Early childhood education: The New Zealand context

Early Childhood Education: The New Zealand Context - Te Mātauranga Kōhungahunga: kei Aotearoa nei

The DOPs are founded on two guiding principles. These principles require early childhood services to:

1. Work in partnership with parents/whànau to promote and extend the learning and development of each child who attends or receives the service
2. Develop and implement a curriculum that assists all children to be:
   • competent and confident learners and communicators
   • healthy in mind, body, and spirit
   • secure in their sense of belonging
   • secure in the knowledge that they make a valued contribution to society.

In New Zealand, these principles will be realised in ways that reflect the unique place of Māori as treaty partners and the Government’s commitment to Māori education.

Quality in Action builds on the bicultural approach to early childhood education promoted by Te Whāriki: He Whāriki Mātauranga mō ngā Mokopuna o Aotearoa/Early Childhood Curriculum.¹ Throughout Quality in Action, bicultural approaches are suggested for each DOP so that all children and their families are enriched with knowledge of both partners in the Treaty of Waitangi and so that services can support Māori children and whānau.

Quality in Action also aims to fully reflect the diversity of New Zealand society. The multicultural nature of our early childhood services has been considered throughout the development of the document, and Pacific Islands people have been consulted along with many others to ensure that the publication supports and includes all children and their families.

The information contained in Quality in Action is relevant to all chartered early childhood services. Individual services have not been named or identified, and the term “service” is used to refer to all early childhood settings. This is consistent with the definition given in the DOPs themselves. The use of the terms “management” and “educator” is also consistent with that in the DOPs. Note, however, that the expression parents/guardians and whānau” is abbreviated to “parents/whānau”.  Note also that, in addition to family, the term “whānau” takes in kinship ties through whakapapa (genealogy) and people who come together for the same kaupapa (purpose).

Footnotes

¹ See page 40 for an explanation of the relationship between the DOPs and Te Whāriki.