Abstract
Every early childhood and elementary educator operates in life from a set of assumptions. This chapter offers ways for readers to consider the unrecognized and unexamined aspects of these assumptions. Certain forms of knowledge are valued more than others in schools. For example, presently science and math are more valued than music and the arts. Also, school knowledge belongs to a particular group of people. Children and families who do not have school knowledge are at a disadvantage. Finally, people in power exercise their position to maintain dominance to keep those places in society. Early childhood and elementary educators are encouraged to deconstruct long-held assumptions. What can educators do to make a difference in their classrooms and communities when these three assumptions of critical pedagogy are pervasive in the school systems in which they teach?
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Christensen, L.M., Aldridge, J. (2013). Assumptions: Where Are We?. In: Critical Pedagogy for Early Childhood and Elementary Educators. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-5395-2_4
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