Publisher's Synopsis
This book is the second of four which form part of the Open University course, U212, Childhood. Together they provide an undergraduate level introduction to the interdisciplinary field of childhood and youth studies, and a framework for analysing contemporary policy and practice in, for instance, education, health and social work. Childhood is now a global issue, forcing a reconsideration of conventional approaches to study. Childhood is also a very personal issue for each and every one of us – scholars, policy–makers, parents and children. The books encourage the reader's active involvement, especially through the use of activities. They include children's and parent's voices as well as academic discussion of childhood in diverse societies and points of history. Selected short readings accompany the chapters to present additional perspectives. Childhoods in Contexts asks about diversity, complexity and change in children's lives, arguing that these can best be understood by looking closely at specific sites and practices within homes and schools as well as taking account of macro–economics and cultural belief systems. Topics include changing patterns of family life, the changing role for children in the economy and in education, including continuing debates about child labour, competing visions for early childhood education and young people's experiences of the transition from child to adult.
