The Origins of the Contemporary Responsibility of Children for Their Own Cleanliness. A Sociological Analysis of French Nursery Schools

This article takes as its subject representations of children’s cleanliness in the context of French écoles maternelles (nursery schools). It combines the sociology of childhood, the sociology of education and the sociology of health. Comparisons are made between official texts, inspection reports and professional practices. Three phases can be identified. In the first (1826-1939), the priority was to take responsibility for children’s health and hygiene in a context in which the rules on cleanliness and the fight to improve health and sanitary conditions were being redefined. In the second phase (1945-1986), the écoles maternelles to some extent relegated this direct responsibility for children’s health and cleanliness to the background in favour of a more psychological relationship in a context in which ideas on education were changing. In the third phase (from 1986 to the present day), children gradually became responsible for their own health and cleanliness. Direct observation has shown that adults now maintain a certain distance from or even eschew responsibility for children’s bodies and the care thereof.