Janel Viaje

Pedagogical Commitments:

As a pedagogist, I am committed to working with educators, children, families, and the community to explore pedagogical possibilities in early childhood education beyond dominant developmental discourses. I am curious about how developmental discourses shape the daily rhythms and flows of early childhood spaces. I hope to create conditions that foster pedagogical engagements where we challenge the constant need to rush through the day to meet developmental objectives, and instead attune to each other’s relations, diversities, and perspectives. I hope to foster intentionality in early childhood spaces to create conditions to make ethical choices towards living well together, such that educators and children are both respected and we are in responsive relation with the world.

In moving towards a livable world for all humans, animals, and the environment, I am interested in working and thinking collectively about human-nonhuman relations. Sustaining both human and planetary life are equally important, and so I hope to create pedagogical possibilities that respond to calls to action for achieving sustainable futures (Common Worlds Research Collective, 2020). I will respond to this call by moving away from human-centeredness and reaching out to alternative possibilities in creating pedagogical spaces where we foster critical thinking, constant dialogue, ethical decision making, and living well together. As I work with educators, I hope to bring us closer to these important relationships with the more-than-human world through outdoor projects and nature and animal inquiries.