Given the emphasis that European education agendas have placed on early childhood education in providing the foundations for
lifelong learning, the quality of provision--and especially the workforce--is a key concern. Qualification levels are frequently cited as important for the quality
of provision, but in their paper in the newest edition of European Education: Issues and Studies, Verity Campbell-Barr and Janet Georgeson from the Plymouth University and Anikó Nagy Varga from the University of Debrecen explore questions of the attitudinal competences
required to work in early childhood in England and
Hungary. Their paper, "Developing professional early childhood educators in England and Hungary: Where has all the love gone?", presents a mixed-method study that considers the
attitudinal competences that early childhood students perceive as necessary. They focus specifically on the role of love in early
childhood education and the contrasting perceptions and experiences in
England and Hungary. In Hungary love is spoken about freely, but in
England a managerialist and entrepreneurial emphasis has created
tensions with more emotional ideas of being caring, supportive,
and empathic. In Hungary,
early childhood educators are given relative autonomy in their
professional roles and love is a key characteristic. The paper considers
historical, philosophical, and political developments in the two
countries to shed light on how English and Hungarian perspectives have
diverged. It also explores opportunities that comparing perspectives
offers for the further professional development of early childhood
educators. If you would like to read this entire paper or any other
content from our journal, you can
find out more about subscriptions at this page.
