Early childhood education has been utilizing Reggio Emilia approach for a long time (Rodd 65). According to this approach, a young learner is held in high esteem in such a way that he/she is sufficiently knowledgeable, enriched with wonder, resilient, capable and is also strong enough to tackle carious education challenges. In other words, each child is well endowed with learning potential that accelerates both innate and deep curiosity (Cabell et al. 9). Hence, children are in a vantage position to comprehend and appreciate the world around them.
The desire to have a progressive early childhood education gave rise to the development of Reggio Emilia learning approach in Italy. This system also sought to create a collaborative learning environment among young school-going children. Both Home schools and pre-schools were encouraged to follow the system. However, the approach was supposed to be in tandem with the unique needs of a given segment of the population (Lonigan, Allan, and Lerner 496). The latter was deemed to be necessary because differences exist in various towns, communities and even among individual households, parents, teachers and students.
Reggio-inspired communities are therefore supposed to be unique and outstanding since learners’ needs also vary from one community to another. Although the Reggio Approach has been designed for preschools, the principles can be aptly applied in home schools alike. In order to understand how the approach works, it is vital to point out some of the fundamental principles that go along with this learning system. First, constructing self-learning environments or scenarios is an achievement that can be attained by children. Second, children are capable of developing their own understandings especially when they relate and collaborate with their peers. Third, children are excellent communicators in their own world. Other fundamental principles of this approach entail the following: the immediate surrounding is the third teacher, adults are mentors, documenting the thinking process of a child, and young learners are endowed with several languages.
Similar to the Montessori learning system, respect for the child is a priority area for both teachers and parents as well as the community. It is crucial to regard the vital needs of children without necessarily forcing them to follow our desires. The Montessori system also emphasizes the absorbent mind of a child during the learning process (Walker 1333). In other words, children are in a position to educate themselves through interaction and collaboration. This ideology is very much similar to the arguments put forward by the Reggio Approach whereby children are perceived to be good in communication. As a matter of fact, our minds are used to acquire knowledge either consciously or subconsciously.
In the case of the High Scope approach, the following key features are valuable: conflict resolution, assessment, key development indicators, adult-child interaction, daily routine and learning environment (Allen and Cowdery 39). These learning features are in tandem with the Reggio Approach because they all emphasize the latent self-learning ability of a child even in the absence of a mentor or guide.
From the above indications, the most important contribution of Reggio Emilia Approach to Early Childhood Education is that young learners are able of developing their own learning process (Morgan 102). While a teacher plays an invaluable role in the acquisition of knowledge among children, the latter usually know more and accelerate the entire learning process owing to personal interests. When the interest of a child are given due attention during learning, such a child stands a better chance of progressing positively. Morrison( 89) observes that the ultimate responsibility of teachers and parents to identify the intrinsic interests of preschool children and then mentor or guide them accordingly along the learning curriculum.
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