Partner, Teacher, and Guide: Examples of Teacher Behavior in Reggio Emilia

To give a fuller picture and provide concrete examples of the abstract principles presented above, we offer four short observation records drawn from videotapes taken at the Diana School in 1988 and 1990. They illustrate different kinds of teacher behavior commonly seen in the Reggio Emilia preprimary schools. The Teacher Gets Children Started The Teacher Provides Instruction in Tool-Use and Technique The Teacher Turns a Dispute into a Hypothesis to Test The Teacher Encourages Children to Solve Their Own Dispute

Societal complexity and moral development: A Kenyan study.

This study examines the moral judgment levels (as measured by Kohlberg’s 6-stage moral judgment interview) for two Kenyan samples. The first sample includes a culturally and racially group of 35 young men and 17 women studying at the University of Nairobi, while the second sample consists of 44 males and 14 females living in seven communities in the Central and Western Provinces of Kenya who were interviewed by a cadre of trained University students on their school vacation. The moral judgment interview included four hypothetical moral dilemmas and a standard set of probing questions. Three of the dilemmas were standard Kohlberg stories especially adapted for the Kenyan setting, while the fourth dilemma was constructed in Kenya. Interviews were taped and transcribed and scored using the “global method.” The findings reveal different distributions and highest scores for the two samples, with the University sample generally higher. The discussion suggests why different modes of moral decision-making are appropriate for the tribal versus national frames of reference. In terms of Kohlberg’s stage system of moral judgment, stage 3 is the type of thinking most suitable for a face-to-face community, while stage 4 is more suitable for the national stage

Rationality, Culture, and the Construction of “Ethical Discourse”: A Comparative Perspective

The problem of ethical relativism has never been resolved or laid to rest. It turns out to be a complicated set of problems, involving many philosophical issues of meaning (Brandt 1954; Ladd 1957). For example, how should we define morality and ethics? How should we define the problem of ethical relativism? How does the problem of ethical relativism relate to the problem of cultural relativism? One question that is part of this package is a scientific one and concerns whether there are even aspects of moral values and ethical discourse that can be validly abstracted from their cultural context and compared cross-culturally. This is the problem of “descriptive ethical relativism” (Ladd 1957; Spiro 1984). Obviously, if there are no such aspects, then we have good reason to embrace an extreme doctrine of descriptive ethical relativism. On the other hand, if scientific research indicates that there are comparable aspects, then we can go on to ask a second, primarily philosophical question. The second question (Ladd and Spiro call it the issue of “normative ethical relativism”) concerns whether the ethical conflicts of individuals or cultural groups are somehow resolvable. They might be resolvable if ethical conflicts can somehow be reduced to mere differences in underlying factual beliefs (about nature, human personality, and so on). They might not be resolvable if ethical conflicts turn out to be based on differences in moral principles, even after the differences in factual beliefs are accounted for. This paper shall address the first question, because I feel it is the one social scientists (as opposed to moral philosophers) are most qualified to answer. The question, as I see it, involves an analysis of research methodology. How can social scientists elicit samples of people’s ethical discourse? Do these samples of discourse validly represent the individual’s or group’s moral and ethical understanding? Can these samples be compared in some systematic way cross-culturally without distortion of their basic meaning? “Ethical discourse” can be defined as a string of statements or arguments containing “moral statements” (statements about what actions or attitudes are obligatory or virtuous) and/or “ethical statements” (statements about why those actions or attitudes are morally right or wrong). Ladd, who studied the ethical discourse of the Navaho (1957), believes that ethical discourse occurs in all cultural groups

瑞吉欧·艾米利亚的教师研究： 一个充满活力并不断演变的角色的精髓 / Teacher Research in Reggio Emilia: Essence of a Dynamic, Evolving Role (Chinese translated version).

The Reggio Emilia approach to early childhood education has been studied for more than 50 years. Today, following the influx of new families, tighter financial situation in local government and a generational turnover of educators, there are changes seen in the role and practice of teachers, but also continuities with the past. Teachers are seen as researchers, where research is not only an attitude and approach in everyday living in and outside early childhood programs, but also a questioning attitude and inquiry process. Besides, as colleagues within a network and organization, teachers, with mutual collaboration, and observing and documenting child’s behaviors together, share experience on promoting child learning. For this purpose they establish a “diffuse pedagogical system” to make interactions and innovations, and to exchange knowledge and experience among schools. Furthermore, as curriculum designers and executors, teachers help children find meaning in what they do, what they encounter, and what they experience by applying “flexible planning” project approach and “pedagogy of listening” to listen inner voices of children. Moreover, as creators of the environment, teachers strongly believe that environment as a third teacher can guide children to pay attention to nature, animals and plants, and emotional and physical nourishment of human beings. Additionally, as guiders in fostering exchange and community, teachers endeavor to make educational institution more inclusive of all children. Last but not least, as partners with families, teachers focus more on parent participation, support and collaboration, such as hiring cultural mediators to instruct the participation of special children families (e.g. immigrant families) 意大利瑞吉欧·艾米利亚幼儿教育体系已经历30 余年的研究历程。近年来， 随着移民家庭的不断涌入、当地政府财务状况的不断紧缩、教育工作者的世代更替等，关于 教师角色定位及其教育实践都发生了许多新的变化。今天，作为儿童研究者，研究是教师 在园内园外的一种日常生活及工作方式，一种质疑和探究的态度和过程；作为工作网络和 组织机构中的同僚，教师需要通过团队合作，共同观察、记录儿童的表现，分享有关促进儿 童发展的经验，为此，他们还建立了一种“拓展性教学体系”，让许多学校开展互动，创新和 交换知识经验；作为课程设计和实施者，教师坚持“灵活计划”的方案教学，并运用“倾听教 学法”，倾听儿童的声音，引导儿童发现他们各种经历和体验的意义；作为环境创造者，教师 更强调让环境成为第三老师，以引导儿童关注自然以及动植物和人自身的生理、情绪等；作 为促进交流和形成社区归属感的指导者，教师须努力促使教育机构对全体幼儿更具包容 性；作为家庭的合作伙伴，教师更关注家长的参与、支持和合作，例如，通过雇佣文化调解员 为特别儿童家庭（如移民家庭）的“参与”提供指导

Contemporary Chinese Parents’ Socialization Priorities for Preschoolers: A Mixed Methods Study

This mixed methods study focused on the socialization goals for preschool-aged children among parents from three small-sized cities located in northeastern China. A total of 154 parents with preschool-aged children completed questionnaires measuring parental socialization goals for children’s social-emotional competence and academic achievement. Quantitative results showed that parents generally placed more importance on children’s social-emotional skills than academic skills. Ten mothers were selected from the sample and participated in a semi-structured qualitative interview to help understand reasons for parents’ prioritization of social-emotional wellbeing over academic performance. Four themes emerged, including parents’ concerns about children’s psychological wellbeing under excessive academic pressure, their desires to “protect” children’s childhood, their awareness of children’s individual differences in intelligence and talent in learning, and their belief that good grades did not guarantee future success in life. Our findings highlight the importance of using mixed methods to deepen understanding of contemporary Chinese parents’ childrearing ideologies

Learning the Language of Nature: Young Children as Mathematical Thinkers

Math Early On, funded by the Buffett Early Childhood Fund, involves a partnership between the University of Nebraska-Lincoln (UNL) and the Educares of Nebraska, part of a national network of highquality child care centers for low-income children from birth to age 5. Th e goal of the Math Early On project is to off er professional development opportunities that build on the past successful professional development efforts of UNL’s NebraskaMATH and its Primarily Math initiative. The Primarily Math curriculum for primary teachers was adapted and redesigned to create new experiences for the purpose of enriching preschool teachers’ mathematical knowledge for teaching. This booklet tells some of the powerful learning stories that emerged in the Educares of Omaha at Indian Hill and Kellom and the Ruth Staples Child Development Laboratory at UNL. In the model of the Hawkins exhibit, and of Italian-style documentation, the stories combine images, description, and teacher interpretation to reveal, unpack, and share moments and processes of early intellectual discovery

Introduction: Moral Development Study in the 21st Century

Questions of right and wrong, good and bad, lawful and unlawful, have been debated by philosophers, theologians, scholars, and ordinary people since ancient times. The moral domain represents humanity\u27s answers to three questions: What is the right thing to do? How is the best state of affairs achieved? What qualities make for a good person? However, the scientific investigation of the moral life has a much shorter intellectual history than does philosophical and religious reflection; nevertheless, it is not new. Moral development theory and research emerged as a critical topic over 100 years ago, at the beginning of the 20th century. Thus, given this deep background, it may surprise readers to learn that this is the very first time that the Nebraska Symposium on Motivation has served as a forum to reflect on what we know about moral development and motivation and to integrate theory and research with practical implications for schools, communities, and childrearing. This book presents the products of the 51st Nebraska Symposium on Motivation: Moral Development through the Life Span: Theory, Research, and Applications. The symposium was held in Lincoln, Nebraska, in April 2003

瑞吉欧·艾米利亚的教师研究： 一个充满活力并不断演变的角色的精髓 / Teacher Research in Reggio Emilia: Essence of a Dynamic, Evolving Role (Chinese translated version).

The Reggio Emilia approach to early childhood education has been studied for more than 50 years. Today, following the influx of new families, tighter financial situation in local government and a generational turnover of educators, there are changes seen in the role and practice of teachers, but also continuities with the past. Teachers are seen as researchers, where research is not only an attitude and approach in everyday living in and outside early childhood programs, but also a questioning attitude and inquiry process. Besides, as colleagues within a network and organization, teachers, with mutual collaboration, and observing and documenting child’s behaviors together, share experience on promoting child learning. For this purpose they establish a “diffuse pedagogical system” to make interactions and innovations, and to exchange knowledge and experience among schools. Furthermore, as curriculum designers and executors, teachers help children find meaning in what they do, what they encounter, and what they experience by applying “flexible planning” project approach and “pedagogy of listening” to listen inner voices of children. Moreover, as creators of the environment, teachers strongly believe that environment as a third teacher can guide children to pay attention to nature, animals and plants, and emotional and physical nourishment of human beings. Additionally, as guiders in fostering exchange and community, teachers endeavor to make educational institution more inclusive of all children. Last but not least, as partners with families, teachers focus more on parent participation, support and collaboration, such as hiring cultural mediators to instruct the participation of special children families (e.g. immigrant families) 意大利瑞吉欧·艾米利亚幼儿教育体系已经历30 余年的研究历程。近年来， 随着移民家庭的不断涌入、当地政府财务状况的不断紧缩、教育工作者的世代更替等，关于 教师角色定位及其教育实践都发生了许多新的变化。今天，作为儿童研究者，研究是教师 在园内园外的一种日常生活及工作方式，一种质疑和探究的态度和过程；作为工作网络和 组织机构中的同僚，教师需要通过团队合作，共同观察、记录儿童的表现，分享有关促进儿 童发展的经验，为此，他们还建立了一种“拓展性教学体系”，让许多学校开展互动，创新和 交换知识经验；作为课程设计和实施者，教师坚持“灵活计划”的方案教学，并运用“倾听教 学法”，倾听儿童的声音，引导儿童发现他们各种经历和体验的意义；作为环境创造者，教师 更强调让环境成为第三老师，以引导儿童关注自然以及动植物和人自身的生理、情绪等；作 为促进交流和形成社区归属感的指导者，教师须努力促使教育机构对全体幼儿更具包容 性；作为家庭的合作伙伴，教师更关注家长的参与、支持和合作，例如，通过雇佣文化调解员 为特别儿童家庭（如移民家庭）的“参与”提供指导

A Cross-Cultural Analysis of Sex Differences in the Behavior of Children Aged Three Through 11

This paper uses the cross-cultural, systematic child observations of the Six Culture Study, led by John and Beatrice Whiting of Harvard University, to investigate the validity of the stereotypes of sex differences about nurturance, aggression, compliance, dependency, and other behaviors. The children aged 3 – 11 years, were observed in natural settings in seven different parts of the world. The analysis indicates that there are universal sex differences in the children’s behavior, but the differences are not consistent nor as great as the studies of American and Western European children would suggest. Furthermore, socialization pressure in the form of task assignment and the associated frequency of interaction with many different categories of individuals—i.e. infants, adults, and peers—may well explain many of the differences. Aggression, perhaps especially rough and tumble play, and touching behavior seem the best candidates for biophysical genesis. All of the behaviors that are characteristic of males and females seem malleable under the impact of socialization pressures. The differences in many of the types of behavior seem to be one of style rather than intent

Reggio Emilia Inspiration for Early Education in China: The Case of Zhejiang Province

The progressive spirit of the Reggio Emilia experience belongs not to Italy alone, but to the whole world. In this paper we discuss how it is being received in the Zhejiang Province in China, as an example of its promise and potential to influence early childhood reform. In this way, we hope to contribute to international dialogue about Reggio-inspired education and to increase understanding about how its principles and practices are spreading to China, a vast and complex society with non-Western cultural-political traditions and institutions