Martin Woodhead

Subjects, Objects or Participants? Dilemmas of Psychological Research with Children

About the book: Research with Children is a unique resource book on the methodology of childhood research. Leading and new researchers within the social studies of childhood discuss central questions of epistemology and methodology, demonstrating the links between theory and practice. The theoretical and practical questions are set out in a clear and well-argued fashion and will therefore appeal both to the newcomer to childhood studies and to experienced researchers in the field. From the introduction: Chapter 1 provides a broad overview of the shifts which have and still are taking place within developmental psychology, noting the obstacles and epistemological barriers which such changes confront.

Psychosocial impacts of child work : a framework for research, monitoring, and intervention

The paper outlines conceptual frameworks for assessing the multiple ways that work can impact (both positively and negatively) on childrens well-being; and for identifying psychosocial indicators of impact. The paper draws attention to ways that the context of childrens work mediates how far potential hazards constitute a risk to children and concludes by outlining theoretical models that link characteristics of work to evidence of impact on childrens psychosocial well-being.

Early Childhood Development: A Question of Rights.

SummaryA right to development is one of the basic principles of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. Several articles are specifically about protecting and promoting children’s development, and other articles refer to developmental concepts of maturity and evolving capacity. Realizing young children’s right to development is informed by numerous sources: cultural understandings, beliefs and values as well as scientific knowledge and theories. I offer two contrasting ways of thinking about children’s rights to development. The first is summarised as three ‘Ns’, emphasising ‘normal’ development, children’s ‘nature’ and their ‘needs’. The second is summarised as three ‘Cs’: recognising that development is ‘contextual’, ‘cultural’ and respecting children’s ‘competencies’. I explore the potential as well as the limitations of each approach, drawing attention to the tension between universalistic theories and the plurality of pathways through childhood, the respects in which development is a natural versus socio-cultural process, and the implications of recognizing children as active participants, with their own perspective on child development issues, while at the same time ensuring they are adequately guided and protected.RésuméLe droit au développement est un des principes de base de la Convention des Nations Unies relative aux Droits de l’Enfant. Plusieurs articles expressément sur la protection et la promotion du développement de l’enfant, et d’autres articles font ré’érence aux concepts de maturité et d’évolution des capacités, propres au domaine du développement.La reconnaissance du droit au développement des jeunes enfants est inspirée par de nombreuses sources d’information: les conceptions, croyances et valeurs culturelles ainsi que les connaissances et théories scientifiques. Je propose deux façons contrastées de concevoir les droits au développement des enfants. La première, qui se résume à trois “N”, insiste sur le développement “normal”, la “nature” des enfants et ce qui leur est “nécessaire”. La seconde, qui se résume à trois “C” reconnaît que le développement est “contextuel”, “culturel” et respecte les “compétences” de l’enfant. J’explore le potentiel ainsi que les limite de chaque approche, en attirant l’attention sur la tension entre les théories universalistes et la pluralité des voies pendant l’enfance, les points de vue selon lesquels le développement est un processus naturel par opposition à socioculturel, et les implications à reconnaître que les enfants sont des participants actifs, avec leur propre perspective sur le développement, tout en s’assurant qu’ils sont guidés et protégés de façon adéquate.ResumenEl derecho al desarrollo es uno de los principios básicos de la Convención de las Naciones Unidas sobre los Derechos del Niño. Varios articulos tratan especificamente de la protección y la promoción del desarrollo de los niños y otros articulos se refieren a conceptos del desarrollo de la madurez y de la capacidad evolutiva. El reconocimiento del derecho al desarrollo de los niños pequeños viene por muchas vias: entendimiento cultural, creencias y valores así como conocimiento y teorías cientificas. Propongo dos maneras opuestas de pensar sobre los derechos de los niños al desarrollo. La primera se resume en tres ‘N’, enfatizando el desarrollo ‘normal’, la ‘naturaleza’ de los niños y sus ‘necesidades’. La segunda se resume en tres ‘C’, reconociendo que el desarrollo es ‘contextual’, ‘cultural’ y respetuoso con las ‘competencias’ de los niños. Exploro el potencial y las limitaciones de cada enfoque, Ilamando la atención sobre la tensión entre las teorías universalistas y la pluralidad de los caminos en la infancia, los puntos de vista en los que el desarrollo es un proceso natural frente a uno socio-cultural, asi como las implicaciones de reconocer que los niños son participantes activos, con su propia perspectiva sobre las cuestiones del desarrollo del niño, y al mismo tiempo asegurarse de que son guiados y protegidos adecuadamente.

Quality in Early Childhood Programmes--A Contextually Appropriate Approach.

Abstract This article concerns the basis for decision‐making about quality in early childhood. The rapid growth in programmes throughout the world sets a challenge for our understanding of what constitutes ‘quality’. An attractive starting point is universalist assumptions about childrens nature, needs and development and about the environment that can best promote their growth. I challenge this view, arguing that quality is relative, but it is not arbitrary. Perspectives on quality depend on a framework of knowledge, beliefs and values about childhood and child development, especially the goals and functions of early childhood programmes. This framework is in turn shaped by economic, educational and cultural context. By drawing on the concept of developmental niche, there is scope for reaching a more contextually appropriate view on quality. This article is based on a paper given at the Second Warwick International Early Years Conference, March 1996. It summarises the final report of the Bernard van Lee...

Pre-School Education Has Long-Term Effects: but can they be generalised?

Preschool intervention projects are now reporting dramatic long‐term follow‐up findings which appear to vindicate the claim that preschool can serve as an ‘inoculation against failure’. The recent evidence appears sound enough, but it is argued that neither revival of this model nor its extension by the idea of a ‘sleeper effect’ is justified. A ‘transactional’ model best accounts for the data, whereby short‐lived improvements in competence coupled with increased motivation, parental aspirations and school expectations, were sufficient to trigger a mutually reinforcing positive cycle of achievement. Three main considerations affect the validity of drawing general conclusions for early education policy. First, the populations served by these projects were severely disadvantaged, mainly black children, and the evidence for wider replicability is inconclusive. Secondly, the projects all featured a carefully designed well‐supported programme with low ratios of children to teachers, although there does appear ...

Towards a global paradigm for research into early childhood education

SUMMARY Early years education is now a global activity, as school systems expand and diverse programmes become established in countries throughout the world. We inherit a rich legacy of theories, methodologies and evidence, from the vision of early childhood pioneers to the latest empirical research. I want to step back from particular initiatives and research evaluations to consider the underlying images of the child that inform early childhood research and practice. What would be an appropriate child development paradigm for promoting quality early years education in a global context? I question the adequacy of much theory and research to encompass global childhoods, especially the dangers inherent in current knowledge-imbalances. I ask about the way child development is conceptualised within early childhood work, and the potential of a sociocultural perspective. Finally, I ask about the status of young children themselves within early education research and practice; whether they are viewed as subjects...

Child Development and the Development of Childhood

Development is a core construct within Western societies. Gardeners nurture the development of plants, managers construct a development plan for their company, rich nations offer aid to developing countries, and so on. In each case, ‘development’ is about change; with a strong sense that these changes follow an ordered, rule-governed plan and that the outcome will be a more advanced, complex or sophisticated level of organization. In the same way, development of children has been generally understood to be about physical and psychological growth in the young of the species, as they transform from foetus, to infant, to child, to adolescent, to adult. Belief in development as progress has been an important subtext — for example expressed through images of the immature, dependent infant maturing to a state of rational, moral autonomy. As one child development textbook put it: … these changes usually result in new improved ways of reacting — that is in behaviour that is healthier, more organised, more complex, more competent or more efficient. (Mussen et al., 1984, 7)

Choosing and changing schools in India’s private and government sectors: Young Lives evidence from Andhra Pradesh

The growth and increasing popularity of ‘low-fee’ private schooling across many parts of India has attracted much research and policy attention. This paper broadens the discussion by drawing attention to the increasing heterogeneity of the educational landscape in many communities. Our specific focus is on the consequences for school choices made by households across rural and urban Andhra Pradesh. The paper draws on longitudinal data for two cohorts comprising approximately 3,000 children, collected as part of Young Lives research, together with a qualitative sub-study involving a purposively selected sample of Young Lives parents and children. Trends in school choice are discussed, as well as the factors that underlie the schooling decisions that households make as they navigate the complex school hierarchies within their communities. The paper offers new evidence of an increasing trend for households to make successive choices of school for their children, as household circumstances change and school options are re-evaluated. Household survey data from 2009 show that 16% of a sample of eight-year-olds had moved school at least once during the early grades of primary school, an increase from 5% of a comparable sample of eight-year-olds in 2002. The consequences of a dynamic and more market-driven school system are explored, and implications discussed.

What Inequality Means for Children Evidence from Young Lives

Understanding how poverty and inequalities impact on children is the major goal of Young Lives, a unique longitudinal, mixed-methods study. Two cohorts totaling 12,000 children are being tracked since 2001, growing-up in Ethiopia, the state of Andhra Pradesh (ap) India, Peru and Vietnam. Earlier versions of this paper were prepared as Young Lives contribution to a unicef/un Women consultation on the post-2015 Development agenda (www.worldwewant2015.org/inequalities) and published as Woodhead, Dornan and Murray (2013).We summarise Young Lives evidence to date on eight research issues that are central to any child rights agenda:1.How inequalities interact in their impact on children’s development and the vulnerability of the most disadvantaged households.2.The ways inequalities rapidly undermine the development of human potential.3.How gender differences interconnect with other inequalities, but do not always advantage boys in Young Lives countries.4.The links between poverty, early ‘stunting’, and later outcomes, including psycho-social functioning, as well as emerging evidence that some children recover.5.Inequalities that open up during the later years of childhood, linked to transitions around leaving school, working, and anticipating marriage etc.6.Children’s own perceptions of poverty and inequality, as these shape their well-being and long-term prospects.7.Evidence of the growing significance of education, including the ways school systems can increase as well as reduce inequalities.8.The potential of social protection programmes in poverty alleviation.We conclude that since inequalities are multidimensional, so too must be the response. Equitable growth policies, education and health services, underpinned by effective social protection, all have a role to play.

‘School starts at five . . . or four years old?‘ The rationale for changing admission policies in England and Wales

The 1944 Education Act requires that children commence full‐time education in the term following their fifth birthday. But many local authorities now admit children at the beginning of the school year following their fourth birthday. This trend breaks with long established conventions about the kind of educational environment that is appropriate for children above and below the statutory starting age. The origin of these conventions is explored, first in the debate surrounding the 1870 Act and secondly in reports in the first decade of this century which led to exclusion of under‐fives from school and establishment of a separate nursery education sector. The recent break with convention has come about because of the opportunity created by falling school rolls to meet parental demand for early educational provision. The specific policy of annual admission has been justified educationally as helping compensate for the disadvantages experienced by summer born children under termly entry arrangements. While a...