Language and Peer Culture: Mandarin-Speaking Preschoolers in an English Dominant Setting

Abstract

Research into preschoolers' peer culture has generally focused on how play and games influence the development of cognitive, social and communicative skills (Evaldsson & Corsaro, 1998). The majority of studies on ESL preschoolers were interested in the development of the second language. Studies on social networking among preschool children aimed to uncover the role of ethnicity in forming dense friendship networks (Thompson, 1992, 1994). The purpose of this study was to investigate how peer culture among a group of Mandarin-speaking preschoolers was created and maintained in an English dominant context. The data were obtained from a larger study that intended to understand social interaction in a preschool setting. The present study examined six play segments of three preschoolers whose average age was 3.6. The findings indicated that the preschoolers' first language played a critical role in the formation of peer culture, in addition to the initiation and organisation of play. The consistent play routines allowed the preschoolers to assume social (family members) and communicative roles (initiator, gatekeeper and sustainer), which in turn helped to maintain play and the culture. These findings are discussed in relation to the emotional well-being of preschoolers who are well developed in their first language and are placed in an English dominant instructional setting.