Conference on Culture and Childhood

The Harvard Graduate School of Education will host The Many Cultures of Childhood: Interdisciplinary Perspectives on Socialization and Schooling, a two-day conference featuring internationally known expert psychologists, anthropologists, and child development specialists. The conference, which is HGSE's Thirteenth Annual International Forum, will be held on Friday and Saturday, February 9-10, at the Gutman Conference Center and in Longfellow Hall, both on Appian Way in Cambridge. Centered on the theme of the sociocultural conditions of children with emphasis on psychological educational development, conference events include:

Friday, February 9

5:00 p.m. - 6:30 p.m., Longfellow Hall, Appian Way, Cambridge
Keynote address by Anthropologist George De Vos: "Culture, Achievement, and Motivation." Respondent: David C. McClelland; Moderator: HGSE professor Robert A. LeVine.

Saturday, February 10

• 10:15 a.m. - 11:45 a.m., Gutman Conference Center, Appian Way, Cambridge
  Panel discussions on Bilingualism and Culture; The Culture of "At Risk" Children; and Socio-Emotional Development of Infants and Young Children.
• 12:00 noon - 1:00 p.m., Gutman Conference Center, Appian Way, Cambridge
  Film on lulling practices and lullabies across cultures shown by Hélèn Stork.
• 1:00 p.m. - 2:30 p.m., Gutman Conference Center, Appian Way, Cambridge
  Panel discussions on Socialization for Higher Education; French Childcare and Preschools; National Policies, Schooling and Culture; Parenting and Teaching as Socialization.
• 2:45 p.m., Gutman Conference Center, Appian Way, Cambridge
  Plenary session on Childhood Socialization and Cultural Pluralism with presentations by Richard A. Shweder, Hazel Markus, and Shinobu Kitayama. Moderated by HGSE Professor Kurt W. Fischer with discussant Dinesh Sharma.
• 4:30 p.m. - 6:00 p.m., Gutman Conference Center, Appian Way, Cambridge
  Panel discussions on Children's Play as Cultural Activity; Social Class and Socialization; Culture and Language Socialization and Culture in Peru, Japan, and the U.S.

Co-sponsored by the Harvard Education Forum, The Office of International Education, and The Human Development and Psychology Program, events are free and open to the public. To reserve a seat in the press section or for more information, contact Susan Young at 617-496-5875.