Adrijana Višnjić-Jevtić
From participation in choosing activities to participation in decision-making – supporting sustainability from the start
Children's participation in decision-making is a key idea of the Convention on the Rights of the Child (UN, 1989), and consequently, it should represent a guideline for work in educational institutions. Children's participation levels are evaluated in different ways. Early Childhood Education are founded on the principle of listening to children's needs and interests.
Adults, whether parents or teachers, are responsible for facilitating the child's participation, so they must adjust their listening according to the child's age and maturity (CRC, 2009). Taking the child's opinions into account means being open to change. It is not just an act of listening, but requires an open and sensitive approach and a positive attitude about the application of children's ideas in decision-making. It is precisely openness to changes initiated by children that can be problematic from the aspect of children's participation in kindergarten. On the one hand, we have documents that emphasize the importance of respecting the child's interest and choice, and on the other hand, this choice does not include actually supporting the child's agency. By limiting the selection (for example games, toys or activities) we give the appearance of participation in decision making. Children decide within our choices without the real power that agency brings. It is necessary to discuss whether it is a question of adults' fear of losing authority or insecurity about children's competences.
Adrijana Višnjić-Jevtić
Adrijana Višnjić Jevtić is the Vice President of OMEP for the European Region. She is assistant professor at the Faculty of Teacher Education, University of Zagreb, Croatia, after working as a kindergarten teacher for 20 years.
Her areas of scientific interest are early childhood pedagogy, professional development of teachers and cooperation between families and educational institutions. She is the author of several scientific and professional papers and a participant in several scientific and scientific conferences. She is a member of the research team of the project Models of Response to the Educational Needs of Children at Risk of Social Exclusion in ECEC Institutions (MORENEC, IP-2019-04-2011) funded by the Croatian Science Foundation. During the last 10 years, she worked on various projects for the improvement of early and preschool education in the Republic of Croatia and the Republic of North Macedonia.
She is the founder of the Krijesnica Association of Educators, whose president she served for two terms (2008-2016) and the Croatian National Committee of the World Organisation for Early Childhood Education (OMEP).
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