Georga Dowling is a Lecturer in Early Childhood Education in the Froebel Department in Maynooth University, Ireland and an experienced practising Early Childhood Educator. Her research interests include accessing the voices of young children from birth, examining their participation within their learning journey, inclusive teaching practices and innovative qualitative research designs. She is an advocate for children’s rights, quality early childhood education and children’s participation in their education. She has co-authored several chapters on these research topics.
She established two early learning centres in Ireland which offer children the surroundings to grow to their best ability, through an enquiry emergent play-based curriculum that encompasses a holistic approach through slow relational pedagogy in an educating and caring environment with friendly and professional educators.
Her values are engrained in her belief system, and she believes that every child is a confident and competent active learner, that nurturing equality and diversity is imperative to learning and that children have rights, and their voices should be heard. She also regards the developing of collegial, open and honest partnerships between parents and educators as essential to children’s well-being. A cornerstone of her belief system is that slow relational pedagogy enhances the holistic experiential learning and development of children. Children’s individuality needs to be celebrated, and children learn best when they have a meaningful connection with their educators. Georga is a Mum to three children but an educator and carer to hundreds.