But where is the child? Recognising the importance of acknowledging the child in research practices

Description

This paper discusses the importance of reciprocal relationships in Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) particularly focusing on a creative method using visual documentation to develop pedagogical practice. A strong partnership between home and setting is regarded as a fundamental element of pedagogical practice throughout the world and in England the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS), quotes partnership as an overarching principle (Department for Education, 2017).
Drawing on data collected for my Doctor of Education, the method used existing partnerships to engage mothers of children aged between two and three years and their child’s ‘key person’ (Department for Education, 2017) in a conversational interview. The conversation involved sharing ‘a visual learning journey’ for each child, using observations and photographs held on an electronic tablet. Initial analysis endorses the importance of reciprocal pedagogical relationships between the caring adults, however, what became apparent was the presence of the child, as the silent partner; visible although not necessarily a participant in the relationship (McDowall Clark, 2013).
The paper, therefore, proposes that there are multiple ways of ‘seeing the child as emergent in a relational field’ (Olsson, 2009) and that relationships between all parties are of equal importance, as is the way the environment, space and place might also have an influence our understanding of partnership (Hultman and Taguchi, 2010).

Period	18 Jun 2019
Event title	Ocular becomings in dangerous times: The politics of ‘seeing’: Association for Visual Pedagogies 2019 International AVP Conference
Event type	Conference
Location	Melbourne, Australia, Victoria
Degree of Recognition	International