scholarly journals Princesses (Don’t) Run in the Mud: Tracing the Child’s Perspective in Parental Perceptions of Cultural Formation Through Outdoor Activities in Norwegian ECEs

2021 ◽  
pp. 61-78
Author(s):  
Alicja R. Sadownik
Keyword(s):  
Early Childhood ◽  
Early Childhood Education ◽  
Empirical Data ◽  
Parental Perceptions ◽  
Cultural Traditions ◽  
Outdoor Activities ◽  
Cultural Formation ◽  
Parental Experiences ◽  
Parental Gender ◽  
Group Interviews

AbstractBy examining Polish parents’ perceptions of outdoor activities in Norwegian Early Childhood Education (ECE), this chapter discusses how focusing on the child’s perspective can change and challenge parental gender-related value positions, thereby changing perceptions of the cultural formation taking place through outdoor activities. The empirical data on the basis of which this question is answered are comprised of group interviews with 30 Polish migrant parents (18 mothers and 12 fathers) whose children were in Norwegian ECEs. The applied theoretical toolkit of a cultural historical wholeness approach (Hedegaard M, Mind Cult Act 19:127–138, 2012) enables the description of (parental) experiences of cultural formation through outdoor activities as anchored in the value positions established within and across involved societies. It also allows us to grasp those moments when the focus on the child’s perspective in outdoor activities challenges parental value positions and cultural traditions of heteronormativity. The concluding remarks point to the importance of enhancing both the child’s perspective and the specific plane of interpersonal interactions in ECE collaborations with parents and caregivers.

scholarly journals Exploring Military Artefacts in Early Childhood Education: Conflicting Perspectives on Cultural Sustainability, Belonging and Protection

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (5) ◽  
pp. 2587
Author(s):  
Åsta Birkeland ◽  
Liv Torunn Grindheim
Keyword(s):  
Early Childhood ◽  
Early Childhood Education ◽  
Local Area ◽  
Positive Interactions ◽  
Focus Group Interviews ◽  
Cultural Sustainability ◽  
Childhood Education ◽  
Group Interviews ◽  
Chinese Kindergarten ◽  
Insight Into

Social and cultural sustainability is outlined as creating surroundings that include and stimulate positive interactions, such as promoting a sense of community and a feeling of belonging to a community, by being safe and attached to the local area. Artefacts chosen in early childhood education (ECE) institutions are integrated parts of the culture in which the ECE institutions are embedded; artefacts, thus, are understood as serving belonging and cultural sustainability. The study examined what insight into cultural sustainability could be surfaced in conflicting perspectives about military artefacts in ECE. Focus group interviews were conducted with Chinese and Norwegian graduate students and ECE researchers, during which photographs of a Chinese kindergarten where military artefacts and toys were highly represented. Conflicting perspectives on military artefacts among the participant surfaced how belonging are closely intertwined with protection and where to belong: locally, nationally or internationally. The skeptical approach to military artefacts is challenged by awareness of different ways to promote national pride and entanglement among generations. The findings indicate a need for more research on conditions for belonging and the normative complexities of artefacts in cultural sustainability.

Beyond uniform reproduction: Exploring children’s imaginative play through the lenses of their teacher

2018 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
pp. 58-69 ◽  
Author(s):  
Liv Torunn Grindheim
Keyword(s):  
Early Childhood ◽  
Early Childhood Education ◽  
Role Play ◽  
Theoretical Framework ◽  
Basic Material ◽  
Historical Approach ◽  
Cultural Formation ◽  
Childhood Education ◽  
Imaginative Play ◽  
Children's Development

The voices of both early childhood education teachers and children tend to be weak in the choir of agents that constitute the aims and practices of early childhood education. In this article, a video that a teacher made of four children playing dragons, followed by open-ended interviews exploring why she found this particular activity of interest and then open-ended interviews with the involved children while watching and commenting on the video, forms the basic material for discussing how children’s imaginative play can inform what might be valuable activities in early childhood education. The theoretical framework and concepts for analysis draw on an understanding of cultural formation and a cultural-historical approach that outlines children’s development through participation in activities framed by contextual conditions. By tracing conflicts caused by differences in the involved children’s values and motives while meeting conditions and demands in their context, at the personal, institutional and societal levels, the exploration of friendship, danger, space, institutional rooms and what good play ‘is’ are depicted in children’s imaginative role play. From this, imaginative play is seen as being endowed with valuable activities in early childhood education and forms a contrast to the emphasis on future academic competences that are far removed from the children’s experiences.

Selected aspects of institutional early childhood education and care in Warsaw – the perspective of professionals and low-income parents

2016 ◽  
Vol 33 (2) ◽  
pp. 124-0
Author(s):  
Małgorzata Karwowska-Struczyk ◽  
Olga Wysłowska
Keyword(s):  
Early Childhood ◽  
Early Childhood Education ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Final Part ◽  
Childhood Education ◽  
Individual Interviews ◽  
Low Incomes ◽  
Education And Care ◽  
Group Interviews

The article presents results of research into low income parents as well as professionals involved in the education, care and upbringing sectors. It concerns access to toddler care and preschool, the costs of sending children to such institutions, support for parents on low incomes, as well as the demands parents have of these institutions. The authors carried out two group interviews with parents, as well as three individual interviews with workers from the institutions. In the final part of the article, the results of the research are presented along with recommendations for politics concerning the sectors of education, upbringing and care of children from the ages of 0 to 6.

scholarly journals Early childhood education leadership in Finland through the lens of structure and agency

2020 ◽  
pp. 174114322090372
Author(s):  
Jan Varpanen
Keyword(s):  
Early Childhood ◽  
Early Childhood Education ◽  
Distributed Leadership ◽  
Social Reality ◽  
Education Leadership ◽  
Childhood Education ◽  
Structure And Agency ◽  
Education Leaders ◽  
Key Dimensions ◽  
Group Interviews

In early childhood education, the concept of distributed leadership has emerged as a key analytical tool for understanding leadership as well as a normative guide for what leadership should be. The concept originates in Peter Gronn’s work, where it is positioned as overcoming the structure-agency debate, which is a foundational question in the study of social reality. While distributed leadership itself has been extensively studied, the problem motivating Gronn’s work—the structure-agency problematique—has rarely been investigated. In an effort to create a deeper understanding of the role of structure and agency in constituting early childhood education leadership, this study examines how these two key dimensions of social reality structure early childhood education center leaders’ understanding of leadership. The data for the study consist of focus group interviews where early childhood education center leaders discuss various aspects of leadership. The data are analyzed in the broad framework of post-structural discourse analysis, using the analytic concept of frame, which reveals the interplay of structure and agency in early childhood education leaders’ understandings of their work. The findings show that early childhood education center leaders’ understanding of leadership is mainly focused on the side of structure and offers few chances for the kind of collective effort hoped for by Gronn.

scholarly journals THE DEVELOPMENT OF FUNDAMENTAL MOVEMENT-BASED LEARNING USING WATER GAMES FOR CHILDREN 5 – 6 YEARS

2017 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 77
Author(s):  
Rizki Kurniati
Keyword(s):  
Physical Activity ◽  
Early Childhood ◽  
Early Childhood Education ◽  
Motor Learning ◽  
Research And Development ◽  
Empirical Data ◽  
Model Development ◽  
Childhood Education ◽  
The City

The purpose of this research are; (1) develop fundamental movement based learning using water games for children 5-6 years and (2) obtain empirical data on the effectiveness of the results of model development fundamental movement based learning using water games for children aged 5-6 years. Subjects in this study were children aged 5-6 years in kindergarten. Place of research conducted in the city of Palembang. This study is the development of the Research and Development of Borg and Gall. Product results of the research is a fundamental movement guidebook using water games. Research shows that: (1) the development of fundamental movement based learning using water games for children aged 5-6 years have been declared invalid by a motor learning, physical activity experts and practitioners of early childhood education, (2) fundamental movement based learning using water games proved 85% can improve fundamental skills and helps to build a sense of confidence and courage.Keywords: fundamental movement, water games, children aged 5-6 years.

The Future is Created by and within Children

2007 ◽  
Vol 32 (2) ◽  
pp. 1-7 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anette Sandberg ◽  
Tuula Vuorinen
Keyword(s):  
Early Childhood ◽  
Early Childhood Education ◽  
Preschool Teachers ◽  
After School ◽  
Play Intervention ◽  
Childhood Education ◽  
Research Areas ◽  
Increasing Demand ◽  
Group Interviews ◽  
Teachers And Parents

THE OVERALL AIM OF THIS STUDY was to present research areas within early childhood education in a dialogue between municipality and university. The purpose was to produce ideas and develop research in teacher education, with the hope of increasing the understanding of what kind of research is needed into early childhood education. The data collection comprised 10 focus group interviews with politicians, managers, principals, lecturers, preschool teachers and parents, as well as children in after-school recreation centres and preschools, in all a total of 46 participants. The preschool teachers and parents also answered a questionnaire. From the results, different research areas appear; those especially highlighted were play, intervention, cooperation between preschool and home, the position of preschools in relation to schools, and child group research. There was also an increasing demand for children's perspective in gender, class and ethnicity research.

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