Democracy : a reality check for early childhood development practitioners.

• Main Author: Huggett, Eleanor Anne
• Format: Others
• Language: en
• Published: 2009
• Subjects: Adult education; Communication; Democracy; Leadership; Socialization; Ubuntu; Human Rights; Early Childhood Development
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/10539/5922

The majority of educators/practitioners practicing in South Africa today were either educated under the apartheid regime or experienced a post apartheid education that was given by people socialized under the apartheid regime. Therefore, there is a strong possibility that democratic practice in schools is compromised due to the socialization of the practitioners. ECD practitioners’ perceptions on democracy and how they implement democratic practices in their workplace are explored in order to begin to identify the elements of a learning and working environment that could promote the values of a liberal democracy. A dialogic, participatory approach using questionnaires, focussed group discussions, personal interviews and critical incidents, investigated relevant issues such as perceptions of democracy, socialization, leadership, adult education and the impact of crime and HIV/Aids within the ECD context. The findings show that democracy is recognized as a positive and welcomed development in South Africa. There is a genuine ‘spirit of ubuntu’ present and the participants relish the diversity in their midst. A common feature between all groups is the concern over crime and corruption. However, it also revealed that although the surface levels of understanding of the principles of democracy are similar between various groups, the in-depth perceptions regularly differ. Improved avenues for legitimate communication between participants at all levels is advised, not only to discuss differences but also common ground. Understanding the factors that promote democratic principles such as cultural interaction, diversity, etc. could help both the participants of this study and other ECD practitioners in creating and promoting legitimate democratic practice in the workplace.