Preservice teachers’ awareness of children’s play in diverse cultures: exchange of digital photo essays across Myanmar, Korea, and the U.S

Abstract

ABSTRACT This study examined preservice teachers’ understanding of children’s play in diverse cultures. Using digital photo essay methods, a total of 37 early childhood preservice teachers in Myanmar, Korea, and the U.S. engaged in a critical discussion on children’s play in diverse cultures. The findings suggested that the participants typically showed three layers of cross-cultural awareness: distance, friction, and flow. Korean and the U.S.participants conducted critical reflections on their preconceived notion of play, as influenced by the idea of Western childhood play. Although Myanmar participants revealed a desire for Western play materials, we did not observe substantial evidence of critical reflection throughout the cross-cultural exchanges. This paper discusses the implications of investigating culturally sensitive strategies for engendering preservice teachers’ implicit beliefs by exchanging digital photo essays across diverse cultures.