Children’s paths in educational institutions – Crossing borders
Date: Thursday, 12th September 2024
Time: 10.00-16.00 (EET) (Note: Workshops 13.00-16.00 already full booked)
Location: University of Jyväskylä, Ruusupuisto, morning keynotes and panel streamed online.
Registration link https://link.webropolsurveys.com/S/5B9B543EE197A103
Registration deadline for panel and keynotes: 10 Sept 2024
An international seminar on early childhood education with guest speakers and panelists from New Zealand, Brazil, Norway, Iceland, and Finland, including methodological workshops.
This seminar will focus onchildhoods and children’s paths through early educational institutions in diverse countries and cultural contexts. We will discuss the predicted, but also the unpredictable transitions, and crossing of diverse ideological, legislative, curricular and cultural boundaries and life contexts. We will share our learning from Trace in ECEC - project and invite guest speakers to reflect the results mirroring their own research and experiences. Our specific focus is on early childhood education years and first years in school (0-8-year-old-children). Methodological workshops and discussion (in-person) will be arranged in the afternoon.
The seminar is organised by Trace -team as a final event and dissemination of the results from Tracing children’s socio-spatial relations and lived experiences in early childhood education transitions –project (Trace in ECEC), Research Council of Finland; 2019-2024, University of Jyväskylä, Finland.
Program
10.00-10.10 Welcome and opening the seminar day
Professor Niina Rutanen, Univ. of Jyväskylä, leader of Trace in ECEC -project
10.10-10.45 Early transitions into, between, and out of ECEC: A glocal 'new normality'?
Professor Jayne White, University. of Canterbury, New Zealand
10.45-11.15 Children’s paths in ECEC - Insights from Trace in ECEC- project
University Researcher Mari Vuorisalo, University of Jyväskylä
11.15-12.00 Children, parents, and institutions - ‘Lost in transitions’? - panel
Questions and provocations for the panel discussion will be formulated on the basis of Trace in ECEC -projects’ results on early years transitions. The discussion will be led by PhD researchers Yaiza Lucas Revilla, Kaisa Harju, and Jasemin Can.
Panelists (see BIO's at the end of the page):
Professor Jayne White, University of Canterbury, New Zealand
Associate Professor Natalia Meireles Santos da Costa, OsloMet, Norway and University of Sao Paulo, Brazil
Associate Professor Sara Olafsdottir, University of Iceland
PhD student Tina Binfield-Skoie, Adger University, Norway
Professor Lasse Lipponen, University of Helsinki, Finland
12.00-13.00 Lunch (own expenses)
13.00-16.00 Methodological workshops - possibilities in research with children
Keynote abstract
Early transitions into, between and out of ECEC: A glocal 'new normality'?
Prof Jayne White, Univ. of Canterbury, New Zealand
As a consequence of sociopolitical and economic demands on families, infants are entering into educational institutions at an earlier age than ever before. This global ‘new normality’ brings with it a series of obligations, challenges and opportunities for families, teachers, communities and policymakers alike. There are significant emotional and social implications for infants too - since their lives are radically altered as a consequence. Based on an international research project across Aotearoa NZ, Brazil, Finland, Scotland and US where earliest transitions were tracked over time, Jayne will pose a series of provocations for all concerned who wish to act in the ‘best interests’ of infants.
Afternoon methodological workshops
13.00-14.15 Presentations/introductions to possibilities in research with children - first session
Susanna Isotalo, University of Jyväskylä
Eye-tracking data and epistemic network analysis - studying teachers' visual gaze
E. Jayne White, University of Canterbury
Visual methodologies in research with young children
Eija Sévon, Merja Koivula, Marleena Mustola, Essi Hanhikoski, Mari Laakso & Anu Palojärvi, University of Jyväskylä
Possibilities of video-cued, multi-informant interviews with children, their parents and professionals in ECEC
Joint discussion
14.15-14.45 Coffee break
14.45-16.00 Presentations/introductions to possibilities in research with children - second session
Natalia Meireles Santos da Costa, OsloMet
Microgenetic analysis and developmental trajectories of infants-toddlers in ECEC
Annukka Pursi, University of Helsinki
Research ethics with young children
Aleksi Valta, Association of Finnish Children's Cultural Centers
How is cultural education perceived by school children in participating countries?
Joint discussion
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BIO's for the speakers
Professor Jayne White, University of Canterbury, Department of Education, New Zealand. My scholarship brings dialogic philosophy, pedagogy and methodology together to explore new ways of seeing and talking about becomings in education. As co-Director of Pedagogies of Possibility (PoP) and Editor-in-Chief of Video Journal of Education and Pedagogy I invoke a series of provocations, potentialities and possibilities concerning the work of the eye (and the co-constituted 'I') through visual technologies at my disposal, and in contemplation of educational thought and practice. I seek to retain the mystery of learners while supporting teachers to linger lovingly with those they seek to understand. I view this as a dialogic agenda for all who work with young lives, and actively work to collapse binaries that otherwise limit the potential for all learners to be taken very seriously, on their own terms, in educational spaces for learning. For this reason I work closely with language beyond words, play beyond romantic ideals and technologies for unimaginable futures. In doing so I advance visual pedagogies as an important portal for critical engagement with what we see. I am currently actively seeking PhD students in all aspects of early learning scholarship.
My own research focus spans the following areas:
• Early Childhood Education
• Visual philosophy, ethics and method
• Dialogic Pedagogy and Philosophy
• Critical visual literacies
• Infant and toddler reconceptualisations in and for education
• International perspectives on quality ECE
Associate Professor Sara Margrét Ólafsdóttir works at the Faculty of Education and Pedagogy, University of Iceland. Sara is internationally known through her work in early childhood education contexts, and particularly, in transitions and politics of belonging in early years’ multicultural contexts. She has worked in international projects on politics of belonging (The politics of belonging –project, Nordforsk Funding, among Iceland, Sweden, Finland, Netherlands, 2017-2021) as well as early educational transitions (POET project, Iceland, New Zealand, Australia, Scotland, Sweden, 2014-2017). In addition, her previous experience include various projects working with children and developing methodologies researching children’s perspectives (e.g. play). She is currently working on children’s perspectives on transition to school and after-school care.
Some recent publications:
Einarsdóttir, J. and Ólafsdóttir, S.M. (2021) “Who belongs in preschool?”: Perspectives of children and educators. Early Years: an International Research Journal. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/09575146.2021.1916891
Ólafsdóttir, S. M. and Einarsdóttir, J. (2019) Following children’s advice about transition activities. In S. Dockett, J. Einarsdóttir and B. Perry (eds.), Listening to children’s advice about starting school and school age care (p. 69–83). Routledge.
Associate Professor Natália Meireles Santos da Costa, at Oslo Metropolitan university, Norway obtained a doctorate degree in Psychology from the University of São Paulo, Brazil, in 2021. Her academic interests involve infant-toddler movement and motor development, transitions, pedagogical approaches in infant-toddler groups, as well as space and materiality in ECEC. Additionally, she is interested in visual and creative research methods and the role of cultural and interactive processes in development and education. She is currently a primary member of the research group “Methodological un-twinings with kindergarten-and research studies” and a secondary member at the research group “Sustainability, nature, health, and movement group.” Prior to that, in Brazil she had been a member of the research group “Brazilian Centre for the Investigation of Childhood Education and Development” (CINDEDI) for over 10 years.
Tina Binfield-Skøie is a Ph.D. research fellow in the department of Education at the University of Agder, Norway. Her research on transitions within ECEC institutions turns the attention towards children's actions as potential for understanding children's engagement with institutional life. Her interest in transitions within ECEC institutions resides in this being a period of changes for those involved. Although children are already experienced institutional participants when transitioning from a toddler department to a department of older children, the transition involves children's re-orientation of altering institutional logics between the department.
