In recent decades, the potent echoes of John Bowlby’s attachment theory have permeated not only our understanding of infant-mother dynamics but have also intricately woven themselves into the fabric of early childhood education. With a clear transference of the traditional attachment narratives, the scrutinizing lens once reserved for mothers seems to have surreptitiously redirected itself towards early childhood educators, as evidenced by various guidelines and frameworks employed in the educational sector.
The National Quality Framework (NQF) Guide, as released by the Australian Children’s Education & Care Quality Authority (ACECQA) in September 2020, unequivocally integrates attachment theory within its educational directives. The framework, which encompasses the National Quality Standards, The Early Years Learning Framework, and its corresponding regulations, delineates certain expectations that subtly, yet potently, communicate an imperative for educators to foster attachment with the children under their care. But is this expectation based on the scientific legitimacy of the ‘attachment myth’?
Consider, for instance, the extract which dictates that “Services facilitate children’s learning and development through play by providing educators with whom children can form attachments” (NQF Guide, page 101). This not only highlights but prescribes an explicit need for children to form attachments with their educators, subtly ushering in a sphere where the responsibility of emotional and psychological stability of the child is transferred from parent to educator.
Similarly, the following rhetorical query from the NQF Guide seems to entrench this paradigm further: “How do we ensure that children develop strong attachments and a sense of belonging in our service?” (page 104). It underscores a pervasive and, arguably, unattainable obligation placed upon educators to ensure the development of “strong attachments” within the context of educational and care services.
Moreover, educators are encouraged to build attachments through “one-to-one interactions with children during daily routines” (page 108) and to utilize “routines and play experiences to interact with children to build attachments” (page 113). Through such guidelines, the burden of facilitating attachment, and thereby ensuring a child’s perceived emotional and developmental stability, is subtly handed over to educators.
It’s pivotal to dissect why the pedagogical landscape has absorbed the mantle of ‘attachment figures’ that was conventionally bestowed upon parents. The logic tethered to attachment theory, especially in the developmental early years, hinges on the presumption that secure attachments are vital for subsequent psychological health. Yet, as aforementioned critiques against Bowlby’s seminal work suggest, the exact mechanics and developmental trajectories of attachment behaviours remain a topic of fervent debate and scrutiny within the scientific community.
Thus, if educators are now framed as pivotal attachment figures within the lives of children, the question beckons: is the educational sphere prepared to tackle the extensive, and often subjective, emotional and psychological realms that such a responsibility demands? More importantly, are these guidelines and expectations founded upon scientifically verifiable truths or have they stemmed from an unverified attachment myth, perpetuating a cycle of unrealistic expectations and inadvertent ‘educator blaming’ parallel to the earlier phases of ‘mother blaming’?
Conclusively, the exactitude and relevance of attachment theory within the realm of early childhood education mandates a thorough, critical examination. By reassessing, and potentially, recalibrating our expectations and strategies, we can better facilitate a holistic, empirically-backed approach towards early childhood education and care, devoid of impractical expectations and unverified theoretical applications on educators.
