The path forward for Early Childhood Education
Join State MLC Abigail Boyd along with guest speakers, Dr Linda Newman, Adjunct Associate Professor in early education at University of Newcastle, and Kelly West, director of Adamstown early learning and preschool.
Abigail Boyd has worked with early childhood professionals, whistleblowers, and journalists to expose major failures in the sector for over a year and went on to chair a NSW parliamentary inquiry sparked by the harrowing ABC Four Corners exposé on abuse, neglect, and regulatory breakdowns. Abigail will speak to the issues facing the sector, we'll hear from attendees about their localised experiences and discuss a pathway forward for rebuilding a strong early childhood framework and workforce.
Dr Linda Newman is well recognised in national and international early childhood communities for her work in professional ethics and the development of professional learning communities, tied to her co-authored volumes (with Lois Pollnitz), "Working with Children and Families: Professional, Legal and Ethical Issues" and (with Christine Woodrow) "Practitioner Research in Early Childhood: International Issues and Perspectives". Research has focused on community capacity building through teacher research and pedagogical leadership, early literacy and numeracy, and intentional teaching.
Kelly West is an established Early Childhood Professional with over 19 years experience, with 6 of those years as a service Director. Kelly currently leads one of Australia's highest quality services, rated Excellent. She also uniquely holds a degree in Psychological Science and brings expertise and skill working with children and families in supporting early childhood behaviour and development. Kelly is also an early childhood practitioner researcher with a published paper alongside University of Newcastle and is currently researching alongside Macquarie University.
Expect great conversation on a really important topic, and the chance to ask questions, learn and have your say about early childhood education.
Our region deserves a rich and robust early childhood sector, let's make it happen!
