Can research realise a bit of Utopia? The impact of action-research on the policy of childcare in Flanders

For the past ten years, there has been on-going research at the University of Ghent on professionalism in childcare (the 0-3 age group) in the Flemish Community of Belgium. This research has been inspired by the U+2018Contesting Early Childhood U+2018 movement, which is based on the premise that pedagogic research can lead to social change. The first studies dealt with the relationship between gender and professionalism (2002-2010). These U+2018Men in ChildcareU+2019 studies were embedded in a campaign to increase the number of male workers. Between 2005 and 2008 a PhD study focused on the de-professionalization that has taken place within the Flemish childcare sector. This study U+2018The construction of a new professionU+2019 was part of a large European Social Fund project involving many partners across Europe. In this article, we intend not only to shed light on the results of these studies, but also to delve into the influences that these projects and studies have had on political decision-making through their embedding in large U+2018communicative spacesU+2019.

Jaar van publicatie:2013

Toegankelijkheid:Closed