Ethics in Researching Young Children’s Play in Preschool

Chapter
Part of the International perspectives on early childhood education and development book series (CHILD, volume 10)

Abstract

This chapter discusses what considerations a researcher must do in the research of young children’s play in preschool when she is using video. In using video technology, several researchers have described how their studies of children and their activities are technically, analytically, and interpretively done, but there is a lack of understanding methodological reflections and knowledge of guidelines in research of the topic.

Researchers can get permission from parents and pedagogues to film children, but how can a researcher get an informed permission from the children? And how can a researcher detect if a child feels uncomfortable in the situation? How does the researcher know if a child wants to withdraw from the research? The permission has to be negotiated in relation to the specific child and in the specific situation. Examples from a study of children’s physical activities in sports preschool are applied to illustrate the ethical and methodological reflections. And the researcher on behalf of her research makes guidelines for how to deal with ethics and children in research.

Keywords

Physical Activity Pedagogical Practice Video Observation Surveillance Camera Focus Child 
These keywords were added by machine and not by the authors. This process is experimental and the keywords may be updated as the learning algorithm improves.

References

  1. Aabro, C. (Ed.) (2010). Pædagogers etik – en antologi [Ethics in pedagogy – An anthology]. Copenhagen: BUPL.Google Scholar
  2. Bae, B. (2009). Children’s right to participate – Challenges in everyday interactions. European Early Childhood Education Research Journal, 17(3), 391–406.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  3. Bayer, S. (2010). Etikkens kultur eller kulturens etik. In C. Aabro. (Ed.), Pædagogers etik – en antologi [Ethics in pedagogy – An anthology]. Copenhagen: BUPL.Google Scholar
  4. Bryman, A. (2008). Social research methods (3rd ed.). Oxford: Oxford University Press.Google Scholar
  5. Dahlberg, G., Moss, P., & Pence, A. (2007). Beyond quality in early childhood education and care: Languages of evaluation (2nd ed.). Great Britain: Routledge.Google Scholar
  6. Fleer, M. (2008). Using digital video observations and computer technologies in a cultural-historical approach. In M. Hedegaard, & M. Fleer with J. Bang, & P. Hviid (Eds.), Studying children: A cultural-historical approach. Maidenhead/New York: Open University Press.Google Scholar
  7. Fleer, M. (2009). A cultural-historical perspective on play: Play as a leading activity across cultural communities. In I. Pramling-Samuelson & M. Fleer (Eds.), Play and learning in early childhood settings. London: Springer.Google Scholar
  8. Fleer, M., Edwards, S., Hammer, M., Kennedy, A., Ridgway, A., Robbins, J., & Surman, L. (2006). Early childhood learning communities – Sociocultural research in practice. Frenchs Forest: Australia Pearson Education Australia.Google Scholar
  9. Flick, U. (2002). An introduction to qualitative research. London: Sage.Google Scholar
  10. Goldman, S., & McDermott, R. (2007). Staying the course with video analysis. In R. Goldman, R. Pea, B. Barron, & S. J. Denny (Eds.), Video research in the learning sciences. Hillsdale: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.Google Scholar
  11. Grøntved, A., Pedersen, G. S., Andersen, L. B., Kristensen, P. L., Møller, N. C., & Froberg, K. (2009). Personal characteristics and demographic factors associated with objectively measured physical activity in children attending preschool. Pediatric Exercise Science, 21, 209–219.Google Scholar
  12. Hammersley, M., & Atkinson, P. (2010). Ethnography: Principles in practice. London: Routledge.Google Scholar
  13. Hedegaard, M. (1990). Beskrivelse af småbørn [Describing young children]. Århus: Aarhus Universitetsforlag.Google Scholar
  14. Hedegaard, M. (2008). The role of the researcher. In M. Hedegaard, & M. Fleer, with J. Bang, & P. Hviid (Eds.), Studying children: A cultural-historical approach. Maidenhead/New York: Open University Press.Google Scholar
  15. Hedegaard, M. (2009). Children’s development from a cultural-historical approach: Children’s activity in everyday local settings as foundation for their development. Mind, Culture and Activity, 16, 64–81.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  16. Hjort, K. (2010). Om velfærdsstatens forandringer og pædagogers professionsetik. In C. Aabro (Ed.), Pædagogers etik – en antologi [Ethics in pedagogy – An anthology]. Copenhagen: BUPL.Google Scholar
  17. Løgstrup, K. E. (1956). Den etiske fordring [The ethical challenge]. Denmark: Gyldendal.Google Scholar
  18. Nuremberg Code. (1949). Trials of war criminals before the Nuremberg Military Tribunals under Control Council Law No. 10 (Vol. 2, pp. 181–182). Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office.Google Scholar
  19. Quante, S. (2011). Self-efficacy and climbing. “I can do it” – How to enhance self-efficacy beliefs in children aged 4–6 through physical activity and climbing in kindergarten. 21st EECERA annual conference, Switzerland.Google Scholar
  20. Robert-Holmes, G. (2005). Doing your early years research project. London: Sage.Google Scholar
  21. Rogoff, B. (1990). Apprenticeship in thinking: Cognitive development in social context. New York: Oxford University Press.Google Scholar
  22. Rønholt, H., Holgersen, S.-E., Fink-Jensen, K., & Nielsen, A. M. (2003). Video i pædagogisk forskning [Video in pedagogical research]. Denmark: København.Google Scholar
  23. Sandseter, E. B. H. (2009). Risky play and risk management in Norwegian preschools – A qualitative observational study. Safety Science, 13(1), 1–12.Google Scholar
  24. Schutz, A. (2005). Hverdagslivets sociologi. København: Hans Reitzels Forlag.Google Scholar
  25. Sørensen, H. V. (2012). Børns fysiske aktivitet i børnehaver [Young children’s physical activities in preschool]. Ph.D.-thesis, University of Southern Denmark.Google Scholar
  26. Stanek, A. (2011). Børns fællesskaber og fællesskabernes betydning – analyseret i indskolingen fra børnehave til 1. klasse og SFO. Roskilde Universitet. Denmark: RoskildeGoogle Scholar
  27. UNESCO. (1989). The convention on the rights of the child. www.unesco.org
  28. Van Manen, M. (1990). Researching lived experience. Human science for an action sensitive pedagogy. Albany: State University of New York Press.Google Scholar
  29. Vygotsky, L. S. (1966). Play and its role in the mental development of the child. Voprosipsikhologii, 12(6), 62–76.Google Scholar
  30. Vygotsky, L. S. (1978). Mind in society. In M. Cole, V. John-Steiner, S. Schribner, & E. Souberman (Eds.), The development of higher psychological processes. Cambridge: Harvard University Press.Google Scholar
  31. Vygotsky, L. S. (1982). Om barnets psykiske udvikling [Child development]. Denmark: København.Google Scholar
  32. Vygotsky, L. S. (1987). Problems of general psychology (The collected works of L. S. Vygotsky, Vol. 1). New York: Plenum Press.Google Scholar
  33. Vygotsky, L. S. (1998). Child psychology (The collected works of L. S. Vygotsky, Vol. 5). New York: Plenum Press.Google Scholar

Copyright information

© Springer International Publishing Switzerland 2014

Authors and Affiliations

  1. 1.VIA University College PædagoguddannelsenAarhus CDenmark

Personalised recommendations