Culture, Schooling, and Children's Learning Experiences

Abstract

Abstract The contributions in this volume address the need to expand the discourse on the relationship between culture, schooling, and children’s learning experiences and each chapter provides a unique piece that broadens the understanding of these connections. Several themes emerge: parental beliefs and cultural models shape children’s schooling and learning experiences and social interactions with peers and teachers; quality early childhood education, play-based approaches, and playful learning are important to children’s school success and development; cultural variables intersect with other forces such as historical events, oppression, socioeconomic status, and political ideologies in complex ways to shape children’s learning experiences; and schools are contexts for academic and cultural learning. Together the chapters weave a story that views learning as an activity that takes place within cultural contexts and highlights the macro and micro forces that shape children’s everyday learning experiences. The chapters in this volume acknowledge and situate children’s learning experiences within the historical events, economic conditions, political ideologies, parental belief systems, cultural models, and national policy initiatives that influence children’s schooling and learning experiences. Some of these works honor the experiences of Indigenous, newcomer, and first-generation children and children of underrepresented communities. The vital role that policymakers, teacher educators, schools, and classroom educators play in these endeavors emerges throughout the volume.