Taking Children Seriously: Difference between revisions

'''Taking Children Seriously''' ('''TCS''') is a [[parenting]] movement and [[Philosophy of education|educational philosophy]] whose central idea is that it is possible and desirable to raise and educate children without either doing anything to them against their [[Will (philosophy)|will]], or making them do anything against their will.

It was founded in 1994 as an email mailing-list by the [[libertarians]] Sarah Fitz-Claridge and [[David Deutsch]]. Deutsch is also a theoretical [[physicist]] at [[Oxford University]].<ref>"[http://www.takingchildrenseriously.com/node/136 Origins of TCS.]"</ref>

TCS begins with the observation that most traditional interactions between adults and youth are based on [[coercion]]. The TCS model of [[parenting]] and [[education]] rejects this coercion as infringing on the will of the child, and also rejects parental or educator "self-sacrifice" as infringing on the will of the adult. TCS advocates that parents and children work to find a common preference, a solution all parties genuinely prefer to all other candidate solutions they can think of.<ref> "[http://www.takingchildrenseriously.com/common_preferences_and_non_coercion Taking Children Seriously common preferences and non-coercion.]"</ref>

The TCS philosophy was inspired by the [[epistemology]] of [[Karl Popper]]. Popper was a professional educator himself before he started to do philosophy. In fact, philosophy was only a second option for him at that time, to be able to emigrate to escape the imminent [[Anschluss]]. He was active in the ''Wiener Schulreform'' (Vienna school reform) movement,<ref>[[Karl R. Popper]] (1925)『Über die Stellung des Lehrers zu Schule und Schüler,』''Schulreform'' '''4'''(4): 204–208.</ref><ref>Popper, K. R. (1927) "Zur Philosophie des Heimatgedankens," ''Die Quelle'' '''77'''(10): 899–908.</ref> and there are connections between the [[psychology of learning]], on which he did his doctoral thesis,<ref>Popper, K. R. (1928) ''Zur Methodenfrage der Denkpsychologie''. Wien (unpublished dissertation).</ref> and his philosophy.<ref>[[William W. Bartley]] (1970)『Die österreichische Schulreform als die Wiege der modernen Philosophie』in Gerhard Szcesny, ed., ''Club Voltaire IV''. Hamburg: 360. ISBN 3-499-65086-X.</ref> However, as a philosopher, he did not advocate any concrete [[pedagogy]], although he had some general views on the issue.<ref>Champion, Rafe (1987) "[http://www.the-rathouse.com/RC_PopperEdu.html Popper on Education.]"</ref> TCS views Popper's epistemology, as Popper himself, as a universal theory of how [[knowledge]] grows, and tries to work out its profound implications for [[Philosophy of education|educational theory]].

==Footnotes==

* {{cite book|last=Fortune-Wood|first=Jan |title= Bound to be Free: A Positive Alternative to Paying the Hidden Costs of Free Education |publisher=Educational Heretics Press |date=2001|pages=110|isbn=1-900219-20-4|url=http://books.google.com/?id=YE2fAAAAMAAJ&q=%22Taking+Children+Seriously%22+popper&dq=%22Taking+Children+Seriously%22+popper}}

* [http://www.takingchildrenseriously.com Taking Children Seriously Website.]

* [http://www.curi.us/archives/61 Elliot Temple's education and parenting posts]

* [http://fallibleideas.com/ Fallible Ideas]

* [http://fallibleliving.com/essays/on-taking-children-seriously/ Fallible Living TCS Essays]

* {{cite journal |last= |first= |authorlink= |coauthors= |year= |month= |title= |journal=Brain, Child Magazine |volume= 4 |issue= 1 |pages= Winter 2003 |id= |url=http://www.brainchildmag.com/ |accessdate=2008-11-11 |quote= }} [http://www.utne.com/2003-11-01/Free-to-Be-Me.aspx Reprinted] in the ''[[Utne Reader]]''

* {{cite web |url=http://www.greenanarchy.info/etc/tcs.htm{{dead link|date=November 2011}} |title=Taking Children Seriously (TCS) and Anarchy |accessdate=11 November 2008 |work=(I)An-ok |publisher=Green Anarchy |date=Fall 2002 }}

* {{cite web |url=http://www.k12academics.com/taking_children_seriously.htm |title= Pedagogy > Taking Children Seriously |accessdate=11 November 2008 |work= |publisher=K12 Academics |date=2008-11-11 }}

* {{cite web |url=http://www.johntaylorgatto.com/underground/index.htm|title=An Underground History of American Education by John Taylor Gatto |accessdate=3 July 2009 }}

[[Category:Parenting]]

[[Category:Social movements]]

[[Category:Youth empowerment organizations]]

[[Category:Youth rights organizations]]

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