ABSTRACT

I pointed out that the child-centred ideologies which represent what is ‘real’ about children and their learning to infants’ teachers, are social constructs; there was a time when they did not exist and they are not accepted by everyone. Children have learnt and still learn, in some parts of the world, basic skills by methods far removed from those I have described. Within this perspective, classroom practices and ideologies may be discussed and evaluated independently of any claims for their being the best or the truth.