ATL union delegates call for changes in EYFS
Katy Morton
Tuesday, April 7, 2009
Reducing the demands and workload challenges of the Early Years Foundation Stage, and designating the EYFS as a time for active learning through play rather than focusing on the assessment agenda, were among the motions debated at the Association of Teachers and Lecturers conference.
Angela Forkin, a nursery teacher at Wigan Sure Start in Merseyside, proposed changes to the three-to-11 curriculum. She said too much pressure is put on nursery children to read and write, taking time away from play and learning how to socialise, and they could be labelled as failures before they start school. She suggested that such pressure is causing behavioural problems in children of school age.
Ms Forkin said, 'Children shouldn't be standing by the whiteboard practising their handwriting, they should be exploring the world and building their motor and cognitive skills.'
Phillipa Kearns, a foundation stage teacher from Hertfordshire, urged the ATL's executive committee to recognise the growing demands on members working in the Early Years Foundation Stage, in particular the workload challenges the EYFS presents and the implications for staff levels.
Ms Kearns expressed concerns over the increasing number of assessments, arguing that 'all the paperwork is taking away from valuable teaching and preparation time'.
She claimed that the increasing amount of paperwork causes staff-child ratio problems and compromises children's safety, with two members of staff having to do detailed assessments both inside and outside the classroom, rather than watching children.
Ms Kearns said she hoped that 'a little tweaking can be made to create the right balance between children's safety and learning to ensure children do not suffer'.
