My Research Proposal was offcially accepted!
This study builds on my MA research (2012) and the rationale that the Convention on the Rights of the Child should be used as a frame of reference by professionals working with children, to actively inform and guide day-to-day practice.
Questions my research project will explore are:
What does rights-based pedagogy imply for two year olds in their day-to-day experiences in England, Finland and Sweden?
What does rights-based pedagogy mean to parents and adults working with two year olds?
How do you evaluate rights-based pedagogy?
What are the implications of rights-based pedagogy?
Paradigmatically, this study is a naturalistic study from an interpretivist perspective. The ontological assumption is that the nature of reality is subjective, multiple and socially co-constructed. The aim is to capture experiences, perceptions and meanings with the participants rather than having the researcher observe, analyse and interpret reality alone. Epistemologically, I believe knowledge is gained through an understanding of participants' lived social realities and that there may be many contrasting views and interpretations to this reality. A phenomenological perspective therefore seems to be the most appropriate methodology.
A single-case embedded case study methodological approach will be adopted, the context being that of children’s rights and the case, how children’s rights are practiced in EEC settings. The three embedded units of analysis will be England, Finland and Sweden, cultures I know well from having lived 10 years or more in each of the countries.