Why it is important to learn from the past? How has the view of children change through history?
It is very important to learn from the past because that is how we get to know how people lived. Besides that, people get to learn from past mistakes in an effort to lead a better life. Learning from the past also helps in the understanding of the present and the possible future.2. How did European educators such as Comenius, Pestalozzi, Froebel, and Montessori influenced early childhood education in the United States?
Europe is considered to be one of the sources of influential educational ideas that have transformed the United States of America. European educators played a very crucial role in changing elementary and early childhood education from the traditional ways to what it is today. These educators brought in a different perspective that sought to build a vision which sees to it that the human society is improved by first helping children realize their full potential in up to date meaningful ways (Johnson 195).3. What events and people propelled the kindergarten, nursery school, and child care movements?
The kindergarten, nursery school and childcare movements were mainly propelled by the industrial revolution whereby mothers found themselves going out to work in the factory labor force. There was no one to take care of their children and therefore found themselves taking them to these institutions. Aside from this, several philosophers such as John Locke, Jean Jacques Rousseau and methodology creators such as Maria Montessori, John Amos Comenius and Johann Heinrich Pestalozzi provided the philosophical foundations that necessitated children go to these institutions. This was because the needs of the children must be adapted to an early childhood curriculum (Johnson 198).4. What were the experiences and contributions of African Americans, Hispanic Americans, and Native Americans in the history of early childhood education?
African Americans, Hispanic Americans and Native Americans had a history of lack of education. There was also a very high dropout rate of these groups. They were therefore encouraged to take their children to school. This led to the introduction free Head Start Program which benefitted them and encouraged many parents to take their children to school.5. How did trends in early childhood history come together and influence the launch of the national Head Start program?
Trends in early childhood influenced the launch of the National Head Start program in so many ways. First there was need for children to get a comprehensive education early on in life before getting into elementary school. Before the 1960s kindergarten and early childhood education was only accessible to about 40% of the American population and there was need to extend it to the rest of the population. The goodness of early childhood had been experienced and therefore there was need to incorporate children from low income families.
Work Cited
James E. Johnson (Eds.), Approaches to early childhood education (pp. 181-219). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.
