Lean Adams, EMU Roles and Perspectives Interview, 1972

Lean Adams, EMU Roles and Perspectives Interview, 1972

Description

EMU Roles and Perspectives was taped television program broadcast from the campus of EMU, and produced by Robert Hoexter (1930-1978). Hoexter joined the faculty at the EMU School of Education in 1964, and served as Coordinator of Graduate Advising from 1969-1971. A member of the Faculty Senate from 1973-1976, Hoexter was elected vice-chairman from 1974-1975, and chairman, 1975-1976. In this episode of Roles and Perspectives, Hoexter interviews Leah Adams. Dr. Adams served Eastern Michigan University from 1969-1999 as a professor in early childhood education with the EMU College of Education. In this interview, Adams, a strong supporter of the growing preschool programs in the United States, defends the practice of preschooling children by saying that the emergence of preschool fits perfectly within the changing society in which it resides. With the emergence of widespread automobile use, families were able to begin isolating themselves from their neighbors, yet they wanted ways in which to socialize their children. This need for socialization, coupled with the nation’s recent “Sputnik Complex,” lead to parents wanting children to learn faster and sooner. The woman’s role in the household had changed as well, from that of homemaker who was seen to be shirking her motherly duties if she left her child at a daycare center, to that of professional, career-minded woman.

Interview Date

11-2-1972

Keywords

Preschool, Leah Adams, Eastern Michigan University, non-conformity, Sputnik Complex, Preschool curriculum, Wayne State University

Permission to Use

Permission to quote from this oral history should be requested from the University Archives (lib_archives@emich.edu).

Streaming Media

Lean Adams, EMU Roles and Perspectives Interview, 1972

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