Posted on 01/21/2013 at 12:58 PM by Global Reach
In a brief article in ExchangeEveryDay, December 13, 2012, the authors talk about new research that indicates that teaching kids more and more, at younger ages, may, in fact, have a negative affect on children’s long-term learning.
“Ours is an age of pedagogy. Anxious parents instruct their children more and more, at younger and younger ages, until they’re reading books to babies in the womb. They pressure teachers to make kindergartens and nurseries more like schools. So does the law – the 2001 No Child Left Behind Act explicitly urged more direct instruction in federally-funded preschools.”
But two new studies have indicated that the direct instruction of children can actually limit young children’s learning. Direct teaching seems to be effective in getting children to learn something specific. However, it makes those children less likely to discover unexpected information and draw their own conclusions.
Preschool teachers have been right all along. Children need to play to learn. Children need to have a wide variety of experiences. Children need to be actively engaged with materials. Children need to have conversations with peers and adults.
No, preschools should not be like the school. Let them play.
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