Practitioner agency in implementing the pre-primary national curriculum framework: Experiences from disadvantaged pre-primary settings in Namibia

Practitioner agency is a critical posture for ECD practitioners working in contexts where judgement, interpretation and responsiveness to the vulnerabilities of children and their families are essential. This qualitative study explored the lived experiences of five ECD practitioners (three teachers and two Heads of Department) in the implementation of the Pre-Primary National Curriculum Framework (PP-NCF) in five underprivileged state-owned pre-primary settings in Windhoek, Namibia, through the lens of practitioner agency. Data were generated using semi-structured face-to-face interviews, and analysed using thematic analysis. Four themes emerged: curriculum development process, the purpose of the curriculum, bringing the curriculum to life, and enablers and disablers of curriculum implementation. The findings suggest that the PP-NCF's admirable intentions are undermined by structural and ecological factors, including top-down curriculum development, poor resourcing, and limited professional development opportunities. This study extends the application of the ecological model of agency in the context of an emerging pre-primary system in a low- and middle-income country to show the interaction of iterational, projective, and practical-evaluative dimensions of agency. Policy, practice, and research implications are offered, aimed at enabling transformative professionalism and strengthening the pre-primary system in Namibia.