Sofia CHATZISTEFANIDOU, Department of Preschool Education, University of Crete, Greece

Greek early childhood education first emerged as a result of protestant missionary activity in Greece. The most known among Greek kindergartens were these of the American missionaries John and Francis Hill school in Athens, and these of the "Filekpaideftiki Etaireia". Early childhood settings met the needs of the upper Greek social classes by preparing their children for school. Kindergartens were private and officially recognized by the state in 1895, although the debate on whether they ought to have a public character or not kept going for decades. The first methods applied in Greek preschool classes were based on various versions of the monitorial system, the most influential among them being that of the French Marie Pape-Carpentier. Although Greek reports on the Froebelian method and kindergarten are found in books published from the 1860’s, the first specialized Froebelian educator in Greece and the first to introduce and apply the new method in her school ("Ellinikon Parthenagogeion") was Aikaterini Christomanou-Laskaridou, a former teacher at and then director of the Hill’s School. Between 1878 and 1879 she studied the Froebelian method in Germany under the famous Froebel's student Baroness Bertha von Marenholtz-Bülow. On her return to Greece and until 1887, when she stopped working, Laskaridou transformed the "Ellinikon Parthenagogeion" into a center of the Froebelian method. During the rest of her life she attempted to raise awareness of the new method among state officials, parents, teachers, educators through lectures, publications, and other public initiatives. Although the "Filekpaideftiki Etaireia" also introduced the Froebelian method in its preschool classes in 1880, it was due to Laskaridou’s efforts that the method gained ground and gradually emerged as the dominant preschool education method in Greece, even though not without resistance. The present paper highlights the form that Froebel’s kindergarten method (theory and praxis) took when it was introduced in Greece by Laskaridou, its resonance as an innovative educational concept among the Greek educators and the Greek society, the alterations it underwent in the process of its implementation, as well as the ways in which the method was incorporated in the public educational policies concerning political, social, or national targets of the Greek state in the late 19th century and the first decades of the 20th century.

The Politics of Translation: Froebel in Japan

Annie Lyon Howe went to Japan in 1887 as a Congregationalist missionary with the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions (ABCFM). She had been trained as a kindergarten teacher in the newly emerging field of kindergarten education in the United States, and was invited by the missionaries already stationed in Kobe, Japan to open a kindergarten training school for Japanese teachers. In 1889, after two years of intensive language training and immersion into Japanese society and culture, Howe commissioned a translation of Froebel’s Mother Play, the text book of Froebel’s original instructions for teaching children. The woodblock artist translated the German images into a Japanese cultural context, exchanging the western kitchen for a Japanese kitchen, creating kimono clad children and mothers, and depicting Japanese country and urban scenes. The universally understood instructions in child development remained true to Froebel’s manual: physical exercise, lessons in punctuality and time management; appreciation of nature; being helpful at home; the importance of music and song. In translating the text, however, Howe revealed herself to be committed to the school of thought that adhered to a literal translation of Froebel’s words. In the United States, a conflict over translation had emerged between Elizabeth Peabody and Susan Blow, Peabody being the more conservative interpreter of Froebel, Blow the more culturally flexible. As a consequence, the Japanese translation of Froebel’s Mother Play is a literal translation of the English text, rather than a socially or culturally modified text, as might have been suggested by the indigenized images. The disconnect between the un-contextualized translated text and the contextualized Japanese images is the subject of my talk. I will suggest that contextualizing the images reflected Howe’s effort to relate to the Japanese mothers who would be teaching their children. However, the literally translated text reflected her connection to the International Kindergarten Union and the debates raging among kindergarten educator in the United States. Howe preferred a more faithful execution of Froebel’s original ideas for the education of her students in Japan. Howe’s dual relationship with her environment in Japan and her connection to the debates within the kindergarten movement reflect the complexities of audience, subjectivity, and politics of translation.

Friedrich Froebel in Brazil: How his educational thoughts were viewed and applied to Early Childhood Education

Alessandra ARCE HAI, Universidade Federal de São Carlos/UFSCar, Brazil

Fredrich Froebel’s educational ideas and his kindergarten arrived in Brazil through the translated work of the Americans, Susan Elisabeth Blow and Elisabeth Peabody at the end of the nineteenth century in 1875. The first kindergarten in Brazil was founded in Rio de Janeiro at “Colégio Menezes Vieira”, a private school. Froebel’s ideas appeared together with Pape-Carpantier’s practical ideas and were both based on Pestalozzi’s methodology. Indeed, the presence of Froebel’s ideas did not focus so much on his theory, but more on his practical activities. To give an example, “Manual para os Jardins da Infancia: ligeira compilação 1882”, a manual designed to train teachers was based on Froebel’s gifts and the activities that came with them. There is no explanation or presentation of Froebel’s theory in this material. This Kindergarten was an all-boys institution for upper classes. In 1887, São Paulo State received its first private kindergarten set up by an American protestant school. This school followed the USA model of education. At that time, a stature scholar called Rui Barbosa pointed out the importance of Froebel’s Kindergarten for Brazilian children. He delved into the author’s educational writings and argued in favor of all Brazilian children having access to the kindergarten. Conversely, the first public kindergarten only opened in 1896 in São Paulo as a model school annexed to a teacher training college called “Escola Normal Caetano Campos”. This school published a journal, having only two volumes in 1896 and 1897. This journal, entitled “Revista do Jardin de Infância”, contained translated parts of Peabody and Blow’s work together with extracts from Froebel’s work. Thus, this journal was presented as a practical guide for future teachers. This resulted in a striking paradox as the journal tried to adapt Froebel’s ideas to Brazilian culture; at the same time it reproduced the interpretations and views of the American’s educators, who were responsible for disseminating the Froebel’s theory and methodology overseas. Reflecting on how Froebel’s ideas emerged in Brazilian kindergartens, it seems as though his thoughts were reduced to practical exercises or activities, rather than theory. This observation automatically raises the issue of whether Brazilian kindergartens focused more on manual work, which ended up in a repetitive routine. And if that really happened, did freedom, that Froebel considered so essential, have a place in Brazilian kindergartens? Regarding this question, we are still looking for answers. However, the analysis of the aforementioned material has pointed out that the author’s theoretical scope is absent in his presence in Brazil. The aim of this paper is to present that analysis.

The diffusion and reception of Froebel’s method in Spain. Precedents, influences and reinterpretations (1850-1900)

Mª José MARTINEZ RUIZ FUNES, Universidad de Murcia, Spain

The diffusion of Froebel’s method in different Western and even Eastern countries has been a topic widely discussed by the historians of education in recent years, Spain being left aside. If we compare what research has shown about the diffusion of this method in Spain, we can identify some factors which can inform us about the contextual aspects that made possible its different reinterpretations and implementations. The first news of Froebel’s method arrived in Spain between 1850 and 1860. However, its diffusion in this country and in the schools responds to a process characterized by a poor growth observed almost always outside these institutions. The leaders of the Catholic Church, in closed relationships with the State, distrusted the Protestant origins of this method and its links with the krausism, as well as its relationships with certain feminist movements claiming the professionalization of women in the educational world. These are, among others, the factors that hindered the expansion of Froebel’s method in Spain. We also intend to analyse the reinterpretations of this method in Spain, considering the pathways and the context of its reception. Both the material elements and the texts introducing the new method will allow us to outline the features of Froebel’s method in this country over the second half of the nineteenth century.

La formation des physiothérapeutes en Suisse romande (1936-2012): à propos des modèles mobilisés

Lorsqu’on observe la construction professionnelle de la physiothérapie en Suisse romande, il apparaît qu’elle est traversée de tout temps d’influences internationales. Pour commencer, des événements historiques ayant un impact global agissent sur son évolution. Ainsi la Première Guerre mondiale joue un rôle d’accélérateur, même si la Suisse ne participe pas directement au conflit. Les besoins importants pour la réadaptation des mutilés offrent aux professionnels de nouvelles opportunités de pratique et d’emploi, et le savoir qui s’y rapporte se propage rapidement. Les épidémies de poliomyélite contribuent de manière similaire au développement de la physiothérapie. Sur un autre plan, des associations professionnelles d’envergure internationales voient le jour et facilitent la diffusion de modèles et de pratiques. La formation est l’un des thèmes privilégiés, et la Confédération mondiale de physiothérapie (WCPT) publie dès le début des années 1960 un livret qui décrit les fondamentaux qui devraient figurer dans les programmes d’enseignement. Il est destiné aux instances politiques et universitaires concernées, ainsi qu’aux écoles et aux hôpitaux de tous les pays. Les formations romandes intègrent ces standards dans la foulée. Par ailleurs, la physiothérapie réunit par essence une multiplicité de pratiques et d’intervenants. A ce titre, elle mobilise différents modèles, selon l’ascendance que l’on considère. Evoquons ici la Society for Trained Masseuses créée en 1894 en Grande-Bretagne en réponse aux scandales dénoncés dans le British Medical Journal. Cette société conquiert en quelques années le monopole sur la formation, dont elle propage le modèle à travers le monde. Quant à la gymnastique médicale suédoise, elle exerce une influence certaine en Suisse, bien que de manière peu démonstrative. En effet, les gymnastes médicales formées essentiellement en Suède ou en Allemagne n’obtiennent pas de reconnaissance légale dans notre pays, mais leur savoir oriente la formation des masseurs zurichois et par suite celle des masseurs genevois. Enfin, on ne peut dissocier le développement des pratiques physiothérapeutiques des spécialités médicales dans le sillage desquelles il s’opère. Ainsi, on comprend mieux que les responsables romands des formations de physiothérapeutes, respectivement un orthopédiste et un médecin spécialiste des thérapies physiques, empruntent des modèles pédagogiques et conceptuels différents, dont certains effets persistent jusqu’à aujourd’hui.

Aliu Babatunde Fafunwa Influence on Nursery Education Development in Nigeria: 1955 - 1998

Amakievi GABRIEL, Institute of Foundation Studies, Rivers State University of Science and Technology, Port Harcourt, Rivers State, Nigeria; Dorathy FAKAE, Institute of Foundation Studies, Rivers State University of Science and Technology, Port Harcourt, Nigeria

Nursery education in Nigeria attracted much attention in the closing decades of the 20th century for a variety of reasons such as women’s engagement in wage labour in the formal and intensive informal economic activities/sector. However, Fafunwa’s exposure in America where he studied and worked coupled with the British hue over Nigeria’s education system influenced his contribution that brought the recognition of nursery education in Nigeria’s educational spectrum especially as it was included in Nigeria’s first National Policy on Education in 1977. Fafunwa’s ideas on nursery education influenced the curriculum,instructional materials,the establishment of nursery schools and teacher education among others. Nursery education providers in Nigeria are mostly non-governmental organisations, religious groups and private individuals. However, women dominate as providers, employers of labour, teachers and minders at this level. It was observed that curriculum and quality of teachers employed in these schools varied and this can partly be explained by government’s inability to regulate, control, direct and harmonize nursery education practice. There is also much incorporation of British and American practices at this level of education in Nigeria thereby underscoring globalization of concepts, ideas, beliefs, and so on that are germane to Europe and America (the West). While this paper appreciates these influences, Fafunwa’s adaptation paradigm in this regard would produce a hybrid that gives the pupils the leverage to effectively compete with their counterparts in Europe and America and also function within their local environment. Apart from promoting tolerance, empathy, understanding, respect for others, gender equality, among others. Fafunwa’s advocacy and the inclusion of nursery education in Nigeria’s Policy on Education were landmark achievements in the History of Education in Nigeria.

Former des professionnels de santé dans le village sud-africain d’Elim au 20e siècle: Transfert des savoirs, modèles pédagogiques occidentaux et réalités africaines

Hines MABIKA, Institut Universitaire d'Histoire de la Médecine et de la Santé Publique IUHMSP-CHUV & Faculté de Théologie et de Sciences des Religions FTSR-UNIL, Université de Lausanne, Suisse

Les phénomènes de circulation des modèles de formation et le transfert des savoirs médicaux et sanitaires au 20e siècle ne furent pas simples, ni dans leurs formes ni dans leurs contenus. En Afrique, ces phénomènes émergèrent notamment hors des cadres linéaires de la coopération interinstitutionnelle internationale. Ils furent surtout le fait de la mobilité des hommes, de leurs ambitions louables ou déraisonnées, de la circulation des idées. Dans le petit village sud-africain d’Elim, le transfert des savoirs professionnels de santé devint officiel avec l’ouverture de l’école d’infirmières en 1932. Jusqu’au début des années 1980, les formatrices de la dite école venaient de Suisse où, à peu d’exceptions près, elles avaient été formées à l’institut lausannois de formation des professionnels de santé: la Source. De fait, les modèles pédagogiques ainsi que les pratiques de santé à Elim se caractérisaient par ce que les uns qualifièrent de suissitude «Swissness», autrement dit, des savoirs faire et savoirs être propres aux ressortissants de l’Helvétie. Or, en Suisse, certains modèles de formation étaient redevables à la circulation des modèles étrangers, et différaient d’un canton à l’autre. De plus, la plupart des responsables de formation à Elim avaient séjourné à Edimbourg, Birmingham ou Londres autant pour la pratique de l’anglais que pour le perfectionnement des méthodes pédagogiques de formation en santé. Notre communication se livre d’abord à une déconstruction de l’approche des modèles nationaux de formation pour les appréhender sous l’angle d’une tradition médicale et sanitaire transnationale occidentale, construite sur la longue durée; ensuite, nous verrons dans quelle mesure la formation des professionnels de santé dans un village africain conjugua avec des modèles pédagogiques importés d’Occident. Cette étude s’intéressera finalement aux modes de circulation, de perception et de réception des dits modèles et pratiques en Afrique, au comment de leur intégration et de leur recomposition conceptuelles et empiriques au contact des réalités culturelles et socio politiques locales.

Les modèles de formation en santé publique en Suisse entre 1945 et 1970