"We Underestimated the Children": A Systematic Review of Early Childhood Social Studies Scholarship

• In Event: Early Childhood Education Curriculum

Abstract

Early childhood social studies offers important opportunities for young children to make sense of the social and world around them, yet scholarship specifically focused on social studies in the early grades is limited. In this systematic review of literature on social studies in early childhood contexts, we use a framework of critical childhood studies to explore trends in ECSS scholarship. Findings demonstrate that ECSS scholarship is largely reliant on teacher and researcher perspectives, and that the literature is often detached from the experiences of young children. We conclude by recommending further research which highlights the experiences of children in contexts which challenge traditional conceptions of early childhood social studies.

Authors

• Anna Falkner, University of Memphis

• Noreen Naseem Rodriguez, Michigan State University

• Amy Updegraff, Iowa State University