Article Link: http://exchangepress.com/article/supporting-childrens-agency-self-determination-and-courage--in-young-children/5027208/
Two statements recently caught my attention—one made by a 3-year-old and the other by an academic researcher. The 3-year-old was adamant—“I can do it myself.” The challenge taken on by this child was pulling a wagon up a hill. The wagon was filled with compost for the garden. The teacher’s offer, “Let me help you,” was not welcomed by the child. Yet, the teacher stepped in and helped the child pull the wagon up the hill and to the garden area.
The other statement made by the researcher suggests that developmentally appropriate practice reflects an “inherent belief that children are dependent, rather than agentic” (Ginsburg & Audley, 2020). DAP, considered to be a framework for quality practices in the early childhood profession, calls for early childhood educators to consider children’s development and social and cultural context as they plan and implement learning activities for young children (National Association for the Education of Young Children, 2022). Early childhood teachers sometimes interpret this to mean that “lessons should not contain ideas or concepts that may be cognitively or emotionally difficult for young children to process” (Ginsburg & Audley, 2020). In some instances, what teachers decide to do and not do—or what they ask ...