Ryan Falconer

100390239
Kindergarten Pedagogy and Curriculum Structure
How can teachers balance the structure of an inquiry driven play based
kindergarten curriculum with the societal needs to see results in the form of
higher standardized test scores? While the new Full Day Kindergarten
curriculum in Ontario is a curriculum that is a play-based initiative, there are
those not familiar with the reasons behind the shift to an inquiry play-based
curriculum that believe that any early years kindergarten program should be
focused on preparing students for improving their test scores in later formal
education.
In 2001, the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) program instituted in the
United States created a need for an improvement in test scores (Chard,
Baker, Clarke, Jungjohann, David & Smolkowski, 2008). Chard et. al. (2008)
argue that a highly structured mathematics program can have positive
results that are two fold. First, that students will develop a stronger
understanding of both mathematical concepts as well as mathematical
vocabulary to aid them in future education. Secondly, that teachers will
increase their knowledge of mathematics. The math curriculum proposed by
Chard et. al. (2008) involves 100 lessons that include 30 minute lessons,
parent and teacher collaboration, and the use of manipulatives. While their
study does show some improvement in terms of math test scores and
positive feedback by teachers involved in the study, Chard et. al. admit to
some limitations in their work. For instance, the results of the study cannot

be considered significant due to the limited sample size and structure of the
study. While there are many issues with this approach in relation to playbased learning, there are some salient points that are addressed in this
study. For example, there is an emphasis placed on parent/ teacher
interactions and the need to cultivate these relationships early in the
education careers of students. This relationship will lead to better
communication, a stronger sense of why these concepts are important for
the child to learn, as well as create an accountability factor that will hopefully
increase and focus the concepts learned in school while the child is not in
school. Programs like the ones outlined by Chard et. al. (2010) will also
increase the comfort level of teachers with their own pedagogy and this is
argued to help reduce the math phobias that many students and teachers
share. With better attitudes towards math, it can be argued that attitudes
will allow for students to want to extend their learning rather then just
completing the sufficient work needed to complete the tasks asked of them.
One issue the study does not address though is the issue of play and
exploration that many theorist, such as Piaget, argue to be essential in the
social and intellectual development of children in the kindergarten years
(Nicolopoulou, 2010). Nicolopoulou (2010) argues that the initiatives of the
NCLB initiative ignores the importance of the developmental progressions as
well as minimize the importance that play-based curriculums add to the
natural intellectual development of children. He also argues that in order for
children to relate to mathematical concepts, they must also be exposed to

these concepts in ways that they can relate to. In order to not create math
phobias, children must be gradually introduced to abstract concepts through
hands on experimentation and exploration during play. Nicolopoulou
acknowledges that initiative like NCLB are implemented with the best of
intentions. One of the main arguments for rigorous early learning
interventions is that many literacies needed for success in formal education
are prevalent in the social construct of middle and upper class families, yet
are absent from the lower socio-economic families causing an education gap
that is not being addressed in many school boards, especially those public
school boards of the United States (Chard et. al., 2010). NCLB is designed to
reduce or eliminate these gaps between the classes, yet try to do so in a
structure that does not map onto the developmental theories of early
childhood education (Nicolopoulou, 2010).
Cochrane, Cochrane, Cholette and Nordling (2011) have applied the
concept of play-based learning even further to address behaviour issues in
kindergarten children. Their study used play-based therapy in order to
expose children to the social impacts their negative behaviour had childrens
relationships with adults and peers. While this study was limited to
behaviour, their results showed that play-based environments allowed for
improved understanding of both positive and negative social interactions.
This study can be extrapolated to the importance of play-based learning and
again relates to Nicolopoulous (2010) argument that experimentation is a
necessary prerequisite for a kindergarten curriculum in order to allow for the

natural development of both the emotional and intellectual growth of

kindergarten children.
While these arguments for play-based learning are grounded in
developmental theories of Piaget, Vygotsky and others (Nicolopoulou, 2010),
they do not address the needs society is calling for in terms of empirical
proof of increasing childrens test scores. Jordan, Glutting, Dyson, HassingerDas, and Irwin (2012) attempt to bridge these two issues by showing how a
number sense intervention program can improve students understanding of
mathematical concepts. This program is different from Chard et. al. because
of its use of small group interventions and the use of games in order to
address the lack of number sense in students from low socio-economic
families. Jordan et. al. (2012) use board games, spinners and manipulatives
to show how a math intensive program can be used to raise the
understanding of basic number sense concepts to those students who are
struggling. While their focus is not focused on play-based instructions, their
methods do correspond with the developmental needs of students raised by
Nicolopoulou (2010) and use play-based initiatives, whether consciously or
not, to show how small group interventions can improve childrens future
learning of mathematical concepts.
While there are many proponents of early interventions of kindergarten
curriculums in order to better prepare students for future schooling, many of
these that focus on test results in order to appease programs like the NCLB,
tend to ignore the developmental needs of the children (Nicolopoulou, 2010).

If these developmental stages are brought into the fold, then many of the
early learner interventions that focus solely on objectives will only improve
childrens test scores at the expense of the holistic development in our
children. While reducing the education gap between the middle class and
lower socio-economic families is important, it cannot be done at the expense
of the normal development of children. It can only be truly effective if done
in conjunction with what is already known about the stages of development
and using this knowledge to encourage children to explore and create
context in their lives that can then be later molded into higher levels of
abstract concepts. While there is room for small group focused interventions
during the kindergarten years, these should be done so while mapping onto
the ideas of Piaget that emphasizes play-based exploration and
experimentation in order to ensure the holistic development of children.

References
Cochran, J. L., Cochran, N. H., Cholette, A., & Nordling, W. J. (2011). Limits
and relationship in child-centered play therapy: Two case studies.
International Journal of Play Therapy, 20(4), 236-251. doi:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/a0025425
David, J. C., Scott, K. B., Clarke, B., Jungjohann, K., Davis, K., & Smolkowski,
K. (2008). Preventing early mathematics difficulties: The feasibility of a
rigorous kindergarten mathematics curriculum. Learning Disability
Quarterly, 31(1), 11-20. Retrieved from
http://search.proquest.com.uproxy.library.dcuoit.ca/docview/233087514?accountid=14694
Jordan, N. C., Glutting, J., Dyson, N., Hassinger-Das, B., & Irwin, C. (2012).
Building kindergartners' number sense: A randomized controlled study.
Journal of Educational Psychology, 104(3), 647-660. doi:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/a0029018
Nicolopoulou, A. (2010). The alarming disappearance of play from early
childhood education. Human Development, 53(1), 1-4. doi:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1159/000268135