Researchers find childcare educators have a stereotypical attitude to cultural diversity

Australian childcare centres’ “well-intentioned” effort to be culturally inclusive is inadvertently demeaning and confusing children from diverse backgrounds, a study suggests.

Well-meaning preschool educators are inadvertently demeaning multicultural students in an attempt to be inclusive, new research shows.

A study of the texts used in Australian childcare centres has found just four of 148 books read to children focused specifically on cultural diversity.

Although educators were trying to be respectful, researchers found they were likely to “demean and confuse” children from diverse backgrounds when reading such books.

Researchers from Edith Cowan University, led by Dr Helen Adam, found the educators had a stereotypical attitude to cultural diversity, focusing on special clothes and food.

“While these educators were well-intentioned, their attempts to be culturally responsive seem stuck in very limited and superficial notions of culture,” Dr Adam said.

A book about Africa prompted discussion about the special aspects of lifestyles, such as chewing sticks, chief’s hats and leaves used to wrap food.

The research suggests preschool educators are inadvertently demeaning multicultural students.

But the educator shied away from overt discussion about race, such as when a young boy said: “Look, a Black girl”.

When the book Handa’s Surprise by Eileen Browne was read to children, the educator made comments like “Do we carry fruit on our heads?” and “Do you think she lives in Australia?”

The book, set in Africa, was used to educate children about life in Portugal, promoting misconceptions about both cultures.

At one point a child was asked what crops were grown in Maldives, the country her father was from. The child replied: “I’m not from a country, I’m from Australia.”

The study found just four of 148 books read to children focused specifically on cultural diversity. Picture: iStock

The study of 24 educators and 110 children, which was co-authored by Associate Professor Matthew Byrne, found there was an “apparent ignorance or disregard among educators” towards cultural authenticity. At one point an educator linked Portugal with the exercise craze Zumba.

Australian early learning settings are required to show an awareness and acknowledgment of cultural diversity, but Dr Adam said many educators “are fearful of ‘getting it wrong’ or not being ‘politically correct’”.

Dr Adam said current practice suggests educators can unwittingly reinforce stereotypes and uninformed attitudes by offering a “tokenistic focus” on “four Fs’ of culture — food, folk-dancing, festivals and fashion”.

“For many of the children in this study, the dress, food and lifestyles were likely to be familiar and part of their own daily experiences and cultural background, and for others, something they would see regularly in their own community,” Dr Adam said.

She said it was no longer enough just to have culturally diverse books, but this needed to be paired with teaching that was culturally responsive and appropriate.

In the article, which is yet to be peer reviewed, Dr Adam and Dr Byrne call for a more “embedded, embodied and integrated dynamic learning approach” that will more authentically support diversity and inclusion.