Research in Early Childhood Education for Sustainability: International Perspectives and Provocations by Julie Davis and Sue Elliott

Abstract

Book Reviews 162 To carry out a research study of this scale and depth is an exceptional achievement for a young researcher. Not only did Angela Kreutz work for years to collect data by living together with the community that she studied, but she also set the bar of theoretical goals and empirical objectives very high. She presents new findings and theoretical openings that partly challenge the state-of-the-art understanding in the field. This should not go unnoticed in the fields of environmental psychology, anthropology and participatory planning. In my view, a new classic piece of insightful child-environment research has been born. Review by Marketta Kyttä Marketta Kyttä works as an associate professor in the Land Use Planning and Urban Studies Group (YTK) of Aalto University. Her research interests within environmental psychology and participatory planning cover various topics: child-, and human-friendly environments, environments that promote well-being and health, and new methods for participation. Currently, her multidisciplinary research team concentrates on the transactional person-environment research with an Internet-based softGIS method that is an example of PPGIS (public participation GIS) methodology. Research in Early Childhood Education for Sustainability: International Perspectives and Provocations Julie Davis and Sue Elliott, editors (2014). London and New York: Routledge, 337 pages. $51.95 (paperback); ISBN 978-0-415-85449-8. “Provocations” is a fitting descriptor of this edited collection of perspectives on Early Childhood Education for Sustainability (ECEfS). Editors Davis and Elliott, active scholars and writers in this relatively new field, urge readers to extend dialogue, research, and practice beyond the recognition of young children’s willingness to learn from and engage with the natural world, toward recognition of the capabilities of young children as “thinkers, problem-solvers, and agents of change for sustainability” (1). Collectively, the contributions to this text challenge traditional notions of the young learner, suggesting the need for a transformative shift toward learning that encourages young children to authentically engage in sustainability issues. While acknowledging their value, Davis and Elliot suggest nature- and outdoor-focused approaches to environmental education hinder thinking about young children’s capabilities as active social agents with rights to participate in decision-making and action-taking in sustainability issues relevant to them—locally and in broader contexts. In their chapter that frames the text they write, We believe education that results in young children becoming ‘worriers or warriors’ for sustainability is inherently wrong. Nevertheless, in emphasizing a more critical, participatory orientation to environmental education/education for sustainability, we make no apologies (2). Book Reviews 163 This text stems from two Transnational Dialogues in Research in Early Childhood Education for Sustainability conferences (Norway, 2010 and Australia, 2011), where researchers from across the globe had gathered to explore ECEfS from the perspective of young children as capable, competent participants and as change agents for sustainability. Participants agreed upon the need to engage more researchers in the work of Early Childhood Education for Sustainability, and many of them contributed chapters to this text. The text is organized into three clusters: Ethics and Values, Historical and Sociocultural Contexts, and Curriculum and Pedagogy. In the Ethics and Values Cluster, the three chapters consider ECEfS in relation to children’s rights, social justice, civic participation, democracy, and Indigeneity. In the four chapters of the Historical and Sociocultural Context Cluster, contributors provide examples from their own local contexts (Indigenous, Japanese, Singaporean, and Norwegian) as to how paradigm shifts in education, early childhood education, and sustainability are being enabled or deterred. This cluster speaks to the diversity of historical and sociocultural contexts that have and will continue to impact ECEfS. The Curriculum and Pedagogy Cluster contains the most chapters, providing an opportunity to critically reflect on a range of transformative approaches to curriculum design and teaching that build on early childhood philosophical and pedagogical traditions. In its entirety, this text seems important for researchers (at varied levels of experience and expertise) working at the intersection of early childhood education and education for sustainability/environmental education. It accomplishes what it sets out to do, providing direction for where ECEfS might go beyond norms and orthodoxies and toward establishing it as a legitimate and critical contributor to global sustainability. As described by...