Developmentally Appropriate Practice (DAP)

The author of this article is a professor in the Department of Special Education at San Diego University. In addition to his participation in the Department of Special Education at the University, Rena B. Lewis, PhD is a member of the faculty of the San Diego State University-Claremont Graduate University doctoral program. She focuses much of her research on the application of technology for individuals with learning disabilities. Her qualifications alone would make me feel confident in her writing and findings. The article was published in the Journal of Learning Disabilities in

Developmentally appropriate practice (DAP) involves educators making informed decisions grounded in research to challenge and motivate children to meet attainable goals (Copple & Bredekamp, 2009). In the video, Morning Circle at Preschool, children appear eager to participate in the morning routine. DAP was noted, as well as some actions that are in contrast to DAP.

I believe that as an early childhood educator my goal will be to promote the physical, social, emotional, and cognitive development of each child. I also believe that play should be the base of learning since children learn best by doing. I believe that a balance between teacher-directed and child-initiated activities is essential balance can be developed by using the developmentally appropriate practice approach, which means that activities should be “appropriate for each child and relevant to the child’s ability, needs and interests, also including the child’s family and being respectful to the child’s culture.

Developmentally Appropriate Practices (DAP) is a method of teaching that is based on the research about how young children grow and learn and includes standards for high quality care and education for young children. The National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) established these guidelines more than 20 years ago. Authors Gordon and Browne state, “The DAP approach stresses the need for activity-based learning environments and is based on what we know about children through years of child development research and what we observe of their interests, abilities, and needs” (40). The three core components of DAP are: 1) what is known about child development and learning, 2) what is known about each child, and 3) what is known about social and cultural contexts in which children learn. A DAP classroom is a busy classroom where students are engaged and interacting physically with objects and persons. This classroom is full of materials, activities, and direct interactions that lead the student into active learning. The observations for this report were conducted at the Laredo Community College Camilo Prada Early Child Development Center in the blue classroom.

1. A developmentally appropriate practice to help and 18 month old to understand be safe rule is presenting a puppet show. For example I would present 3 puppets, One teacher puppet and two toddler puppets. One of the toddler puppets would demonstrate running back and forth in the classroom. The teacher puppet would then explain to the two children the basic ground rules of being safe. Teacher puppet would also mention to the toddler puppets that running in the classroom can give us ouchies. And now the toddler puppets would have a better understanding of being safe.

In order to respond this question, we must first review the history of Developmentally Appropriate Practice (DAP) and Early Childhood Education (ECE). Although ECE has been around since the creation of kindergarten in the 1800’s, the decade of the 1980’s was an important period for ECE. “By the 1980’s, meta-analysis of the well-designed US projects offered compelling evidence on the positive outcomes of [early childhood education and intervention]” (Woodhead, 2007). Therefore, there was much pressure to improve the state of education, including ECE. “The decade of the 1980’s saw numerous calls for widespread school reform, with changes recommended in teacher education, graduation requirements, school structure, and accountability measures” (S. Bredekamp, R.A. Knuth, L.G. Kunesh, and D.D. Shulman, 1992). At this time, there was an increasing concern about the quality of early childhood education for the influx number of families that needed it. This led the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) to “begin planning a national voluntary accreditation system for early childhood programs”(NAEYC, 2014). With this planning came a need for a more specific description with regards to accreditation guidelines. Therefore, NAEYC issued a formal statement defining DAP.

He focuses on how technology is supposed to significantly impact a student’s performance and completely forgets to mention how important technology may be for someone who cannot learn well without responsive instruction; for example, technology in the classroom can be beneficial to students that are physically or mentally impaired. On the contrary, the article ‘Technology and Literacy for Adolescents with disabilities’ describes how technology “can be universally beneficial for all students as a vehicle for learner engagement or conveyance of instructional content, and it can also promote participation, learning, and performance by students with disabilities”(King-Sears, Swanson, Mainzer, 569). The article then illustrates an example of how technology can specifically facilitate classroom learning by stating “For example, an electronic picture board with voice output might be considered assistive technology for a student whose disability included significant oral language deficits” (King-Sears, Swanson, Mainzer, 569). In this sense, technology does have a significant role in students’ life, not only making it important, but necessary. Also as mentioned above, the performance of these students have been affected in a significant way. Throughout the article, they describe how these new assistive technologies have changed the two specific students, Brian and Michelle. Brian has dysgraphia which prevents him from being able to transfer his thoughts onto paper and Michelle has Asperger’s Syndrome, which gives Michelle “genius-level intelligence” (King-Sears et al.). The technologically advanced tools that they have both been given are not only specialized to assist them, but also help them do tasks that

The NAEYC statement on developmental practice indicates change and continuity and change in the early childhood education field is vital due to the fact that their main commitment is excellence and equity. Nevertheless, all new knowledge gained over time has been advanced and increased. This means that with understanding, it has allowed us to revise and refine ideas for promoting children's development and learning. With developmentally appropriate practice, meeting and enabling the children are required. This means that teachers should get to know them well and push them to reach goals that may be a challenge but are achievable for them.

Several issues are discussed in the NAEYC position statement about Developmentally Appropriate Practice (DAP). The section points out three main areas that policymakers have addressed because they realize how important these areas are to an early elementary child.

According to the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC), “developmentally appropriate practice (DAP) is an approach to teaching grounded in the research on how young children develop and learn and in what is known about effective early education” (Developmentally Appropriate Practice (DAP) Introduction, n.d.). First adopted in 1986, developmentally appropriate practice is grounded in research on child development and learning, as well as knowledge base in educational effectiveness. The DAP outlines practices intended to promote the goal of young children’s ideal learning and development. As with many approaches, there are some issues that arise regarding developmentally appropriate practice.

The 2010 National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) Initial and Advanced Standards for Early Childhood Professional Preparation Programs provides standards that set guidelines for what and how early childhood professionals prepare themselves to be efficient educators and caregivers. Professional development tools and strategies are critical assets for providing high quality early childhood education and care that meets the needs and interest of all learners. Today’s early childhood settings are filled with a diverse group of learners. Efficient educators must use a broad range of approaches, tools, and resources to ensure success for all learners. The NAEYC Initial and Advanced Standards demonstrates particular strategies for early childhood educators to prepare themselves to be successful and effective teachers. For this brief composition I chose to highlight the initial standard #4: using developmentally effective approaches.

al, 2016). ICT provide safe and controlled environments, motivation, high level of interactivity, immediate feedback, and contribute to the improvement of visual processing skills and short-term memory or working memory inadequacies (Kalyvioti et. al, 2012). They also help develop interactive experiences and optimistic learning surroundings, that can motivate and help children, thus helping them address their disability early on and possibly mitigate its various negative effects (Skiada et.al, 2014). The use of ICT offer support in several fields concerning learning difficulties (Kalyvioti et. al, 2016). Digital technologies can be used in order to train, assist and even enable the learning process (Skiada et.al, 2014). Specifically designed applications can stimulate students interest, but may also help students with disabilities fit into and progress within mainstream school environments (Skiada et.al, 2014). One of the main groups of people with special educational needs, such as dyslexia, could potentially gain many benefits from ICT (Skiada et.al, 2014). As an ICT, this Chrome Extension has the ability to be able to motivate and help children learn and improve their comprehension of the English

Providing children with an environment that nurtures their social, emotional, cognitive, and physical development is the framework that will promote children’s optimal learning and development. Gaining knowledge about the child will help a teacher to develop and create programs that are suitable for the age and the stages of children’s development. Applying developmentally appropriate practices will support the excellence in early childhood education because it is based off of the knowledge of knowing each child as an individual and how they develop.

1. Developmentally appropriate practice as defined by NAEYC is a “framework of principles and guidelines for best practice in the care and education of young children, birth through age 8. Children cannot perform tasks that they are not yet developmentally capable of doing and teachers have to be aware of this. One would not expect a one year old child to be able to write their name, not only because they are not cognitively able to understand this task, but also because their fine motor skills have not developed enough to hold a writing instrument. Therefore, most adults would realize this task is not developmentally appropriate. A kindergarten teacher, for example, can able to expect his or her students to know why it is necessary as

"Developmentally-appropriate practice, often shortened to DAP, is an approach to teaching grounded both in the research on how young children develop and learn and in what is known about effective early education" (DAP, 2013, NAEYC).The NAEYC (National Association for the Education of Young Children) makes the principles of developmentally-appropriate practice one of its cornerstones. Developmentally-appropriate practice ensures that children do not become frustrated or bored with what they learn. It enables students to successively build upon past knowledge without any gaps. It ensures that learning remains fun and engaging: very young children are not forced to memorize facts, sit in their desks for too long, or otherwise taxed beyond the emotional and intellectual limits of their present capacities. All children can learn, but depending on the developmental stage of the child, the ways in which the learning process takes place must often be altered. It must also be remembered that not all children are functioning at their chronological age: some may need additional support while others may be more advanced. It is necessary for the teacher to understand each student's limits and strengths, developmentally.