A History of Early Childhood Education in Canada, Australia, and New Zealand

This book explores the history of kindergartens and infant schools in three settler colonies, revealing how discourses and developments in the past have shaped early childhood education in the present. In the early nineteenth century, governments began to develop specialized educational programs--kindergartens and infant or nursery schools--to give children a head start in life. These programs hinged on new visions of childhood that originated in England and Europe, but what happened when they were transported to the colonies? This book unwinds the tangled threads of this history by drawing on a wide range of sources to trace how ideas and developments such as Rousseau's "noble savage," Froebel's emphasis on activity and play, and the Industrial Revolution translated into early infant schools in England, kindergartens in Germany and the United States, and the emergence of free kindergarten systems in Canada, Australia, and New Zealand. It reveals how these three similar but distinct colonies developed early education systems that maintained the integrity of the ideas that inspired them but adapted them to suit local ideas, politics, and indigenous and immigrant populations. This unique account of early childhood education in comparative perspective shows how discourses and developments in the past have shaped the way we educate our children in the present. It will appeal to teachers, researchers, historians, and policy-makers who seek fresh insight into how to reconcile educational theory and practice in an increasingly global world In The Early Nineteenth Century, Governments Introduced Kindergartens And Infant Schools To Give Children A Head Start In Life. These Programs Hinged On New Visions Of Childhood That Originated In England And Europe, But What Happened When They Were Exported To The Colonies? This Book Unwinds The Tangled Threads Of This History, From Early Infant Schools In England To Three Commonwealth Countries -- Canada, Australia, And New Zealand -- Where Systems Of Educating Young Children Were Transplanted But Adapted To Suit Local Ideas, Politics, And Populations. This Unique, Comparative Approach To The History Of Early Childhood Education Provides Fresh Insight Into How To Reconcile Educational Theory And Practice In An Increasingly Global World. Childhood And Education -- Infant Schools In Britain -- Infant Schools In The Case-study Countries -- Childcare And Daycare -- Kindergarten From Germany To England And America -- Kindergarten In The Case-study Countries -- Winnipeg Free Kindergarten Association -- Kindergarten Union Of New South Wales -- Wellington Free Kindergarten Association -- Conclusion : Change And Continuity. Larry Prochner. Includes Bibliographical References (p. 311-316) And Index. In the early nineteenth century, governments developed kindergartens and infant schools to give children a head start in life. These programs hinged on new visions of childhood that originated in England and Europe, but what happened when they were transported to the colonies? This book unwinds the tangled threads of this history by tracing how Enlightenment thought and Romantic ideas translated into early infant schools in England, kindergartens in Germany and the United States, and free kindergarten systems in the Commonwealth countries. The systems that emerged in Canada, Australia, and New Zealand maintained the integrity of the ideas and models that inspired them but adapted them to suit local ideas, politics, and populations. This unique account of early childhood education in comparative perspective provides fresh insight into how to reconcile educational theory and practice in an increasingly global world.