Lyndal O'Gorman | Queensland University of Technology (original) (raw)
Book Chapters by Lyndal O'Gorman
Early Childhood Education (ECE) has a long history of building foundations for children to achiev... more Early Childhood Education (ECE) has a long history of building foundations for children to achieve their full potential, enabling parents to participate in the economy while children are cared for, addressing poverty and disadvantage, and building individual, community and societal resources. In so doing, ECE has developed a set of cultural practices and ways of knowing that shape the field and the people who work within it. ECE, consequently, is frequently described as unique and special (Moss, 2006; Penn, 2011). This works to define and distinguish the field while, simultaneously, insulating it from other contexts, professions, and ideas. Recognising this dualism illuminates some of the risks and challenges of operating in an insular and isolated fashion.
In the 21st century, there are new challenges for children, families and societies to which ECE must respond if it is to continue to be relevant. One major issue is how ECE contributes to transition towards more sustainable ways of living. Addressing this contemporary social problem is one from which Early Childhood teacher education has been largely absent (Davis & Elliott, 2014), despite the well recognised but often ignored role of education in contributing to sustainability. Because of its complexity, sustainability is sometimes referred to as a ‘wicked problem’ (Rittel & Webber, 1973; Australian Public Service Commission, 2007) requiring alternatives to ‘business as usual’ problem solving approaches. In this chapter, we propose that addressing such problems alongside disciplines other than Education enables the Early Childhood profession to have its eyes opened to new ways of thinking about our work, potentially liberating us from the limitations of our “unique” and idiosyncratic professional cultures.
In our chapter, we focus on understandings of culture and diversity, looking to broaden these by exploring the different ‘cultures’ of the specialist fields of ECE and Design (in this project, we worked with students studying Architecture, Industrial Design, Landscape Architecture and Interior Design). We define culture not as it is typically represented, i.e. in relation to ideas and customs of particular ethnic and language groups, but to the ideas and practices of people working in different disciplines and professions. We assert that different specialisms have their own ‘cultural’ practices. Further, we propose that this kind of theoretical work helps us to reconsider ways in which ECE might be reframed and broadened to meet new challenges such as sustainability and as yet unknown future challenges and possibilities.
We explore these matters by turning to preservice Early Childhood teacher education (in Australia) as a context in which traditional views of culture and diversity might be reconstructed. We are looking to push our specialist knowledge boundaries and to extend both preservice teachers and academics beyond their comfort zones by engaging in innovative interdisciplinary learning and teaching. We describe a case study of preservice Early Childhood teachers and designers working in collaborative teams, intersecting with a ‘real-world’ business partner. The joint learning task was the design of an early learning centre based on sustainable design principles and in which early Education for Sustainability (EfS) would be embedded
Data were collected via focus group and individual interviews with students in ECE and Design. Our findings suggest that interdisciplinary teaching and learning holds considerable potential in dismantling taken-for-granted cultural practices, such that professional roles and identities might be reimagined and reconfigured. We conclude the chapter with provocations challenging the ways in which culture and diversity in the field of ECE might be reconsidered within teacher education.
Papers by Lyndal O'Gorman
In a study undertaken in Queensland, Australia, analysis of a survey that included both qualitati... more In a study undertaken in Queensland, Australia, analysis of a survey that included both qualitative and quantitative questions revealed that, like their Japanese counterparts, early childhood teachers do not have welldeveloped ideas and practices in education for sustainability (EfS). Instead, they mainly practise traditional nature-based activities, such as gardening
or playing outdoors, and teaching about resource conservation through books, posters or fact sheets. Teachers’ understandings of nature education, environmental education, and education for sustainability seem to influence their educational practices. Deeper understandings about sustainability are necessary to extend beyond such traditional practices. Even though national curriculum frameworks and guidelines point to the importance of sustainability within early childhood curriculum, these appear to be insufficient in strengthening early childhood teachers’ ideas of sustainability
and how to practise it effectively. We suggest that it would be beneficial for early childhood teachers, both preservice and inservice, to have professional development opportunities that build deeper understandings of sustainability and its implementation in their settings.
… : theories, methods and …, 2004
Increased enrolment in the non-government school sector, provision of full-time preparatory year ... more Increased enrolment in the non-government school sector, provision of full-time preparatory year programs in non-government schools, the current trial of a full-time preparatory year in Queensland schools, and the paucity of research into parent views of preparatory year programs necessitate research into these phenomena. This paper mounts a case for research using a phenomenographic approach to explore the qualitatively different ways that parents view the preparatory year. Findings from this research have the potential to contribute to current debates surrounding the Preparing for School trial in Queensland.
![Research paper thumbnail of Thinking and learning through drawing in primary classrooms [A Book Review]](https://attachments.academia-assets.com/43173899/thumbnails/1.jpg)
](Contemporatry Issues in Early Childhood, 2009
O'Gorman, Lyndal May <http://eprints.qut.edu.au/view/person/O=27Gorman,\_Lyndal. html> ... more O'Gorman, Lyndal May <http://eprints.qut.edu.au/view/person/O=27Gorman,_Lyndal. html> (2009) Thinking and learning through drawing in primary classrooms [A Book Review]. Contemporatry Issues in Early Childhood, 10(1), pp. 86-88.
Australian Journal of Early Childhood, 2008
O'Gorman, Lyndal M. <http://eprints.qut.edu.au/view/person/O=27Gorman,\_Lyndal.html> (2... more O'Gorman, Lyndal M. <http://eprints.qut.edu.au/view/person/O=27Gorman,_Lyndal.html> (2008) The preparatory year in a Queensland non-government school : exploring parents' views. Australian Journal of Early Childhood, 33(3), pp. 51-58.
The introduction of a universal, full-time Preparatory Year in all Queensland schools from 2007 i... more The introduction of a universal, full-time Preparatory Year in all Queensland schools from 2007 is a significant reform in early childhood education and care (ECEC) in that state. Rapidly increasing enrolment of children in full-time Preparatory Year programs in non-government schools has been a feature of the Queensland context over the past decade. These trends, along with efforts towards consistency of services and universal school starting ages across Australian states and territories have prompted this important reform to early education in Queensland. Constructions of the role of parents as consumers of early childhood services and/or partners in their children's early education suggest that consideration of parent views of this reform is both timely and strategic. This thesis reports the findings of a research project investigating parent conceptions of a Preparatory Year in a non-government school in outer urban Queensland. The research used a phenomenographic approach to elicit and describe the qualitatively different ways in which a group of 26 parents viewed the Preparatory Year. Analysis revealed that the range of parent conceptions of the Preparatory Year demonstrated varying emphasis on parent needs, child needs and preparation for future success in school and beyond. The study led to the construction of five categories of description outlining five different ways of understanding the Preparatory Year. The Preparatory Year was viewed in relation to (1) the current needs of the parents, (2) the current needs of the child, (3) preparation for Year One, (4) providing an advantage in primary school, and (5) preparation for future success beyond school. These five categories were linked and differentiated from each other by two central themes, or dimensions of variation: (1) a beneficiary dimension in which either the parent or the child were seen to benefit from the program, and (2) a temporal dimension in which the iii program was viewed in relation to meeting current needs or preparing for the future.
Contemporary Issues in Early Childhood, 2012
Within early childhood education two ideas are firmly held: that play is the best way for childre... more Within early childhood education two ideas are firmly held: that play is the best way for children to learn, and that parents are partners in the child's learning. While these ideas have been explored, limited research to date has investigated the confluence of the two -how parents of young children view the concept of play. This article investigates parents' views on play by analysing the views of a small group of parents of Preparatory Year (Prep) children in Queensland, Australia. The parents in this study held varying definitions of what constitutes play, and complex and contradictory notions of its value. Positive views of play were linked to learning without knowing it, engaging in hands-on activities, and preparation for Year One through a strong focus on academic progress. Some parents held that Prep was play-based, while others did not. The complexities and diversity of parental opinion in this study echo the ongoing commentary about how play ought to be defined. Moreover, the notion that adults may interpret play in different ways is also reflected here. The authors suggest that for early childhood educators these complexities require an ongoing engagement, debate, and reconceptualisation of the place of play in light of broader curricular and sociopolitical agendas.
The internationalisation of higher education is a global phenomenon and Australian universities i... more The internationalisation of higher education is a global phenomenon and Australian universities in particular are experiencing increasing cultural diversity in their student population. This is true also in the cohorts of pre-service teachers in education faculties. This paper explores some issues in assessing international pre-service teachers from the perspectives of lecturing staff, liaison staff and supervising classroom teachers during field experience. The authors present preliminary data from a pilot project in which participants representing these three roles were interviewed. Participants were asked to describe their experiences, beliefs and attitudes to the assessment of international pre-service students during field experience, with particular emphasis on ethical issues that arose during these experiences. The findings suggest concerns around a lack of international students' English language proficiency, insufficient background information for these students on schooling in Australia, limited information for supervising teachers to support these students during field experience, and inconsistent approaches to grading students against assessment criteria.
Contemporary Issues in Early Childhood, 2007
Recent developments in the Queensland early childhood context have seen the phased-in introductio... more Recent developments in the Queensland early childhood context have seen the phased-in introduction of a full-time Preparatory Year to replace current part-time preschool provision. Surrounding this development has been discussion of the potential role of the play-based Early Years Curriculum in shaping the implementation of early primary schooling. This article explores this change to early childhood provision in Queensland and the opportunity it provides for leadership from the field of early childhood education and care (ECEC). Will those from the ECEC field step forward to articulate the value of a play-based curriculum such that it influences the curriculum in the early years of school? Could we see a 'pull-you' of early childhood philosophy rather than a 'push-me' of more formal approaches? This article draws on two research projects to raise questions about the potential for leadership in the new world of Queensland's Preparatory Year. It suggests four key elements, which include knowledge of self, the field and the context, and the challenge that might be considered by those who would advocate early childhood philosophy in primary schools.
Environmental Education Research, 2013
Environmental and sustainability issues pose challenges for society. Although education is seen a... more Environmental and sustainability issues pose challenges for society. Although education is seen as being a contributor to addressing sustainability, teacher education has been slow to act in preparing future teachers to teach sustainability. Recent Australian curriculum documents nominate sustainability as one of three cross-curriculum priorities. In one Australian university course, an Ecological Footprint Calculator tool has been employed to challenge preservice early childhood teachers to consider the sustainability of their lifestyles as a means for engaging them in learning and teaching for sustainability. Students enrolled in an integrated arts and humanities subject voluntarily engaged with the online calculator and shared their findings on an electronic discussion forum. These postings then became the basis of qualitative analysis and discussion. Data categories included reactions and reflections on reasons for the ‘heaviness’ of their footprints , student reactions leading to actions to reduce their footprints, reflections on the implications of the footprint results for future teaching, reactions that considered the need for societal change, and reflections on the integration of sustainability with the visual arts. The power of the tool’s application to stimulate interest in sustainability and education for sustainability more broadly in teacher education is explored.
Early Childhood Education (ECE) has a long history of building foundations for children to achiev... more Early Childhood Education (ECE) has a long history of building foundations for children to achieve their full potential, enabling parents to participate in the economy while children are cared for, addressing poverty and disadvantage, and building individual, community and societal resources. In so doing, ECE has developed a set of cultural practices and ways of knowing that shape the field and the people who work within it. ECE, consequently, is frequently described as unique and special (Moss, 2006; Penn, 2011). This works to define and distinguish the field while, simultaneously, insulating it from other contexts, professions, and ideas. Recognising this dualism illuminates some of the risks and challenges of operating in an insular and isolated fashion.
In the 21st century, there are new challenges for children, families and societies to which ECE must respond if it is to continue to be relevant. One major issue is how ECE contributes to transition towards more sustainable ways of living. Addressing this contemporary social problem is one from which Early Childhood teacher education has been largely absent (Davis & Elliott, 2014), despite the well recognised but often ignored role of education in contributing to sustainability. Because of its complexity, sustainability is sometimes referred to as a ‘wicked problem’ (Rittel & Webber, 1973; Australian Public Service Commission, 2007) requiring alternatives to ‘business as usual’ problem solving approaches. In this chapter, we propose that addressing such problems alongside disciplines other than Education enables the Early Childhood profession to have its eyes opened to new ways of thinking about our work, potentially liberating us from the limitations of our “unique” and idiosyncratic professional cultures.
In our chapter, we focus on understandings of culture and diversity, looking to broaden these by exploring the different ‘cultures’ of the specialist fields of ECE and Design (in this project, we worked with students studying Architecture, Industrial Design, Landscape Architecture and Interior Design). We define culture not as it is typically represented, i.e. in relation to ideas and customs of particular ethnic and language groups, but to the ideas and practices of people working in different disciplines and professions. We assert that different specialisms have their own ‘cultural’ practices. Further, we propose that this kind of theoretical work helps us to reconsider ways in which ECE might be reframed and broadened to meet new challenges such as sustainability and as yet unknown future challenges and possibilities.
We explore these matters by turning to preservice Early Childhood teacher education (in Australia) as a context in which traditional views of culture and diversity might be reconstructed. We are looking to push our specialist knowledge boundaries and to extend both preservice teachers and academics beyond their comfort zones by engaging in innovative interdisciplinary learning and teaching. We describe a case study of preservice Early Childhood teachers and designers working in collaborative teams, intersecting with a ‘real-world’ business partner. The joint learning task was the design of an early learning centre based on sustainable design principles and in which early Education for Sustainability (EfS) would be embedded
Data were collected via focus group and individual interviews with students in ECE and Design. Our findings suggest that interdisciplinary teaching and learning holds considerable potential in dismantling taken-for-granted cultural practices, such that professional roles and identities might be reimagined and reconfigured. We conclude the chapter with provocations challenging the ways in which culture and diversity in the field of ECE might be reconsidered within teacher education.
In a study undertaken in Queensland, Australia, analysis of a survey that included both qualitati... more In a study undertaken in Queensland, Australia, analysis of a survey that included both qualitative and quantitative questions revealed that, like their Japanese counterparts, early childhood teachers do not have welldeveloped ideas and practices in education for sustainability (EfS). Instead, they mainly practise traditional nature-based activities, such as gardening
or playing outdoors, and teaching about resource conservation through books, posters or fact sheets. Teachers’ understandings of nature education, environmental education, and education for sustainability seem to influence their educational practices. Deeper understandings about sustainability are necessary to extend beyond such traditional practices. Even though national curriculum frameworks and guidelines point to the importance of sustainability within early childhood curriculum, these appear to be insufficient in strengthening early childhood teachers’ ideas of sustainability
and how to practise it effectively. We suggest that it would be beneficial for early childhood teachers, both preservice and inservice, to have professional development opportunities that build deeper understandings of sustainability and its implementation in their settings.
… : theories, methods and …, 2004
Increased enrolment in the non-government school sector, provision of full-time preparatory year ... more Increased enrolment in the non-government school sector, provision of full-time preparatory year programs in non-government schools, the current trial of a full-time preparatory year in Queensland schools, and the paucity of research into parent views of preparatory year programs necessitate research into these phenomena. This paper mounts a case for research using a phenomenographic approach to explore the qualitatively different ways that parents view the preparatory year. Findings from this research have the potential to contribute to current debates surrounding the Preparing for School trial in Queensland.
Contemporatry Issues in Early Childhood, 2009
O'Gorman, Lyndal May <http://eprints.qut.edu.au/view/person/O=27Gorman,\_Lyndal. html> ... more O'Gorman, Lyndal May <http://eprints.qut.edu.au/view/person/O=27Gorman,_Lyndal. html> (2009) Thinking and learning through drawing in primary classrooms [A Book Review]. Contemporatry Issues in Early Childhood, 10(1), pp. 86-88.
Australian Journal of Early Childhood, 2008
O'Gorman, Lyndal M. <http://eprints.qut.edu.au/view/person/O=27Gorman,\_Lyndal.html> (2... more O'Gorman, Lyndal M. <http://eprints.qut.edu.au/view/person/O=27Gorman,_Lyndal.html> (2008) The preparatory year in a Queensland non-government school : exploring parents' views. Australian Journal of Early Childhood, 33(3), pp. 51-58.
The introduction of a universal, full-time Preparatory Year in all Queensland schools from 2007 i... more The introduction of a universal, full-time Preparatory Year in all Queensland schools from 2007 is a significant reform in early childhood education and care (ECEC) in that state. Rapidly increasing enrolment of children in full-time Preparatory Year programs in non-government schools has been a feature of the Queensland context over the past decade. These trends, along with efforts towards consistency of services and universal school starting ages across Australian states and territories have prompted this important reform to early education in Queensland. Constructions of the role of parents as consumers of early childhood services and/or partners in their children's early education suggest that consideration of parent views of this reform is both timely and strategic. This thesis reports the findings of a research project investigating parent conceptions of a Preparatory Year in a non-government school in outer urban Queensland. The research used a phenomenographic approach to elicit and describe the qualitatively different ways in which a group of 26 parents viewed the Preparatory Year. Analysis revealed that the range of parent conceptions of the Preparatory Year demonstrated varying emphasis on parent needs, child needs and preparation for future success in school and beyond. The study led to the construction of five categories of description outlining five different ways of understanding the Preparatory Year. The Preparatory Year was viewed in relation to (1) the current needs of the parents, (2) the current needs of the child, (3) preparation for Year One, (4) providing an advantage in primary school, and (5) preparation for future success beyond school. These five categories were linked and differentiated from each other by two central themes, or dimensions of variation: (1) a beneficiary dimension in which either the parent or the child were seen to benefit from the program, and (2) a temporal dimension in which the iii program was viewed in relation to meeting current needs or preparing for the future.
Contemporary Issues in Early Childhood, 2012
Within early childhood education two ideas are firmly held: that play is the best way for childre... more Within early childhood education two ideas are firmly held: that play is the best way for children to learn, and that parents are partners in the child's learning. While these ideas have been explored, limited research to date has investigated the confluence of the two -how parents of young children view the concept of play. This article investigates parents' views on play by analysing the views of a small group of parents of Preparatory Year (Prep) children in Queensland, Australia. The parents in this study held varying definitions of what constitutes play, and complex and contradictory notions of its value. Positive views of play were linked to learning without knowing it, engaging in hands-on activities, and preparation for Year One through a strong focus on academic progress. Some parents held that Prep was play-based, while others did not. The complexities and diversity of parental opinion in this study echo the ongoing commentary about how play ought to be defined. Moreover, the notion that adults may interpret play in different ways is also reflected here. The authors suggest that for early childhood educators these complexities require an ongoing engagement, debate, and reconceptualisation of the place of play in light of broader curricular and sociopolitical agendas.
The internationalisation of higher education is a global phenomenon and Australian universities i... more The internationalisation of higher education is a global phenomenon and Australian universities in particular are experiencing increasing cultural diversity in their student population. This is true also in the cohorts of pre-service teachers in education faculties. This paper explores some issues in assessing international pre-service teachers from the perspectives of lecturing staff, liaison staff and supervising classroom teachers during field experience. The authors present preliminary data from a pilot project in which participants representing these three roles were interviewed. Participants were asked to describe their experiences, beliefs and attitudes to the assessment of international pre-service students during field experience, with particular emphasis on ethical issues that arose during these experiences. The findings suggest concerns around a lack of international students' English language proficiency, insufficient background information for these students on schooling in Australia, limited information for supervising teachers to support these students during field experience, and inconsistent approaches to grading students against assessment criteria.
Contemporary Issues in Early Childhood, 2007
Recent developments in the Queensland early childhood context have seen the phased-in introductio... more Recent developments in the Queensland early childhood context have seen the phased-in introduction of a full-time Preparatory Year to replace current part-time preschool provision. Surrounding this development has been discussion of the potential role of the play-based Early Years Curriculum in shaping the implementation of early primary schooling. This article explores this change to early childhood provision in Queensland and the opportunity it provides for leadership from the field of early childhood education and care (ECEC). Will those from the ECEC field step forward to articulate the value of a play-based curriculum such that it influences the curriculum in the early years of school? Could we see a 'pull-you' of early childhood philosophy rather than a 'push-me' of more formal approaches? This article draws on two research projects to raise questions about the potential for leadership in the new world of Queensland's Preparatory Year. It suggests four key elements, which include knowledge of self, the field and the context, and the challenge that might be considered by those who would advocate early childhood philosophy in primary schools.
Environmental Education Research, 2013
Environmental and sustainability issues pose challenges for society. Although education is seen a... more Environmental and sustainability issues pose challenges for society. Although education is seen as being a contributor to addressing sustainability, teacher education has been slow to act in preparing future teachers to teach sustainability. Recent Australian curriculum documents nominate sustainability as one of three cross-curriculum priorities. In one Australian university course, an Ecological Footprint Calculator tool has been employed to challenge preservice early childhood teachers to consider the sustainability of their lifestyles as a means for engaging them in learning and teaching for sustainability. Students enrolled in an integrated arts and humanities subject voluntarily engaged with the online calculator and shared their findings on an electronic discussion forum. These postings then became the basis of qualitative analysis and discussion. Data categories included reactions and reflections on reasons for the ‘heaviness’ of their footprints , student reactions leading to actions to reduce their footprints, reflections on the implications of the footprint results for future teaching, reactions that considered the need for societal change, and reflections on the integration of sustainability with the visual arts. The power of the tool’s application to stimulate interest in sustainability and education for sustainability more broadly in teacher education is explored.