Using social domain theory to seek critical consciousness with young children

The question of ‘developmental appropriateness’ in education can be both empowering and inhibiting. When are students ‘ready’ to talk about social injustices and systemic inequalities? How might educators introduce social inequities using developmental findings about reasoning? This article presents social domain theory as a lens through which educators can approach critical consciousness education with young children. An overview of Freire’s critical consciousness construct is presented, including educational interventions, methods, and approaches that support critical consciousness. An overview of social domain theory is also presented. Social domain theory is a developmental theory of sociomoral reasoning that describes three domains of social knowledge that develop independently, and get applied/coordinated/prioritized differently in context by individuals. This theory, and the research stemming from it, has shown that there are developmental transition points during which children come to view their previous logic as inadequate, and are likely to shift their understandings of moral, conventional, and personal issues. A parallel is drawn between these transition points and the process of wrestling with and overturning ‘contradictions’ in critical consciousness education. Contradictions are theorized as dehumanizing power dynamics that show up in students’ everyday circumstances. This article provides tables outlining example contradictions for young children, key domain–related reasoning shifts for young children, and examples for how to create lesson plans that take these two factors into account. Finally, we propose a method of facilitating self-assessment of critical consciousness with young children. Self-reflection questions are provided for teachers and students.

A Chronology of Curriculum Questions

Curriculum studies can be characterized by dominant questions asked by those who have participated in the field over the years. Most of the questions that have dominated inquiry and praxis are variations on the central curriculum question: What is worthwhile? In the mid-19th century, the focus was on what knowledge was deemed most worthwhile, especially for elementary and secondary education, as nations began to take charge of what was taught and learned in schools. Most of the questions that characterize curriculum history continued to be debated and studied throughout the 20th century and into the 21st century. Arguments ensued about how developmental appropriateness, school and nonschool experience, and science or efficiency contributed to an understanding of what is worthwhile. Curriculum scholars and curriculum workers continue to address how to meet individual and social interests and needs and how curriculum of education should improve society. Curriculum studies offers guiding questions for studying, reflecting on, developing, or enacting curriculum derived from publications of curriculum scholars and policy makers. After the middle of the 20th century, many of the previously established questions were challenged by new generations of curriculum scholars who criticized the dominance of powerful political, racial, gender, and cultural groups in determining what should be taught and learned in schools; that is, the sources of what human beings should be and become. They questioned the capability of schools as institutions of nations that have become corporate states to guide this task for the benefit of all. Critiques have continued to proliferate regarding who benefits and who is harmed by questions that guide curriculum scholarship, policy, and practice in schools and all other societal institutions and relationships that educate. Much discrimination has been identified that provides markedly less educational benefit to those who are not part of the majority culture. The interests of wealthy White males are often privileged, and the needs of racial and ethnic minorities, the poor, those who have disabilities, and those who are otherwise different are harmed. Moreover, the purposes of education in schooling seem to be to advance the benefits accorded to powerful and privileged groups. To understand this situation, curriculum scholars have drawn upon questions derived from critical theory and cultural studies. Curriculum studies literature also offers ideas for creating curricula that benefit more of humanity throughout the world, as well as seeking insights from many different world cultures, including indigenous and grassroots ones. A larger question deals with the extent to which humans are able to construct educational opportunities wherein all are educated in worthwhile ways. Struggles over meanings of “worthwhile” continue to resound throughout curriculum studies scholarship and its influence on educational policy and practice and concomitant impacts on the world.

Child therapist’s play: Reconsidering the developmental appropriateness of Developmental Transformations

Developmental Transformations (DvT) has been presented as a developmentally appropriate therapy approach for children. This conceptual article explores the foundational elements of DvT practice in relation to children’s specific needs in therapy. The article argues for a heightened ethical responsibility to apply core concepts such as encounter, embodiment, mutuality and reversibility in the context of children’s developmental processes, and to acknowledge the power differentials between child clients and adult therapists.

Sport and physical activity in the urban area – housing estate greens for three generations

Research aim: Playgrounds were historically designed only for children, today we can observe new concept of recreation sites, aimed for all ages. Traditional playground was furniture with kids’ equipment, while universal playgrounds have also facilities for adults. These facilities enable families to play together. Research methods: Research project ds-300 AWF was a continuation of the ds-114 AWF – the MNiSW grant. Using the field survey with participant observations, structured and semi-structured interviews methods, factors determining the ‘inclusive urban playground’ for three generations were identified. Research results: To achieve the open access to the universally designed, inclusive playgrounds for all ages, basic components should be included: physical accessibility, age and developmental appropriateness, physical, social and sensory-stimulating components. Conclusions: Results show that exciting, engaging and challenging sport and recreation housing green areas are important to encourage physical activities for all age and enhance social, mental and physical skills of the three generations.

School-Based Mindfulness Interventions

Mindfulness, adapted from ancient Buddhist thought and practice, was introduced into the West in a secularized and Westernized form during the 1980s. In subsequent decades, it spread around the world, into clinics, workplaces, and schools. The practice involves cultivating the ability to focus attention, and to notice any distracting thoughts and feelings without judgment or elaboration, in order to reduce stress and improve mental health. As such, it is a psychological phenomenon involving metacognition, or thinking about thinking, though this can be placed within a holistic framework that sees the mind as intricately linked with the body and the external world. In the early years of the 21st century, concerns grew about children’s mental health, and schools became seen as places to address this through universal programs; that is, mental health promotion programs that reach all students and that therefore do not stigmatize those who already have psychological difficulties, or are at risk of developing them. Evidence was also accruing that, with samples of healthy (non-clinical) adults, mindfulness had moderate effects on measures such as anxiety, and strong effects in reducing stress. Although research designs were generally not very strong, the positive results and public enthusiasm for mindfulness encouraged the introduction of universal programs into schools, and even preschools. However, the dissemination of school-based mindfulness programs ran well ahead of the scientific evidence examining their efficacy (under tightly controlled conditions) or their effectiveness in real-world school contexts. While studies were suggestive that mindfulness could affect many aspects of children’s and adolescents’ wellbeing and development, the body of research as a whole fell short in terms of scientific rigor. There were few well-designed randomized controlled trials that would enable firm conclusions to be drawn that any identified effects were due to the mindfulness program rather than to unknown factors. Moreover, little attention was paid to the presumed mechanisms of change or to the developmental appropriateness of programs. As more, and better-designed, studies began to emerge, accumulating results suggested that effects were generally small, but stronger for older than younger adolescents, and longer lasting for adolescents than for children. Issues that remained for further systematic attention included many matters of program design and implementation, the safety of the practice, its basis in developmental theory and research, and its ethical and political implications.

Urgensi Diklat Berjenjang Tingkat Dasar Pendidik Pada Peningkatan Kompetensi Guru Raudlatul Athfal Bekerjasama dengan IGRA dan Himpaudi Kabupaten Pasuruan

Penelitian ini bertujuan a). Mengetahui pentingnya diklat berjenjang tingkat dasar pada kompetesi pendidik Raudlatul Athfal Kabupaten Pasuruan b). Mengetahui mengetahui bagaimana pengaplikasian diklat berjenjang tingkat Dasar Pendidik RA Kabupaten Pasuruan c). Mengetahui kualitas pendidik dalam menyelaraskan sikap perilaku setelah mengikuti diklat berjenjang tingkat dasar. Penelitian ini menggunakan pendekatan kualitatif yang menggunakan pendekatan berdasarkan perspektif fenomenologis. Analisis dilakukan dengan pendekatan fenomenologis, observasi dan selfreport. Data yang terkumpul diidentifikasi berdasarkan ketiga komponen Developmental Appropriateness Practices (DAP). Penelitian ini menghasilkan simpulan Kualitas guru tidak dapat dikalahkan oleh sitem pendidikan dalam mempengaruhi kualitas pendidikan dengan kata lain sebaik apapun sistem pendidikan jika tidak di ikuti dengan kualitas guru yang baik maka kualitas tidak dapat meningkat dengan maksimal, diklat berjenjang tingkat dasar merupakan salah satu pembinaan atau peningkatan kompetensi pendidik, terlihat pada hasil dari kegiatan Diklat Berjenjang yaitu (1) banyak guru Raudlatul Athfal yang belum memahami metode pembelajaran untuk diterapkan pada kegiatan belajar mengajar anak usia dini setelah mengikuti diklat berjenjang, guru Raudlatul Athal lebih memahami metode untuk diterapkan pada kegiatan pembelajaran anak usia dini (2) kegiatan diklat berjenjang tingkat dasar dapat menambah wawasan ilmu pengetahuan tentang anak usia dini (3) Guru Raudlatul Athfal dapat menyusun manajemen dan perangkat pembelajaran dengan sempurna mulai dari kegiatan perencanaan, pelaksanaan , pengamatan hingga evaluasi guru dapat menyusun dengan baik (4) materi yang telah di berikan pada diklat berjenjang tingkat dasar sangat sesuai dengan permasalahan dan kebutuhan yang di alamai oleh guru Raudlatul Athfal

Optimizing Complementary Diets to Provide Nutrient Adequacy for Infants 6 to 12 Months Old: A Dietary Modelling Study (P11-090-19)

Objectives The purpose of this study was to determine the optimal composition of complementary diets for infants 6 to 12 months old (m.o), in terms of daily intake of food groups to ensure nutrient adequacy. A secondary goal was to determine differences in these optimized diets with fortified versus unfortified foods. Methods Dietary modelling using linear programming was applied to the Feeding Infants and Toddlers Study 2016 data set to develop theoretical diets that satisfy nutrient requirements, while meeting median energy needs, for 6 to 8 m.o. and 9 to 12 m.o. breast-fed, formula-fed, and mixed-fed infants. The food data set was adjusted to ensure, among other criteria, developmental appropriateness and safety. Using the Nutrition Data System for Research (NDSR, version 2015: University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN), the current US fortification for grains was included, and analyses were then performed without fortification. Results Among modelled diets for 6 to 8 m.o., a greater amount of total food, particularly vegetables, was required to achieve nutrient adequacy in the absence of fortification. The quantity of vegetables ranged from 54 g/day (3.5% of total energy (E)) in the formula based fortified diet up to 206 g/day (15% of E) in the breast milk unfortified diet. The modelling showed that inclusion of starches and grains was negligible in the unfortified diets, being primarily replaced by vegetables and pulses. For 9 to 12 m.o., daily intake of vegetables were particularly high at 222 g/day (12% of E), in the breast-fed, unfortified group. Pulses, nuts and seeds were featured in the unfortified diets at a level of 61 g/day (10% of E) in both the breast milk diet and the mixed diet. In terms of nutrient adequacy, all requirements were met apart from iron in the breast fed unfortified diet for 6 to 8 m.o.. Meeting Vitamin D was unachievable in all but the formula based diets for 6 to 8 m.o. Conclusions Fortification or supplementation is required to provide adequate iron to breast-fed infants, particularly in the early months of complementary feeding, and vitamin D to most infants. The diet optimization, which could be the basis for food based dietary guidelines, showed that complementary diets should be adapted according to the milk source in the infant diet. Funding Sources Nestlé Nutrition, Vevey, Switzerland.