Early Childhood Curriculum and the Definition of Knowledge.

This paper delineates conceptions of early childhood programs from the 18th through the 20th centuries, and reveals how the programs changed as the concept of what constitutes knowledge changed. Discussion begins with reading instruction and hornbooks in Colonial America, and national language learning in the knitting school of Jean Frederick Oberlin. Subsequent discussion focuses on empiricist approaches, including Owen's Infant School and Institute for the Development of Character, Froebel's kindergarten, and the role of American transcendentalism. Empirical models of early education related to the education of handicapped and disadvantaged persons are described; these include the pioneer efforts of Jacob-Rodrigues Pereire, Jean-Marc-Gaspard Itard, Edouard Seguin, and Maria Montessori. The concluding section indicates how the emergence of the field of child study, progressive education, and theories of development influenced kindergarten programs. While knowledge of child development research and theory can be used to determine the appropriateness of a particular educational method for a particular group of children, such knowledge cannot be used to determine what should be taught to those children. (RH)