Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in
Book cover

Research Handbook on Childhoodnature pp 1–36Cite as

Challenging Taken-for-Granted Ideas in Early Childhood Education: A Critique of Bronfenbrenner’s Ecological Systems Theory in the Age of Post-humanism

Part of the book series: Springer International Handbooks of Education ((SIHE))

Abstract

A significant theorist in the early childhood education field is Urie Bronfenbrenner who, in 1979, proposed his “ecological systems theory,” sometimes referred to as the “ecological framework for human development.” This theory offers a multidimensional systems model for understanding the influence of family through to economic and political structures; thus, it presents a way of understanding the human life course from early childhood through to adulthood. In this theory, the ecological framework enables the mapping of information about individuals and their contexts over time in order to understand their diverse systemic interconnections. A critique of this model, however, from a childhoodnature stance, is that it ignores consideration of human-nature interconnections. Thus, it is a deeply anthropocentric model of human development that is at odds with emergent post-humanist thinking that seeks to de-center the human condition. In this chapter, we argue that the pervasiveness of this human-centered systems approach works against sustainability, in that it reinforces the sociocultural, political, and economic dimensions of being human at the expense of environmental interconnections. Drawing on systems theory, post-humanist theory, new materialism, a critical lens to pedagogy, and new sociology of childhood, we propose alternative ways of approaching Bronfenbrenner’s work that, both, facilitates human connections and strengthens children and nature connections that have implications for early childhood education philosophy and pedagogy.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution.

References

  • APA. (2004). Early intervention can improve low-income children’s cognitive skills and academic achievement. Retrieved from http://www.apa.org/research/action/early.aspx.

  • Apple, M. (1996). Cultural Politics and Education. Teachers College Press, New York.

    Google Scholar 

  • Arthur, L., Beecher, B., Death, E., Dockett, S., & Farmer, S. (2015). Programming and planning in early childhood settings (6th ed.). Sydney, NSW: Cengage.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ballam, N. (2013). Defying the odds: Gifted and talented young people from low socioeconomic backgrounds. PhD thesis http://researchcommons.waikato.ac.nz/bitstream/handle/10289/8424/thesis.pdf?sequence=3.

  • Bateson, G. (1979). Mind and nature: A necessary unity. New York, NY: Ballantine Books.

    Google Scholar 

  • Berry, T. (1988). The dream of the earth. San Francisco, CA: Sierra Club Books.

    Google Scholar 

  • Berthelsen, D. (2009). Participatory learning: Issues for research and practice. In D. Berthelsen, J. Brownlee, & E. Johansson (Eds.), Participatory learning in the early years: Research and pedagogy (Routledge Research in Education, Vol. 21, pp. 1–11). New York: Routledge.

    Google Scholar 

  • Boon, H., Cottrell, A., King, D., Stevenson, Robert B., & Millar, J. (2012). Bronfenbrenner’s bioecological theory for modelling community resilience to natural disasters. Natural Hazards, 60(2), 381–408.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Borkfelt, S. (2011). Non-human otherness: Animals as others and devices for othering. In S. Sencindiver, M. Beville, & M. Lauritzen (Eds.), Otherness: A multilateral perspective (pp. 137–154). Frankfurt, Germany: Peter Lang.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bowes, J., Grace, R., & Hodge, K. (2012). Children, families and communities contexts and consequences (4th ed.). Melbourne, VIC: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Braidotti, R. (2013). The posthuman. London, England: Polity Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bronfenbrenner, U. (1988). Foreword. In A. Pence (Ed.), Ecological research with children and families from concepts to methodology (pp. ix–xix). New York, NY: Teachers College Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bronfenbrenner, U. (1995). Developmental ecology through space and time: A future perspective. In P. Moen, G. H. Elder, & K. Luscher (Eds.), Examining lives in context: Perspectives on the ecology of human development (pp. 619–647). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Bronfenbrenner, U. (1999). Environments in developmental perspective: Theoretical and operational models. In S. L. Friedman & T. D. Wachs (Eds.), Measuring environment across the life span: Emerging methods and concepts (pp. 3–28). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Bronfenbrenner, U. (2001). The bioecological theory of human development. In N. J. Smelser & P. B. Baltes (Eds.), International encyclopaedia of the social and behavioural sciences (Vol. 10, pp. 6963–6970). New York, NY: Elsevier.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Carter, M., & Curtis, D. (2008). Learning together with young children: A curriculum framework for reflective teachers. St. Paul, MN: Redleaf Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Christensen, J. (2010). Proposed enhancement of Bronfenbrenner’s development ecology model. Education Inquiry, 1(2), 101–110.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Christensen, P., & James, A. (Eds.). (2000). Research with children: Perspectives and practices. London, England: Falmer.

    Google Scholar 

  • Connelly, W. (2013). The ‘new materialism’ and the fragility of things. Millennium: Journal of International Studies, 41(3), 399–412.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Corsaro, W. A. (2005). The sociology of childhood (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

    Google Scholar 

  • Currie, J., & Deschenes, O. (2016). Children and climate change: Introducing the issue. The Future of Children, 26(1), 3–9.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Davis, J., & Elliott, S. (Eds.). (2014). Research in early childhood education for sustainability: International perspectives and provocations. London, England: Routledge.

    Google Scholar 

  • Department of National Planning and Monitoring (DNPM). (2010). 2010 PAPUA NEW GUINEA – Millennium Development Goals Second National Progress Comprehensive Report for Papua New Guinea. Retrieved from http://www.pg.undp.org/content/dam/papua_new_guinea/docs/MDG/UNDP_PG_MD G%20Comprehensive%20Report%202010.pdf.

  • Dillon-Wallace, J. (2011). Mothers of young children with special health care needs: Maternal well-being and engagement in work. PhD thesis, Queensland University of Technology.

    Google Scholar 

  • Dritschilo, W. (2004). Earth days: Ecology comes of age as a science. Lincoln, NE: iUniverse.

    Google Scholar 

  • Edwards, C., Gandini, L., & Forman, G. (Eds.). (1998). The hundred languages of children (2nd ed.). Greenwich, CN: Ablex.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ehrlich, P. (1968). The population bomb. New York, NY: Sierra Club/Ballantine Books.

    Google Scholar 

  • Elliott, S., & Emmett, S. (1991). Snails live in houses too: Environmental education for the early years. Sydney: Martin Educational.

    Google Scholar 

  • Friere, P. (1999 first published 1972). Pedagogy of the oppressed. New York: Continuum.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gesell, A. (1950). The first five years of life. London, England: Methuen.

    Google Scholar 

  • Giroux, H. (1992). Border Crossings: Cultural Workers and the Politics of Education. Routledge, GB.

    Google Scholar 

  • Habermas, J. (1971). Knowledge and human interests. English version. Boston, MA: Beacon Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hancock, T. (1985). The mandala of health: A model of the human ecosystem. Family and Community Health, 8(3), 1–10.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Haque, E. (2007). Critical pedagogy in English for academic purposes and the possibility for ‘tactics’ of resistance. Pedagogy, Culture and Society, 15(1), 83–106.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Härkönen, U. (2003). Current theories related to early childhood education and preschool as frames of reference for sustainable education. In Proceedings of the 1st international JTET conference “Sustainable development culture education.” 11–14 May, 2003. Daugavpils, Latvia, 38–5.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hinitz, B. S. F. (2014). Head start: A bridge from past to future. NAEYC Young Children, 69(May Issue), 94–97.

    Google Scholar 

  • Howes, M. (2017). After 25 years of trying, why aren’t we environmentally sustainable yet? The Conversation. 3 April.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hutchinson, G. E. (1957). Concluding Remarks. Cold Spring Harbor Symposia on Quantitative Biology, 22, 415–42.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • James, A., Jenks, C., & Prout, J. (1998). Theorising childhood. Cambridge, UK: Polity Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Janus, M., & Offord, D. (2007). Development and psychometric properties of the early development instrument (EDI): A measure of children’s school readiness. Canadian Journal of Behavioural Science, 39(1), 1–22.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jones, P. (2009). Rethinking childhood: Attitudes in contemporary society. London, England: Continuum.

    Google Scholar 

  • Krishan, V. (2010). Early child development: A conceptual model. Early Child development Mapping Project (ECMap), Community University Partnership (CUP), Faculty of Extension, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta. Retrieved from http://www.cup.ualberta.ca/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/ConceptualModelCUPwebsite_10April13.pdf.

  • Latour, B. (2004). The politics of nature: How to bring the sciences into democracy. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lerner, R. M. (2005). Foreword. In U. Bronfenbrenner (Ed.), Making human beings human: Bioecological perspectives on human development (pp. ix–xxvi). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

    Google Scholar 

  • Liu, J., Dietz, T., Carpenter, S. R., Folke, C., Alberti, M., Redman, C. L., et al. (2007). Coupled human and natural systems. Ambio, 36(8), 639–649.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lovelock, J. (1979). Gaia: A new look at life on Earth. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Luke, T. (2003). Critical theory and the environment. In Counterpoints, Vol. 168, Critical theory and the human condition: Founders and Praxis (pp. 238–250).

    Google Scholar 

  • Mackey, G. (2014). Valuing agency in young children: Teachers rising to the challenge of sustainability in the Aotearoa New Zealand early childhood context. In J. Davis & S. Elliott (Eds.), Research in early childhood education for sustainability: International perspectives and provocations. London, England: Routledge.

    Google Scholar 

  • Maturana, R., & Varela, F. (1987). The Tree of Knowledge. Shambhala, Boston.

    Google Scholar 

  • McCrea, N., & Littledyke, R. (2015). Young children sampling sustainable learning as healthier me. In N. Taylor, F. Quinn, & C. Eames (Eds.), Education for sustainability in primary schools: Teaching for the future (pp. 45–63). Rotterdam, The Netherlands: Sense.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • McKenzie, M., & Bieler, A. (2016). Critical education and sociomaterial practice: Narration, place and the social. Bern, Switzerland: Peter Lang Press.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • McLaren, P. (1989). Life in Schools: An Introduction to Critical Pedagogy in the Foundations of Education. Routledge: New York.

    Google Scholar 

  • McLaren, P. (2015). Pedagogy of insurrection: From resurrection to revolution. New York, NY: Peter Lang.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Moss, P., & Petrie, P. (2002). From children’s services to children’s spaces: Public policy, children and childhood. London, England: Routledge. Retrieved from https://www.acf.hhs.gov/ohs.

    Google Scholar 

  • Office of HeadStart. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.acf.hhs.gov/ohs/about.

  • Olshansky, J., et al. (2005). A potential decline in life expectancy in the United States in the 21st century. The New England Journal of Medicine, 352(11), 1138–1145.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Oppenheimer, M., & Anttila-Hughes, J. K. (2016). The science of climate change. The Future of Children, 26(1), 11–30.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Page, J., & Tayler, C. (2016). Learning and teaching in the early years. Port Melbourne, VIC: Cambridge University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Penn, H. (2005). Understanding early childhood development: Issues and controversies. Glasgow, UK: Bell & Bain Ltd.

    Google Scholar 

  • Piaget, J., & Inhelder, B. (1962). The psychology of the child. New York, NY: Basic Books.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rittel, H., & Webber, M. (1973). Dilemmas in a general theory of planning. Policy Series, 4, 155–169.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rodgers, B. (2009). An ecological approach to understanding the stigma associated with receiving mental health services: The role of social proximity. PhD thesis. Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, VA.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rogoff, B. (2003). The cultural nature of human development. Oxford, MI: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rooney, T. (2016). Weather worlding: Learning with the elements in early childhood. Environmental Education Research. https://doi.org/10.1080/13504622.2016.1217398

  • Sims, M., & Hutchins, T. (2012). Program planning for infants and toddlers (2nd ed.). Mt Victoria, NSW: Pademelon Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Stanger, N. (2011). Moving “eco” back into socio-ecological models: A proposal to reorient ecological literacy into human development models and school systems. Human Ecology Review, 18(2), 167–173.

    Google Scholar 

  • Steffen, W., Crutzen, P. J., & McNeill, J. R. (2007). The Anthropocene: Are humans now overwhelming the great forces of nature? AMBIO, 36(8), 614–621.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Stevenson, R. B. (2007). Schooling and environmental education: Contradictions in purpose and practice. Environmental Education Research, 13(2), 139–153.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Taylor, A. (2013). Reconfiguring the natures of childhood. London, England: Routledge.

    Google Scholar 

  • Taylor, C. A. (2016). Edu-crafting a cacophanous ecology: Posthuman research practices for education. In C. A. Taylor & C. Hughes (Eds.), Posthuman research practices in education (pp. 5–24). London, England: Palgrave Macmillan.

    Google Scholar 

  • Taylor, C. A., & Hughes, C. (Eds.). (2016). Posthuman research practices in education. London, England: Palgrave Macmillan.

    Google Scholar 

  • Thelen, E., & Smith, L. B. (1994). A dynamic systems approach to the development of cognition and action. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Tudge, J., Mokrova, I., Hatfield, B., & Karnik, R. (2009). Uses and Abuses of Bronfenbrenner’s Bioecological Theory of Human Development. Journal of Family Theory and Review, 1(4), 198–210.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • UNCED. (1992). Promoting education and awareness and public training, Agenda 21. United Nations conference on environment and development. Conches, Brazil: UNCED.

    Google Scholar 

  • UNESCO. (2010). Four dimensions of sustainable development. Retrieved from www.unesco.org/education/tlsf/mods/theme_a/popups/mod04t01s03.html.

  • UNICEF. (1989). United Nations convention on the rights of the child. Retrieved from http://www2.ohchr.org/english/law/crc.htm.

  • Von Bertalanffy, L. (1972). The history and status of general systems theory. The Academy of Management Journal, 15(4), 407–426. Retrieved from http://systemotechnica.ucoz.com/_fr/1/Bertalanffy_L.V.pdf.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Vygotsky, L. (1978). The role of play in development (pp. 92–104). In Mind in society. (M. Cole, Trans.). Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wagner, J. (1993). Ignorance in Educational Research Or, How Can You Not Know That? Educational Researcher, 22(5), 15–23.

    Google Scholar 

  • Weckowicz, T. E. (2000). Ludwig von Bertalanffy (1901–1972): A Pioneer of general systems theory. Retrieved from http://www.richardjung.cz/bert1.pdf.

  • Weldemariam, K. (2017). Challenging and expanding the notion of sustainability within early childhood education: Perspectives from post-humanism and/or new materialism. In O. Franck & C. Osbeck (Eds.), Ethical literacies and education for sustainable development: Young people, subjectivity and democratic participation (pp. 105–126). Gothenburg, Sweden: Palgrave Macmillan.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • World Commission on Environment & Development (WCED). (1987). The Brundtland report: Our common future. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • WWF. (2016). Living plant report. Retrieved from http://awsssets.panda.org/downloads/lpr_living_planet_report_2016.pdf.

  • Young, G. L. (1974). Human ecology as an interdisciplinary concept: A critical inquiry. In A. MacFadyen (Ed.), Advances in ecological research (Vol. 8, pp. 1–105). London, England: Academic.

    Google Scholar 

  • Zivin, J., & Shrader, J. (2016). The Future of Children. 26(1), Children and Climate Change (SPRING), pp. 31–50.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. University of New England, Armidale, NSW, Australia

    Sue Elliott

  2. Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane, Australia

    Julie M. Davis

Authors
  1. Sue Elliott
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Julie M. Davis
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Sue Elliott .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. School of Education, Southern Cross University School of Education, Coolangatta, Queensland, Australia

    Amy Cutter-Mackenzie

  2. Centre for Educational Research, Western Sydney University Centre for Educational Research, Penrith, New South Wales, Australia

    Karen Malone

  3. Department of Education, University of Bath Department of Education, Bath, United Kingdom

    Elisabeth Barratt Hacking

Section Editor information

  1. Southern Cross University, Lismore, New South Wales, Australia

    Marianne Logan

  2. Victoria University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia

    Helen Widdop Quinton

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2018 Springer International Publishing AG, part of Springer Nature

About this entry

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this entry

Elliott, S., Davis, J.M. (2018). Challenging Taken-for-Granted Ideas in Early Childhood Education: A Critique of Bronfenbrenner’s Ecological Systems Theory in the Age of Post-humanism. In: Cutter-Mackenzie, A., Malone, K., Barratt Hacking, E. (eds) Research Handbook on Childhoodnature . Springer International Handbooks of Education. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-51949-4_60-1

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-51949-4_60-1

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-51949-4

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-51949-4

  • eBook Packages: Springer Reference EducationReference Module Humanities and Social SciencesReference Module Education

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Chapter history

Search

Navigation