We’re Friends, Right?: Inside Kids’ Culture
How do we know what the next generation of software users cares about?
Sociologists often study exotic cultures by immersing themselves in an environment until they become accepted as insiders. Bill Corsaro, a scientist “goes native” to study the secret world of children.
Here, for the first time, are the children themselves, heard through an expert who knows that the only way to truly understand them is by becoming a member of their community. That’s just what Corsaro did when he traded in his adult perspective for a seat in the sandbox alongside groups of preschoolers.
Corsaro’s journey of discovery is as fascinating as it is revealing. Living among and gaining the acceptance of children, he gradually comes to understand that a child’s world is far more complex than anyone ever suspected. Here he documents a special culture, unique unto itself, in which children create their own social structures and exert their own influences.
At a time when many parents fear that they don’t spend enough time with their children, and experts debate the best path to healthy development, seeing childhood through the eyes of a child offers parents and caregivers fresh and compelling insights. Corsaro calls upon all adults to appreciate, embrace, and savor their children’s culture. He asks us to take a cue from those we hold so precious and understand that “we’re all friends, right?”
Speaker Details
William A. Corsaro is Robert H. Shaffer Class of 1967 Endowed Professor of Sociology at Indiana University, Bloomington and is among the world’s leading authorities on child ethnography. He has devoted the past 29 years to extensive ethnographic fieldwork, learning firsthand about children’s culture and educational processes in preschools and elementary schools in the United States and Italy. Bill’s research and teaching interests are in the areas of sociology of childhood, children’s peer culture from a cross cultural perspective, early childhood education processes and policy, and ethnographic research methods.Bill enjoys reliving his childhood with the children he studies. He recently completed fifth grade in Modena, Italy, but not at the top of his class. Bill, his wife, Vickie, and his daughter Veronica like to spend as much time as they can in Northern Italy where Bill has conducted research for the last 18 years. In Italy Bill misses baseball and the daily opportunity in the summers to listen to his beloved Chicago Cubs lose yet another game. But Bill (known for his optimistic outlook on life) believes that soon for the Cubs, the prediction of “wait till next year” may actually come true.Bill’s research has been featured on NPR, the BBC in London, and in the New Yorker. In addition to the usual list of academic papers, Bill has authored several academic and popular press books based on his research. They include: The Sociology of Childhood, We’re Friends, Right?: Inside Kids’ Culture, and I Compagni: Italian Children’s Transition from Preschool to Elementary School.
- Date:
- Speakers:
- William Corsaro
- Affiliation:
- Indiana University
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Jeff Running
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