'Theyyur Aye Now Sand in Theur' Jake 4.11 Years - Transition and the Importance of the Learning Environment

Bedford, G.K.

This paper explores the importance of the school's role as the leader of the learning community. It makes brief reference to a National Context where the educational experience has narrowed to focus on the raising of standards in Basic Skills, and created an agenda of Testing and Targets resulting in unacceptable levels of pressure and disaffected learners. In response we have created a community that joins together family and school in order to embrace the child and establish positive attitudes to life long learning. Jake made a terrible discovery when he visited Year 1. He was a very young, boisterous four year old child with poor pre-school experiences and from a disadvantaged home environment. He needed space and opportunity to learn through physical and creative activities. Sand was his favourite and 'no sand' and all it stood for in his new class would mean an inappropriate environment. This paper will show how one school, located in a poor to lower middle class community, has worked to manage this challenging experience whilst retaining the child's needs as a focus, and will show how, in the process, Action Research has become an important tool for examining the school, its problems and ways to surmount these problems. Embracing the child involves a quality Home and School Partnership, including the use of technology. Research projects have explored the importance of the Indoor and Outdoor Learning Environments providing curriculum opportunities that empower a child to discover how to learn. Technology has become an important factor in this process. All children should have an educational experience that offers a balance between challenge and support and each has the right to find 'the sand' they need.

Cite as: Bedford, G.K. (2003). 'Theyyur Aye Now Sand in Theur' Jake 4.11 Years - Transition and the Importance of the Learning Environment. In Proc. Young Children and Learning Technologies. Selected papers from the International Federation for Information Processing Working Group 3.5 Open Conference, Melbourne, Australia. CRPIT, 34. Wright, J., McDougall, A., Murnane, J. and Lowe, J., Eds. ACS. 21-26.

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