School: Education

This unit information may be updated and amended immediately prior to semester. To ensure you have the correct outline, please check it again at the beginning of semester.

  • Unit Title

    Contemporary Issues in Early Childhood Education
  • Unit Code

    EPA6370
  • Year

    2025
  • Enrolment Period

    1
  • Version

    1
  • Credit Points

    15
  • Full Year Unit

    N
  • Mode of Delivery

  • Unit Coordinator

    Dr Leanne LAVINA

Description

This unit builds on international and national contemporary research and discussion on early childhood models of curriculum delivery, leadership, pedagogy and the sweeping policy and legislative reforms facing early childhood education in Australia. Early childhood education in Australia is in the process of unparalleled policy development and implementation with a national focus on positive outcomes for children, families and communities. Students will demonstrate knowledge of early childhood policy, legislation, leadership, pedagogy and curriculum delivery as they examine contemporary issues and respond to current reforms. They will examine perspectives of quality in early childhood services in varied early childhood settings and across curriculum models.

Non Standard Timetable Requirements

Students undertake one unit at a time in the fully online, accelerated delivery mode (7 weeks).

Equivalent Rule

This unit was previously coded EPA6172

Learning Outcomes

On completion of this unit students should be able to:

  1. Explore international and national contemporary issues and outline their impact on early childhood education policy and curriculum formation and implementation.
  2. Critically analyse issues of quality in early childhood models of curriculum.
  3. Examine the impact of policies and legislative reforms on early childhood education.
  4. Evaluate the importance of leadership and evidence-based research in reconceptualising pedagogy and practice.

Unit Content

  1. Module One: Policy reform and contemporary issues in early childhood International and national early childhood policy and policy platform. Multiagency approaches to early childhood education. Contemporary issues in the implementation of policy implementation.
  2. Module Two: Perspectives of quality in early childhood Perspectives of quality in early childhood services. Models of early childhood curriculum. The National Quality Standard and quality assurance mechanisms.
  3. Module Three: Leading change in early childhood policy Early childhood leadership in policy engagement. Change management in the implementation of early childhood policy. Advocacy for quality in early childhood education.

Learning Experience

Students will engage in learning experiences via ECU’s LMS as well as additional ECU learning technologies

Additional Learning Experience Information

Lectures, Workshops, Films/digital videos/Camtasia.

Assessment

GS1 GRADING SCHEMA 1 Used for standard coursework units

Students please note: The marks and grades received by students on assessments may be subject to further moderation. All marks and grades are to be considered provisional until endorsed by the relevant School Progression Panel.

ONLINE
TypeDescriptionValue
AssignmentAssignment15%
Annotated Bibliography A contemporary issue in early childhood education35%
PresentationPresentation50%

Disability Standards for Education (Commonwealth 2005)

For the purposes of considering a request for Reasonable Adjustments under the Disability Standards for Education (Commonwealth 2005), inherent requirements for this subject are articulated in the Unit Description, Learning Outcomes and Assessment Requirements of this entry. The University is dedicated to provide support to those with special requirements. Further details on the support for students with disabilities or medical conditions can be found at the Access and Inclusion website.

Assessment

Students please note: The marks and grades received by students on assessments may be subject to further moderation. Informal vivas may be conducted as part of an assessment task, where staff require further information to confirm the learning outcomes have been met. All marks and grades are to be considered provisional until endorsed by the relevant School Progression Panel.

Academic Integrity

Integrity is a core value at Edith Cowan University, and it is expected that ECU students complete their assessment tasks honestly and with acknowledgement of other people's work as well as any generative artificial intelligence tools that may have been used. This means that assessment tasks must be completed individually (unless it is an authorised group assessment task) and any sources used must be referenced.

Breaches of academic integrity can include:

Plagiarism

Copying the words, ideas or creative works of other people or generative artificial intelligence tools, without referencing in accordance with stated University requirements. Students need to seek approval from the Unit Coordinator within the first week of study if they intend to use some of their previous work in an assessment task (self-plagiarism).

Unauthorised collaboration (collusion)

Working with other students and submitting the same or substantially similar work or portions of work when an individual submission was required. This includes students knowingly providing others with copies of their own work to use in the same or similar assessment task(s).

Contract cheating

Organising a friend, a family member, another student or an external person or organisation (e.g. through an online website) to complete or substantially edit or refine part or all of an assessment task(s) on their behalf.

Cheating in an exam

Using or having access to unauthorised materials in an exam or test.

Serious outcomes may be imposed if a student is found to have committed one of these breaches, up to and including expulsion from the University for repeated or serious acts.

ECU's policies and more information about academic integrity can be found on the student academic integrity website.

All commencing ECU students are required to complete the Academic Integrity Module.

Assessment Extension

In some circumstances, Students may apply to their Unit Coordinator to extend the due date of their Assessment Task(s) in accordance with ECU's Assessment, Examination and Moderation Procedures - for more information visit https://askus2.ecu.edu.au/s/article/000001386.

Special Consideration

Students may apply for Special Consideration in respect of a final unit grade, where their achievement was affected by Exceptional Circumstances as set out in the Assessment, Examination and Moderation Procedures - for more information visit https://askus2.ecu.edu.au/s/article/000003318.

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