Play-Based Learning and Intentional Teaching in Early Childhood Contexts‪.‬

Introduction Play-based learning and teacher-directed learning in early childhood education have traditionally been positioned as oppositional or a pedagogical binary. Play as the primary context for young children's learning is a dominant discourse in early childhood education (Wood, 2009; Bruce, 2001) and teaching as a context for supporting young children's learning is a highly contested discourse (McArdle&McWilliams, 2005). The practice of teaching as a component of what early childhood teachers do to support children's learning has often been seen as at odds with the concept of a play-based pedagogy (Siraj-Blatchford, 2009). How play-based learning and teacher-directed learning sit together in early childhood education is a particular focus in recently developed Australian early childhood curriculum documents (DEEWR, 2009a; QSA, 2010), with the inclusion in these documents of a specific focus on intentional teaching alongside the traditional focus of play-based learning. The synergy between these concepts has been examined in recent research (Grieshaber, 2008; Siraj-Blatchford, 2009) and is further investigated in this project by analysis of teachers' talk.