Using a Policy of "Gross National Happiness" to Guide the Development of Sustainable Early Learning Programs in the Kingdom of Bhutan: Aspirations and Challenges

Autor/inn/en	Ball, Jessica; Wangchuk, Karma Chimi
Titel	Using a Policy of "Gross National Happiness" to Guide the Development of Sustainable Early Learning Programs in the Kingdom of Bhutan: Aspirations and Challenges
Quelle	In: Global Education Review, 2 (2015) 1, S.5-22 (18 Seiten) PDF als Volltext kostenfreie Datei Verfügbarkeit
Sprache	englisch
Dokumenttyp	gedruckt; online; Zeitschriftenaufsatz
ISSN	2325-663X
Schlagwörter	Foreign Countries; Early Childhood Education; Child Care; Cultural Education; Language of Instruction; Knowledge Level; Native Language; Demography; Cultural Pluralism; Religious Education; Social Change; Professional Education; Language Proficiency; Psychological Patterns; Bhutan + Suchen Sie Ihr Suchwort? Ausland; Early childhood; Education; Frühkindliche Bildung; Frühpädagogik; Kinderfürsorge; Kinderbetreuung; Culture; Kulturelle Bildung; Kulturelle Erziehung; Teaching language; Unterrichtssprache; Wissensbasis; Demografie; Kulturpluralismus; Kirchliche Erziehung; Religionserziehung; Religionspädagogik; Sozialer Wandel; Berufsausbildung; Language skill; Language skills; Sprachkompetenz
Abstract	A national study on demand for early childhood care and development programs in Bhutan found strong support for development of a new early childhood care and development (ECCD) sector. A wide range of stakeholders participating in the study, including ministries of education and health, post-secondary institutions, private preschool providers, community management committees, parents and children, emphasized the goal of preschool to promote success in English-medium formal education. Promoting cultural traditions was also a priority, while developing children's proficiency in home languages was hardly mentioned. The study highlighted the changing needs of Bhutanese families in the current context of increasing urbanization, dual career parents, and a shift from extended to nuclear family homes. Recommendations derived from the study encouraged a "made in Bhutan" approach to ECCD policy, programs, and professional education. Subsequent to the study, the national education policy included plans for implementation of ECCD covering children from birth to 8 years old. To ensure the sustainability and cultural congruence of new programs and investments with the Kingdom's Gross National Happiness Policy, a "Gross National Happiness" Commission screened and approved the new National Education Policy, which the Ministry of Education is charged with implementing. The emergence of an ECCD sector in Bhutan points to the role that national aspirations and value-driven policies and review processes could play in maintaining language diversity and transmitting culturally based knowledge. (As Provided).
Anmerkungen	Mercy College New York. 555 Broadway, Dobbs Ferry, NY 10522. Tel: 914-674-7350; Fax: 914-674-7351; Web site: http://ger.mercy.edu
Erfasst von	ERIC (Education Resources Information Center), Washington, DC
Update	2020/1/01