Exploring trauma, loss and healing: spirituality, Te Whāriki and early childhood education

Abstract

Attention to spirituality is proposed to be a means of restoring and supporting well‐being in early childhood educational contexts. In Aotearoa, New Zealand, the spiritual dimension is included in the early childhood curriculum Te Whāriki. This holistic approach to education supported research in three different early childhood settings: a Montessori casa, a private preschool and a Rudolf Steiner kindergarten. Narratives (re)produced from the qualitative case study data are included in the article to show that young children experience and overcome adversity in their early years. The discussion is framed by the cultural theories of everyday life and attention to philosophical perspectives that encompass the spiritual. Spiritual withness, spiritual in‐betweenness and the spiritual elsewhere are introduced as spiritual and transformative spaces in these settings. This account combines research, theory and pedagogical perspectives. It describes the concept of everyday spirituality as an ameliorating factor in these stories of loss and recovery.

Keywords:

• spirituality
• trauma
• early childhood
• Te Whāriki
• narrative
• education

Acknowledgements

I wish to thank all those who participated in this research, children, parents and families. The inspiration you all provided was invaluable. To the children who feature in the narratives (and to those whose stories were not included) – go well and be strong – Kia Kaha!

Notes

This project has been reviewed and approved by the Massey University Human Ethics Committee, PN Protocol 02/146. If you have any concerns about the conduct of this research, please contact Professor Sylvia V Rumball, Chair, Massey University Campus Human Ethics Committee: Palmerston North (telephone: [phone]; email: [email protected]).