Standards
Standards based learning and teaching often are blamed for the lack of play in schools (Drew, Christie, Johnson, Meckley, & Nell, 2008). This standards based practice is a way for school divisions to decide what young children should be mastering before they get to school. It gives the teachers an explicit instructional plan to follow when assessing and teaching preschoolers. Some people believe that because children develop at different rates, it is not possible to give standards to one particular age group and expect that all children in that group can do the same things (Bredakamp, 2004). Standards can be used to help children by promoting a "vision of excellence" or they can be used as high-stakes decision-making tools which can be potentially damaging to children's learning and mastery of content (Clements, Sarama, DiBiase, 2004).
Standards based learning and teaching often are blamed for the lack of play in schools (Drew, Christie, Johnson, Meckley, & Nell, 2008). This standards based practice is a way for school divisions to decide what young children should be mastering before they get to school. It gives the teachers an explicit instructional plan to follow when assessing and teaching preschoolers. Some people believe that because children develop at different rates, it is not possible to give standards to one particular age group and expect that all children in that group can do the same things (Bredakamp, 2004). Standards can be used to help children by promoting a "vision of excellence" or they can be used as high-stakes decision-making tools which can be potentially damaging to children's learning and mastery of content (Clements, Sarama, DiBiase, 2004).