The nature of Christian early childhood education and care - Celebrating existing thinking and practice and casting a vision for what could be

Abstract

Worldviews, theories and approaches to pedagogy help shape premises about how children learn and develop, and the role families, communities, environments, educators and curriculum play in children’s development and learning. From these, premises about the nature of early childhood education and statements of philosophy can be formulated. Within the field of early childhood, there exists a proliferation of theories and approaches, most of which are based on secular worldviews that have an education for peace agenda. Christian early childhood education and care educators can use these theories, approaches and pedagogies, to inform their thinking and practice and to generate a dialogue about the nature of Christian early childhood education and care (ECEC). To date, little has been written about which theories, approaches and pedagogies are most compatible with the goals of Christian early childhood education. It is the purpose of this chapter to consider this issue by considering what it means to claim that we are a Christian ECEC service. It will also ponder what Christian ECEC offers the sector that is unique and enabling and celebrate what already exists and occurs in this sector. Finally, it will cast a vision of what Christian ECEC services should be like so that they can truly reveal Jesus to the children, families and communities whom they serve.