СПЕЦИФІКА ОСВІТНІХ ПРОГРАМ ДЛЯ ДІТЕЙ КОРІННИХ НАРОДІВ КАНАДИ У ПЕРІОД РАННЬОГО ДИТИНСТВА

Abstract

According to systemic approach, the study of education of Canadian indigenous peoples justifies the necessity to analyse the specificity of academic possibilities in different periods of lifelong learning. In the article, the specificity of academic programmes for indigenous children in the period of early childhood has been studied. The purpose of the article is to analyse the peculiarities of early childhood academic programmes and determine their pros and cons. The authors present the results of the analysis of scientific and pedagogical literature, which highlights distinct aspects of the problem under research. They analyse the normative documents, which regulate the development and implementation of education and learning in early childhood for indigenous peoples in modern Canada. The study shows, that the modern system of education and learning in early childhood for indigenous peoples in Canada presents an integrity of theory and practice of early childhood learning and comprises social, cultural, historical specificity of indigenous peoples’ lifestyle. This system is characterised by such factors as cognitive (improvement of intellectual and cognitive performance of young children), social (adaptation to society and development of skills necessary for establishment of relationships with other individuals), health-saving (provision of regular medical examinations on the basis of the school), family (ensuring a favourable environment at home, involving parents in active participation in the education of their children). The main goal of the mentioned academic programmes is defined as preparing children for schooling and life in the modern multicultural society of Canada. The authors make conclusions about the positive influence of the academic programmes for indigenous children in the period of early childhood and formulate the prospects for future research of the problem of indigenous peoples’ education development in Canada.