“I Don’t See Color”: Challenging Assumptions about Discussing Race with Young Children

Abstract

Early childhood classrooms in the US continue to become increasingly diverse as we journey through the twenty first century. Yet and still, many early childhood educators have been slow to respond to these shifts in diversity on the basis of both developmental and political concerns. In this guess editorial, I argue for the integration of anti-racist education in the early childhood social studies classroom. The reasons I discuss here concern: when and how children develop racial attitudes, the difficulty of altering long-standing stereotypes, student empowerment, critical teacher reflection, and issues of standardization. I conclude with several considerations teachers should heed as they engage in this form of education.

Identifying and developing effective approaches to foster intercultural understanding in schools

“…There is clear evidence that children are capable of thinking about cultural diversity and global issues in complex ways and that it is better to teach them about these issues earlier rather than later so that they have a conceptual framework to think through what they see and hear (Durlak and DuPre 2008;Lee, Ramsey, and Sweeney. 2008;Connolly, Miller and Eakin 2010;Vandenbroeck et al 2010;Husband 2012). Lee et al (2008) found that kindergarten students were able to engage in anti-bias and multicultural activities that supported conversations around race and social class.…”

Young Children’s Racial-Cultural Identity Negotiation and Development:A Phenomenological Case Study

“…This study illuminates the experiences of a Korean-American child living in the Southeastern regions of the United States in early 2010s, and reaffirms the previous research findings(e.g., Husband, 2010Husband, , 2012Kelly & Brooks, 2009;Park, 2011;van Ausdale & Feagin, 2001) that young children are fully aware about differences with race and culture. In other words, documentation of CO's experiences and various strategies contributes to the growing body of research that challenges the traditional beliefs that young children are incapable of understanding race, racism, and racial awareness.…”

“…&Powers- Costello, 2011;Husband, 2010Husband, , 2012Park, 2011). Most of these studies to date, nonetheless, have primarily focused on White and Black dichotomy in the United States, allowing little to no room for other racial-cultural groups of children's voices to be heard.…”

Canadian Children and Race: Toward an Antiracism Analysis

“…In contrast, an antiracism approach builds on the idea that addressing issues of race and racism is central to any educational practice aimed at transforming the social order (see Husband, 2012, for a discussion of using such an approach in an early years setting in an American context). In the context of early childhood education, it calls for learning activities that encourage children to reflect on the processes inherent in the construction of racial difference: how power differentials structure relationships between White and nonWhite groups; the racialized nature of institutional power; racial imageries attached to racialized persons and how these signify power imbalances; and the material effects such symbolism creates for racialized persons in the Canadian context.…”