Utopia Is a Necessary Country: Reimagining Early Childhood Education in the Glocal Here and Now

• In Event: Marriott Roundtable Session 4
  In Roundtable Session: The Neoliberal State: The Global Implications of Early Childhood Policies

Abstract

The paper explores current developments in the global early childhood space from three interconnected vantage points: early childhood development, education and care as con-crete, local, and situated practices (Eu-topia), as decontextualised concepts and supposedly universal practices in a global non-space (U-topia) – including a short excursus into its dysto-pian implications, and finally as an imaginary future of early childhood as a common good, a contributor to sustainability and new global conversations. I discuss ‘fields of tension’ arising from the proliferation – and largely uncritical use – of three key concepts that appear to define and dominate the field: assessment, development, and education. Drawing on Paulo Freire’s notion of hope as an ontological necessity, I argue that there are reasons for cautious optimism.

Author

• Mathias Urban, Dublin City University