EarlyChildhoodEducation: an alternative for conflict resolution

Today I attended a seminar about designing Early childhood education program at university. Most attendees were senior lecturer from the faculty of education (can be seen from their grey hair and appearance). I thought only three were student, one a classmate from class program Evaluation and Design, another one is Sanae, an exchange student from Osaka who is currently researching early education In Australia. The speaker is a professor from Queen's university of Belfast, Ireland.

His research is about developing evidence-based approach as an alternative for researching early childhood education program. He argued that there is problem in the current approach of early education program. He describes the current approach as focusing on investment rather than outcomes. The logic for the program is Investments (eg. increasing school readiness) --> lead in to Activities (eg. training) --> outputs (eg. how many children attend). Within this approach, the outcomes (eg. the changes of children behaviour, parents satisfaction, etc) are rarely mentioned. So he proposed an idea of turning the logic around.

He develops an approach that is outcome-focused rather than investment-focused. he start with Outcomes (what we want to achieve) --> look at the outputs --> what activities we need (find out the most effective way to achieve it) --> and finally see what investment we need (I). To implement this approach in the ECED program, there are several requirements such as consultation (direct views from parents/children- what they concern about), epidemiology (look at association between gender, life-style, etc withe ducational outcomes), best practices in other countries and applicability of these practices in a certain context and also Rigorous evaluation.

He use a case study of the Media Initiative for Children in Northern Ireland conducted by Peace Initiatives institue. We can see about this program in this website: www. pii-mifc.org.
He developed survey to udnerstand what children know about certain objects. This is qualitative data by nature, so that what he look at is a pattern such as: what they aware of differences, what implication to their attitude (eg. ethnic differences). In this survey he asked simple questions such as eg. do you like police, do you like Orange Marches (actually I don't really know what is it- I guess something realted with Ireland), etc. These types of simple questions is important to see the children preferences about tehse objects.

Based on the results of the survey, the researcher then developed key outcomes (what to be achieved from a childhood education program). There are four outcomes:
1. recognition of instances of exclusion
2. Understanding of other feelings of being excluded (emphaty)
3. Children's willingness to be inclusive
4. Children's awareness and positive attitudes (to be inclusive).

Then he developed key elements of the Media Initiative Program. This is based on perception of media as auseful tool to support the program. The key elements include:
1. short animations for television
2. Full curricullum and resource pack for playgroups
3. Events and activities
4. Training for playgroups and nursery leaders
Ongoing support for playgroup and nurseries.

To udnerstand the outcome 1 for example, the researcher show photographs to children which shown some schildren play together and one alone. The researcher then ask the children to describe the photo using their own words. The question is as simple as 'can you tell us about this photograph?' Outcome 3 about willingness to inclusiveness is developed based on questions such as 'Do you wnat to play with Joey (a chinese girl)?'
The answer from these questions than be analysed and Paul Connolly then developed a result from this.

Finally he highlights issues and challenges of adoption of this new approach. The changes requires substantial changes in approach and design of current children's services, costs and commitments needed, ethical issues (however he defend it that there is even greater ethical issue if a government spend large amount of money for program which less beneficial for children), children's right and participation, and methodological issue.

My comment is: his presnetation was interesting. IT also gives me some ideas about the importance of early childhood program to promote peace in conflict areas. Such important thing to do in Indonesia where people come from diverse of background, religions, tribes and islands. I should read a book about ' Called from Conflict to Peace: The Power of Early Childhood Initiative'.
I definitely agree with this approach of early childhood eductaion program to focus on outcomes rather than investment itself. But I still wondering about the rigour of the ersults from the survey. Firstly, how to measure that these outcomes are resulted from the program rather than other variables such as the differences of [arents in teaching their children, differences in family environment, etc. besides that, I also concerns about the questions for childrena s little as 3 years old. Questions such as 'do you wnat to play with x' can be answer differently at different moments, depends on how close the children relationship with X. I can say this because I found it many times with my own children. In the mroning Arundati will mention, Stella, Anastasia, Milian, Tarun, etc as her friends. But then in the afternoon she will say 'X is not my friend' may be because they fight for toys or something in the day care. Mutiara also does the same. She will saya, 'X is not my friend. She is being naughty to me.' But the next day, she will say X is her friend and she take flower from our front garden for her friend.

The illustration from my own experience with my own children is just to make it clear that it is a challenges to make sure that the result is strong enough to make inference such as in the Conolly case. Besides that I also concern about who asked the questions to children in the survey. From my own observation I can see that some childrens can relate comfortably with their own parents whilst they will be so uncomfortable with people they do not know. Some children just too shy even to people they know well, etc. So, to whom the children speak, will also likely to influence the way they answer the questions.

But apart from that methodological things about conducting survey for young children, I definitely delight about the importance of developing appropriate program for enhancing inclusiveness, openness to differences, during the childhood, so that these children will grow up as a person with open mindness, ability to accept differences, avoiding racism, awareness of others, etc. Those characters that are lack in the current Indonesian situation. Most Indonesian children are currently grow up in a society that emphasising on exclusiveness of certain group, either based on religion (Muslim, christian), tribe (Javanese, Sundanese, dayak, Madurese), religious affiliation (NU, Muhammadiyah, Chatolic, Protestant), or even just regionalism (Yogyanese, Banyumasenese, Bandungese, etc). This exclusiveness is reflected in many different kind of interaction within society, from the lay people level to even intelectual level.

I can see it easily in Indonesia, at university life, at work place, at public places and even here in melbourne, a home away from home people still grouping into certain group based on their preference. If you don't join one, you would not belong to anybody, so noone would care about you no matter how you try to be involved into all group. Sadly, it si still happen. I can see it in mailist, exclusiveness is still dominating conversation: if this people write down something, certain people will response to it, but if other write down something these peopel do not make the same response. Well, its very natural that as human being we tend to prefer someone we like more than others. However, when it is too much, we can't truly develop an inclusive society which respect people as they are rather than based on which groups they belongs too.

Current discussion about Manikebu and Lekra in mailist journalism also remind me about the idea of inclusiveness. I respect peopel like GUnawan Muhammad who try to develop inclusiveness of Indonesia, try to develop a society which is more open-mind, which want to move further forward rather than society that always stagnant into its history. I respect his idea that nomatter which group a person belong to, everyone deserve respect from others, deserve freedom. I respect what he said that polemic may happen and there is may be position of 'kawan' and 'lawan' in a debate. But 'lawan' does not necessarily means 'musuh'.
But I know only few people in Indonesia like him. Hopefully more and more will grow up there, so that we will develop the society as an inclusive society based on respect of differences, rather than society that try to achieve social harmony by winning certain group and losing others, and then hide the conflict underneath, as if everything in the surface is calm and peaceful.

A big hope to spread the seed for inclusiveness start from the current children, through an intriduction of inclusiveness in early childhood education. Just a dream if I can contribute something to it after I finish my study.