Childhood based in ancient theory and biblical view Assignment Sample

Introduction : Childhood based in ancient theory and biblical view

Get Free Samples Written by our Top-Notch Subject Expert Writers known for providing the Best Assignment Help Services in Australia

This article seeks to analyse the parallels between the fundamentals of early childhood education and the foundations of a biblical worldview. According to Esqueda (2014), Christian education is distinguished by its integration of knowledge and religion. Christian education and training may draw from a wide variety of disciplines, as suggested by the global call for combination. Therefore, integration of the two domains is essential. The Christian religion and higher education may benefit from the biblical worldview because it provides a firm foundation for an empathetic worldview. According to Hedefalk, Almqvist & Östman (2015), early childhood education (ECE) encompasses both official and informal learning environments for kids under the age of eight. The foundation that is laid via schooling has the potential to profoundly affect a child's adulthood. Studying the similarities between the tenets of ECE and the biblical worldview requires using ideas and theories from childhood education.

Parallel Foundations of Biblical Worldview and Early Childhood Education

Premises about children's learning and development and the roles of families, communities, environments, educators, and curricula are influenced by a variety of worldviews, ideologies, and pedagogical techniques. A statement of philosophy on early childhood education and care may be derived from these tenets (Ludlow, 2020). There is a plethora of ideas and methods on the subject of early childhood, most of which are grounded in secular worldviews with education for peace aim. Educators in the field of Christian ECE may utilise these theoretical frameworks, methodological frameworks, and pedagogical frameworks to reflect on their work and spark discussion about the nature of Christian early childhood education and care (ECEC).

A biblical worldview is based on the belief that the Bible contains God's words and that these statements are correct. It teaches them that the Bible is authoritative and without error. It explains all young children need to know to be rescued and to relish in the sweetness of that magnificent redemption (Chang & Boyd, 2016). Worldview education that Poulter et al. (2017) argue begins in culture and the family and is continued in Christian schools. A Christian worldview may be fostered in a private school's intellectually enriching environment thanks to curriculum and teaching methods designed with that purpose in mind. Educators are free to educate from a biblical viewpoint and freely discuss their beliefs with their pupils. Early childhood education, often known as informal education, typically occurs in settings such as homes, churches, and communities.

Motives are shaped by a biblical worldview, such that they are consistent with Christian beliefs, have biblical values, and behave appropriately. Christians who teach in churches or other religious settings want their pupils to have a biblical perspective (Baumann, 2011; Valk, 2012; Schultz & Swezey, 2013). An education based on a biblical perspective is employed by numerous Christian schools. All teachers, regardless of a subject area, must approach their lessons with the assumption that the Bible is completely true and authoritative in every respect. The instructors use this viewpoint in several ways, always with the end goal of instilling biblical ideals in their pupils (Deprey, 2020).

According to Otto & Harrington (2016), the foundations of biblical education and instruction are strengthened by a focus on the biblical perspective. Christian character, the knowledge of a traditional, biblical perspective, and their application in practice are all essential to the formation of a biblical worldview. It also takes into account the development of teaching expertise that betters the person, conveys a vision for the realm, and reconstructs the philosophy of Christ, as well as preparations for becoming a physical textbook for youngsters. According to Chandler (2015), the fundamental tenets of the biblical worldview are shared by all Christians. Biblical principles are the foundation of a conventional Christian worldview. There are certain sections that only Catholics or individuals who are not Christians share. When discussing the everyday perspective of individuals, it is inappropriate to mention the biblical worldview. Individuals have their unique perspectives on the world.

Every organisation providing care for young children should have a firm grasp of the guiding ideology and worldview. Both must be designed together and then communicated plainly to the service's employees, families whose children use the programme, and management committees. The relationship between early childhood education (ECE) and moral development was investigated by DeVries, Hildebrandt, & Zan (2000). Depending on the studies of Kohlberg & Hersh (1977), Piaget (1959), and others, their approach analyses how to best instruct students so that they flourish morally. As per these researchers, when teachers give students more leeway to make decisions and use more sophisticated forms of negotiation, students demonstrate greater self-regulation in moral reasoning. As Cunningham (2010) explains, ECE is a subfield of pedagogy that deals with the teaching of young children (prenatal through elementary school). When children are given room to explore and experiment, they learn by default. A child's cognitive growth is facilitated by play-based learning. Young children's collaboration is the first kind of social interaction.

According to Aslanian (2022), there is a wide variety of educational options available to American students throughout the country thanks to the proliferation of different types of institutions. One Christian institution was included because of the shared conviction that Christianity alone among world faiths is true and capable of meeting all of humanity's spiritual requirements. Only Christianity provides a precise map of where education should be focused. Learning that ignores this context is incomplete at best and false and wrong at worst. Christian educators can see each kid as a precious gift from God because they extrapolate from a Christian worldview and apply biblical notions regarding the child. They see each youngster as an individual endowed with God-given potential and a specific role to play in God's heavenly kingdom (Stonehouse & May, 2010).

Education, from a biblical perspective, entails both the acquisition of information and the growth of analytical skills. As one's self-perceived perspective is seldom representative of one's actual worldview, proper worldview education must be a lifelong process. The person is, therefore, acting following the beliefs held. Gonzalez-Mena (2014) argues that the goal of preschool is to improve life satisfaction. A person's worldview is their psychological concept of the truth; it's their collection of hypotheses about the nature of reality, its causes, and the significance of events. All Christian parents utilise ECE to teach their children the Bible, therefore there are parallels between the biblical perspective and ECE.

Through everyday experiences, deliberate, child-focused, play-based Bible curricula like the ASA "Early Encounters with Jesus Bible Curriculum" and the Youth With A Mission "Biblical foundations for early childhood education" (Ludlow, 2020), as well as experiences in nature, Christian ECEC teachers work with the children in their care to facilitate and truss their sense of wonder and awe. Children's developing faith is bolstered by encounters like this, which help them make sense of God's role in their lives and the world. Holloway (2014) observes that biblical reality cannot affect students unless they acquire and comprehend it. As Berk & Winsler (1993) noted, ECE often employs the theory of Jean Piaget's play-based learning.Piaget's research on how children's minds grow and develop is widely regarded as seminal. He studied the development of his three kids' brains and came up with a hypothesis on how kids' logical thinking and intelligence move through distinct phases (Piaget, 2003). It posits that children's play meets their PILES (physical, intellectual, linguistic, emotional, and social) requirements (Berk & Winsler, 1993). In this theory, infants organise the knowledge they get from their social contacts and experiences into categories called schemas. New information is either added to an existing schema or a new schema is created.

According to Bruce (2012), the sensorimotor stage of development lasts from birth until the age of two. Children at this developmental stage rely heavily on physical movements and senses to make sense of the environment. During this time, ECE is initiated. After that follows the preoperational stage, which typically lasts from age 2 to 7. During this time, children's play becomes more complex and their linguistic skills advance. A child's logical reasoning develops throughout the concrete operational period (7-11 years). But they have trouble with abstract concepts and theoretical reasoning. Finally, during the formal operation period (12 years through to maturity), kids develop highly developed, non-concrete cognition and logical reasoning.

The socio-cultural learning theory of Lev Vygotsky might be presented here. It considers how one's upbringing and social milieu shape his or her way of thinking and psychological development (Scott & Palincsar, 2013). Pursuing knowledge is an approach to teaching that involves understanding the concept of zone proximal growth. As children develop, they each experience growth in unique proximal regions and learn new things and improve their abilities in each sector. The strategy is commonly used to rethink and revamp instructional practices.Furthermore, Vygotsky argues, as Vygotsky's social context for learning. According to Heywood (2017), one's social background might affect how one perceives and makes sense of the world. Vygotsky, a social constructivist, thinks that a person's cognitive system is best developed during the solitary study. Teachers, grandparents, and parents all play crucial roles in helping kids grow into responsible individuals. Similar to the biblical perspective, teachers in early education act as facilitators rather than instructors. Hence, to fully understand and live out one's Christian faith, a biblical worldview is necessary, according to Van der Walt (2017).

Conclusion

Both ECE and a biblical worldview have a common emphasis on children's developing minds, which points to their shared underlying assumptions. One's worldview is what ultimately determines how one behaves. Consequently, the Christian worldview is presented to children from an early age in the hopes that it will have a constructive effect on the children's development and expression. Children's knowledge of the Bible requires particularity. As a result, it falls more heavily on teachers and parents to ensure that young children are taught the truths of the Bible in simple language. Consequently, children need to learn about the Bible's truths in home schools and preschools so that they may build the appropriate kind of character and become good people as adults. They will make better choices in the future owing to the biblical worldview shaping their behaviour

References

Aslanian, T. K. (2022). Care as concubine: stretching the boundaries of care, politics and power in early childhood education and care. Gender and Education, 1-16.

Baumann, E. K. (2011). Worldview as worship: The dynamics of a transformative Christian education. Wipf and Stock Publishers.

Berk, L. E., & Winsler, A. (1995). Scaffolding Children's Learning: Vygotsky and Early Childhood Education. NAEYC Research into Practice Series. Volume 7. National Association for the Education of Young Children, 1509 16th Street, NW, Washington, DC 20036-1426 (NAEYC catalog# 146)..

Bruce, T. (2012). Early childhood education. Hachette UK.

Burke, P. (2019). What is cultural history?. John Wiley & Sons.

Chandler, D. J. (2015). Whole-person formation: An integrative approach to Christian education. Christian Education Journal, 12(2), 314-332.

Chang, H., & Boyd, D. (2016). Spirituality in higher education: Autoethnographies. Routledge.

Cunningham, D. D. (2010). Relating preschool quality to children’s literacy development. Early Childhood Education Journal, 37(6), 501-507.

Deprey, L. B. (2020). The Effectiveness of Biblical Worldview Integration with Early Adolescents in Thailand (Doctoral dissertation, Concordia University (Oregon)).

DeVries, R., Hildebrandt, C., & Zan, B. (2000). Constructivist early education for moral development. Early Education and Development, 11(1), 9-35.

Esqueda, O.J., (2014). The Spanish reformation and Christian teaching: timeless educational principles from Antonio del Corro and Constantino Ponce de la Fuente. Christian Education Journal, 11(2), pp.336-349.

Gonzalez-Mena, J. (2014). Infants, toddlers, and caregivers: A curriculum of respectful, responsive, relationship-based care and education. McGraw-Hill Higher Education.

Hedefalk, M., Almqvist, J., & Östman, L. (2015). Education for sustainable development in early childhood education: A review of the research literature. Environmental Education Research, 21(7), 975-990.

Heywood, C. (2002). Childhood in nineteenth-century France: work, health and education among the'classes populaires'. Cambridge University Press.

Heywood, C. (2017). A history of childhood. John Wiley & Sons.

Holloway, B. (2014). Faith and learning: A proposal for integration.

Kohlberg, L., & Hersh, R. H. (1977). Moral development: A review of the theory. Theory into practice, 16(2), 53-59.

Ludlow, S. (2020). The Nature of Christian Early Childhood Education and Care-Celebrating Existing Thinking and Practice and Casting a Vision for What Could Be.

Ludlow, S. (2020). The Nature of Christian Early Childhood Education and Care-Celebrating Existing Thinking and Practice and Casting a Vision for What Could Be.

Otto, P., & Harrington, M. (2016). Spiritual formation within Christian higher education. Christian Higher Education, 15(5), 252-262.

Piaget, J. (2003). Part I: Cognitive Development in Children--Piaget Development and Learning. Journal of research in science teaching, 40.

Piaget, J., (1959). The language and thought of the child (Vol. 5).

Poulter, S., Kuusisto, A., Malama, M., & Kallioniemi, A. (2017). Examining religious education in Finland from a Human Rights perspective. In Religion, Education and Human Rights (pp. 49-61). Springer, Cham.

Schultz, K. G., & Swezey, J. A. (2013). A three-dimensional concept of worldview. Journal of Research on Christian Education, 22(3), 227-243.

Scott, S., & Palincsar, A. (2013). Sociocultural theory.

Stonehouse, C., & May, S. (2010). Listening to children on the spiritual journey: Guidance for those who teach and nurture. Baker Academic.

Valk, J. (2012). Christianity through a worldview lens. Journal of Adult Theological Education, 9(2), 158-174.

Van der Walt, B. J. (2017). Sharing an integral Christian worldview with a younger generation: Why and how should it be done and received?. In die Skriflig, 51(1), 1-11.