The History of

Early Childhood
Education

D - 9.01 - History 1
 Who are you?
How did you grow to become the unique
person you are today?
 What do you remember
about your childhood?

Earliest memory
Memory you expect to keep throughout
life

D - 9.01 - History 3
 Other Memories . . .
Most embarrassing moment?

Happiest experience?
Scariest experience?

D - 9.01 - History 4
 The Importance of History

Why is it important to
know about the history
of early childhood
education?

D - 9.01 - History 5
 Knowing about ECE History

Provides a sense of support and perspective

Serves as a source of inspiration
Helps teachers develop creative expression
Helps teachers develop better methods of teaching
Creates awareness and understanding of changes
in education
Helps individuals get in touch with their own early
childhood experiences
Helps individuals develop a philosophy of teaching

D - 9.01 - History 6
Many people have
contributed to our
understanding of child
development

D - 9.01 - History 7
 John Locke
1632-1714
Founder of modern educational
philosophy
Theory based on scientific method, study
of mind and learning
Believed that each child is born with a
clean slate (tabula rasa) on which their
experiences are written

Tabula rasa

D - 9.01 - History 8
 Environmentalism
The environment, not
innate characteristics,
determines what
children will become
The environment forms
the mind
D - 9.01 - History 9
 Your Views - John Locke

What do Lockes beliefs

and his work mean to
you?
What do you think
about his clean slate
theory?

D - 9.01 - History 10
 Friedrich Froebel
1782 - 1852
Coined the word kindergarten
Started the first kindergarten in
Germany in 1837
Emphasized teacher-directed learning
Advocated freedom, initiative, and
relevant curriculum

D - 9.01 - History 11
 Friedrich Froebel ---
Father of the Kindergarten

In German, the word kindergarten

means childrens garden.
Association between flower buds
opening and children going through a
natural unfolding process

D - 9.01 - History 12
 Your Views
Friedrich Froebel

What do Froebels beliefs and

his work mean to you?
What do you remember about
being in kindergarten?
Did your kindergarten
experiences affect the person
you are today?
D - 9.01 - History 13
 Sigmund Freud
1856-1939

A childs personality develops

through a predictable pattern of
psychosexual stages.
Many emotional and
psychological problems of adults
are connected to how their parents
and care providers met their basic
needs as children.

D - 9.01 - History 14
The Id, the Ego, and the Superego
Sigmund Freud

D - 9.01 - History 15
 Your Views
Sigmund Freud

What do Freuds
beliefs and his work
mean to you?
How well were your
needs met as a child?

D - 9.01 - History 16
John Dewey
1858 - 1952
First real American influence
on American education
Founder of progressive
movement
His theory = progressivism

Advocated child-centered
learning in groups

D - 9.01 - History 17
 Deweys
Pedagogic Creed

Education, therefore, is
a process of living and
not a preparation for
future living.
-John Dewey
D - 9.01 - History 18
 Your Views - John Dewey

How much of education do

you believe is preparation for
future living, and how much is
the actual process of living?
Do you feel that learning
should be centered around the
subject or around the child?
D - 9.01 - History 19
Margaret McMillan
1860 - 1931
Margaret and her sister Rachel
extended concern beyond
education to medical and dental
care for children
Created open-air nursery in a
slum

Developed the McMillan

theory of fresh air, sleep,
and bathing
D - 9.01 - History 20
 The McMillan Sisters
Margaret and Rachel McMillan crusaded
to improve child care in English slums.
Many people credit the creation of
nursery schools to these sisters.
Margaret created the name nursery
school --- nursery to focus on the goal
of nurturing good health, and school to
focus on educating young children.

D - 9.01 - History 21
 Your Views
Margaret McMillan
How important are fresh air, sleep,
and bathing to the health and
well-being of children?
Have you ever known a situation
where a child did not receive
adequate physical care? What were
the results?

D - 9.01 - History 22
Rudolph Steiner
1861 - 1925
Founded Waldorf Schools
Interdisciplinary,
multi-sensory curriculum with
emphasis on the arts
Emphasized the whole child;
begin where the learner is.
Promoted self-regulation and
self-discipline
D - 9.01 - History 23
 Rudolph Steiner
Steiner believed that experiences for
young children need to be carefully
selected. He believed that fairy tales
helped them learn important truths.
Modern-day followers of Waldorf
philosophy believe that TV-viewing for
children should be limited.

D - 9.01 - History 24
 Your Views
Rudolph Steiner

What are your views on children

and television?

D - 9.01 - History 25
Patty Hill
1868 - 1946
Founded the National Association
for the Education of Young
Children
Originated large-muscle equipment
and materials for climbing and
construction.
Wrote the song Happy Birthday

D - 9.01 - History 26
Patty Hill
Her ideas about
unifying
kindergarten and
first-grade work
became the focus of
modern
kindergarten
practice.

D - 9.01 - History 27
 Your Views Patty Hill

Do you believe it is important for

kindergarten and first-grade
learning experiences to be
unified?

D - 9.01 - History 28
 Maria Montessori
1870 - 1952
Child copies Education begins at birth
reality,
rather than
constructs it.
The early years are very important
as children go through sensitive
periods. Their curiosity makes them
ready to learn certain things at certain
times.
Goals of education: the formation of
the child and development of
character
D - 9.01 - History 29
 Maria Montessori
Elements of early childhood programs
that are attributed to Montessori:
A prepared environment (the teachers
responsibility)
Self-correcting and sequential materials
(usually tactile-touch)
Teaching based on observation
Trust in childrens inborn drive to learn

D - 9.01 - History 30
 Your Views Montessori

Which of Maria Montessoris

philosophies ring true for you?
Were you ever enrolled in a
Montessori school as a child, or
have you ever visited one?

D - 9.01 - History 31
 Lev Vygotsky
1896-1934
Focuses on the child as a whole
Incorporates culture and values into
child development
Sociocultural Theory: A childs
development is influenced by more
than personal experiences.

D - 9.01 - History 32
 Vygotskys
Sociocultural Theory
Important influences on a childs
development include
Family
Community
Socioeconomic status
Culture

D - 9.01 - History 33
 Sociocultural Theory-
Implications for Teachers
1. Incorporate each childs family and
culture into the school.
2. The relationship between teacher and
child is very important to learning.
3. Use the tools of the society to help
children learn.
4. Play is an important part of learning.
5. Its very important to note individual
differences among learners.

D - 9.01 - History 34
Lev Vygotsky
Zone of proximal
development (ZPD)
(the distance between the
actual developmental level
and the level of potential
development)

D - 9.01 - History 35
 Your View Vygotsky

Can you think of an area of skill

in which your ZPD is large --- that
is, the distance between your
actual level of skill and your
potential skill level is very great?
You have a long way to go!

D - 9.01 - History 36
Loris Malaguzzi
1920 - 1994
Founded Reggio Emilia Schools
Schools have teachers, a
pedagogista, and an aterlierista
All children capable of learning
Children construct their own
learning
Documenting childrens work is
essential for success of the program

D - 9.01 - History 37
 Loris Malaguzzi

The family and

community are important
parts of the amiable
school.

D - 9.01 - History 38
 Your Views Malaguzzi

What do you think should

be the role of the family in
an early childhood
classroom?
The role of the community?

D - 9.01 - History 39
 Imagine what our world would
have been like without . . .

Kindergarten
Nursery school
Montessori schools
Child-centered learning
Medical/dental care for children?

D - 9.01 - History 40
What do you think the
contributions of these
leaders will mean to you
as you work with young
children?

D - 9.01 - History 41
 Stay tuned for more . . .

Objective 3.01
Recognize the importance of and contributions
of leaders in the history of early childhood
education.