The challenge of balancing the competing pressures of enabling children’s agency and the practitioners’ role in challenging gender stereotypes?
August 05, 2023
This blog post provides an overview of the literature that examines the competing roles that practitioners have in supporting the development of children's agency, whilst also challenging their reinforcement of gender stereotypes.
It aims to provide information for anyone who is interested in the role that practitioners can play in reducing the impact of gender stereotypes on children's experiences, as well as providing additional support for the poster I presented at EECERA 2023.
It aims to provide information for anyone who is interested in the role that practitioners can play in reducing the impact of gender stereotypes on children's experiences, as well as providing additional support for the poster I presented at EECERA 2023.
Preschool practitioners have an important role to play in supporting children's developing agency. By this I mean, young children's ability to make decisions for themselves, to set and work towards personal goals, to build relationships with others, and to share their thoughts, beliefs and knowledge with confidence. Supporting young children's agency is important for their personal, social, and emotional development (DfE, 2023), and helps them to develop self-confidence and resilience.
Children's right to have their voices heard is underpinned by the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) (United Nations General Assembly, 1989). The UNCRC provides children with the right to express their own views and to have freedom of expression and thought. By protecting and supporting children's right to express themselves freely, practitioners are respecting children's agency.
However, this raises a challenge for practitioners - how do they support children's agency whilst also challenging gender inequality within their setting?
Children's right to have their voices heard is underpinned by the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) (United Nations General Assembly, 1989). The UNCRC provides children with the right to express their own views and to have freedom of expression and thought. By protecting and supporting children's right to express themselves freely, practitioners are respecting children's agency.
However, this raises a challenge for practitioners - how do they support children's agency whilst also challenging gender inequality within their setting?
Children's Role
Bronfenbrenner (1979) argued that children's family, peers, and educational settings influence their development, therefore it is important that ECE practitioners are aware of the role that PS children play in influencing their peers' development.
Research shows that young children reinforce gender stereotypes and norms through their interactions with peers, through verbal and non-verbal messages. The participants in the research demonstrated their awareness of gender stereotypes and norms through conversations with the researcher and peers, as well as through their play.
The research identified that participants used different methods to police their peers' gender behaviour depending on the proximity of the practitioners. Whilst some methods were used in specific contexts, for instance, verbal reinforcement was identified as occurring outside where there was less chance that practitioners would overhear. Other methods were used in different ways depending on the proximity of an adult, these methods tended to be used subtly when an adult was close, and more directly when adults were further away.
The participants demonstrated their agency by deciding how to police their peers, what knowledge they wished to share with peers and how they were going to share that knowledge.
Research shows that young children reinforce gender stereotypes and norms through their interactions with peers, through verbal and non-verbal messages. The participants in the research demonstrated their awareness of gender stereotypes and norms through conversations with the researcher and peers, as well as through their play.
The research identified that participants used different methods to police their peers' gender behaviour depending on the proximity of the practitioners. Whilst some methods were used in specific contexts, for instance, verbal reinforcement was identified as occurring outside where there was less chance that practitioners would overhear. Other methods were used in different ways depending on the proximity of an adult, these methods tended to be used subtly when an adult was close, and more directly when adults were further away.
The participants demonstrated their agency by deciding how to police their peers, what knowledge they wished to share with peers and how they were going to share that knowledge.
Practitioner's Role
ECE practitioners have a role in reducing inequality for young children (Gelir, 2022). However, it can be challenging for practitioners to try to balance challenging inequalities whilst supporting children's agency.
Practitioners need to consider the steps that they can take to reduce the impact of gender stereotypes on children, however, practitioners need to be sensitive in how they do this to ensure that they do not step on children's agency and their family beliefs.
One step that practitioners can take is to provide a gender-equitable environment. However, this can be hard to achieve and research has demonstrated that even where practitioners are confident that the environment they have set up is gender neutral, their sub-conscious bias means that gender stereotypical messages are included. Furthermore, research by Børve & Børve (2017) identified that even where the environment was gender-neutral, the children gendered the spaces themselves. Indeed, this was identified in the research that I undertook.
Whilst the research I undertook focussed on preschool-aged participants, I was able to identify that the practitioners missed opportunities to challenge children's reinforcement of gender stereotypes. This may be due to many reasons, for instance, they may not have felt comfortable challenging the children's beliefs, or they may not have understood the impact of the message the children were receiving from their peers. Nonetheless, the outcome is the same - the stereotype knowledge was shared and then reinforced by their lack of response.
Practitioners need to consider the steps that they can take to reduce the impact of gender stereotypes on children, however, practitioners need to be sensitive in how they do this to ensure that they do not step on children's agency and their family beliefs.
One step that practitioners can take is to provide a gender-equitable environment. However, this can be hard to achieve and research has demonstrated that even where practitioners are confident that the environment they have set up is gender neutral, their sub-conscious bias means that gender stereotypical messages are included. Furthermore, research by Børve & Børve (2017) identified that even where the environment was gender-neutral, the children gendered the spaces themselves. Indeed, this was identified in the research that I undertook.
Whilst the research I undertook focussed on preschool-aged participants, I was able to identify that the practitioners missed opportunities to challenge children's reinforcement of gender stereotypes. This may be due to many reasons, for instance, they may not have felt comfortable challenging the children's beliefs, or they may not have understood the impact of the message the children were receiving from their peers. Nonetheless, the outcome is the same - the stereotype knowledge was shared and then reinforced by their lack of response.
Implications for Practice
- Practitioners need to find a balance between providing values-based provision and respecting children's agency in their beliefs.
- The inclusion of images that challenge gender stereotypes is not always effective on its own.
- Preschool children use various methods to manipulate their peers' behaviour and reinforce gender stereotypes. These methods can be subtle and have different motivations for the children.
- Practitioners should talk to children to understand their beliefs and the reasons behind their behaviour, By doing so, practitioners show that they are interested in children's views and value their experiences.
- One practitioners have knowledge of children's gender beliefs, they can challenge stereotypes through conversations and activities in the setting.
References
- Bronfenbrenner, U. (1979) The ecology of human development: Experiments by nature and design. London: Harvard University Press.
- Department for Education (2023) Statutory framework for the early years foundation stage. London: Department for Education.
- Gelir, I. (2022) Becoming a girl and boy: Preschool children's construction of gender roles in the community and nursery. Early Child Development and Care, 192(2), 302-312.
- Greig, A., Taylor, J. & MacKay, T. (2013) Doing research with children: A practical guide, 3rd edition. London: SAGE Publications.
- Pastel, E., Steele, K., Nicholson, J., Maurer, C., Hennock, J., Julian, J., Unger, T. & Flynn, N. (2019) Supporting gender diversity in early childhood classrooms. London: Jessica Kingsley Publishers.
- United Nations General Assembly (1989) The United Nations convention on the rights of the child (Resolution 44/25). London: UNICEF. Available online: https://downloads.unicef.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/UNCRC_united_nations_convention_on_the_rights_of_the_child.pdf?_ga=2.186114985.1624957654.1583770683-909196559.1583770683 [Accessed 09/03/2020].
