Open AccessNewcomer Families’ Participation in Early Childhood Education Programs
Author(s) -
Christine Massing,
Daniel Kikulwe,
Needal Ghadi
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
exceptionality education international
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.226
H-Index - 8
ISSN - 1918-5227
DOI - 10.5206/eei.v30i3.13379
Subject(s) - socialization , social capital , context (archaeology) , qualitative research , cultural capital , focus group , early childhood education , sociology , early childhood , public relations , pedagogy , economic growth , psychology , political science , developmental psychology , social science , anthropology , economics , paleontology , biology
Early childhood education and care (ECEC) programs are often the first point of contact that newcomers have with formal institutions in their new country, and function as sites wherein children can gain access to the language, rules, and customs of the dominant society. However, newcomer families may experience specific barriers to accessing programs due to the lack of recognition of their existing social and cultural capital within the host country. Reporting on part of a larger mixed-methods study focused on the post-migration barriers to integration experienced by newcomers, this article explores newcomer families’ perspectives on the issues affecting their participation in ECEC programs. Qualitative data were collected from 96 newcomers to Canada during 13 focus groups. The findings suggest newcomer families grapple with reconciling three main points of disjuncture or conflict associated with these child care decisions: social networks, necessity and opportunity, and socialization goals. While participation in ECEC programs facilitated the development of forms of capital valued in the new context, these families also felt compelled to shed some of their own aspirations for their children’s socialization and learning.