‘Touch’ in educational and child care settings: dilemmas and responses

Abstract

This article considers the touching, or rather, not touching, of children and young people in professional settings. Some have argued that many schools and other childcare environments are becoming ‘no touch’ zones. Formal guidelines in the UK are centrally concerned with ‘child protection’ issues, and ‘force and control’, and as such appear more reactive than proactive. From the authors' exploratory studies it has emerged that this is an area where fear and confusion (resulting from a moral panic) have tended to replace a response that is primarily concerned with the caring needs of children. The authors regard this as an area that can no longer be left to chance and suggest that future policy should be informed by research that takes account of the complexities as discussed throughout.

Coaching, caring and the politics of touch: a visual exploration

“…According to Pearce, such a discourse has extended into ways of teaching that, in turn, have "become conceptually and performatively unchallenged and [begun] to affect our capacities to think, act, feel and connect" (Pearce, 2010: 905). No doubt then, contexts and actions in relation to touching children have become areas of suspicion, uncertainty and perpetual scrutiny, where care-full and supportive contact can become interpreted as extraordinary, sexual and abusive (Piper & Smith, 2003). This is so much so that pastoral 'caring' and physical touch now occurs in a pedagogical climate that is very much focused on the "potential of a care-giving adult to harm children sexually and psychologically" (McWilliam & Jones, 2005, 2001.…”

“…However, Piper and Smith (2003) argue that much literature regarding touching has not adequately dealt with the subject's related confusions and contradictions, more concerning itself with the promotion of a particular viewpoint. In highlighting some of the existing complexity, they cite Johnson (2000: 15) in stating that "alongside every 'no-touch' story exists a multiplicity of (an)other 'touch' story".…”

“…Confusion and fear of accusation related to inappropriate contact have subsequently fed a moral panic 4 which has itself generated a 'no touching' policy discourse. A result has been the professionalisation of touch, which has moved it from the world of the natural into that of the technical (Piper & Smith, 2003); supporting a process of social control through stereotyping and dulling individual experience (Jones, 2011). According to Pearce, such a discourse has extended into ways of teaching that, in turn, have "become conceptually and performatively unchallenged and [begun] to affect our capacities to think, act, feel and connect" (Pearce, 2010: 905).…”

Practitioners’ constructions of love in early childhood education and care

“…The literature on the topic also reports on the importance of love. Children need to feel loved (Gerhardt, 2004, Murray, 2014, Manning-Morton and Thorp, 2015, practitioners feel love for children (Goldstein, 1997), parents want their children to be loved (Page, 2011(Page, , 2013, and love in non-familial contexts carries potential hazards (Piper and Smith, 2003, Sikes, 2008, 2009) and complexities (Page and Elfer, 2013). Fletcher (1958) noted over half a century ago that… Nursery school teachers love children.…”

Managerial Discourse, Child Safeguarding, and the Elimination of Virtue fromIn Loco ParentisRelationships: An Example from Music Education

“…This work was developed in the UK context through conceptual clarification and small-scale research (Piper & Smith, 2003;Piper, Powell et al, 2006), and more recently through Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC)-funded research; first in education and childcare (Piper, Stronach, et al, 2006), then in sports coaching and physical education . Outcomes and implications from this research have been discussed in publications (including Piper & Stronach, 2008;Piper et al, 2013a;Duggan & Piper, 2013), and the following summary account is drawn from such outputs and related work in progress.…”