Opposing Views On Spirituality And Religion

Spirituality and religion are particularly contentious and polarising concepts and, historically, have been at the root of many a revolution and war. Thus, it is not hard to see why it falls into the category of being a ‘complex’ topic. However, by delving deeper under the surface and seeking not the root of conflict, but, rather, the root of the concepts themselves, the opportunity to uncover a way in which people can overcome their differences and find a happy medium is revealed. This compromise is something that is faced in early childhood centres regularly as families involved in centres can come from all kinds of backgrounds and creeds. The importance of being accepting of all religions, ethnicities, disabilities, socioeconomic backgrounds,

As travel gets easier and immigration becomes more and more common, countries and, indeed, centres are becoming more and more like melting pots of religions and cultures, thus increasing the need for improved tolerance and understanding of differing views. This kind of understanding and tolerance is difficult to teach, yet children are inherently capable provided their environment is one that fosters such dispositions. During their preoperational stage (2 – 7 years), as identified by Piaget, children become very egocentric and find it difficult to see things from other people’s perspectives (Petrill, 2006; Perry, Hockenberry, Lowdermilk, & Wilson, 2014). Interestingly, this likely lends to their ability to fathom higher beings: they can see physically that they are not the biggest in the room and, therefore, it stands to reason that the adults must understand that they are not either. It is during this stage that children’s cognitive development really begins to come to the forefront as the child is able to begin to understand how to conceptualise and then act based on preconceived thought (Perry et. al, 2014). Piaget also theorised that, for children under the age of 11years, they have a very black and white view of the world. The unfortunate downside to this is that, while in this stage of

However, it being that the world is not perfect and that is an unrealistic expectation, the next best thing is for kaiako to welcome open and honest ongoing dialogue with the whanau that encompasses their personal beliefs as well as their child’s wellbeing and education, encourages participation, and is rooted in empathy (Roberts, 2017). Te Whāriki acknowledges the importance of communication, highlighting it as a strand vital to the holistic education of the child (Ministry of Education, 2017) and so too is it the foundation of engagement with parents (Barnes, Guin, Allen, & Jolly, 2016). Parents are as crucial to the teaching process as the kaiako themselves and should be regarded and treated as equals, regardless of background (Barnes et. al, 2016; Roberts, 2017). For this proposed open dialogue to be effective, however, there are potential barriers that need to be acknowledged and overcome – such as respecting the parents’ time (or potential lack thereof), overcoming language or cultural barriers, and educator expectations – in a way that is careful not to alienate or offend (Barnes et. al, 2016). Finding ways to communicate that overcome these barriers and suit everyone’s needs is a length that kaiako should go to to ensure consistent, clear lines of