Promoting Young Children’s Right to Participate in the Classroom through Picture Books

Abstract

Practices to promote the right of children to participate in the classroom can benefit from picture books that encourage children to be involved in different settings that reflect the qualities of participation. This study aims to examine the effects of the processes planned regarding children’s right to participation with picture books on preschoolers’ perceptions of their right to participate in the classroom. The study employed a pretest–posttest design, a quasi-experimental research design with a control group. A random sampling method was employed to determine the study sample. The sample consisted of a total of 42 children (21 in the experimental group and 21 in the control group), attending classes of 5-year-olds in a public kindergarten affiliated with the Directorate of National Education in a province located in the Inner Aegean region of Turkey. A “Personal Information Form” and the “Participation Right Scale in Preschool Classes” developed by Koran (2017) and Şallı İdare (2018) were used as data collection tools. Twice a week during eight weeks, the researcher conducted activities with children in the experimental group, which were prepared with picture books and integrated with classroom activities. As the data obtained in the study show a normal distribution, a two-factor ANOVA test was performed with measurements repeated in one factor, and the the t test for the dependent groups and intergroup comparisons. After the experimental study, it was determined that the children in the experimental group started to participate more in classroom activities and decision-making processes, whereas there was no change in the involvement of the children in the control group. Based on this result, to promote preschoolers’ right to participate in the classroom, teachers should place more emphasis on processes that are designed to use quality children’s books and that the use of such books is integrated with classroom activities.