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Research Handbook on Childhoodnature pp 1–20Cite as

Moving Beyond Innocence: Educating Children in a Post-Nature World

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

Abstract

This chapter examines some of the challenges of unlearning anthropocentrism – i.e., the deep-seated cultural, psychological, and enacted prejudices of human specialness – in nature-based early childhood education programs. We begin with a critical exploration of recent trends in environmental philosophy and the conservation sciences that seek to move beyond the so-called archaic notions of “wilderness” and “nature” toward more managerial models of human dominion over planetary “ecosystem services.” We suggest the trouble with these discursive moves is that they shirk from the courageous conversations required from environmental education in a time of ecological emergency. We conclude by drawing on research at nature-based schools in the Netherlands and Canada to illustrate the tenacity of anthropocentric “common sense” and suggest the beginnings of pedagogy of childhoodnatures guided by notions of rewilding and ecological humility.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Leiden University, Leiden, The Netherlands

    Helen Kopnina

  2. The Hague University of Applied Science (HHS), Hague, The Netherlands

    Helen Kopnina

  3. Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, BC, Canada

    Michael Sitka-Sage, Sean Blenkinsop & Laura Piersol

Authors
  1. Helen Kopnina
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  2. Michael Sitka-Sage
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  3. Sean Blenkinsop
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  4. Laura Piersol
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Helen Kopnina .

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. School of Education, Gold Coast Campus, Southern Cross University, Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia

    Amy Cutter-Mackenzie

  2. Centre for Educational Research, Western Sydney University, Sydney, Australia

    Karen Malone

  3. Cornell University, Ithaca, New York, USA

    Marianne Krasny

  4. James Cook University, Cairns, Australia

    Hilary Whitehouse

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Kopnina, H., Sitka-Sage, M., Blenkinsop, S., Piersol, L. (2018). Moving Beyond Innocence: Educating Children in a Post-Nature World. 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_40-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-51949-4_40-1

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  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-51949-4

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