What's Love Got to Do with It?

Writing about why children need professional love, Emma Davis notes a disturbing trend, “Those in Early Years understand that their role is twofold—that of an educator, but also caregiver. However, the ‘care’ aspect of the role is increasingly being overlooked by policymakers in favor of a drive towards academic progress.”

In a new article that forms the basis of the latest Exchange Reflections, “Professional Love,” Carol Garboden Murray argues it’s time to challenge views that would undermine love and care, “Although there has been a belief that it is dangerous to use words like care and love in our vocation, because we will not be taken seriously, it is time to change the paradigm that claims love is gendered, soft, easy, and/or unprofessional… We have been told that love is a soft skill, when we know without a doubt, from the evidence about responsive caregiving, that loving care is the key ingredient of human strength and thriving. Care ethics gives us rationale to reassert the virtues of relationships and interdependency that have in the past been invisible, unnamed, and unmeasurable.”

Garboden Murray goes on to suggest, "A far greater danger exists in our field than the threat of appearing unprofessional by talking about love. The threat of not naming and valuing love may pose severe consequences to the secure relationships that are essential for our youngest citizens.” Both Garboden Murray and Davis frame practical ways to affirm love as foundational to early care and education. Davis notes, “Developing professional love in an Early Years setting starts with the ethos and culture of your setting. These underpin everything in your daily practices, from care routines and the curriculum to parent relationships and play.”

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