Gill Goodliff

Spirituality expressed in creative learning: young children's imagining play as space for mediating their spirituality

Historically underpinning principles of the English curriculum framework for children from birth to five years explicitly acknowledged a spiritual dimension to childrens uniqueness and well-being. Yet spirituality receives scant reference in the discourse of creative learning and teaching. This paper considers the relationship of spirituality to creativity and argues for a greater attentiveness to childrens spirituality in early childhood education that acknowledges its presence in expression of childrens thinking, creating and imagining. Located within an interpretive paradigm, this ethnographic study of children aged two and three years in a day nursery in England, explores how they express spirituality. A hermeneutic approach underpins the analysis and interpretation of the data. Findings reveal how in imaginative play, most often recognised in the early years curriculum as part of creative development, young children show a capacity for expressing meaning-making and negotiating identity, key dimensions of the spiritual in childhood.

Leading and Managing in an Early Years Setting in England

This chapter focuses on Julie, an early years practitioner in England. Starting with a brief description of recent developments in early years services and policy in England, we discuss different perspectives on professionalism and the professional roles of early years practitioners to position Julie’s work within its broader context. Julie’s day is then described through a series of situations on which she reflects during a follow-up interview with us. We conclude that professionalism for early years practitioners can be difficult to define in the context of a country which retains wide and disparate public and private provision and a widely stratified workforce in terms of qualifications. This is not aided by the introduction in 2006 of a centrally defined Early Years Professional role.

Transitions in Professional Identity: Women in the Early Years Workforce

This chapter explores the impact of Foundation degree study on the changing professional identities of women, who comprise the majority of workers in the early years workforce. Historically, the care of young children has been seen as the (natural) preserve of women and as one that needs little knowledge and few, if any, formal qualifications save those gained through the experience of motherhood. The professionalisation of the early years workforce is seen as a key element in the English government ’s reform agenda for the early years and we consider some of the challenges early years students face in becoming reflective and reflexive practitioners within a strongly regulated environment.

Embracing children’s spirituality: glimpsing spiritual moments in children’s play

contributes to reflection, restoration and hope. A recurring theme throughout the book, and presented in the ‘Introduction’ is the maxim ‘Spiritual but not religious.’ Regularly, this phrase is provided as the framework within which research findings are presented, or the milieu within which authors are working. The research of U.K scholars Heelas and Woodhead, published in 2005, features as an indication that spirituality can be detached from religion (see e.g., 2016, 47). However, whilst this premise is central to the text, it might be perceived that such an idea in fact perpetuates the dualism that it seeks to renegotiate. Furthermore, as pointed out in the chapter on management, one must consider the ethics of adopting a spiritual perspective and consider if ‘spirituality is an apparatus to maintain capitalism’ (2016, 275). Such a critical perspective is welcome and might inform an ethical consideration of spirituality in the future. In conclusion, I very much enjoyed reading this book, which I feel is significant for the field of children’s and young people’s spirituality and hope that in another decade from now, the concerns and gaps within research and practice identified will have come some way to being addressed, and that this growing academic area will continue to be healthy and influential across disciplines throughout the world.

Spirituality and Early Childhood Education and Care

Although articulated differently, the early childhood curriculum frameworks of the four UK nations generally include a spiritual dimension to a holistic understanding of children’s development. Spirituality is variously linked to young children’s personal, social and emotional development, their health and wellbeing, play and learning. However whilst acknowledged in policy, there is a distinct lack of discussion about spirituality in early childhood education, and only a few research studies in the UK have focused on how pre-school children experience or express spirituality. Training, and texts, supporting the professional development of early childhood practitioners tend not to explore definitions of the spiritual dimension of children’s development, and practitioners are offered little, or no, explanation of how young children’s spirituality might be recognized. Arguably, traditional connections in British education policy of spirituality to religion, has led to understandings of the word spirituality being synonymous with religious belief and thus problematic for many practitioners. Increasing concerns about the ‘school readiness’ agenda and the institutionalisation of early childhood offers opportunities for dialogue that includes the fostering of children’s skills and dispositions associated with expressions of spirituality.