Lydia's case study

Stage Three: How have I changed?

Lydia’s participation in the RESPECT project convinced her of the value of using critical reflection to consider the complex and shifting nature of relationships with parents. She recognised that her relationships with children and parents often reflected institutional demands; and that her relationships with children often reflected and influenced her relationships with their parents:

• Many of the restrictions placed on early childhood through organisations such as DHS, Accreditation, etc. influence how we see our role in relation to children and families. … I am aware I have uneven relationships with families as I do with children, teachers and other people within the … community. For example there are some children and adults that I naturally gravitate towards and others that I have difficulty connecting with.

Lydia also recognised many parents’ daily stresses and struggles, enabling her to step back from her problematic engagements with parents and to be less judgemental about how parents speak and act:

• The project has provided me with insight into other teachers’ struggles and successes in their relationships with parents, which makes me feel supported in my own struggles and successes. … In reflecting on conversations with parents since being a part of the project I also feel I have a better understanding of some of the struggles that parents/families have each day … (A)s a result, I have tried to be less flippant in reassuring them that their child will be okay when they have to leave them in a screaming heap at the beginning of the day! I will now often e-mail or give them a call to let them know that their child has settled.