The intensification of performativity in early childhood education

Kilderry, Anna

doi:10.1080/00220272.2015.1052850

Cited by 40 publications

(27 citation statements)

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“…Sachs 2001 A generational response to performativity is a recurring concept. Older, more experienced teachers are seen as more likely to resist this culture, objecting to the restrictions on their autonomy, the perceived disinterest in true learning and ensuing tension with their values (Keddie, 2017;Kilderry, 2015;Troman, 2008). In contrast, younger, less experienced teachers appeared to be more compliant, or accepting of the performative discourse, potentially due to the fact that they themselves have been educated in an increasingly performative culture (Keddie, 2017;Kilderry, 2015;Troman, 2008;Wilkins, 2011).…”

Section: Impact On Teachersmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The public trust for professionals was replaced by a mood of distrust, preferring instead to hold professionals to account to ensure compliance of practice (Lloyd & Davis, 2018;Ranson, 2003). Ranson (2003, p. 462) proposes that a practice of neo-liberal accountability has grown gradually 'over time, extending and intensifying into a coherent regime of regulation,' culminating most recently, in a normalisation of performativity expectations (Kilderry, 2015). Public accountability, meant that 'the public (as consumer) was empowered at the expense of the (professional) provider' (Ranson, 2003, p. 465).…”

Section: Performativitymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Older, more experienced teachers are seen as more likely to resist this culture, objecting to the restrictions on their autonomy, the perceived disinterest in true learning and ensuing tension with their values (Keddie, 2017;Kilderry, 2015;Troman, 2008). In contrast, younger, less experienced teachers appeared to be more compliant, or accepting of the performative discourse, potentially due to the fact that they themselves have been educated in an increasingly performative culture (Keddie, 2017;Kilderry, 2015;Troman, 2008;Wilkins, 2011). It could be argued that this seeming compliance might be due to lack of confidence and experience, with new teachers happy to follow the perceived wisdom as they are learning the craft of teaching; perhaps as they develop in confidence and experience, they might feel the confidence to challenge the status quo and potentially pursue other, more holistic approaches to education.…”

Section: Impact On Teachersmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Research has demonstrated that some teachers are able to resist the performative demands, successfully navigating the neo-liberal policy measures (Jeffrey, 2002;Jeffrey & Troman, 2011;Kilderry, 2015;Wilkins, 2011). Coping strategies devised by teachers facing these demands, might include distancing themselves from accountability measures, restructuring their identities, or even constructing multiple versions of themselves (Jeffrey, 2002;Jeffrey & Troman, 2011;Kilderry, 2015;Wilkins, 2011). Wilkins (2011, p. 649) terms this the 'postperformative' teacher and claims this generation of teachers are 'neither compliant nor resistant' to performativity but manage to balance accountability with autonomy.…”

Section: Impact On Teachersmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Clandinin et al (2009, p. 142) describe how the 'shifting landscapes' evoked by these tensions impact not only on a teacher's identity but also on the educational contexts of society. Interestingly this performative culture even changes the language of education; when terms such as performance, accountability, outcomes and effectiveness (Kilderry, 2015) replace terms such as child-led, individual, personal and inclusive -education ceases to be about the child, or even learning (Troman, 2008), but about benchmarking against standards, or the production of data.…”

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confidence: 99%

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encouraging the teacher-agent: resisting the neo-liberal culture in initial teacher education

Love

2019

childphilo

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Influenced by Sachs’ (2001) ‘activist identity’ I propose that pre-service teacher education or initial teacher education (ITE), as I will refer to it, could, and indeed should, encourage a new form of teacher; the ‘teacher-agent.’ This teacher-agent would be aware of the pressures and dictates of the neo-liberal educational culture and its ensuing performative discourse, and choose to resist it, in favour of a more holistic view of education. This view of education encourages inclusive, creative and democratic forms of education concerned with encouraging a social conscience in children and young people, as well as seeing education as concerned with the whole child. These more holistic approaches to education could include pedagogical approaches such as Philosophy for Children (P4C), Rights’ Respecting Education and Slow Pedagogy, which can not only provide a more balanced understanding and deeper experience of education for both teachers and pupils, but can also help teachers to resist the debilitating impact of the neo-liberal performative discourse, potentially also thus impacting on their wellbeing and ability to retain their integrity as professionals. This may also have the potential to halt the rapid exodus of new teachers from the profession. It is my contention, that engaging with pedagogies such as P4C in this new iteration of ITE could help not only to encourage the Student Teacher-Agent, but also, as a consequence, develop the Citizen-Agent in the children they are teaching. In this paper I consider four key areas where I propose P4C could play a role in this alternative model of Initial Teacher Education; Democracy in action, the teacher as Teacher-Facilitator, a space for co-construction of knowledge, and encouraging Social Justice.

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Section: Impact On Teachersmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Performativitymentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Impact On Teachersmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Impact On Teachersmentioning

confidence: 99%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

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encouraging the teacher-agent: resisting the neo-liberal culture in initial teacher education

Love

2019

childphilo

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‘I feel like the Wicked Witch’: Identifying tensions between school readiness policy and teacher beliefs, knowledge and practice in Early Childhood Education

Kay

2023

British Educational Res J

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This paper critically examines the tensions arising between Reception teachers' professional beliefs and knowledge, and the school readiness agenda in England. It scrutinises how the increasing academic expectations placed on children to ensure they are ‘ready for school’ may conflict with teachers' understanding of how young children learn, their pedagogical philosophies and classroom practices. In this paper, cultural‐historical activity theory (CHAT) is utilised as a methodological and analytical framework, specifically harnessing Engeström and Sannino's work on ‘manifestations of contradictions’. This theoretical lens is applied to elucidate the specific contradictions that surface at the policy–practice interface and to explore how teachers navigate these conflicts and tensions. Data were gathered through interviews with two Reception teachers and analysed to identify four distinct contradiction categories: dilemmas, double binds, critical conflicts and conflicts. The findings make a critical contribution to ongoing debates about the implications of the school readiness agenda on teacher beliefs, professional knowledge and the impact on children. Furthermore, this paper extends an original contribution to the practical application of CHAT in Early Childhood Education (ECE) research and emphasises the utility of identifying linguistic cues as an effective strategy to reveal contradictions in textual data, thereby furthering understanding of policy–practice tensions in ECE.

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Contemporary Education and Education Systems

Hopkins

2019

Democratic Socialism and Education: New Perspectives on Policy and Practice

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The intensification of performativity in early childhood education

Cited by 40 publications

References 27 publications

encouraging the teacher-agent: resisting the neo-liberal culture in initial teacher education

encouraging the teacher-agent: resisting the neo-liberal culture in initial teacher education

‘I feel like the Wicked Witch’: Identifying tensions between school readiness policy and teacher beliefs, knowledge and practice in Early Childhood Education

Contemporary Education and Education Systems

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