Establishing Child Centred Practice in a Changing World, Part A: (Emerald Studies in Child Centred Practice)

At a time of significant local, national and international change, in which children are already actively involved, it seems not only right but necessary that we should be seeking to further our knowledge and understanding of what informs and shapes meaningful and effective practice for and with children. Such research has implications across the spaces that children and adults share whether that is at school, at home, in the law courts, in health care through to local, national and international platforms for social action. Establishing Child Centred Practice in a Changing World, Part A draws on contributions from around the world, as it highlights the possibilities for a more focused series of studies in this area, deepening the understanding of what informs effective practice with children, through demanding a greater applied awareness of terms such as voice, collaboration and change. It reflects on the realities of the dynamic global context and the way in which this is affecting children’s experiences at a national and local level. It demands a consideration of the way in which children are represented in society and the extent to which that impacts on the design of practices for children. However, as well as reflecting on the constraints that traditional images of the child hold, this work also highlights the opportunities that are created when practices are designed with children.

Table of Contents:
Chapter 1. Starting a Conversation: An Introduction; Sam Frankel Chapter 2. Reproducing Power Asymmetries through Voice, Collaboration and Change: Opportunities for Children to Re-shape Contemporary Global Challenges; Grace Spencer and Jill Thompson Chapter 3. Children as Change Makers: Exploring Children’s Meaningful Participation in Participatory Action Research through a Project on Helicopter Parenting; Mackenzie Mountford and Faye M. Vento Chapter 4. No Laughing Matter: Exploring The Role of Comedy When Researching Employment Barriers with Disabled Young People; Marie Caslin, Harry Georgiou, Charlene Davies, and Sarah Spoor Chapter 5. Participation at the Heart: Lessons from Child-centred Practice in UK Healthcare during and Beyond COVID-19; Louca-Mai Brady, Lucy Bray, Emma Beeden, Shelby Davies, Kath Evans, and Andy Feltham Chapter 6. Young People Involved with Voluntary Youth Services Agreements in Ontario; Rachel Birnbaum Chapter 7. An Analysis of Child and Youth Participation in Practice: Lessons Learned from Child and Youth Advocate Offices and the Aboriginal Youth Court; Daniella Bendo, Christine Goodwin-De Faria, and Stefania Maggi Chapter 8. From Rhetoric to Reality: Participation in Practice within Youth Justice Systems; Hannah Smithsona, Thomas Langb, and Paul Gray Chapter 9. Children and Climate Justice : A New Perspective on the Role of Children as Leaders in a Worldwide Debate; Laurene Graziani Chapter 10. Reflective Partnership Between an Adult and a Child in Institutional Foster Care - In search of (the child's) Agency; Katarzyna Ornacka Chapter 11. Towards an Informed, Participative and Sustainable Approach of Children’s Fashion and Clothing: IN2FROCC in Action; Aude Le Guennec, Clare Rose, Laetitia Barbu, Anne-Charlotte Hartmann-Bragard, and Maija Nygren

About the Author :
Sam Frankel is Associate Professor at King’s University College, Canada, Visiting Fellow at Manchester Metropolitan University, UK and Adjunct Professor at Western University, Canada. Sam is the Director of the children's voice organisation EquippingKids (in the UK and Canada) and has spent over 20 years working with children in schools and community settings.