Alan Pence – författare

Denna bok problematiserar försöken att definiera och mäta "kvalitet" inom förskolan och därmed reducera närmast filosofiska värdefrågor till rent tekniska och administrativa problem. Författarna hävdar att det finns andra sätt att förstå och utvärdera förskolans pedagogiska arbete – liksom att förstå såväl barndomen som innehållet i förskolans verksamhet. Bokens praktikexempel är hämtade från bl.a. Reggio Emilia och Stockholmsprojektets förskolor.

Författarnas alternativa perspektiv är genomgående socialkonstruktionistiskt och postmodernistiskt, vilket innebär att framställningen i boken har giltighet långt utanför förskolan. Faktiskt kan alla som arbetar i och med såväl skola som förskola – eller arbetar med forskning, administration eller politiska uppdrag inom motsvarande områden – ha glädje och nytta av bokens analyser.

Dessutom innehåller boken litteratur från hela världen, vilket innebär att den utgör en utförlig presentation av denna just nu pågående kunskapsteoretiska och sociohistoriska "synvända".

Sagt om boken”...författarna för viktiga och mycket intressanta resonemang om dagens barndom och barnomsorg, då de ifrågasätter givna sanningar och synsätt. Eftersom boken är skriven på engelska, finns det anledning att översätta den till svenska” Gunilla Lindqvist, universitetslektor, Pedagogiska Magasinet, Stockholm, nr 1/00.

Om författarnaGunilla Dahlberg är professor i pedagogik vid Lärarhögskolan i Stockholm.Peter Moss är professor i Early Childhood Provision vid Institute of Education, University of London. Alan Pence är professor vid the School of Child and Youth Care, University of Victoria, Kanada.

Taking a broad approach, Beyond Quality in Early Childhood Education and Care relates issues of early childhood to the sociology of childhood, philosophy, ethics, political science and other fields and to an analysis of the world we live in today. It places these issues in a global context and draws on work from Canada, Sweden and Italy, including the world famous nurseries in Reggio Emilia.Working with postmodern ideas, this book questions the search to define and measure quality in the early childhood field and its tendency to reduce philosophical issues of value to purely technical and managerial issues of expert knowledge and measurement.With a brand new Preface to this classic text, the authors argue that there are other ways than the 'discourse of quality' for understanding and evaluating early childhood pedagogical work and relate these to alternative ways of understanding early childhood itself and the purposes of early childhood institutions.

Taking a broad approach, Beyond Quality in Early Childhood Education and Care relates issues of early childhood to the sociology of childhood, philosophy, ethics, political science and other fields and to an analysis of the world we live in today. It places these issues in a global context and draws on work from Canada, Sweden and Italy, including the world famous nurseries in Reggio Emilia.Working with postmodern ideas, this book questions the search to define and measure quality in the early childhood field and its tendency to reduce philosophical issues of value to purely technical and managerial issues of expert knowledge and measurement.With a brand new Preface to this classic text, the authors argue that there are other ways than the 'discourse of quality' for understanding and evaluating early childhood pedagogical work and relate these to alternative ways of understanding early childhood itself and the purposes of early childhood institutions.

Professional Child and Youth Care provides a comprehensiveanalysis of the child and youth care field in Canada. The firstedition, published in 1987, developed an inclusive model of the broadfield of child and youth care, which has since been adapted byeducators, practitioners, and researchers across North America. Nowthis widely used text has been revised and expanded to includedevelopments that have occurred in the field in the last decade. Allthe chapters have been updated, and two new chapters on rehabilitationand recreation have been added.The book covers a spectrum of key concerns within the field of childand youth care, and presents an analysis that spans a variety ofprogram areas. The authors propose that the similarities acrosspractice settings are greater than the differences, and they suggestthat adopting an inclusive, generic view of the field presentsopportunities for development and growth in a time of diminishingresources and support for services. They advocate a model ofprofessional development for child and youth care that maintains aprimary focus on the needs of children, youth, and families, andpropose that by being flexible and adaptive, child and youth carepractitioners can successfully navigate a difficult economic period andemerge as leaders and innovators within the human service sector.Professional Child and Youth Care is a practical, appliedbook that will be of considerable interest to students, practitioners,and educators in the field.

Supporting Indigenous Children's Development challenges and offers an alternative to the imposition of best practices on communities by outside specialists. It tells the story of an unexpected partnership initiated by an Aboriginal tribal council with the University of Victoria's School of Child and Youth Care. The partnership has produced a new approach to professional education, in which community leaders are co-constructors of the curriculum and implementation proceeded only if both parties are present and engaged. Word of this "generative curriculum" has spread to numerous Aboriginal communities and now over sixty communities have participated in the First Nations Partnerships Program. Jessica Ball and Alan Pence show how this innovative program has strengthened community capacity to design, deliver, and evaluate culturally appropriate programs to support young children's development.

Supporting Indigenous Children's Development challenges and offers an alternative to the imposition of best practices on communities by outside specialists. It tells the story of an unexpected partnership initiated by an Aboriginal tribal council with the University of Victoria's School of Child and Youth Care. The partnership has produced a new approach to professional education, in which community leaders are co-constructors of the curriculum and implementation proceeded only if both parties are present and engaged. Word of this "generative curriculum" has spread to numerous Aboriginal communities and now over sixty communities have participated in the First Nations Partnerships Program. Jessica Ball and Alan Pence show how this innovative program has strengthened community capacity to design, deliver, and evaluate culturally appropriate programs to support young children's development.

Critical and postmodern perspectives have been largely underexplored in the field of child and youth care. This book addresses the gap, showcasing cutting-edge approaches to policy, pedagogy, and practice from diverse perspectives and professional settings.The authors of Child and Youth Care challenge deep-seated assumptions about child and youth care by reinterpreting core concepts such as ethics and outcomes and raising questions about underlying goals and premises. Can the ends of practice be separated from the means? For whose benefit are interventions designed? By recognizing a range of social and political influences on children and youth, this volume bears witness to exciting developments in child and youth care.

Diversity can be a rich source of possibility and opportunity in early childhood education. Appreciating that learning and development are shaped by culture and context, history and values, the diversity of cases found in this volume provide a useful tension in considering one’s own practices, policies and beliefs. Pedagogies for Diverse Contexts draws on the knowledge and professional experiences of actors from a wide range of countries and cultures. For some, early childhood’s dominant narratives have been influential, while others push back against universalistic orientations and the power of a neoliberal hegemonic agenda. Written to provoke, to stimulate and to extend thinking, these chapters provide insights and examples relevant not only for front-line practice and programme development, but for education, assessment, research and policy development. The twelve chapters are divided into four key sections which reflect major influences on practice and pedagogy: Being alongside children Those who educate Embedding families and communities Working with systemsConsidering varied international practices, this key text will enhance understanding, support self-directed learning, and provoke thinking at both graduate and postgraduate levels, particularly in the field of early childhood education and care.

Diversity can be a rich source of possibility and opportunity in early childhood education. Appreciating that learning and development are shaped by culture and context, history and values, the diversity of cases found in this volume provide a useful tension in considering one’s own practices, policies and beliefs. Pedagogies for Diverse Contexts draws on the knowledge and professional experiences of actors from a wide range of countries and cultures. For some, early childhood’s dominant narratives have been influential, while others push back against universalistic orientations and the power of a neoliberal hegemonic agenda. Written to provoke, to stimulate and to extend thinking, these chapters provide insights and examples relevant not only for front-line practice and programme development, but for education, assessment, research and policy development. The twelve chapters are divided into four key sections which reflect major influences on practice and pedagogy: Being alongside children Those who educate Embedding families and communities Working with systemsConsidering varied international practices, this key text will enhance understanding, support self-directed learning, and provoke thinking at both graduate and postgraduate levels, particularly in the field of early childhood education and care.

Early childhood intervention programs are one of the most effective ways to build human capital and break the cycle of poverty. Yet the amount spent on early childhood care and education varies considerably, and no model exists that suits every cultural context. Countries have to identify cost effective and adaptable interventions that meet the needs of their communities. At stake is the future of 140 million children and more.

Taking a broad approach, Beyond Quality in Early Childhood Education and Care relates issues of early childhood to the sociology of childhood, philosophy, ethics, political science and other fields and to an analysis of the world we live in today. It places these issues in a global context and draws on work from Canada, Sweden and Italy, including the world famous nurseries in Reggio Emilia.Working with postmodern ideas, this book questions the search to define and measure quality in the early childhood field and its tendency to reduce philosophical issues of value to purely technical and managerial issues of expert knowledge and measurement.With a brand new Preface to this classic text, the authors argue that there are other ways than the ''discourse of quality'' for understanding and evaluating early childhood pedagogical work and relate these to alternative ways of understanding early childhood itself and the purposes of early childhood institutions.

Taking a broad approach, Beyond Quality in Early Childhood Education and Care relates issues of early childhood to the sociology of childhood, philosophy, ethics, political science and other fields and to an analysis of the world we live in today. It places these issues in a global context and draws on work from Canada, Sweden and Italy, including the world famous nurseries in Reggio Emilia.Working with postmodern ideas, this book questions the search to define and measure quality in the early childhood field and its tendency to reduce philosophical issues of value to purely technical and managerial issues of expert knowledge and measurement.With a brand new Preface to this classic text, the authors argue that there are other ways than the ''discourse of quality'' for understanding and evaluating early childhood pedagogical work and relate these to alternative ways of understanding early childhood itself and the purposes of early childhood institutions.

Diversity can be a rich source of possibility and opportunity in early childhood education. Appreciating that learning and development are shaped by culture and context, history and values, the diversity of cases found in this volume provide a useful tension in considering one’s own practices, policies and beliefs.

Pedagogies for Diverse Contexts draws on the knowledge and professional experiences of actors from a wide range of countries and cultures. For some, early childhood’s dominant narratives have been influential, while others push back against universalistic orientations and the power of a neoliberal hegemonic agenda. Written to provoke, to stimulate and to extend thinking, these chapters provide insights and examples relevant not only for front-line practice and programme development, but for education, assessment, research and policy development.

The twelve chapters are divided into four key sections which reflect major influences on practice and pedagogy:

Being alongside children

Those who educate

Embedding families and communities

Working with systems

Considering varied international practices, this key text will enhance understanding, support self-directed learning, and provoke thinking at both graduate and postgraduate levels, particularly in the field of early childhood education and care.

Diversity can be a rich source of possibility and opportunity in early childhood education. Appreciating that learning and development are shaped by culture and context, history and values, the diversity of cases found in this volume provide a useful tension in considering one’s own practices, policies and beliefs.

Pedagogies for Diverse Contexts draws on the knowledge and professional experiences of actors from a wide range of countries and cultures. For some, early childhood’s dominant narratives have been influential, while others push back against universalistic orientations and the power of a neoliberal hegemonic agenda. Written to provoke, to stimulate and to extend thinking, these chapters provide insights and examples relevant not only for front-line practice and programme development, but for education, assessment, research and policy development.

The twelve chapters are divided into four key sections which reflect major influences on practice and pedagogy:

Being alongside children

Those who educate

Embedding families and communities

Working with systems

Considering varied international practices, this key text will enhance understanding, support self-directed learning, and provoke thinking at both graduate and postgraduate levels, particularly in the field of early childhood education and care.