A Critical Analysis of Concepts Associated with Sustainability in Early Childhood Curriculum Frameworks Across Five National Contexts

Abstract

Curriculum frameworks have an important role in providing guidance to early childhood practitioners on how to integrate knowledge about sustainability into their practice. This article examines how ideas about sustainability are integrated in the early childhood curricula for Australia, England, Norway, Sweden and the USA. The analyses were guided by critical inquiry and a cross-national dialogue and focused on four aspects of the curricula: sustainability presence, views of the child, human-environment relationship and philosophical/theoretical underpinnings on ideas expressed about sustainability. Ideas about sustainability were more implicitly present than explicitly stated in most curricula. It was not evident that children were viewed as world citizens with agency to help foster sustainability. With respect to human-environmental relationship, the framework from Australia expressed greater reciprocity and entanglement, while other frameworks were more anthropocentric despite the variation among curricula. All five frameworks embodied a sociocultural, human development approach with respect to the philosophical and theoretical underpinnings. There is a need to consider alternative frameworks that offer broader and more inclusive worldviews about sustainability that includes embracing human, non-human and other species within an assemblage of common worlds.Keywords Anthropocentric Á Curriculum theory Á Early childhood education Á Sustainability Á Education for sustainability Á Child agencyRésumé Les programmes d'études jouent un rôle important dans l'orientation des praticiens de la petite enfance sur la manière d'intégrer les connaissances sur la durabilité dans leur pratique. Cet article examine comment les idées sur la durabilité sont intégrées dans les programmes préscolaires en Australie, Angleterre, Norvège, Suède et aux É tats-Unis. Les analyses ont été guidées par une enquête critique et un dialogue transnational, et axées sur quatre aspects des programmes: la présence de la durabilité, les perspectives de l'enfant, les relations entre l'humain et l'environnement et les fondements philosophiques/théoriques soutenant les idées exprimées sur la durabilité. Les idées sur la durabilité sont plus implicitement présentes qu'explicitement énoncées dans la plupart des programmes. Il n'est pas évident que les enfants sont considérés comme des citoyens du monde ayant la capacité d'agir pour favoriser la durabilité. En ce qui concerne les relations entre l'humain et l'environnement, le programme de l'Australie exprime plus de réciprocité et d'interrelation tandis que les autres sont plus anthropocentriques. Les cinq programmes incluent tous une approche socioculturelle du développement humain comme fondements philosophiques et théoriques. Il est nécessaire d'envisager des programmes alternatifs qui offrent des visions du monde plus larges et plus inclusives sur la durabilité, et qui comprennent l'inclusion des espèces humaine, non humaines et autres à l'intérieur d'un ensemble de mondes communs.Resumen ...

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