Project Children's Voices

This work pack aims to develop a programme focusing on research, related to fostering all aspects of listening and hearing what children are saying. One aim was to sustain this work through the development of the Comenius programme. The participants (ISTA, Schedia, Wallaroo Playschool, Newman University College, Nadácia Škola dokorán – Wide Open school Foundation, Foundation for the Support of Women’s Work) reflected  on research methodology to be employed in order to capture children’s ideas and visions about their ‘daily life’ in child care. The focus of the work pack is to find ways to raise educators’ awareness of children’s voices. It was concluded that the best way to reach that goal was to conduct research on children’s point of view regarding childcare and prepare a self-reflection tool which would address preschool educators and policy makers and consist of a DVD and a booklet. Asking questions about: what do children experience in day care, what do children want from day care, what do children want to experience, how is their (children’s) own reaction to it all? The work pack decided that the main theme is about empowering the child to enter into negotiation that is, active citizenship, and framed the work within research selection criteria including: settings in a neighbourhood that represents the living situation of the people at the local and national level, children and families that represent the diversity (language, ethnicity, social class etc.) of the local population, children with special needs. The cooperating Early Childhood centres do not have to be experienced in the participative method.  The expected outcomes of the DVD and Booklet presentation for dissemination will be the subject for proposal for European funding.