Multicultural Pedagogy: Strengthening Social Interaction Among Multi-Ethnic Pre-School Children

• Authors: Nordin Mamat , Abdul Talib Hashim , Abdul Rahim Razalli , Mohd Mahzan Awang

Abstracts

EN

This study explored multicultural pedagogy in pre-school education and how it plays an important role in strengthening the social interactions among children. The Multicultural Pedagogy approach in teaching children has established the multi-ethnic (PERPADUAN/Unity) pre-school. It is a qualitative study with data drawn from observation and interview sessions aimed to identify strategies in nurturing social interaction among multi-ethnic children. Through purposive sampling, a teacher with twenty-five children and parents from various ethnicities were selected. This study revealed that practising multicultural pedagogy reflects the diversity of ethnics strengthening social interaction. The teacher exposed the children to the cultures of every ethnic group to ensure they have understood other cultures from different ethnicity. When the children are exposed to the elements of different cultures, a sense of acceptance and tolerance attitude can be fostered. This strategy nurtured national integration, encouraging interactions among multi-ethnic children, stimulating acceptance and tolerance between children and creating a school environment that reflects the diversity of ethnicities. Core multicultural elements have been found in the PERPADUAN/Unity School. Overall findings from the current study provide new evidence illustrating how multicultural pedagogy implemented strengthens social interaction in early childhood education.

Keywords

EN

multi-ethnic; pre-school; multicultural; pedagogy; social interaction

• Publisher: Wydawnictwo Adam Marszałek
• Journal: The New Educational Review
• Year: 2022
• Volume: 67
• Pages: 56-67

Dates

published

2022

Contributors

author

Nordin Mamat

• Sultan Idris Education University

author

Abdul Talib Hashim

• Sultan Idris Education University

author

Abdul Rahim Razalli

• Sultan Idris Education University

author

Mohd Mahzan Awang

• The National University of Malaysia

References

• Aboud, F. E., Mendelson, M. J., & Purdy, K. T. (2003). Cross-race peer relations and friendship quality. International Journal of Behavioral Development, 27, 165-173.
• Ahmad, A. R. & Awang, M. M. (2016). Culturally Responsive Pedagogy: Socio-Educational Support and Community Engagement for Educational Development of Aboriginal Students. The New Educational Review, 43(1), 157-164. doi: 10.15804/tner.2016.43.1.13
• Ahmad, H., Mamat, N., Mustafa, M. C., & Yusoff, S. I. M. (2021). Validating the Teaching, Learning, and Assessment Quality of Malaysian ECCE Instrument. International Journal of Evaluation and Research in Education, 10(1), 135-141. doi: 10.11591/ijere.v10i1.20857
• Alfitri, A., Awang, M. M., & Ahmad, A. R. (2014). Culturally-Responsive Strategies for Resolving Social Conflict in Rural Community. Mediterranean Journal of Social Sciences, 5(20), 2267-2277.
• Anderson, L. (2018). Building Empathy, Strengthening Relationships: The Benefits of Multiage Classrooms for Young Children and Their Caregivers. YC Young Children, 73(3), 34-42.
• Andrea, K., García-Carrión, R., & Villardón-Gallego, L. (2021). A systematic review of the literature on aspects affecting positive classroom climate in multicultural early childhood education. Early Childhood Education Journal, 49(1), 71-81. doi: http://dx.doi.org./10.1007/s10643-020-01054-4
• Bennett, S. V., AnnMarie, A. G., Gayle-Evans, G., Barrera, E. S., & Leung, C. B. (2018). Culturally responsive literacy practices in an early childhood community. Early Childhood Education Journal, 46(2), 241-248. doi: http://dx.doi.org./10.1007/s10643-017-0839-9
• Bronfenbrenner, U., & Morris, P. A. (2006). The Bioecological Model Human Development. In R. M. Lerner (Ed.), Handbook of child psychology: Theoretical models of human development (pp. 795-825). John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
• Creswell, J. W. (2007). Qualitative inquiry & research design: Choosing among five approaches. Sage Publications.
• Donahue-Keegan, D., Villegas-Reimers, E., & Cressey, J. (2019). Integrating Social-Emotional Learning and Culturally Responsive Teaching in Teacher Education Preparation Programs: The Massachusetts Experience So Far. Teacher Education Quarterly, 46(4), 150-168.
• Gezer, M. (2018). An analysis of correlations between prospective teachers’ philosophy of education and their attitudes towards multicultural education. Cogent Education, 5(1). doi: http://dx.doi.org./10.1080/2331186X.2018.1475094
• Gonçalves, S. (2011). Intangible culture, cooperation and intercultural dialogue among university students. Intercultural Education, 22(1), 83-95.
• Hashim, A. T., Bakar, I. A., Rosma, O., Mamat, N., Razalli, A. R., & Dawi, A. H. (2015). Strengthening relationship among multi-ethnic students in Malaysia. Journal of Research, Policy & Practice of Teachers & Teacher Education, 5(1), 17-29.
• Hashim, A. T., Abu Bakar, N. I., Mamat, N., & Razali, A. R. (2016). Social interactions among multi-ethnic students. Asian Social Science, 12(7), 47-58. doi: 10.5539/ass.v12n7p47
• Hays, D. G., & Singh, A. A. (2012). Qualitative inquiry: In clinical and educational settings. Guilford Press.
• Howard, T. C. (2018). Capitalizing on Culture: Engaging Young Learners in Diverse Classrooms. YC Young Children, 73(2), 24-33.
• Hsuan-Chen, C. (2017). Understanding and implementation of multicultural pedagogical meaning in early childhood education & care curriculum framework. Journal of Textbook Research, 10(3), 133-158.
• Hu, A., & Ødemotland, S. (2021). Fostering cultural sustainability in early childhood education through a neighbourhood project. Sustainability, 13(9), 5203. doi: http://dx.doi.org./10.3390/su13095203
• Huda, M., Mazlina, C. M., & Ahmad, K. M. (2021). Understanding of multicultural sustainability through mutual acceptance: Voices from intercultural teachers’ previous early education. Sustainability, 13(10), 5377. doi: http://dx.doi.org./10.3390/su13105377
• Kim, H., & Connelly, J. (2019). Preservice teachers’ multicultural attitudes, intercultural sensitivity, and their multicultural teaching efficacy. Educational Research Quarterly, 42(4), 3-20.
• Lai Fong Yang & Md Sidin Ahmad Ishak. (2012). Framing interethnic conflict in Malaysia: A Comparative analysis of newspaper coverage on the Hindu rights action force (Hindraf). International Journal of Communication, 6, 166-189.
• Lambert, M. (2012). A Beginner’s Guide to Doing Your Education Research Project. Sage Publications.
• Mamat, N., Razalli, A. R., Hashim, A. T., Ahmad, A. R., & Awang, M. M. (2018). A Case Study of PERPADUAN Pre-School Settings Inculcates Multi-Ethnic Awareness among Preschoolers’. International Journal of Academic Research in Business and Social Sciences, 8(10), 1181-1190.
• Mamat, N., Razali, A. R., Hashim, A. T., Awang, M. M., Azman, M. N. A., & Muryanti, E. (2022). A study of a pre-school teacher professionalism in order to improve the quality of educational work. Perspektivy nauki i obrazovania - Perspectives of Science and Education, 55 (1), 594-606. doi: 10.32744/pse.2022.1.38
• Merriam, S. B. (1998). Qualitative research and case study: Applications in education. Jossey Bass Inc.
• Onwubiko, E. C. (2012). Unifying Role of Malay Language in a Multilingual Nation: A Case of Malaysia, US-China Foreign Language, 7(10), 1349-1354.
• Puur, A., Rahnu, L., Sakkeus, L., Klesment, M., & Abuladze, L. (2018). The formation of ethnically mixed partnerships in Estonia: A stalling trend from a two-sided perspective. Demographic Research, 38, 1111-1154.
• Rais, Y. (2009). Culture, Arts and Heritage Minister. The Sun.
• Reid, J., Scott-Little, C., & Kagan, S. (2019). Diverse Children, Uniform Standards: Using Early Learning and Development Standards in Multicultural Classrooms. YC Young Children, 74(5), 46-54.
• Sykes, M. (2018). A Reason for Hope: Building Teachers’ Cultural Capital. YC Young Children, 73(2), 30-31.
• Tonge, K. L., Jones, R. A., & Okely, A. D. (2019). Quality interactions in early childhood education and care center outdoor environments. Early Childhood Education Journal, 47(1), 31-41. doi: http://dx.doi.org./10.1007/s10643-018-0913-y
• van As, A. J., Excell, L. A., Magadala, N., & Gqoli, N. (2020). Through the eyes of parents: Culture of young children in diverse early learning spaces. The Journal for Transdisciplinary Research in Southern Africa, 16(1). doi: http://dx.doi.org./10.4102/td.v16i1.763
• Vannebo, B. I., & Ljunggren, E. B. (2021). Bridging or bonding: An organizational framework for studying social capital in kindergartens. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 18(5), 2663. doi: http://dx.doi.org./10.3390/ijerph18052663

Identifiers

DOI

10.15804/tner.22.67.1.04

Biblioteka Nauki

2034171