School Of EducationContemporary Perspectives of ChildhoodsWestern Sydney University Unit Code: 101649.1
Discipline: TEACHER EDUCATION: EARLY CHILDHOOD
Student Contribution Band: 1
Level: 2
Credit Points: 10
Equivalent Units
102048 - Contemporary Childhoods, 100309 - Contemporary Perspectives of Childhood
About this Unit
In contemporary Australia care and education provided for young children is both diverse and complex, as a result of a range of historical, philosophical, sociological and political factors. In recent years traditional understandings of how society views ‘childhood’ and the ‘universal child’ have been challenged by new discourses associated with the reconceptualisation of childhood. From an almost exclusive focus on children as the objects of socialization, the new sociology of childhood is now interpreting children and the experience of childhood as dynamic, social, multiple and relational. Broadening this sociological gaze has led to new approaches in theorising and conceptualising the study of childhood and the social world of the child. This unit will explore a range of approaches and research about the lives of children in historical and contemporary societies and in local and global settings. Students will investigate the multiplicity and social meaning of childhood; the regulating of children and their bodies, including the role of schools and other social institutions; and the cultural and social world of the child, in particular their agency, rights and exclusion. Beyond this, students in this unit will have a chance to explore the ethics and methodological issues of how research on and with children frames the way professionals work with children.
Courses| 1651.5 | Bachelor of Arts (Pathway to Teaching Primary) | CONTINUING |
| 1652.5 | Bachelor of Arts (Pathway to Teaching Secondary) | CONTINUING |
| 1708.1 | Bachelor of Arts (Pathway to Teaching Birth - 5/Birth - 12) | CONTINUING |
| 3638.5 | Bachelor of Science - Pathway to Teaching (Secondary) | CONTINUING |
Specialisations