Getting started in this module
We would like to start this module by Acknowledging the Country.
We acknowledge all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples as the first sovereign people of this land.
As a community of educators, we recognise with deep respect their continuing connections to lands, waters, knowledge and cultures. In doing so we pay our respects to their Elders past, present and emerging.
Objectives of the module
In Module 2, teachers will engage in the work of creating environments that are supportive for the implementation of play-based and inquiry learning for diverse learners. Teachers may find new sources and ideas for resourcing, teaching, creating play spaces and employing effective teaching strategies for play-based and inquiry learning approaches. At the completion of this module, teachers will be able to further apply their skills in developing effective indoor and outdoor environments for their students that support play-based and inquiry learning.
As previously indicated in Module 1, research has shown that play and inquiry have an important place in the education of primary-aged students (Stagnitti, Paatsch, Nolan & Campbell, 2020). This is especially relevant for many of the Foundation students in 2021 where play experiences with peers may have been limited due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
For the new 2021 students, Foundation teachers have an increased role in supporting their transition through play-based and inquiry learning, to provide personal and social learning environments that facilitate young children’s learning capabilities, dispositions and processes to adapt to formal education in this challenging time.
Many of you may already be implementing a play-based and inquiry learning approach. These modules will present further knowledge to support your understandings and practices. For some, this will be confirmation of your practice. For others, it provides a different way of viewing teaching and learning by presenting new practices. In this module, we trust that you will continue to see the benefits of play-based and inquiry learning in the early years of schooling and how it can be further implemented in your classrooms.
Welcome
Welcome to Module 2 of the Differentiated/Play-based and Inquiry Learning for Foundation Teachers Professional Learning Program.
The module has been designed to allow for participant interaction and involvement. In working through the module, you will be asked to respond to a question or add a comment on the Padlet.
These comments and responses will be used to inform the program evaluation provided to the Department of Education and Training (DET) and also research relating to professional learning and practice change. All comments downloaded from the Module are non-identifiable.
This means that any material you generate during your interaction with the module is anonymous and cannot be traced back to you or your place of work.
If you have any questions or comments about how this data is being used, please contact the lead researcher:
Professor Andrea Nolan.
Watch the video below where Associate Professor Anne-Marie Morrissey and Dr Deb Moore will introduce themselves as facilitators for this module.
Reference: Acknowledgment to Country used in the video can be found in Nadia Wheatley’s (2006) picture storybook Going Bush.
The teacher’s role in play-based and inquiry learning
There can sometimes be a misconception that adults do not have a role in children’s play and inquiry experiences. Supporting play-based and inquiry learning is much more active than providing play resources and then standing back to let children play. Teachers must flexibly adjust their role as children move through different phases of play and inquiry.
The teacher’s role in a play-based and inquiry learning approach is particularly important in the Foundation year of schooling. In this crucial year, effective organisation of spaces, resources and considered interactions foster student learning. Please see the
Early Years Planning Cycle to demonstrate how the VEYLDF planning cycle can be applied to observe, assess and respond to evidence of children’s learning.
Connecting integrated teaching and learning to the VEYLDF
The diagram below from the
Victorian Early Years Learning and Development Framework (DET, 2018) illustrates how teachers’ roles and strategies to support play-based and inquiry learning can change over a period of time and/or within a single play episode.
The concept behind the diagram represents an integrated teaching and learning approach (
VEYLDF Practice 7), whereby the teacher’s role in play and inquiry experiences are purposeful and varied to support student learning and engagement. Play is central to the concept of integrated teaching and learning approaches and essential to stimulate and integrate a wide range of children’s intellectual, physical, social and creative abilities. The effective practice uses integrated teaching and learning approaches to support sustained and shared interactions with children. Please refer back to Module 1 here, for a reminder about the principles and practices of play-based and inquiry learning.
The activity below draws from integrated teaching and learning approaches. As you explore the diagram by clicking on the hotspots (+), you will be able to make connections between the teacher's role and play-based and inquiry learning. Think about experiences, purpose and how to support your students learning and engagement in this way.
Downloadable version of this
The Teacher’s Role in Play and Inquiry Experiences interactive poster