Early Childhood Education: Cultural Awareness and Competence Report

This report delves into the critical role of cultural awareness and competence in early childhood education, emphasizing the importance of building strong relationships, particularly with Indigenous families in Australia. It explores the essential requirements for teachers, including understanding expectations, communication, and practical approaches to cultural practices. The report highlights the need for professional conduct and ethical considerations, such as adopting community approaches and respecting diverse behaviors and emotions. It underscores the significance of cultural competence in developing children's psychology and culturally sensitive skills. Furthermore, it examines cultural protocols with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families, including seeking permission and respecting cultural traditions. The report concludes by outlining professional and ethical considerations for establishing relationships, emphasizing understanding different mentalities and practical approaches to building connections with children and parents. This report provides valuable insights into fostering cultural awareness and competence within early childhood education settings.

Running Head: Cultural Awareness and Competence
Early Childhood Education Care
Report
System04104
5/22/2019

Cultural Awareness and Competence
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Table of Contents
1. Introduction.........................................................................................................................2
2. Requirement of Cultural awareness and competence as an early childhood teacher.........2
3. Need of Professional conduct and Ethical Considerations for a childhood teacher...........3
4. Cultural awareness and competence in early childhood teacher........................................4
4.1 Need of Cultural competence...........................................................................................4
5. Cultural awareness Practise and protocols with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander
Families......................................................................................................................................5
5.1 Cultural Protocols.............................................................................................................5
5.2 Adoption of Protocols during Cultural competence and Relationship Building..............5
5.3 Seeking Permission from the community people.............................................................6
5.4 Priority to other culture or community and respect to their traditions and thinking........6
6. Professional and ethical considerations for establishing relationship with these families. 6
7. Conclusion..........................................................................................................................7
References..................................................................................................................................8

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1. Introduction
Cultural awareness and cultural competence is the key factor in providing best
childcare education to the children as it enables them to face the implications of cultural
diversity and various other issues related to cultural factors. For a teacher, it is essential that
how well a teacher guide and educates the children about the culture awareness and its
importance in life. Cultural awareness helps the students to become more cultural
competence. The cultural competence in teacher enables him to develop a strong
understanding among children to be respectful and open to different cultural perspectives.
The cultural competence requires a string power and skills of building relationship with
people. This report shows the importance of Cultural awareness and competence in childcare
education. This report shows the importance of building relationship for providing cultural
awareness and competence in childcare education in Indigenous areas in Australia.
2. Requirement of Cultural awareness and competence as an early
childhood teacher
The essential requirement in culture awareness and competence is building strong
relationship with people. Apart from this, some other requirements are discussed below:
Relationship Building: Relationship building is the fundamental and key approach in
cultural awareness. However, before building a relationship with people or students in the
classroom, it is necessary to understand the expectations and attitudes of every student and
their approach towards the culture. For a teacher, communication with people about the
culture and its importance in society is necessary. The teacher can educate the children how
they can respect the diversity and how different type of people have different thoughts in our
society. The teacher can take the help of different range of cultures and their important
traditions and thinking about the society and people.
Understanding the Expectations of Indigenous people: Understanding the
expectations of children, especially in indigenous areas is another crucial thing and key
requirement behind cultural competence. However, primary cultural competence is the
elementary principles for developing trust, fairness, social justice, quality, and respect for
other people (Hoare, 2013).

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Proper Communication: A childhood teacher must interact and communicate with
different children and should try to understand their own values and their own worlds. It
requires developing positive attitudes towards different culture. A teacher can provide
knowledge to student about different culture and their practices. An early childcare teacher
can also develop the skill in children that how they can communicate and interact with other
cultural children or people.
Cultural Awareness and practical approach with children: The cultural
competence also required more practices rather than theoretical or oral lectures to the
children (Pon, 2012). A teacher can arrange the meeting of different cultural children and
facilitates their conversation. The monitoring activities help the teacher to judge the
requirements and need of cultural awareness in each child. To provide cultural awareness
among student and children, a teacher should aware about different culture and practicing
tolerance. The other main requirement in providing cultural competence is to avoid biases
and do not compare our own culture with other cultural values and traditions.
3. Need of Professional conduct and Ethical Considerations for a
childhood teacher
A educational professional should always considers the ethical approach while
providing cultural competence and education to the students because to ensure the highest
possible learning outcomes it is essential that teacher will follow the basic norms and ethical
considerations.
Adopting the Community/People Approach: A teacher must promote the diversity
during the education and culture competence. Apart from this, being ethical involves making
decision and actions of everyday life in consideration with local people and community
(Tang & Choi, 2004). The early childhood teacher should also adopt the approach of
community people while providing the education to children. In Aboriginal and Torres Straits
Islander, the local people provide cultural education to their children from thousands of years
in old ethical ways and it should also be considerable for a new early childhood teacher.
Behaviour and Emotions: Some researchers found that behaviour and emotions of
teacher is one of the major obstacles in cultural awareness practices. However, the role of
teacher and his behaviour with children also does matter in education and cultural

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competence. If a teacher behaves in ethical and professional ways to people or student, it will
inspire them. Even teacher should also follow the same principle of ethics and other thing
during cultural education among education.
Understanding of other culture and proper interaction with people: A teacher
should understand that every culture has its own norms and values. Thus, knowing the culture
is only possible if teacher interacts with community members and bond a strong relationship
with them. Therefore, any unethical practices or unprofessional ways almost destroy the
relationship and he cannot be able to educate cultural knowledge among students. While a
teacher educates the children, he/she also able to bound a strong relationship with the parents,
colleagues, and families of children.
4. Cultural awareness and competence in early childhood teacher
Providing cultural education in children is required a great knowledge of different
culture and competence. An ethical and childhood professional must understand the
importance of new opportunities and spreading new knowledge among people. The main
objective of spreading awareness among people is to provide knowledge and awareness that
how their children can adopt the new culture or circumstance. Therefore, providing cultural
awareness to the new people in the society or community it is necessary for early child
professional to adopt the knowledge about different cultures and motivate the people to learn
about the other culture, diversity, and equality (Fantini, 2009).
4.1 Need of Cultural competence
Developing cultural competency in early childhood is one of the important aspects of
developing the better psychology of students and helps them to achieve culturally sensitive
skills. To develop the crucial skills and transform the knowledge of children in early
childhood, it will be essential for an early childhood professional to acquire knowledge first
and analyse the different culture that will further help the professor to provide better cultural
awareness and competency to children (Scrimgeour & Wilson, 2009).
Building community relationship: However, building relationship with community
members is the key of cultural competence and it would not be start if the professional does
not establish a good relationship with people. However, knowing the attitude and perception
of parents, community people, and other person who are related with children is also
necessary for the teacher (Weaver, 2010).

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Burden of people to provide cultural education to children: It has been seen that
providing education related to cultural competence in early child schools is taken as a burden
by many people (MacNaughton & Hughes, 2017). A teacher should avoid these things and
mentality while providing cultural awareness or competence to children. It can be easily done
be various activities such as matching the skin with children and play with him and doing
thumbprints to show the similarity and differences between the people or between different
culture. The teacher can also ask each student to tell about his or her family traditions. It will
help to spread culture awareness among children and it also helps to establish a good and
healthy relationship (Margetts, 2017).
5. Cultural awareness Practise and protocols with Aboriginal and
Torres Strait Islander Families
5.1 Cultural Protocols
Cultural protocols are the ethical practices that a teacher should conduct with the
Aboriginal and Torres people (Williamson & Harrison, 2010). The cultural protocol guides
the ethical behaviour of teacher in particular situation. However, the teacher during providing
cultural competence knowledge to the children must adhere the protocols that will also help
in maintain a good relationship with Indigenous people. It also helps the teacher to establish a
good understanding with the thought and opinions of Torres Island people and Aboriginal
people in Australia. Adopting the cultural protocols in these indigenous areas helps the
teacher to achieve better outcomes (Cushner & Mahon, 2012).
5.2 Adoption of Protocols during Cultural competence and Relationship
Building
The teacher should recognise the culture and their way of communication during
adopting the protocols that helps in representation of stories and information to the children.
The teacher should also maintain the secrecy of the Torres and indigenous people and also
ensure them that he will protect their other intellectual property and cultural rights. However,
the teacher should also demonstrate recognition to indigenous and Torres Strait islanders’
people have and respect their culture and tradition. This will also help in establishing good
relationship with the aboriginal people of Australia (Frawley & Fasoli, 2012).

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5.3 Seeking Permission from the community people
Apart from this, the teacher should also take permission from the community people
to visit in several areas where permission is restricted or should also seeking permission to
moving around the community to meet the children and their parents. A teacher should direct
and guide people towards the positive things and he must assure people that how they can
better communicate and understand people through cultural competence and knowledge.
5.4 Priority to other culture or community and respect to their traditions
and thinking
Giving priority to other’s culture is also crucial in providing cultural awareness and
competence to the children and community people. Apart from this, the indigenous and
Torres Islander people follows the old tradition of giving cultural education or competence to
their children (Walker, Schultz, & Sonn, 2014). Thus, a teacher needs to support and give the
respect of other cultures and way of education in children. The teacher should also behave
patiently and with cool nature with these type of community people and explain them about
the different culture and how these people can live, communicate and enjoy with other
cultural people. These protocols and behaviours determine the relationship bonding with
Indigenous and Torres people (Durey, 2010).
6. Professional and ethical considerations for establishing
relationship with these families
The childcare teacher must follow the basic norms and care about the culture and
belief of Indigenous people that can further help the teacher to establish a good and strong
relationship with Indigenous and Torres people in Australia. The childcare teacher should
take the time and know other people in the Torres Islanders (Kirmayer, 2012). It will help
him to understand the community and their issues.
Understanding the different mentality and living style of children: The children of
Indigenous and Torres Islander peoples are living in very different environment and it is very
different from the western children living and cultural environment. The teacher can use the
technology and shows them about the western and other culture (Ashiabi, 2007). It will also
help them to establish a good relationship with indigenous people. Despite being absence of
any scientific reason or no biological basis, the discrimination based on races is still present
in the society. A childcare teacher must understand the thinking and mentality of Indigenous

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people and respect their tradition, colour, mentality, and thinking for the purpose of cultural
competence and awareness (Walton, Priest & Paradies, 2013).
Practicality in Building relationship with children and parents: Teacher should
adopt the practical ways to establish relationship with indigenous children and communicate
them about the other cultural norms and values. It will not only help in establishing a good
relationship rather it also helps in spreading cultural knowledge and awareness about the
other people and community (Seeleman, Suurmond, & Stronks, 2019). Nevertheless, a strong
bonding and understanding the feeling and culture of Indigenous people and their children
might help in cultural awareness and competence. The teacher should also think and take
actions about the community and social problems in the Indigenous region. The major reason
behind this is that indigenous people faces strong problems related to health, education, and
other basic facilities. The help of teacher to these community people and their children leads
to a strong relationship with people (Otten, 2013).
7. Conclusion
In conclusion, cultural awareness and competence enables the children to face the
implications of cultural diversity and various other issues related to cultural factors. The
cultural awareness and competence helps to the indigenous children to see the outer world
with a new view and understand the different culture, norms, thinking, and way of living
style. The success of cultural competence is depends on the relationship building. A teacher
must focus on relationship building with the children, their parents, other colleagues, and
people. The relationship with Indigenous people is required to provide a best cultural
knowledge to their children. However, it is only possible if a childcare teacher respects the
protocols of Indigenous and Torres Strait Islander’s people. Respect of other culture,
establishing relationship, and understand the feeling of people is the basic requirements of
cultural awareness and competence in early child education and learning.

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References
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