Early childhood educators’ reflections on teaching practices: the role of gender and culture

Abstract

Early childhood educators (ECEs) have a unique perspective when discussing the gender identity and gender orientation of children of preschool age. They work with children who spend a large amount of time in parallel play in both same and mixed-gender play groups. ECEs also have the experience of working with children with diverse ethnic and cultural backgrounds, as well as varying gender identities. Following participation in an online survey (as part of a larger mixed-methods research project), ECEs were invited to share contact information to participate in a more in-depth, semi-structured telephone interview. Through the interviews, this study explores ECEs’ perceptions of how their gender and cultural identities play out in the classroom setting, and how they impact others in the class. Findings from content analysis of 41 interviews reveal an emerging research idea amongst participants regarding self-reflection. Three central themes around self-reflection emerged from each participant’s reflection process: (1) professional development; (2) critical self-awareness; and (3) critical thinking. Overall, the present findings suggest early childhood educators deemed the process of self-reflection as quite valuable. It provided the opportunity for all the participants to critically reflect upon, and to further examine their professional identity as an early childhood educator. Indeed, according to the voices of ECEs, the role of reflection plays a crucial role in their teaching and learning beliefs and practices as educators within the early childhood education classroom.