Journal of Childhood, Education & Society (JCES)
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162 research outputs found
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Ethical leadership: Early childhood center directors’ perspectives and practices in a migrant community
Full text linkThis study explores dimensions of ethical leadership within the context of early childhood education (ECE) centers that serve families with migration experience in Florida, USA. The purpose is to understand what values and ethical principles are prioritized by the ECE center directors and how these principles are implemented. The datasets included interviews with six leaders at three centers about the directors’ leadership, observations of the center’s daily practices and reviews of policy documents. The data in this case study were analyzed by reflective thematic analysis. The findings indicated the directors’ commitment and values regarding quality education to eliminate poverty, and their awareness of the cultural and experiential background of children in migration. However, some misalignments surfaced between the expressed values, ethical principles and the centers’ daily operations, such as the limited presence of culturally responsive teaching. This research contributes to a deeper understanding of how ECE directors balance systemic policies with the holistic understanding of children in migration
A critical race theory analysis of top-down and ground-up regulatory documents in early years practice
Full text linkThe ‘pervasive silence and hesitancy to address racism and its manifestations’ (The Child Safeguarding Practice Review (HM Gov., 2025a) and how this renders invisible the safeguarding needs of Black, Asian and Mixed Heritage children is troubling. In this article we utilise Gillborn’s framework for engaging Critical Race Theory in policy to analyse the priorities, outcomes and beneficiaries of the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS), the Office for Standards in Education’s (Ofsted) regulatory framework, and Birth to 5 Matters. The, ‘top-down’, EYFS and Ofsted regulatory guidance, lack any specific reference to race or racism, except in citing the statutory responsibility to adhere to the Equality Act 2010. Neither the EYFS (Department for Education, 2024a) framework for practice, nor The Office for Standards in Education, Children\u27s Services and Skills (Ofsted) Inspection Handbook (2024) or Framework (2023) which regulate practice, specifically mentions race or racism. Educational practitioners feel ill-equipped to talk about race or racism (Daniel, 2023; Gabi et al., 2022; Priest et al., 2014) and yet racism remains a salient issue that negatively impacts children’s lives from pre-birth (Glowach et al., 2023 Joseph Rowntree Foundation, 2024; Alexander et al., 2015; HM Gov., 2025a). ‘Ground-up’ (Archer, 2024) guidance document, Birth to 5 Matters (Early Years Coalition, 2021), developed ‘for the sector by the sector’, does however, directly address racism in Early Years practice. In light of our analysis, we recommend that Early Years policy and regulatory frameworks urgently incorporate more explicit guidance on anti-racist praxis, and adopt a less race-evasive approach by engaging with and learning from stakeholders within the sector
From compliance to refusal: White childhoods and abolitionist imaginaries in early childhood education and care
Full text linkThis paper introduces the concept of white childhoods as a critical framework to examine how whiteness, coloniality, and racial capitalism shape early childhood education and care systems in Europe. Dominant norms of childhood, rooted in white, middle-class, heteronormative, and non-disabled ideals, structure how children are seen as emotionally legible, developmentally "normal," and worthy of institutional care. Racialized and migrant children are often positioned as deficient, with their languages, cultural practices, and family structures rendered unintelligible or threatening. Drawing on in-depth interviews with Syrian mothers and ethnographic observations across Belgium, Germany, and the Netherlands, the paper maps how white childhoods are enforced through language policy, affective expectations, and maternal surveillance. Beyond critique, the paper uses short speculative vignettes to explore abolitionist futures in which care is collective, multilingualism is embraced, and belonging is not conditional. These speculative fragments are grounded in the lived experiences and quiet refusals voiced by migrant mothers, treating imagination as both method and political strategy. Rather than seeking inclusion or reform, the paper calls for dismantling the racialized logics of early childhood education and care and for building educational spaces grounded in relationality, cultural sovereignty, and joy. Abolition here is framed not as utopian idealism but as a pedagogical and methodological commitment to living otherwise
Building a critical teacher-researcher partnership: Anti-racism pedagogies and practices in a first-grade classroom in the Midwest United States
Full text linkThis study investigates our ongoing, multi-year partnership as a university professor and classroom teacher/administrator enacting anti-racist practices and pedagogies in a first-grade classroom in the Midwest area of the United States. Grounded in Critical Race Theory and a critical counterstorytelling methodology, we investigated what our counternarratives could illustrate about how we sustained our anti-racist work with young children. Through our analysis, two insights emerged as important: the importance of engaging with slowness in developing a critical race partnership and developing critical race criteria for selecting children’s books about race and racism. We describe these insights and discuss the implications of this work, while providing suggestions for others interested in developing critical race partnerships
Transformational (methodological) shifts towards anti-racism: Revolt, realities and rhizomes
Full text linkMany worldly concerns of today are arguably – and potentially increasingly – fuelled by racist orientations. They are institutional, structural, and individual. What is the role then, of early education, and of educational research? In what ways might research contribute to transforming orientations, towards difference, towards racism? Given the emphasis on strengthening young children’s cultural sense of belonging, teachers ask: but what about me? Teachers’ own marginalisations remain an under-researched area, a situation which is further exacerbated in the highly diverse contexts of Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand, where further immigration is encouraged to fill dire teacher shortages. This paper draws on teachers’ storying of realities and of transformations towards diversities and explicit racist behaviours in Australia and Aotearoa. The research is funded by the Australian Research Council, obtained University of Melbourne ethical approval, and involves 23 participants. In this paper I draw on 1 teacher’s narrative to explicate experiences and orientations in early childhood settings. I argue for feminist philosophical research approaches foregrounded by Kristeva’s notion of revolt, as a state of constant critical questioning. Further, the notions of teachers’ realities and rhizomes elevate the importance of a reorientation of attitudes beyond racism in research and teaching for teachers of young children. Doing research and difference differently, I argue, is crucial for raising awareness of and respecting diversities in more equitable, less racist ways
Reimagining anti-racist pedagogy in early childhood education: Foregrounding critical theories and frameworks that challenge racism
Full text linkRecent global events, shaped by conservative ideologies, neoliberalism, and capitalism, have exacerbated racism toward displaced individuals, particularly migrants and refugees of color. In Canadian early childhood education, these racist ideologies manifest through theories rooted in white, patriarchal, colonial knowledge systems that frame refugee children through a deficit lens. Such frameworks position early childhood education as a mechanism for assimilation, prioritizing workforce preparation in merit-driven economies over recognizing refugee children’s lived experiences, cultural strengths, and intersectional identities. In response to the global rise in racism, this paper examines transformative anti-racist approaches in early childhood education that challenge dominant discourses and systemic inequities. Through a case study of a Syrian refugee child and her mother, the paper reimagines anti-racist pedagogy by drawing on critical poststructural theories from the margins, including Black Feminist Thought, the sociology of childhood, and critical pedagogy. By centering Black feminist storytelling methodologies, this study highlights the necessity of valuing marginalized knowledge and participatory, creative practices in early childhood education. It argues for an intentional shift toward anti-racist educational frameworks that dismantle deficit-based narratives and affirm the agency and contributions of refugee children and their families
‘We can make a difference’: School leaders’ claims about School-Age Educare in areas with socioeconomic challenges
Full text linkThe aim of this study is to explore how School-Age Educare Centers (SAEC) adapt to the circumstances and needs of pupils living in areas with socioeconomic challenges, and how SAEC can contribute to promote pupils’ continued learning and knowledge development for further education and for life. The Swedish school-age educare offers education and care for children aged 6-12 years old, before and after school. The following research question guides the study: What claims are made about the SAEC contribution to pupils in terms of subjectification and qualification? Data consist of 13 interviews with school leaders working in schools in vulnerable areas, neighborhoods at risk, and particularly exposed zones identified by the Swedish Police. Qualitative content analysis was applied. The study is theoretically grounded in Biesta’s concepts subjectification and qualification, which are used as aspects of education. This study contributes with nuanced descriptions of how the SAEC mission to compensate and complement is claimed to be put into practice. One conclusion is that school-age educare centers can make a difference in children’s life conditions and prerequisites for succeeding in school. Another conclusion is that school-age educare centers emerge as potential arenas for crime prevention
Integrating playful pedagogies with the curriculum: The perspectives and practices of teachers working across infant, first and second classes, in Ireland
Full text linkWhile play is a key feature of the early childhood curriculum, its role in primary education can be more peripheral. In Ireland, a new primary curriculum framework aims to strengthen connections between learning in preschool and school through embedding a playful approach, more dynamically, in the primary context. This paper will share findings from an online mixed methods survey of 293 teachers, working in junior and senior infants and in first and second class. Congruent with research in other countries, findings suggest that while play is associated with a broad range of benefits, and is seen as compatible with learning in school, its potential is not optimised due to a myriad of system, school, teacher, and child features. While the prominence of playful pedagogies in the new primary curriculum framework is welcome, the current findings underscore issues which could impact on the fidelity with which it is implemented. The findings from this study affirm the value of surfacing teachers’ perspectives during times of curriculum reform. The perceived enablers and barriers, to adopting playful and innovative pedagogical approaches, can inform the provision of resources and design of supports which will be required to embed play successfully in Irish primary schools. To harness existing best practice and to propel and sustain curriculum innovation, teachers clearly need to be seen as partners rather than mere consumers or receivers of curriculum redevelopment
Parent perspectives on digital play-based early literacy-learning in marginalized communities
Full text linkThis study examined parent perspectives on digital play-based learning for early literacy development in non-formal educational settings in Pakistan and Bangladesh, where access to quality education remains limited for marginalized communities. Drawing on neo-ecological theory as a guiding framework, we conducted a qualitative focus group study in which we analysed discussions with 40 parents whose children participated in a three-month digital play-based literacy intervention implemented through community learning centres and refugee camps. The parents reported significant improvements in their children\u27s English language capabilities and digital literacies, often describing instances that reversed traditional knowledge hierarchies within families, with children teaching their parents English pronunciation and digital navigation. However, the parents simultaneously expressed concerns about traditional writing skill development and future educational transitions. The intervention affected parent–child engagement in education, with many parents reporting increased school visits and children showing a newfound enthusiasm for attending classes. Notable variations emerged between communities with different levels of prior educational access, with refugee parents in Bangladesh showing greater enthusiasm for digital interventions than those with previous exposure to conventional education. The study demonstrated how parents in marginalized communities carefully evaluated digital play through contextual lenses, and challenged simplistic narratives about technology adoption in resource-constrained environments. The parents’ perspectives highlight both the transformative potential of digital play for early literacy and the importance of contextually responsive approaches to implementing interventions
Exploring gendered professions in nursery rhymes: Implications for learning and social interaction
Full text linkThe significance of early childhood literature in development and perpetuation of ideas and concepts in the minds of toddlers and preschoolers is well-established. A large body of work talks about the impact and role of children\u27s literature in the process of child development but very less or negligible importance is given to the way stereotypes are formed based on the reading and recital by children. Stereotypes generally serve as an underlying justification for prejudice. The formation and development of stereotypes and prejudices is based on the process of social categorization which is majorly related to personal experience and social learning. The paper argues that the language of early childhood literature, nursery rhymes in particular, plays a pivotal role in the perpetuation of stereotypes relating to gendered roles and therefore a reassessment of nursery rhymes is crucial to promote gender equality, the focal point being the professional roles. The Method of Critical Discourse Analysis is used to analyze the nursery rhymes taught at preschools and primary schools in the city of Ahmedabad. The analysis reflects a need for re-imagining rhymes for fostering a more inclusive and equitable society