Aesthetic Learning Processes in Early Childhood and Early Years Education. Reflections on Educating for Sustainable Development and use of Visual Tools and Materials

Författare
Häikiö, T. K.
År
2020

Syfte

The aim of the study is to investigate how aesthetic learning processes in kindergartens can be combined with learning about sustainable development. The researcher uses examples from project work on ecology and sustainability in kindergartens and primary schools, where both children and parents are involved, to show the importance of visual and multimodal tools and materials.

Resultat

The results show that the children’s work on aesthetic learning processes and sustainability creates multiple perspectives for the children’s thoughts and actions. In turn, this leads to more opportunities for participation, communication and collaboration between the children, kindergarten teachers and parents. The researcher believes this shows that working with art and aesthetics can be a useful way of working with complex issues. In this way, it creates conditions for children to experience meaning, communicate, collaborate and create a potent learning environment in which to learn about sustainable development.

Design

The data material was collected between 2011 and 2020 at a combined kindergarten and primary school in Finland and two kindergartens in Sweden, where the children worked on sustainability and aesthetic learning processes. The collected data material consists of visual material that the researcher collected in the kindergartens, conversations with the kindergarten coordinators and kindergarten teachers, and their presentations of the learning activities.

Referenser

Häikiö, T. K. (2020). “Aesthetic Learning Processes in Early Childhood and Early Years Education. Reflections on Educating for Sustainable Development and use of Visual Tools and Materials”. Techne Series A, 27(2):15–30.