Peer reviewedERIC Number: EJ707429
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2004-Sep-22
Pages: 7
Abstractor: ERIC
Reference Count: 32
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0009-4056
Nurturing Peaceful Children to Create a Caring World: The Role of Families and Communities
Swick, Kevin J.; Freeman, Nancy K.
Childhood Education, v81 n1 p2 Fall 2004
With the constant reminders of wars and other human degradation going on in the world, education for "caring" is more critically important than ever to our future (Noddings, 2002). Televised accounts of the war in Iraq leave most caring people devastated. Civilian and military deaths and casualties challenge people's faith in a peaceful and meaningful future. Clearly, love and peace must be a priority for everyone. Although less intense than war, the everyday abuses carried out by the thoughtless, the cruel, and the antisocial also convey the urgency for more "caring education" across all cultures (Elshtain, 1999). Violence occurs in many forms, including physical, psychological, social, and verbal. Recent research on the impact of this violence on children during their early years should prompt a call to action for all citizens. Three "family ecology" elements affect what and how children learn in relation to their interactions with self and others (Brazelton & Greenspan, 2000): (1) attachment relations; (2) adult role models; and (3) opportunities for prosocial learning. These elements are discussed in this article.
Descriptors: Altruism, Role Models, Child Development, Family Role, Peace, Children, Family Environment, Violence, Attachment Behavior, Prosocial Behavior
Association for Childhood Education International (ACEI) Subscriptions, 17904 Georgia Ave., Suite 215, Olney, MD 20832. Web site: http://www.acei.org.
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Descriptive
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers: N/A


