Is there a place for love in an early childhood setting?

Abstract

In recent years, there has been a growth in the amount of literature and a resurgence of interest in what Jools Page identified as ‘professional love’. This research builds upon and extends Page’s work considering what love looks like in practice and describing a ‘loving pedagogy’. Despite recent research, love is still seldom talked about in the context of early childhood education and very few studies have considered what love looks like on a day-to-day basis within an early childhood setting. This small case study has identified that love is, indeed, present there in practice. Loving interactions were observed between adults and children in a preschool setting and how love manifests itself discussed with three educators during intimate conversations. This study compares observed practice with the educators’ understanding of love and shows that a loving pedagogy exists within daily interactions and that there is a place for love within an early childhood setting.