Imagination: The missing element of Early Childhood Education?

Vygotsky argues that we do not fully understand the complexities of imagination or its place within learning. If imagination is truly the basis for all creative activity and a part of everyday life, then our understanding of it within education needs to be reflected on, reviewed, and revised. In our man-made environments, we are surrounded by the ideas of others, innovations and problems that have been solved through imaginative thinking. If imaginative thinking is so powerful to alter the world we live in and to enable us to understand others, could its importance be a missing element in Early Childhood Education (ECE)? This chapter will enable you to critically reflect on what you understand about imagination, from its definition to its importance in early childhood development and learning in and beyond the Early Years curriculum. A review of how imagination is viewed in ECE will aim to encourage you to reflect on your own practice and the possibility of developing a pedagogy that values imagination.