What is the concept of children?

The concept of children refers to the views or opinions that the society views and treats children. It involves the characteristics, rights and status of children, the significance of childhood and the relationship between education and children's development. Chinese and foreign countries have different views on children in different regions and different periods.

In the traditional society of China, children are regarded as subordinates of the family and the private property of their parents. Children have no independent personality, only dependence on their elders. In ancient Babylon, ancient Greece and Rome, children were regarded as servants of God, having no independent status in family and society, and even being persecuted.

Children's understanding is as old as human beings, and it also comes from human needs. Children have significance beyond culture and times. Children are pure people who are not polluted by society or have little pollution. The angel image of children in western culture and the description of children's "childlike innocence" and "innocence" in China culture all show their imagination and yearning for children's purity. All people used to be children, and the world of children is the hometown of adults; Children, as the carrier of human life, are the objects of people's love and the image of human vitality and future hope? .

It mainly involves children's characteristics, children's status and rights, the significance of childhood, children's characteristics and abilities, the forms and reasons of children's growth and development, and children's education. The sum of the views or concepts of an era (or society) on these issues is the view of children of that era (or society). It mainly includes two aspects: children's development view and children's education view. The formation of children's view is influenced and restricted by many factors, such as social politics, economy, traditional cultural thought, scientific and technological development level and people's own understanding level.

It deeply exists in people's consciousness through public opinion, social customs and habits, and various theories on children's development and education put forward by thinkers, educators and psychologists. It is the theoretical expression of children's view and the concentrated reflection of children's view in the whole society or era. In medieval European society, children were regarded as subordinate to their parents and born evil, so flogging and corporal punishment of children were considered reasonable and legal.

The rise of humanism after the Renaissance made people treat children from the natural nature, but still affirmed their rights and demands from the perspective of abstract humanity. The view that children are embryonic adults still dominates. Since the 20th century, with the deepening of children's research, people began to really understand children's characteristics and development potential, and early education began to be valued.

In China, for a long time, due to the influence of feudal ideology, children were regarded as the family and its subordinate, became the private property of their parents, lost their independent personality and had to rely on their caregivers. It is precisely because of this feudal preference for boys that there are many problems and deformities in children's education in China at present. Therefore, we should eliminate the feudal and backward view of children as soon as possible and publicize the scientific and modern view of children.