A new deal for children?

Cohen, Bronwen; Moss, Peter; Petrie, Pat; Wallace, Jennifer

doi:10.2307/j.ctt1t897x2

Cited by 62 publications

(11 citation statements)

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“…This need to be valued is perhaps indicative of how those who care for and educate young children have been viewed historically. Their work has been likened to that of 'baby sitters', a low-status role mirroring the low status of children in society (Cohen et al 2004). Such a view reinforces the stereotype that the education and care of young children is women's work; poorly qualified and poorly paid women at that.…”

Section: Being Valuedmentioning

confidence: 85%

The professional identity of early years educators in England: implications for a transformative approach to continuing professional development

Lightfoot

Frost

2015

Professional Development in Education

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This article examines the professional identity of nine early years educators currently working in the early years sector of education in England. These educators include teachers, teaching assistants, nursery practitioners and nursery nurses working with children three to five years old in the Early Years Foundation Stage in state-maintained schools. The article arises from a doctoral research study that gives voice to the professional identities of these early years educators. The policy background and particular context in which the research is carried out are outlined. The article reports on an exploration of these educators' storied perceptions of their professionality, which is multi-dimensional, complex and cannot be reduced to a list of personal characteristics, responsibilities and duties. The educators' experiences of continuing professional development are considered and an alternative approach is suggested in light of these educators' needs in terms of being valued, having connections and making a difference in their work contexts. IntroductionThe stimulus for this research was prompted by conversations with early years educators (EYEs) in England. Some EYEs seemed enthusiastic about recent policy innovations; keen to enrol on programmes that confer professional status or inspired by recent in-service training to make changes to classroom environments. Others appeared confused about the rate of change within the sector and what appear to be increasingly intensified working conditions. They described a range of feelings including disillusionment with their role, a sense of a loss of control over their daily practice and anxiety at a perceived downward pressure to prepare children for the next stage of more 'formal' schooling. It seemed important to consider how their differing experiences and emotional responses related to their perceptions of themselves as educators of young children. These conversations prompted an exploration of the notion of professional identity and the ways in which it might be construed, negotiated, sustained and contested.The exploratory study outlined in this article focused upon the experiences of nine EYEs who work with three to five year olds in the Early Years Foundation

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Section: Being Valuedmentioning

confidence: 85%

The professional identity of early years educators in England: implications for a transformative approach to continuing professional development

Lightfoot

Frost

2015

Professional Development in Education

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“…This might seem far removed from the activities of the modern child-centered kindergarten but helping children to become empowered is crucial in the practice of social justice education so that children themselves can recognize injustice and respond accordingly. Kindergartens in Nordic countries such as Sweden take the empowerment of children very seriously (Cohen, Moss, Petrie, & Wallace, 2004).…”

Section: The Components Of Social Justice Fairnessmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…For instance, most countries require children to show respect to their parents though it is all too easy to confuse respect with obedience and authoritarian control. However, only a minority of countries, mainly the Nordic countries of Sweden, Norway, Denmark, and Finland, require parents to reciprocate by showing respect to their children (Cohen et al, 2004). A key aspect of such respect is the physical punishment of children, specifically, the smacking of children.…”

Section: Respectmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…However, access to early childhood centers and the type of centers available vary considerably both between and within countries according to a particular country's prevailing culture, ideology, and economy. In Sweden, for example, with a prevailing ideology of social democracy since 1995, publicly funded full-time kindergartens are available for all children on a full-time basis from the age of one to the age of seven when formal elementary school starts (Cohen et al, 2004). In Scotland, with a prevailing liberal/welfare ideology, preschool services are based on a mixed economy of provision consisting of public, private, and voluntary providers.…”

Section: Access Type and Availability Of Servicesmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Social Justice in Educational Policy and Practice with Particular Reference to Early Childhood

Wilkinson

2020

Handbook on Promoting Social Justice in Education

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“…The Conservatives introduced a childcare component in the Family Credit, providing some little financial support to low‐income families, complemented with limited start‐up funds for after‐school care and childcare vouchers for the four‐year‐olds. Despite some government attention, the level of publicly funded care remained negligible, with private sector provision being a prominent feature in the landscape of childcare services in England (Cohen et al. 2004; Lister 1996; Randall 2000a).…”

Section: The Party Politics Of Childcare In Englandmentioning

confidence: 99%

Party Politics and Childcare: Comparing the Expansion of Service Provision in England and Germany

Fleckenstein

2010

Soc Policy Adm

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The expansion of childcare provision in the traditionally 'service-lean' welfare states of England and Germany, in times when most other welfare programmes faced retrenchment, came with some surprise to the comparative social policy and political economy literature. With the expansion of employment-oriented family policies, both countries have departed from their previous strong male breadwinner trajectories. Electoral competition and corresponding party and family policy modernisation in attempts to improve female voter mobilisation is key to understanding this paradigmatic shift informed by the adult worker model.

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A new deal for children?

Cited by 62 publications

References 0 publications

The professional identity of early years educators in England: implications for a transformative approach to continuing professional development

The professional identity of early years educators in England: implications for a transformative approach to continuing professional development

Social Justice in Educational Policy and Practice with Particular Reference to Early Childhood

Party Politics and Childcare: Comparing the Expansion of Service Provision in England and Germany

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