NotesFAQContact Us
Collection
Advanced
Search Tips
50 Years of ERIC
50 Years of ERIC
The Education Resources Information Center (ERIC) is celebrating its 50th Birthday! First opened on May 15th, 1964 ERIC continues the long tradition of ongoing innovation and enhancement.

Learn more about the history of ERIC here. PDF icon

Back to results
Peer reviewed Peer reviewed
Direct linkDirect link
ERIC Number: EJ1028852
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2014
Pages: 11
Abstractor: As Provided
Reference Count: N/A
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1463-9491
Normalising the Breast: Early Childhood Services Battling the Bottle and the Breast
Duncan, Judith; Bartle, Carol
Contemporary Issues in Early Childhood, v15 n1 p18-28 2014
Normalising practices as a tool for controlling the body and bodily processes have been well-documented using Foucault's theories, including debates around breastfeeding. In this article we explore how the ideas of "normalisation" of the bottle-feeding culture of infants in New Zealand early childhood settings has become the accepted rhetoric and, despite attempts to "normalise" breastfeeding, many early childhood teachers are both under-prepared and ill-equipped for protecting, promoting and supporting breastfeeding in their services. Early childhood settings should be places for promoting breastfeeding--both for active breastfeeding by the mother and, where this is not possible, feeding the infant with the mother's breast milk. Drawing on theories of Foucault, the complexity of "normalising" both the bottle and the breast for feeding is explored. The "battle of the breast or the bottle" for infant feeding in New Zealand early childhood services frames these discussions and highlights the difficulties in using "normalisation" as a resistance or a change agent.
Symposium Journals. P.O. Box 204, Didcot, Oxford, OX11 9ZQ, UK. Tel: +44-1235-818-062; Fax: +44-1235-817-275; e-mail: subscriptions@symposium-journals.co.uk; Web site: http://www.wwwords.co.uk/ciec
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Evaluative
Education Level: Early Childhood Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers: New Zealand