Workshop Conference on Research Methodological Approaches in Transformative Times

What knowledge, which methods, and which approaches are appropriate in light of current crises and transformational challenges? What is the goal of research, and which ethical value horizons seem contemporary and necessary today for children growing up?

These questions were at the center of this year’s workshop conference of the Empirical Research Working Group of the Commission “Early Childhood Education” (DGfE), which took place at Alanus University on 18 and 19 September.

The conference opened up a broad field of discussion: from inequality and experiences of flight to questions of body and vulnerability, from ethical foundations of participation and the relationship between norms and practice to digital childhoods and hybrid world-making. There was ample space for in-depth exchange, new impulses, and networking within the professional community.

In the evening, a cultural program through the city of Bonn and a shared dinner on the banks of the Rhine rounded off the conference.

The next workshop conference of the Empirical Research Working Group is expected to take place in summer 2026 at Alanus University in cooperation with the Catholic University of Applied Sciences Munich under the theme “Democracy, Solidarity, Participation in and through Research.” The date and invitation will be announced in good time.

We would like to sincerely thank all contributors and participants!

On behalf of the Early Childhood Education team at Alanus University

Prof. Dr. Oktay Bilgi