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 Locke’s 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 “children’s 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 Froebel’s 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 child’s 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 Freud’s
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

child-centered
•Advocated
learning in groups

D - 9.01 - History 17
 Dewey’s
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 teacher’s
responsibility)
– Self-correcting and sequential materials
(usually tactile-touch)
– Teaching based on observation
– Trust in children’s inborn drive to learn

D - 9.01 - History 30
 Your Views – Montessori

● Which of Maria Montessori’s

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 child’s
development is influenced by more
than personal experiences.

D - 9.01 - History 32
 Vygotsky’s
Sociocultural Theory
● Important influences on a child’s
development include
– Family
– Community
– Socioeconomic status
– Culture

D - 9.01 - History 33
 Sociocultural Theory-
Implications for Teachers
1. Incorporate each child’s 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. It’s 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 children’s 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.