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The
early years of childhood are a wonderful time of
life. Children are eager and curious. They are amazed
at much that the adult world takes for granted.
There are many influences that pressure children
to move out of childhood too quickly. At NSNS we
value early childhood as an important phase of development
where learning is viewed as a creative, active and
playful process.
If you are interested in learning more about best
practice in early childhood education, we recommend
that you explore the
resources below.
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| As
a developmental psychologist (Theories of Development:
Concepts and Applications), Crain is deeply concerned
that a societal emphasis on pushing children too
hard to succeed is robbing them of creative, joyful
childhoods. The widespread parental obsession, for
example, with getting their children into good colleges
has, in part, led to an educational system that
promotes mastering academic skills and test-taking
at the expense of the arts. Drawing on current research
and the developmental theories of Jean-Jacques Rousseau,
Maria Montessori, John Dewey, Noam Chomsky and others,
Crain convincingly argues that children have a natural
affinity for drama, nature, art and poetry-all of
which are necessary to their development and should
be encouraged by a "child-centered" rather
than an "adult-directed" approach to raising
children. He includes many strategies for child-centered
parenting, such as making an effort to provide children
with opportunities for experiencing the natural
world and being careful to appreciate rather than
trying to improve on a child's poem or drawing.
This is a thoughtful plea for parents to focus on
the quality of life that children can have now rather
than on their future achievements. |
| Copyright
2002 Reed Business Information, Inc. |
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| Authors
and child psychologists Hirsh-Pasek, Golinkoff and
Eyer join together to prove that training preschoolers
with flash cards and attempting to hurry intellectual
development doesn't pay off. In fact, the authors
claim, kids who are pressured early on to join the
academic rat race don't fair any better than children
who are allowed to take their time. Alarmed by the
current trend toward creating baby Einsteins, Hirsh-Pasek
and Golinkoff urge parents to step back and practice
the "Three R's: Reflect, Resist, and Recenter."
Instead of pushing preschoolers into academically
oriented programs that focus on early achievement,
they suggest that children learn best through simple
playtime, which enhances problem solving skills,
attention span, social development and creativity.
"Play is to early childhood as gas is to a
car," say Hirsh-Pasek and Golinkoff, explaining
that reciting and memorizing will produce "trained
seals" rather than creative thinkers. Creativity
and independent thinking, they argue, are true 21st-century
skills; IQ and other test scores provide a narrow
view of intelligence. The authors walk parents through
much of the recent research on the way children
learn, debunking such myths as the Mozart effect,
and pointing out that much learning unravels naturally,
programmed through centuries of evolution. Although
the research-laden text is sometimes dense, parents
will find a valuable message if they stick with
the program, ultimately relieving themselves and
their offspring of stress and creating a more balanced
life. |
| Copyright
2003 Reed Business Information, Inc. |
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http://www.parenting.com/parenting/child/printarticle/0,20152,1171815,00.html?stage=23
http://ecrp.uiuc.edu/v4n1/bergen.html
http://www.childspan.net/newsletter_view_item.php?id=2
http://www.aap.org/stress/resources.htm