Childhood Today

Alex Owen is Head of the Department and Senior Lecturer in Early Childhood at Liverpool Hope University. Her research focuses on the impact of poverty upon young children's current life experience and future life chances. She is a Senior Fellow of the HEA and Vice-Chair of Governors at a local primary school.

1. Introduction - Alex Owen 2. The Cotton Wool Child - Zoi Nikiforidou 3. The Selfish Child - Jim Stack 4. The Universal Child - Theodora Papatheodorou 5. The SEN/D Child - Marie Caslin 6. The Regulated Child - Carol Aubrey, Carolyn Blackburn, Charlotte Jones & Rosemarie Lowe 7. The Stressed Child - Nina Sajaniemi 8. The Political Child - Sue Cronin, Ged Mulhaney & Michelle Pearson 9. The Natural Child - Harriet Pattison 10. The Poor Child - Babs Anderson & Alex Owen 11. The Fat Child - Laura Waite& Erin Pritchard

This is an urgently needed book that explores a number of different concepts of childhood in 21st century. The book throughout considers enduring topics and new concepts of childhood, and initiates a number of questions that students of education, childhood, and early childhood studies can engage as lines of inquiries. Structured around eleven chapters this book addresses contemporary and traditional constructions of childhood and approaches issues around the child, bringing to life theoretical perspectives and liking them to practice with interesting case studies. Important key debates such as the snowflake generation, politics, poverty, equality, and obesity are related to the impact of constructing our views of the child in today's society. The book offers a multidisciplinary approach of the child today that influences practice, policy, & education and offers diverse dimensions to provoke our thinking. Throughout the book , the high quality chapters help students to understand and question complex issues in childhood that are linked with social problems experienced by children that children themselves and professionals are facing today. Critical and equally helpful, this book is an important contribution of alternative viewing of the child which demonstrates how childhood is constructed today. This book will be necessary reading for all studying childhood and all professionals involved with children as it offers different perspectives for studying children and childhood and discusses child related situations that need special consideration. -- Dr. Ioanna Palaiologou "This book provides a detailed insight into different social constructs of childhood today. The subjects are definitely relevant for any student studying Early Childhood Studies and could also be used in other courses such as Education Studies. The reading is very approachable and very interesting, keeping the reader enthralled in the subject and at the same time deepening their knowledge and understanding. Incredibly useful for essays and exams!" -- Amalie Quevedo This book gives a fascinating insight into what it really means to be a child of the 21st century, and enhances the understanding that we, as professionals, researchers, parents and adults, have of an environment which appears to change constantly. There are plenty of case studies which are relevant and useful to show the range of challenges children face. The 'Questions for reflection' in each chapter encourage deeper thinking and will be excellent to stimulate discussion. The speed of change in childhood can indeed be daunting but this book helps students, practitioners and researchers to explore and understand the variety of issues affecting children in the UK and all over the world. -- Sarah Brew This book examines 10 different constructions of childhood, through case studies, theoretical perspectives and points of reflection, and links these to practice. It provides an alternative view to the over-analysed, under pressure child. -- Neil Henty