Teaching: Natural or Cultural?

In this chapter I argue that teaching, as we now understand the term, is historically and cross-culturally very rare. It appears to be unnecessary to transmit culture or to socialize children. Children are, on the other hand, primed by evolution to be avid observers, imitators, players and helpers—roles that reveal the profoundly autonomous and self-directed nature of culture acquisition (Lancy in press a). And yet, teaching is ubiquitous throughout the modern world—at least among the middle to upper class segment of the population. This ubiquity has led numerous scholars to argue for the universality and uniqueness of teaching as a characteristically human behavior. The theme of this chapter is that this proposition is unsustainable. Teaching is largely a result of recent cultural changes and the emergence of modern economies, not evolution

Optimizing the home numeracy environments of 3- to 6-year-old children in the USA and Canada

Many children in the USA and Canada have access to a wide range of experiences that can support their early numeracy development. Nevertheless, children’s early numeracy knowledge varies considerably in these countries as a function of parents’ education, socioeconomic conditions, parents’ attitudes, beliefs, knowledge about mathematics, and preschool and school educators’ knowledge and experience. In this chapter we provide a selective overview of some of the factors that are related to children’s early numeracy experiences and suggest contexts and circumstances that may facilitate or hinder children’s learning. Parents’ provision of formal and informal opportunities that allow their children to experience number, space, and related concepts and their willingness to engage in meaningful activities may all influence the quality of children’s early experiences. We conclude with suggestions for further research to explore ways in which adults can enhance the home numeracy environments of preschool children