Respecting Childhood

by Loreman, Tim

• ISBN13: 9780826432445
• ISBN10: 0826432441
• eBook ISBN(s): 9781441141019
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2009-04-16
• Publisher: Bloomsbury Academic
• More Book Details

Summary

Western society conceptualizes and often idealizes children as being fragile, innocent and incompetent. Instead of being viewed as a stage of life worthy of respect in its own right, childhood is often reduced by adults to being seen as preparation for the future. This is evidenced in parenting styles, practices and structures in schools, and media representations. As a result of these views of childhood, many extreme ways of living and working with children have been proposed, from over-permissiveness on the one hand, to a back to basics strict style of discipline and education on the other. Childhood is now seen as being so complex that parents and teachers frequently feel the need to seek out and follow often conflicting expert advice on how to raise and teach children, rather than following their natural instincts and common sense.

Author Biography

Tim Loreman is Associate Professor of Education at Concordia University College of Alberta, and Editor of the International Journal of Whole Schooling.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgements	p. ix
Preface	p. xi
Introduction	p. 1
The rationale for this text	p. 1
The image of the child in society	p. 3
Respecting Children's Present and Future	p. 10
Introduction	p. 10
The big picture	p. 11
Respecting children's present and future at home	p. 16
Respecting children's present and future at school	p. 20
Case study	p. 28
Discussion questions	p. 29
Further resources	p. 29
Respecting Children's Relationships and Family Life	p. 30
Introduction	p. 30
The big picture	p. 31
Respecting children's relationships and family life at home	p. 36
Respecting children's relationships and family life at school	p. 44
Case study	p. 50
Discussion questions	p. 51
Further resources	p. 51
Respecting Children's Capacities and Abilities	p. 52
Introduction	p. 53
The big picture	p. 53
Respecting children's capacities and abilities at home	p. 60
Respecting children's capacities and abilities at school	p. 64
Case study	p. 71
Discussion questions	p. 73
Further resources	p. 73
Respecting Children's Behaviour and Morals	p. 74
Introduction	p. 74
The big picture	p. 75
Respecting children's behaviour and morals at home	p. 79
Respecting children's behaviour and morals at school	p. 85
Case study	p. 91
Discussion questions	p. 92
Further resources	p. 92
Respecting Children's Differences	p. 93
Introduction	p. 93
The big picture	p. 94
Respecting children's differences at home	p. 102
Respecting children's differences at school	p. 106
Case study	p. 111
Discussion questions	p. 112
Further resources	p. 113
Conclusion: A Model of Respect for Childhood	p. 114
Limits on respect for children	p. 114
A model of respect for childhood	p. 117
References	p. 120
Index	p. 135
Table of Contents provided by Ingram. All Rights Reserved.