The updated version of Aistear: the Early Childhood Curriculum Framework, is a timely milestone in the evolvement of early education and care. Aistear 2024 aims to strengthen specific areas of our early education value system and pedagogical practices.
Having been involved in the creation of the groundbreaking Aistear 2009, I am personally delighted that the original document has stood the test of time. The updated version reflects societal changes since 2009, learning from research and the professional progression of our sector. Huge congratulations to the Early Childhood team at NCCA for their considered work on this project.
On reading through the updated Aistear Framework and the Guidance for Good Practice, my high points are undoubtedly the consistency between Aistear 2024 and the ‘MOSAIC Mindset’.
The ‘MOSAIC Mindset’
The MOSAIC Child-led Documentation system is described as an app. Of course, every product needs a relatable market descriptor. But for me personally as its creator, and for the early childhood services that use MOSAIC (TribeMOSAIC), it’s much more than that – MOSAIC is a Mindset.
This makes highlighting the compatibility between the vision, principles and themes of Aistear 2024 and the MOSAIC Child-led Documentation system particularly satisfying.
The child-led, strength-based approach that frames MOSAIC unapologetically views the child as a unique individual, regardless of their ability or starting point. Generic documentation practice is not a part of the MOSAIC Mindset – each child is valued as an individual with a right to have their own story of learning captured and supported.
Aistear 2024 strengthens the image of the child as an individual and brings to the fore the importance of each child’s lived experience (life story) nurtured through an individual strength-based approach. This respect for the uniqueness of the child gives credibility to child-led practices that truly embrace inclusiveness and equity of learning experience.
It is to be welcomed that Aistear 2024 reinforces the importance of child participation and voice through the image of the agentic, competent child, and further consolidates the importance of children having age-appropriate influence over their own learning.
The view of the capable child with a voice and a right to participate is embedded within the MOSAIC system through its framework of pedagogical tools and an individual e-storybook for each child. This includes space for child voice within assessment for learning, emergent planning and transition documentation.
Unapologetically meaningful
The updated Guidance for Good Practice in relation to ‘Supporting Learning and Development through a Reflective Cycle of Planning and Assessing’ 2024 is particularly noteworthy.
Anyone who knows my writing or has participated in training with me, will be aware of my persistent use of the word ‘meaningful’. Meaningful assessment ‘of and for’ learning are the cornerstone of the MOSAIC documentation system. To reference to ‘meaningful assessment’ in Aistear 2024 is positively validating.
The mention of e-portfolios (digital storybooks) in Aistear 2024, alongside the recognition that meaningful documentation is created using a variety of methods is a strong validator of multi-modal documentation for modern day pedagogy. This expands traditional understanding to the linear, one size fits all approach to documentation and supports the multi-modal functions on MOSAIC Educator alongside its ability for real-time shareability.
Aistear 2024 goes further in suggesting that ‘meaningful assessment and ongoing documentation’ to create a scéal (story) of each child as having a direct influence on the planning and implementation of the curriculum. This is a powerful statement for the need to use documentation for the benefit of the child’s progression in learning.
Whilst Partnership with Parents was pivotal in Aistear 2009, the inclusion of intergenerational communication and sharing of information for the benefit of the child is a progressive addition to Aistear 2024. To demonstrate how this is already part of the MOSAIC Mindset, we have testimonial evidence that parents using MOSAIC Family app have availed of our family package to ensure that intergenerational connectedness across family members- sometimes in different countries is maintained. This is only possible through a digital platform.
The nod to Schemas within the Exploring and Thinking theme of Aistear 2024 will lead to a stronger emphasis on understanding schematic patterns in children’s play and how to use this awareness to inform emergent curriculum planning. This again gives strong validity to the inclusion of Schemas and learning dispositions, skills, attitudes and knowledge and understanding descriptors within learning stories and updates.
It’s all in the name
The title ‘Educator’ now used in Aistear 2024, is a positive change. The image of the educator being presented as a competent and reflective individual who has the knowledge and skills to interpret Aistear to support each child.
Coincidentally, ‘MOSAIC Educator’ is so named to promote understanding that MOSAIC is a high-quality pedagogical tool for Educators. MOSAIC is not an administration management system, its function is to support and enhance learning and development– for children, with children, about children.
Slowing down
The promotion of slow pedagogy is threaded throughout the updated Aistear – giving relevance to the need to slow things down for children, allowing them time to ‘revisit learning, recall experiences and reimagine outcomes’ (McMonagle. 2024:126).
Aistear 2024 gives a salute to the use of assistive technology where required and utilising digital technologies to investigate and research more about the world. I particularly like the term ‘plugged and unplugged’ experiences as a way of reflecting the digital and hands on world in which children live.
Other strengths of Aistear 2024 are the inclusion of sustainable living responsibilities and caring for the earth and a strengthening of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM). The addition of little pops of the Irish language, ground the updated framework in Irish identity and belonging.
I also acknowledge the welcome trend of using sensitively captured child images throughout the documents, safeguarding child privacy. This again reflects the MOSAIC Mindset where users respect children’s privacy and choose not to post images or videos featuring children on public social media platforms.
Ahead of the curve
What’s left to say other than TribeMOSAIC, take a bow – you are already ahead of the curve.
About the Author:
Avril McMonagle has dedicated her working life to early childhood education and possesses a diverse skills-set consisting of practical, academic, management and policy expertise accumulated over the past 30 years. Being at the forefront of a range of pioneering initiatives to enhance quality standards in early education nationally and internationally; the legacy of her work is well evidenced. Avril established her own business MOSAIC Digital Solutions for Early Education Ltd in 2019 www.mosaicearlyed.com. The company flagship product is the MOSAIC Educator Pedagogical Documentation System – a digital platform used by Educators to nurture a unique learning pathway for every child. Avril is the author of ‘A Suitcase Full of Stories – Pedagogical Documentation for Early Education (2024) available from Amazon.
Ref: McMonagle. A. ‘Aistear ’24 and the MOSAIC Mindset’ https://www.mosaicearlyed.com MOSAIC Early Education (2024).
McMonagle. A. (2024) ‘A Suitcase Full of Stories – Pedagogical Documentation for Early Education. Orla Kelly Publishing. Ireland
