Australian Journal of Teacher Education - Issue 1 - Embedding Play-Based Learning into Junior Primary (Year 1 and 2) Curriculum in WA

Oct 15, 2026

Governments and policy decisions shape teachers’ pedagogical practices, especially amid curriculum changes and national reforms in Australia’s early childhood sector. In Western Australia, the National Quality Standard (NQS) is mandated from Kindergarten through Year two, influencing early teaching and learning and, in particular, play-based strategies. Tensions arise where teachers used more didactic approaches must now reconcile competing mandated documents, prompting this qualitative case study exploring junior primary teachers’ pedagogy, practice, supports needed for play, and implementation challenges.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages16

Reading Time40 min

AccessFree to download

Introduction

Policy reforms and curriculum frameworks

Play-based learning in early education

Study focus and research approach

Australian Journal of Teacher Education | Volume 43 | Issue 1 | Article 7 | | --- | --- | | 2018
Embedding Play-Based Learning into Junior Primary (Year 1 and 2) Curriculum in WA
Jenny A. Jay
Curtin University, [jenny.jay@curtin.edu.au](jenny.jay@curtin.edu.au)
Marianne Knaus
Edith Cowan University, [m.knaus@ecu.edu.au](m.knaus@ecu.edu.au) | | Recommended Citation Jay, J. A., & Knaus, M. (). Embedding Play-Based Learning into Junior Primary (Year 1 and 2) Curriculum in WA. Australian Journal of Teacher Education, 43 (1). Retrieved from [http://ro.ecu.edu.au/ajte/vol43/iss1/7](http://ro.ecu.edu.au/ajte/vol43/iss1/7) This Journal Article is posted at Research Online. [http://ro.ecu.edu.au/ajte/vol43/iss1/7](http://ro.ecu.edu.au/ajte/vol43/iss1/7) Australian Journal of Teacher Education Embedding Play-Based Learning into Junior Primary (Year 1 and 2) Curriculum in WA Jenny Jay Curtin University Marianne Knaus Edith Cowan University Abstract: Governments and their policy decisions inevitably influence the pedagogical practices of teachers. There have been considerable curriculum changes and national reforms in Australia with the implementation of two very different national curricula documents in the early childhood sector in the last decade. The political landscape in Western Australia is even more complex with the mandating of the National Quality Standard (NQS) in all public schools from Kindergarten to Year two. The introduction of the NQS has impacted on the teaching and learning in the early years of school, and in particular, the inclusion of play-based teaching strategies. The tensions that arise from the juxtaposition of these mandated documents is significant to teachers in Years 1 and 2 who in past years have been used to a more didactic and structured approach to early learning. The researchers in this study have sought to explore relevant and current issues impacting on junior primary teachers’ pedagogy and practice in relation to the use ofplay to engage children in learning. Using qualitative methodology, a case study design was chosen and included semi-formal interviews as well as data collected at teacher collaborative meetings. The research identified the necessary supports required for implementing play in the early years of school as well as the challenges experienced by the teachers. Introduction Teachers have experienced considerable change due to state and national reforms in Australian early childhood education. Implementation of the Australian Curriculum (ACARA, 2010) from Foundation to Year 2 took place in Western Australia (WA) in 2011. Major changes in national policy resulted in a new system for accreditation and regulation being introduced in prior to school settings through a National Quality Framework (NQF)(ACECQA, 2011a). The NQF includes the Early Years Learning Framework (EYLF)(DEEWR, 2009) and the National Quality Standard (NQS) (ACECQA, 2011b) . In contrast to other states, the School Curriculum and Standards Authority (SCSA) approved the application of the NQS in all primary schools in Western Australian, across the early years, that is, from Kindergarten to Year two. The first compulsory year of school in Western Australia is Pre-primary (the year prior to Year 1 in the year children turn five years and six months) . The West Australian education system also offers a year of Kindergarten instruction (the year children turn four years and six months, junior primary commences in Year 1, the year children turn six years and six months of age. Vol 43, 1, January 2018 112 Australian Journal of Teacher Education Teachers in Western Australia who teach in the junior primary years now work with two quite different curriculum documents as well as a set of new school accreditation regulations. In particular, the curriculum documents place very different emphases on the inclusion of play. The pressures that arise f

FAQs

What policy change in Western Australia affects early years teaching and learning in the study?

The study highlights the mandated introduction of the National Quality Standard (NQS) in public schools from Kindergarten to Year two.

Why do tensions arise for teachers in Years 1 and 2?

Teachers must reconcile competing mandated curriculum documents that place different emphases on play, while many previously relied on more didactic and structured early learning approaches.

What research method does the study use to investigate junior primary teachers’ practice?

The study uses a qualitative case study design, including semi-formal interviews and data collected at teacher collaborative meetings.

Oct 15, 2026

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