Abstract:
Early childhood teachers in New Zealand, as guided by the national early childhood curriculum, Te Whāriki, are expected to prioritise the development of children’s learning dispositions in their practices to support children’s lifelong learning. However, subsequent to the revision of Te Whāriki in 2017, there has been little research exploring teachers’ practice to strengthen children’s learning dispositions. This thesis, therefore, aims to contribute research on the learning dispositions of children (aged two to five) and the actual practices of teachers to foster these learning dispositions in New Zealand. The thesis argues that teachers need ongoing support due to having varied understandings and practices in relation to the fostering of children’s learning dispositions. A qualitative, interpretive, case study methodology was employed to collect data from four teachers across two early learning centres in Auckland, New Zealand, through observations and semi-structured interviews. Braun and Clarke’s (2006) framework for thematic analysis and a sociocultural lens were utilised to identify three main themes: teachers’ values and beliefs about learning dispositions; teachers’ practices to foster children’s dispositional learning; and teacher’s perceptions about the challenges encountered and support needed to foster children’s learning dispositions. The findings were interpreted using the notions of reciprocity (Carr et al., 2009) and co-authoring (Carr et al., 2017) underpinned by the concept of ZPD (Vygotsky, 1978). Findings revealed that teachers implemented different pedagogical strategies and practices to develop children’s learning dispositions. Children’s interactions with people, places and things were highlighted as most important by teachers. However, the findings also suggested that teachers viewed learning dispositions and the fostering of those dispositions largely through children’s one-on-one experiences and did not refer to the importance of collective experiences that children often encounter in early childhood education. Implications for teacher education and teacher practices, including suggestions for future research, are outlined to promote ways to support children’s positive learning dispositions.