The early childhood profession regards advocacy as a professional and ethical responsibility yet little is known about advocacy instructional practices in teacher education programs. This study surveyed selected early childhood teacher educators who currently prepare undergraduate preservice professionals in two- and four-year institutions throughout the United States to identify and evaluate the existing advocacy training practices in preservice education. The study was designed to: (a) determine what leaders in the field of early childhood believe constitutes appropriate advocacy training for preprofessionals, (b) describe the advocacy activities of teacher educators, (c) determine if there is a difference in the advocacy instructional practices of two- and four-year institutions, and (d) recommend a model for advocacy in preprofessional programs. The participants included 607 teacher educators who responded to a mailed questionnaire and 14 leaders of early childhood professional organizations who participated in telephone interviews. Participants represented 48 states and all geographic regions of the United States. Results indicate that teacher educators and leaders believe advocacy instruction is important in preparation programs. The most frequently included advocacy activities are professionalism and understanding the professional role. Advocacy skills and strategies focused on public policy were included the least. Findings show that teacher educators participate in a variety of advocacy activities although few participate in public policy activities. No statistically significant differences were found between two- and four-year institutions in advocacy instructional practices. Based on study data, the researcher developed the Brunson Model for Advocacy Instruction in order to provide the profession with a consistent and sequenced approach to advocacy instruction. Recommendations for future research include: investigation of effective strategies for teaching advocacy; a study of the developmental nature of advocacy; and a study of the Brunson Model for Advocacy Instruction to determine the model's effectiveness in preparing professionals who will have the ability to speak up and speak out for children and families.

Syftet med denna kvalitativa studie är att söka förstå och identifiera barnombudens specifika kunskaper och erfarenheter för att kunna föra en konstruktiv diskussion kring vad detta kan tillföra andra yrkesgrupper som möter barn och unga. Detta genom att undersöka hur barnombud arbetar för att stärka barns rättigheter samt barnombudens reflektioner kring och erfarenheter av detta arbete. Studien baseras på intervjuer med barnombud i civila organisationer som företräder barn i kontakt med sociala välfärdsinstitutioner. Utifrån begrepp som advocacy (företrädarskap) och empowerment samt Harts (1992) delaktighetsstege har intervjuerna tolkats och analyserats. Barnombuden berättar om myndigheter som har svårt att göra barn delaktiga i beslut som rör dem samt om barn och unga som inte får sina rättigheter tillgodosedda. Barnombudens arbete handlar till stor del om att göra barn delaktiga. Detta sker genom att lyssna och skapa tillitsfulla relationer vilket barnombuden menar är en förutsättning för att kunna företräda. Detta relationsarbete kan ses som en del av en empowermentprocess som bidrar till ett ökat självförtroende hos barnen. Barnombuden upplever att det bidrar till att barn inser att deras upplevelser och åsikter betyder något. Barnombuden stärker barns delaktighet i myndighetsprocesser bland annat genom att vara en bro mellan barn och myndigheter där en viktig del är att göra myndighetsinformationen begriplig för barn och unga. Genom barnombudens arbete får barnen även en ökad kunskap och förståelse för sina rättigheter. En av slutsatserna är att även till synes små insatser, som att lyssna och tro på barn och ungas berättelser kan göra stora skillnader för barn och unga. En annan är att det finns en stor efterfrågan på barnombudens arbete som inte motsvarar de befintliga resurserna. Att barnkonvention blir svensk lag kommer sannolikt ha betydelse för barnombudens framtida arbete. Flera av barnombuden menar dock att det behövs mer än att barnkonventionen blir lag för att barns rättigheter ska kunna tillgodoses. / This qualitative study aims to understand and identify the children's right workers - advocates - specific knowledge and experiences in order to be able to contribute a creative discussion about what this can bring to other professional groups working with children and young people. This is done by examining how children advocates work to strengthen children's rights as well as their reflections on and experiences of this work. The study is based on interviews with advocates in non-profit organizations representing children in contact with social welfare institutions. The interviews have been analyzed by applying concepts and theories such as advocacy, empowerment and Roger Hart's Ladder of Participation. The advocates tell about authorities having difficulties making children involved in decisions concerning them, and about children and young people who are denied their rights. A vital part of the work of the advocates is about making children involved in decisions that affect their own lives. This is achieved by listening and creating relationships based on trust, which according to the advocates is a prerequisite for advocacy. The work with relationships can be seen as a part of a process of empowerment that gives children increased self-confidence. It also helps the children realize that their experiences and opinions matter. The advocates strengthen children's participation in authority decisions by being a link between children and the authorities. An important part is to make the information from the authorities understandable. Through the advocacy, the children also increase their knowledge and understanding of their rights. One conclusion is that even seemingly small efforts, such as listening and believing in their stories, can make big differences for the children. Another conclusion is that there is a large gap between existing resources and the need for the advocates’ work. The fact that the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child becomes law in Sweden, will probably be of importance for the future work of the advocates. Several of the advocates claim that more must be done to ensure that children's rights are met.