doesn’t mean that its true and you have to do it.

Please. PLEASE don’t be naive. Please don’t be sheep. Please don’t just do as you are told. Please question! Please read. Please educate yourselves! And I don’t mean go to training (‘cause a lot of them don’t know what they’re doing either ;))! I mean READ and THINK and REFLECT on the NQS as well as the EYLF or whichever learning framework you are using. That’s what they tell us to do: NQS Element 1.2.3. It’s there in perhaps not so plain English.

I’ve stood upon my official Teacher’s Ink. Soapbox before and made declarations on this matter. And I feel the need to do this again. You don’t need to link the observations to the Principles and Practices! They are about the children, their thoughts, ideas ... their learning, development, and skills. Got that?

Look. I can’t really even start to talk to you guys about my thinking on Quality Area 1 because I’m drowning in the thinking of it! I’ve been breaking it down into chunks. I’ve been turning each element into a sort of mind-map and I’ve highlighted the key words that really stand out for me. I don’t know where to start, and I don’t even know exactly what I’d say! I’m a visual learner – so turning each element into a sort of mind-map – really is helping me. Plus I like arrows. It helps me to connect aspects of the elements together. With arrows. Did I mention I’m liking arrows? And colours. I’m doing them in colour so they’re prettier. ‘Cause let’s face it. The NQS isn’t pretty. It’s the small things that excite me these days.

So yeah, I don’t have a lot to say in regards to specific elements of the standards (‘cause I’m still working on this in my brain) BUT I do implore that you don’t be sheep, mindless robots, doers not thinkers.

Think my people! THINK!

Ok, stepping down from the official soap box now ...

© Teacher’s Ink. 2013

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