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I signed up to go to this conference a few weeks ago. Looks even more interesting now. Thank you for this. X Octavia -----Original Message----- From: Scamell, Amanda Sent: Tuesday, August 09, 2011 2:55 PM To: [log in to unmask] Subject: FW: Science, evidence, experts and the new parenting culture update: A Policy Driven By Prejudice Masquerading As Research The forwarded email below represents a body of academic activity within the social sciences which is rarely engaged with within midwifery debate and offers a fascinating and challenging perspective on some of the ideological assumptions which currently underpin contemporary parenting policy and practice in the UK and elsewhere. Mandie Scamell ________________________________________ From: Ellie Lee [[log in to unmask]] Sent: 09 August 2011 08:21 Subject: Science, evidence, experts and the new parenting culture update: A Policy Driven By Prejudice Masquerading As Research Welcome to the latest Centre for Parenting Culture Studies (CPCS) newsletter. This goes to those who have attended events organised by CPCS, and others who have expressed an interest in the work of the Centre. If for any reason you do not want to receive future mailings, let me know. Ellie Lee, Director CPCS [log in to unmask]<mailto:[log in to unmask]> Parenting Culture Studies on-line: The Centre for Parenting Culture Studies blog is online at: http://blogs.kent.ac.uk/parentingculturestudies/ ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1. Monitoring parents: Science, evidence, experts and the new parenting culture British colleagues may have noticed (and those in other countries may be interested in) the latest demand that parents ‘follow the rules’ when it comes to child rearing. ‘Parenting Matters: early years and social mobility’ was published last week by the think-tank Centre Forum, and its arguments welcomed by Sarah Teather, the Minister of State for Children and Families. (See http://www.centreforum.org/assets/pubs/parenting-matters.pdf ) The report repeats the assertion that, ‘the single most important factor influencing a child’s intellectual and social development is the quality of parenting and care they receive’. Parenting, we are told, is problematically ‘largely viewed as an intensely private matter’, but ‘key scientific concepts behind the development of early brain architecture’ tell us it should not be viewed this way. The case is made that increasing ‘social mobility’ in particular means that parenting must viewed as a central policy problem. To this end, the family is termed the ‘Home Learning Environment’ throughout the report. It is argued that policy has been too focussed on ‘enabling parents to spend more time with their children’ and not enough attention has been paid to influencing ‘what parents are doing with this time’, to create the right sort of ‘Home Learning Environment’. It is argued that a ‘culture shift’ is needed, and a ‘national parenting campaign’ can help make this happen. To change how parents spend time with their children the report proposes specifically a ‘5-a-day for child development’ campaign, modelled on the 5-a-day fruit and vegetables campaign. This campaign, apparently, ‘drawing directly on the science of early child development’ would tell parents to: Read to your child for 15 minutes; play with your child on the floor for 10 minutes; Talk with your child for 20 minutes with the television off; Adopt positive attitudes towards your child and praise them frequently; and Give your child a nutritious diet to aid development. Read a commentary on the report here: ‘They **** you up, Your Parenting Classes’ http://www.spiked-online.com/index.php/site/article/10968/ The upcoming CPCS event Monitoring parents: Science, evidence, experts and the new parenting culture provides the opportunity to analyse and discuss this concerted drive to politicise parenting, and the claims-making about ‘brain architecture’ that justifiy it. Papers will also consider many other related themes, with contributions by colleagues from Canada, the US, Ireland, Norway, Sweden, the Netherlands, Denmark, Belgium Spain, Italy, Australia, as well as England, Wales and Scotland. The final programme is here: http://blogs.kent.ac.uk/parentingculturestudies/files/2011/08/Monitoring-Parents-Final-Programme.pdf Abstracts and other information are here: http://blogs.kent.ac.uk/parentingculturestudies/pcs-events/forthcoming-events/parenting-science/ On the ‘Read on’ pages for the event you can find a new commentary by Dr Ellie Lee ‘A Policy Driven By Prejudice Masquerading As Research’ as well as articles and other items by/about keynote speakers: http://blogs.kent.ac.uk/parentingculturestudies/pcs-events/forthcoming-events/parenting-science/read-on/ Registration for the event costs: Waged (2 days) £85; Waged (1 day) £45; Unwaged / student (1 or 2 days) £35 A booking form is here: <http://blogs.kent.ac.uk/pare>http://blogs.kent.ac.uk/pare<http://blogs.kent.ac.uk/parentingculturestudies/files/2011/01/Booking-Form.pdf>ntingculturestudies/files/2011/01/Booking-Form.pdf There are 15 places left and the final date for registration is Friday 2 September 2. Read on….. ‘Daring to criticise child protection policies’, by Heather Piper http://www.spiked-online.com/index.php/site/article/10969/ ‘The 'Foundation Years': For a New Generation of Mini-Camerons?’ by Jennie Bristow http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/jennie-bristow/the-foundation-years-for-_b_902326.html