The research, which analyses the responses from principals, head teachers and early years/foundation stage coordinators in 510 private nurseries and nursery units, also explored the Early Years Capital Grant and training in EYFS from revenue training.
The results indicated that private nurseries spend less time teaching using traditional resources. 40 per cent of private nurseries stated they are likely to spend less than a quarter of the day teaching using traditional resources, while only 29 per cent of nursery units within state schools suggest the same level.
Meanwhile, private nurseries spend more of the day on general play activities; 37 per cent of nurseries spend more than three quarters of their time on play, while only one in 10 nursery units allocate the same amount of time to play.
Ray Barker, director of BESA comments: “As many have found, the EYFS framework is quite rigid with a focus on traditional teaching and learning such as phonics. There has been much debate over whether early years educators should be continuing to teach, or if we should focus more on learning through play? Our research has indicated that private nurseries and nursery units within state schools are taking a very different approach, with schools focusing on traditional teaching methods, while private nurseries are more committed to play.”
The use of technology for teaching early years children is still a relatively new concept. Despite there being no expectation for high levels of ICT usage at this age level, nearly a third of nursery units within state schools indicate that ICT is being used in teaching for a quarter to half of the entire week.
Ray Barker comments: “There is a big difference between nursery units within schools and private nurseries when it comes to using technology to teach early years children. Three quarters of private nurseries spend less than a quarter of the week teaching with ICT, while only 16 per cent indicate using ICT between a quarter and half the time, which is considerably lower than in schools.”
Ray continues: “Nearly every nursery unit in schools has at least one computer for teacher use, and nearly nine out of ten said there are computers available for children. While 89 per cent of schools already use interactive whiteboards (IWB), nearly all of those that do not have IWBs would like access to them. However, nearly a third of private nurseries have no interest in interactive whiteboards.”
As the trade association for the educational supplies industry, BESA proactively investigates change and new developments within the UK education sector. Each year, BESA publishes several annual research papers, including ‘Resources in English Schools’ and ‘ICT in UK State Schools’. The ‘Early Years Resourcing in Schools & Nurseries’ is free to BESA members and the media, or can be purchased directly from BESA by non-members (Ph: +44 (0) 20 7537 4997). For more information, visit www.besa.org.uk.
