Beyond Participation: What We Learned from Hunter about Collaboration with Pasifika Children and Families

Abstract

Increasing the participation rates of Pasifika children in early childhood settings is a policy target in Aotearoa -New Zealand. Yet, participation may not engender positive learning outcomes for children from diverse cultural backgrounds without attention to teacher knowledge and practice. The early childhood curriculum document, Te Whāriki, encourages teachers to collaborate with families. However, there is little research to guide teachers in mainstream centres to interpret Pasifika children's interests, particularly those that link with the understandings and everyday experiences of their families, communities or cultures. This article reports on a qualitative, interpretivist project. Findings related to a Pasifika child are presented. The child's overt interest in drumming led to deeper examination of his developing identities as a learner and member of his family and culture. The article argues that in order for diverse children and families to genuinely benefit from participation in early education teachers might usefully adopt more analytical, culturally responsive, and dialogic approaches and constructs to guide provision of a dynamic and responsive play-based curriculum. The use of theoretical frameworks such as funds of knowledge to assist families and centres to engage in and sustain reciprocal relationships and enhance collaboration to benefit children's growing learner and cultural identities is discussed.

Parents’ Perspective on Early Childhood Education in New Zealand: Voices from Pacifika Families

“…As it is evident that different cultures have different values, beliefs, customs, attitudes and knowledge in ways to bring up a child (Bird & Drewery, 2004), Cooper and Hedges (2014) maintained that it is important that teachers have some understanding of the cultures of the children and how different cultures affect children's interests and the ways in which they learn. Mara (2000) provided a Pacific Islanders' perspective, which indicates that Samoan parents have always desired that their children grow up knowing who they are within the Samoan aiga (which means family in the Samoan language) and community as well as succeeding in palagi (which means a white or non-Samoan person in Samoan) terms.…”

“…However, despite the fact that the New Zealand curriculum for early childhood education provides a framework for teachers to consider effective partnerships, research indicates that many early childhood teachers in New Zealand encounter difficulties when working with children and families from diverse backgrounds (e.g. Cooper & Hedges, 2014;Guo, 2005).…”

Exploring the Opportunities and Challenges of the Digital World for Early Childhood Services with Vulnerable Children

“…Early childhood educators can value and support children’s use of their heritage languages by working in partnership with the children’s whānau (families, including extended family members) to ensure the authenticity of these inclusions in the linguistic landscapes of the centres. Bridging language practices between home and educational settings through parental participation, such as being expert partners in bi-literacy development through the co-creation of dual-language texts, reinforces children’s bilingual language development, as well as building their self-confidence, and strengthening their bilingual identities and their English language competencies [ 35 , 36 , 37 , 38 ].…”

Parent–teacher partnerships in group music lessons: a collective case study

“…These kinds of partnership relationships have been observed to result in better engagement, learning, motivation, attitude towards school work, achievement and higher-quality homework, resulting in increased learning outcomes for the child (Lueder, 2000;Creech & Hallam, 2003;Hughes & Kwok, 2007). Cooper and Hedges (2014) cite an example of the collaborative response of a child's teachers and family to his interest in drumming leading to his musical rhythm, accuracy and performance skills being enhanced. From the above, it appears that the formation of partnerships between parents and teachers will most likely have a positive impact on children's development and learning experience.…”