Early Childhood Education

So I'm taking these classes to be able to work in preschools/daycares. They're interesting, and sometimes in a good way. I like learning about the secure attachments children need to develop with certain adults before the age of two. I like coming up with activities to do with little kids, and finding children's books on religion and sexual diversity. I like this.

What I don't like, however, is the non-questioning of what is "good," "normal," and "preferable." Apparently, what is optimal for grandparents is a life of relaxation and short, spoiling-focused visits with their grandchildren who live elsewhere. It is only unfortunate, though sometimes required, that grandparents sometimes must raise their grandchildren.

This is what I learned from my book on grandparents raising their grandchildren, and I was amazed. In a perfect world, it said, grandparents only visit. World.

I can't get over the incredibly Western, and in this case very American, ideals portrayed as "world"goals, universal preferences of all people and families. I read that sentence and thought, but, what? So many grandparents in Ukraine live with their children and grandchildren, and do their part around the house or work. My Ukrainian friend's grandmother lives with her and her mother, and while her mother is working, her grandmother cooks and cleans. This isn't weird in Ukraine. This isn't "unusual," or "not preferred." This is life, and not in a sad way. This is normal.

I have learned from my books that we need to teach children to be self-sufficient, and from my teacher that to learn to share, a child needs to own the thing first in order to share it. "But what if I don't believe in, nor want to teach a sense of ownership?" I asked. "You don't want to teach ownership?" she responded. "Especially as a country," she continued after some other words, "We like to share a lot. Do you agree with that?" "No," I said plainly. We like to own things, I thought. We have wars to own things.

Later, my teacher asked if we though ourselves compassionate. Yes, I said to myself, except for one thing--the American life. Included in that is conservative evangelicalism. Yes, of course, if I got to know someone from the (my) dominant culture I would empathize with her much better, but never, even if I became great friends with that person, would I be okay with any comment that assumes the American way of life is the optimal way of life.