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In traditional Greek society, having a son was more highly valued than having a daughter; a boy was better considered because it was thought that he could help the family economy in a more decisive way than a girl. Likewise, in the Greek world, only children, first-born sons were especially appreciated. -
The Roman custom was based on the acceptance by the father of the newborn baby. The baby was placed on the floor and if the father picked it up and walked around the house with it, he accepted it and gave it his surname, if he left it on the floor, he did not consider it acceptable. Normally this occurred if the baby had some kind of malformation or deficiency. -
In ancient times it was very common to murder new-born children, either because of malformations or lack of resources for their upbringing. There was also a less cruel practice, which consisted of abandoning the child in the street or in some place waiting for someone to find it and take care of it. -
In the Middle Ages, dominated by Christianity, education sought to prepare the child to serve God and the church. The idea of liberal education disappears and physical education is eliminated because the body is considered a source of sin. The concept of original sin is embedded in the idea of the child as a perverse and corrupt being who must be corrected through discipline and punishment.
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Some of the classical ideas about children's education reappear. Concern for the education of women appears. There is a change in the conception of human nature that is evident in the writings of Locke, who insists on the importance of experience and habits, considering the newborn as a blank slate where experience will leave its traces. That is to say, the child is not born good or bad, but what he becomes will depend on his experiences.
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Rousseau writes his work Emile or Education, which contains a series of basic principles on how to educate children. Among the ideas he promulgated is that the child is good by nature and society can corrupt him. On the other hand, it defends that education must be adapted to the child. It no longer considers the child as a miniature man, but as a being with his own characteristics that follows a physical, intellectual and moral development. -
The scientific study of the child begins in the second half of the XIX century. The first instruments for measuring development are (first intelligence test by Binet and Simon). Froebel (1782-1852). The latter promotes the idea of the "kindergarten" (preschool) and emphasizes the educational continuity between school-home-community, the importance of children's play for their development and the need for interaction and contact between parents and children.
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According to Montessori, children are their own teachers; they only need to explore the world with freedom and a multiplicity of options for them to solve the problems that arise. She was convinced that a proper education of children would build a kinder and more humane future and therefore societies based on peace and cooperation among its members. When Mussolini came to power, she accused fascism of training the youth in the brutalization of their nature. -
All children have the same rights. All rights are interrelated and of equal importance. The Convention emphasizes these principles and refers to the responsibility of children to respect the rights of others, especially their parents. The Declaration of the Rights of the Child is approved, recognizing the right to education, play, health care, among others. -
It recognizes the role of children as social, economic, political, civil and cultural agents. The Convention guarantees and establishes minimum standards to protect the rights of children in all circumstances. -
Children are considered rights holders, as of the declaration and the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, 1959 and 1989, respectively. In Colombia, "De Cero A Siempre" is the National Strategy for Integral Attention to Early Childhood created by the government of President Juan Manuel Santos. According to the national political constitution, children are considered all those under 18 years of age.
