Question

6. Discuss the findings that indicate that child-centered rather than academic preschools and kindergartens are better suited to fostering academic development.

7. Explain how social environment as well as children’s cognitive limitations contribute to rigid gender stereotyping in early childhood.

Answer 1

6. Early childhood education is incredibly important to a child's future academic and professional success, which is why many education advocates point to preschool as a crucial point of entry that gives children the means to succeed later in life.

Typically, preschools describe themselves as either child-centered ( also known as play-based and developmentally appropriate). Most of the early education philosophies fall into one of these two categories.

Child-centered programs let the child choose their next activity rather than follow a standard curriculum or set agenda. Children learn through playing and develop fundamental knowledge through these activities. Teachers set up classrooms so that different stations engage students in different activities. Such stations may include a reading area, a kitchen station, a water area and so on. This program have a lot of unstructured hands-on play, group story-time, and themed activities. Here help is provided by the teachers only when needed.

In academic or teacher-directed approach, teachers direct the classrooms and lead students through a series of prescribed lessons or activities. While students still have some playtime, the overall experience is more structured. The aim of this method is to ensure that students are academically prepared for the next level of education and to get there teachers develop lessons around concepts such as letters, numbers, shapes, colors, etc.

The findings that indicate that child-centered approach is better suited to fostering academic development than academic preschools and kindergarten are listed below:

- According to the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC), which promotes excellence in early childhood education, " Young children learn best through direct sensory encounters and not through a formal academic process. Learning should be the outcome of hands-on experience, especially play."

- A U.S. Department of Health and Human Services study reported that the social skills children learn in the early years are the greatest indicators of later school sucess. The study found that children who had the social skills in place were more able to focus on their work when they started academics. Hence child-centered education is rightly apt.

- Research shows that "preschool is time to learn social and emotional skills so you are ready to learn those academic skills later on."

- Child-centered approach helps children develop their social skills including communication, sharing, empathy, and listening.

- Child-directed learning assist children with discovering their true potential through challenging experiences to be completed uninterrupted in a learning environment.

- Child-centered programs promotes a hands-on approach to learning versus a focus on seatwork.

- This approach aims to develop all aspects of child's psycho-social emotional, spiritual and intellectual- to develop well-rounded individuals.

In conclusion, child is the center of the whole education process. The great philosophers at different times emphasized on it. It is the ideal system to manifest the latent talent of the child. In this process, education is not an extra venous imposition but natural stimulation for development of the child.

7. Early gender socialization starts at birth and it is a process of learning cultural roles according to one's sex. Around two-years of children become conscious of the physical differences between girls and boys. Gender stereotypes in infants are perpetuated by society's expectations and perceptions. Societal influences, preconceived notions and expectations enforce already existing gender stereotypes. Society's gender stereotypes increase during the preschool and childhood years, reach a plateau, and decrease in adolescence.

A child's social environment does contribute to shaping gender stereotypes that both children and adults hold. Female infants are judged on their small size and beauty while males are judged usually according to their ability and intelligence. Parental expectations put pressure on offspring to perform in like ways to gender specific behaviors. In an early study, evidence was found to support the theory that parents respond to their children in different ways according to the child's sex, from gender stereotyped birth activities, clothing, to toys and bedroom decor. Another way in which gender roles are instilled in children is via modeling and imitation. Children learn to behave through observation. Children learn to imitate their parents or adults around them earlier than the time that they obtain a sense of gender constancy. Clothing is an additional way in which parents cause gender boundaries to become more salient. Color and style of the infant's clothing make a public announcement as to their baby's gender. The television had the potential to have an enormous impact on children, particularly toy commercials. The way the toys are presented making gender categories more salient intensify gender boundaries. Toys featuring fast cars, weapons, sports equipment, and construction sets are predominantly presented for boys where as dolls, playhouses, princess, cooking sets are girl centric where emphasis is on being a wife, mother, homemaker, always being a source of comfort.

Children exposed to strict gender roles are often limited in their opportunities. Gender roles and sex stereotypes not only supress the emotions of children but also supress their development. Development of self-esteem and self-identity are hampered with rigid gender stereotyping.  

In conclusion, one cannot doubt that the social environment and young child's cognitive limitations contribute to rigid gender stereotyping in early childhood; language and communication for example between parents and teachers and children powerfully affect a child's capacity to gender type. According to the social learning theory, behavior based on gender comes before self perceptions, in contrast the cognitive development theory maintains the opposite, while the gender schemas theory is an information processing approach that seeks combine both these theories into one, explaining how both environment and cognition work to shape a child's gender. Thus gender cognitions play a significant role in children's gender awareness not only relating to peer preferences and social behaviors throughout life, but also it has a profound effect on motivation and memory.