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No. 60 (September 1967)
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Australian Pre-School
Conference

by Betty Brown

On 20 May, twenty-six delegates, eleven of whom were Maori mothers, from play centres throughout New Zealand, left Mangere Airport to attend the eleventh conference of the Australian Pre-School Association in Canberra. To many of us it was our first trip out of New Zealand, and all of us were filled with excitement and anticipation and perhaps a little trepidation as we wondered what lay ahead of us.

To a certain extent our fears were justified, for never had we met so many doctors, professors and highly qualified women as were among the Australian pre-school personnel. However, all were charming and expressed interest in our play centres. New Zealand's contribution aroused much interest. Our emphasis on parent education and participation, which is so different from the professionalism of Australian pre-schools, was a concept which many could not accept. Only two of the key speakers referred to the importance of education as a continuing process or the need for close liaison between school and parents. The prevailing opinion was that the parents' role is a passive one, not the active, complementary, supporting role that we envisage.

The theme of the Conference was ‘Children and their Families’. The most rewarding talk of the Conference was given by Dr Ase Grude Skaard of Norway, president of O.M.E.P. (Organisation Mondiale pour I'Education Prescolaire), a world organisation for early childhood education. Dr Skaard said that children in a rapidly changing world were faced with situations which were quite different from those of preceding generations. To cope with these differences she stressed the importance of being aware of the changes within society.

Another speaker who struck a responsive chord in the hearts of New Zealand play centre mothers was Mr Paul J. McKeown, Headmaster of Canberra Grammar School. Introduced as a man with revolutionary ideas in Australian education, he said that increased contact between parents and teachers could reduce the stress between parents and children. Stress between parents and children he described as a major cause of juvenile delinquency. If a child was to develop soundly it was essential that parents had an understanding of children's behaviour and that teachers knew what went on in the home. He referred to the Glasgow scheme which had reduced delinquency in the poorer part of that city by about 50%. The basis of the scheme was close co-operation between teacher, school welfare officer and parents. With counselling, parents came to a better understanding of their children, and teachers an understanding of the children's problems. He was the only speaker to emphasize the preventative role of preschool and active parent involvement.

Needs of Aboriginal Children

On Friday morning. Miss Betty Watts, Senier Lecturer in Education, Queensland University, spoke on the need for pre-schooling for aboriginal children. As we listened to her, a clearer picture of the problems that faced the Aborigine emerged. He is not accepted on equal terms with the Australian. He has not been encouraged to do things for himself, but has existed in a society that has made the rules for him. Because of this, he has lost his sense of self and exists as a ‘fringe dweller’—not only living on the outskirts of the community but tolerated only on the fringe of society. One way of approaching this problem is through pre-schooling. Aboriginal children could then start on better terms, at least at school entry.

During the question period at the end of

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Miss Watts' lecture, Mrs Kahu Tapiata of Auckland said that as a Maori, a member of a coloured minority, she could understand how the aborigine felt. She pleaded with the Australians to try to understand him, to be patient with him and to accept him as the Maori is accepted in New Zealand. This plea won an enthusiastic response.

Discussion Groups

Two full mornings were spent in discussion groups. I joined the group discussing. ‘Education for Parenthood’, and found myself in a group of Kindergarten teachers and trainees. The general attitude of these teachers was that parents contributed little towards the education of the pre-school child; the three year training period these teachers had undertaken had given them the answers to the problems of the young child's development; little attempt was made to communicate with the parents, with the result that parents were unaware of the intellectual development and growth and expression of creativity possible in the preschool.

They became unwilling to share this knowledge with parents or to provide opportunities for mutual interchange with parents. Parents were capable only of accepting instruction and assisting with money-raising activities, kitchen duties and children's outings. Our New Zealand emphasis on parent involvement was quite foreign to them. While they could see the value of this involvement, they resisted the idea. As one young Director said, ‘My three years training would be of little value if parents were given more responsibility in the Kindergarten.’

Enthusiastic Response

On the other hand, once the principles of Family Pre-schools and Play Centres became clear to them, there was an enthusiastic acceptance by delegates from Ceylon, the Philippines and New Guinea. They recognised the Family Pre-School as an economical technique of providing pre-school enrichment and more enlightened, responsible parenthood.

The Family Pre-School is a unique New Zealand development, pioneered by Mr A. Grey of the M.E.F. Two or more families can start a pre-school group. The only rule is that all mothers must attend with their children. A living room and backyard and a minimum of equipment meet the initial physical requirements. As the mothers gain insights, so more equipment is added. The result is that mater-

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ials are fully used and meet the needs of the children.

The mothers divide their time between working with the children, observing and interpreting their behaviour, making equipment from local materials and developing handcrafts and art work. The results can be seen in positive changes in the children, their parents and also in the local community.

Experiences Shared

The five days of the Conference gave us a wonderful opportunity to meet interesting dedicated people from other Pacific countries and share a rich variety of experience and concepts. For us, one outcome was a feeling that New Zealand can be proud of its pre-school development. Principles and practice in New Zealand compared favourably with the other countries represented and appeared more progressive than in Australia.

Perhaps age and attitude have something to do with this. The dynamic growth of preschooling in New Zealand is largely the result of the direct involvement of the young mothers whose enthusiasm made such an impact on those attending the A.P.A. Conference.