Assignment 1: Essay ( This is for Early childhood degree for 0-5 years old children )
Word limit: 2000 (+/- 10%)
Weighting: 50%
Due date: 5pm AEST 21st of May
After you have read this information, head over to the Assignment 1 Q&A discussion board to ask any questions and see what your peers are saying about this assignment.
You are required to write an essay on the topic of educational leadership and management. This unit explores a range of models and theories of leadership and an early childhood professional can be expected to lead and manage aspects of their professional role. This includes being a team member, planning curriculum and assessment, designing and/or contributing to policy and communicating with families. Leading and managing requires you to make decisions in your professional role about ‘people (self and others), places (educational settings) and relational practices (roles and responsibilities’) (McCrea, 2015, p. 3).
This assignment supports unit learning outcomes 1, 2 and 3.
Students who successfully complete this unit will be able to:
- analyse the skills and dispositions required for the roles of early childhood leader and manager and appreciate their inter-connectedness
- apply current theories and models of leadership and understand how they apply them appropriately to educational settings
- identify legal requirements for managing and operating early childhood services
- work collaboratively to develop early childhood policies and procedures
- critically evaluate principles and strategies for assessment and reporting of student learning and development
- examine ethical requirements for policies and working in complex partnerships with families, children, colleagues and members of the community.
Respond to the following quote in an essay that explains a possible problem with leadership and management in early childhood settings.
‘Understanding leadership in early childhood has been plagued by its confusion with the concept of management’ (Rodd, 2013, p. 19).
Throughout your response, you will:
- Make sure your essay is clear, includes an introduction that frames the essay and concludes with a summary of the essay question findings
- discuss and analyse the roles of leaders and managers in educational settings (including pedagogical leaders) and analyse the required skills and dispositions of these roles
- describe and analyse a range of models and theories of leadership and management
- apply models and theories of leadership and management to educational settings, describing what this looks like for people, places and practices
- support your response with relevant unit readings including the compulsory text
- make use of quotes to support discussion and analysis
- adhere to APA referencing style.
Any resources referred to in your essay must be included in a reference list, appropriately formatted in APA style. This will not be included in the final word count.
Preparing your essay
Careful review of the unit learning materials provided and active participation in the weekly discussions will ensure you are well prepared for this assignment. Weeks 1–5 have been specifically designed to provide the information you need to complete your essay. In particular:
- Week 1: Introduction to educational leadership and management provides a general introduction to the field of leadership and management and begins to discuss the required skills and disposition, defining the differences between leadership and management.
- Week 2: Theories and models of leadership explains, compares and critiques a range of theories and models of leadership as well as leadership roles.
- Week 3: Pedagogical leadership explores the role of the pedagogical leader in early childhood education.
- Week 4: Governance and management structures looks at organisational responsibilities involved in the administration of educational services including budgets.
- Week 5: Leading and managing provides strategies for working ethically and making professional judgments.
Throughout your teaching and learning journey, you will be required to use the nationally approved learning frameworks (the Early Years Learning Framework or the Australian Curriculum) or the approved learning frameworks for your state or territory. To help you further build capability in this area, and to prepare you for placements, at Swinburne Online you may choose to use the nationally approved learning frameworks or the approved learning frameworks for your state or territory in your assignments. For further information specific to your assignments for this specific unit, please seek advice from your eLAs and/or your Unit Coordinator.
Supporting resources
The following resources assist you with completing this assignment:
- Referencing (Links to an external site.) (includes guidelines on how to cite and reference ACARA and EYLF).
- The Assignment support section of the Academic practice (Links to an external site.) page in the Student Hub.
- The Essay writing section of the Academic writing and presenting (Links to an external site.) page in the Student Hub.
| High Distinction [HD 80–100%] To be awarded a High Distinction for this task, the work must fulfil the requirements of the Distinction grade but at a higher standard, as described by the standards statements. | Integrates ideas in a well-structured, logical and coherent order.Demonstrates deep and relevant connections between each of the sections.Demonstrates detailed, accurate, thoughtful, mature and professional knowledge.Analyses relevant professional skills, dispositions, where the relationship between ideas is evident.Articulates models of leadership and management and the analysis clearly includes the values and challenges of discussed models.Is supported by relevant unit materials and wider readings. Material from a variety of sources is drawn together in interesting ways.References are embedded expertly into the flow of information and ideas with a well-managed balance of paraphrasing and quotation.There are no referencing errors and obvious care and attention has been given to planning, editing and proofreading. |
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