Breaking the silence: Providing authentic opportunities for parents to be heard. Power and Education.

No abstract

This article considers the role of emotions in the creation of new knowledge and the development of young children’s minds. Drawing on recent literature relating to emotions and emotional development and recent research into rhizomatic thinking, the authors argue that emotions are more important within cognitive development than is currently recognised. They challenge the traditional propensity for prioritising rationality and essentialism within the construction of new knowledge, claiming this merely promotes hegemonic, discursive and binary pedagogies within early education, leaving little room for originality, difference and diversity. The authors explore the possibility that these dominant discourses impoverish children’s thinking and truncate their development. Furthermore, they suggest that emotions are political and strongly influential within issues pertaining to social justice and (in)equitable practice. They consider how the constant controlling, downplaying or disregarding of emotions can effectively impact on who is silenced and privileged within early years education. Having an awareness of the possible interplay between thinking, cognition, forming new knowledge and emotions provides educators with opportunities to challenge and address issues of power and social justice within practice. The article encourages educators to (re)conceptualise children’s thinking and accommodate alternative readings and multiple pathways to sense and meaning drawn from children’s experiences.

This article considers the multifaceted concept of ethics and how, despite being a familiar notion within education, it is still much contested within literature and professional practice. Drawing on postmodern, feminist and political literature, the authors explore (re)conceptualisations of ethics and ethicality in relation to ethical identity, professionalism and practice. Applying philosophical and metaphorical tools, such as the rhizome and nomad (Deleuze and Guattari, 1987), the authors suggest there is the potential to accommodate the multiple and often divergent facets of ethics, thereby engaging with different ethical possibilities. It is argued that the propensity for reducing ethics to merely procedural protocols and guidelines marginalises the richness of ethics and, all too frequently, leaves practitioners ill-equipped to navigate the reality of day-to-day ethics.The article is positioned within the field of early years (EY) practice and training EY practitioners. This reflects the authors’ own specialism but also celebrates the propensity of the EY practitioner to reflect upon, question and challenge their own practice and ethical identities. This does not reduce the applicability of the subject matter which is relevant to educators of children of any age. The term ‘practitioner’ is used throughout to refer to any adult working with children in an educative role, this includes, but is not limited to nursery nurses, teachers or teaching assistants.

Within this literature-based article the authors consider the importance and power of relationships, within the field of early years education and care (ECEC). Drawing on the lenses of attachment and development theory, alongside current literature and research, the authors critically explore the significance of relationships in child development, including the crucial role that they play in general physical and emotional health and development, as well as more long-term mental health and wellbeing. Children’s relational worlds have recently been challenged by the pandemic and subsequent lockdowns, social isolation and safety measures. This article argues that while the full implications of the pandemic have yet to be realised, the relational implications for children are more important than ever before. Dominant discourses regarding attachment and early bonding are discussed, alongside the lesser explored discourses around companionship attachment and how this connects to relational pedagogy, and wider notions of genetic heritage and ecocultural literacy.