Nursery World - Reception pressure profiled (1)

The creation of a high-quality, play-based Foundation Stage is being frustrated by Government pressure on reception teachers to prepare four-year-olds for formal education, according to research commissioned by the Association of Teachers and Lecturers (ATL).

The report, Inside the Foundation Stage: Recreating the Reception Year, by Sian Adams, Elise Alexander, Mary Jane Drummond and Janet Moyles, found that there was a lack of understanding of the place of the reception year in education, too few opportunities for purposeful talk, complex play and first-hand experiences, and not enough partnership between reception teachers and other practitioners in the Foundation Stage.

ATL primary education adviser Nansi Ellis said, 'Reception teachers are victims of disjointed national education policy. The Government's relentless preoccupation with school "standards" hinders young children's development.'

The report, published last week, was based on questionnaires completed by reception class teachers, teaching assistants, Foundation Stage governors, local authorities, and Early Years Development and Childcare Partnerships, as well as interviews and observation data. The research revealed a contrast between practitioners' welcome for the Foundation Stage and the Curriculum Guidance for the Foundation Stage, and 'some confusion' surrounding their implementation.

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