Praxis: The Missing Theory to Practice Link in Maximising Early Childhood Science Opportunities

Science teaching in early years contexts has been identified as deficient due to poor educator confidence, lack of content knowledge, or minimal opportunities being made available for science experiences. To identify strategies to counteract these factors, this study explored how these deficiencies are enacted in learning contexts by examining the beliefs and practices of educators across three early learning sites. The focus of this study was threefold: to gather the perception of educators in relation to early childhood science; explore the learning environments; and observe the interactions facilitated by the educators to develop scientific knowledge and skills for young children. During the four stages of the research project, a disconnect was identified between the perception held by educators about science, science’s role in the early years, and the educators’ practice. We found that educators did not appear to reflect on the disconnect between their understanding of theory and implementation in practice—their praxis.