Research that Benefits Children and Families

     I must admit I enjoyed exploring the Research Data Base!  There is so much wonderful work being conducted on the behalf of young children and their families.  I read studies on media consumption and young children; sleep habits and cognitive development, and one near and dear to my heart, the effects of military deployment on children.

 

     The study that I found fascinating was the titled, “The Theory and Practice of Multi-cultural Education for Young Children by Means of Art Teaching Within the Artistic Education Classes”.   Yes, that is a mouthful.  However, this sociological study was inspirational.  Everyone can agree that our global village is more connected than ever before. With the Internet people can connect with each other easily.   Teaching cultural competence is important, as our social reach is made easier by social media.

     The aim of the study was to discover how to foster children’s correct ideas about people of other cultures and how we should encourage their interactions with each other.  The use of art education to teach cultural diversity is not new.  Art education was used in the 1960’s during the civil rights movement.  By introducing the artist works of African Americans to museums and incorporating African American inspired art into learning materials young children were able to get a view of another culture.

     The second of the two case studies focused on how to reduce the prejudices of young children at a childcare center in Taiwan. There were 37 children from ages two to six.  The children were from Vietnam, Indonesia, and Mainland China.  Then there were the children referred to as “children of new inhabitants”.  These were the children of Southeast Asians that now populated Taiwan.  Art was used as a learning approach to provide young children a way to reconstruct their ideas of another culture. The children and families of the Southeast Asians gained confidence and pride in their culture, while all the children developed improved social interactions with others.

     Cultural competence is important to the survival of our species. 

                                             Reference

Chou, M. C. (2012). The theory and practice of multi-cultural education for young children by means

      of art teaching within the artistic education classes.2(3), 198-204. doi: 2159-5526