1. … A N D T H E N U T W H O T H O U G H T T H E Y
W O U L D T RY S H A R I N G A L L T H I S I N O N E G O …
C R I T I C A L C O N S T R U C T I V I S T T E C H N O L O G Y I N T E G R AT I O N

2. W H AT I S A C R I T I C A L C O N S T R U C T I V I S T
E D U C AT I O N A L T E C H N O L O G Y P E D A G O G Y ?
More than access and equity.
Access and equity have a number of different definitions which point to the importance of fairness and
responsibility. In terms of Government policy, Access and Equity is about fairness for all people especially when
some legal rules can discriminate against people. In this sense access and equity might mean getting a ’fair go’.
A result of this is that many cultural beliefs and practices may not be included in society which means that some cultures will have more privileges than others. For
example, the state government has a priority of access list to ensure that groups that experience discrimination can have access to children’s services.

3. More than access and equity.

4. More than access and equity.
Culture
Questions for Critically Reflective Practice:
• What are your policies about access and equity?
• How do you work with these requirements?
• How do you consider access and equity in your planning of experiences and activities (for example consider whether or not all children have equal access to the
activities and experiences or think about how rules of inclusion and exclusion govern who can play)

5. More than access and equity.
Culture
Multicultural
Questions for Critically Reflective Practice:
• What assumptions do we need to challenge when working with
multicultural and anti bias work?
• How can we get better at recognising the many cultural experiences
that are occurring at the same time?
• What can we learn from each other?
• What are the things you are doing to put respect first in order to
be clear that all people can and should be represented in children’s
services?

6. More than access and equity.
Culture
Multicultural
Social Justice
Questions for Critically Reflective Practice:
• What ideas do children have about what is fair and what is unfair?
• How could plan to talk about what is fair and unfair with children?
• How could plan to talk with families about what is fair and unfair?

7. More than access and equity.
Culture
MulticulturalAnti Bias Approaches
Social Justice

8. Anti Bias Approaches
Questions for Critically Reflective Practice:
• Do all children equally participate in our curriculum, programmes,
experiences and activities?
• How do we reflect upon who we are as a way of recognising that we
bring bias with us to our work?
• How do children take up the idea of choosing who belongs?
• How can we begin to see that Anti Bias and Multiculturalism are about who is included and who is excluded and why?
• How do we make links between home and school?

9. Anti Bias Approaches
The Anti Bias Curriculum (1989) began in the United States from a group of activist educators who were
“dissatisfied with current curriculum for helping children learn about diversity” (Derman-Sparks,1989). So, the
curriculum occurred in a political and historical context influenced by the USA civil rights movement and the
feminist movements in the 1960’s.

10. Anti Bias Approaches
R E C O G N I Z E E X I S T I N G B I A S , D I S C R I M I N AT I O N A N D I N J U S T I C E
In other parts of the world similar work also emerged because children’s services staff recognised the importance of dealing with issues of multiculturalism and
antidiscrimination in their daily work. This international work grew out of policy changes, human rights movements and activists who were determined to make a
difference in the lives of children and families.

11. R E C O G N I Z E E X I S T I N G B I A S , D I S C R I M I N AT I O N A N D I N J U S T I C E
construct a knowledgeable, confident self identity (for children to be confident about who they are)
• develop comfortable, empathetic and just interaction with diversity (for children to be accepting of difference)
• develop critical thinking (for children to be critical about injustice)
• and the skills for standing up for oneself and others in the face of injustice (for children to act upon injustice)
(Derman-Sparks, 1989, p.xi)

12. Is it OK to say things like ‘you run like a girl’, ‘no way José’, ‘that’s so
gay’, ‘black boy’, ‘coon’, ‘eeny, meeny miny mow’ nigger’, ‘terrorist’, and
then say “only joking”?
Who experiences discrimination even if someone is “only joking”?
How do you recognise the comments that children make in their
everyday play and act on them in ways that promote respect and
social justice?

13. Questions for Critically Reflective Practice:
• Is it OK to say things like ‘you run like a girl’, ‘no way José’, ‘that’s so
gay’, ‘black boy’, ‘coon’, ‘eeny, meeny miny mow’ nigger’, ‘terrorist’, and
then say “only joking”?
• Who experiences discrimination even if someone is “only joking”?
• How do you recognise the comments that children make in their
everyday play and act on them in ways that promote respect and
social justice?

14. A N T I B I A S & M U LT I C U LT U R A L I S M
It is important to distinguish between Multiculturalism and Anti Bias Approaches because both ideas play different
roles in children’s services and society, but both are equally important. In some ways, Multiculturalism is seen by
many as a way of ‘including all cultures’ or ‘celebrating culture’ which gives the impression that all cultures are
equally valued in society, but of course they are not.

15. C H I L D R E N ( U S ) A N D S O C I E T Y
Questions for Critically Reflective Practice:
• Who do you consult when planning cultural celebrations?
• What part do children and families play in the planning?
• What part does the community play in your planning?

16. R E A D I N G A M A P
FA C E - T O - FA C E C O N V E R S AT I O N
C H O O S I N G F O O D I N T H E L U N C H R O O M
D I R E C T I O N S O R I L L U S T R AT I O N S
D E M O N S T R AT I O N S
S C I E N C E E X P E R I M E N T S
B A S I C M AT H C O M P U TAT I O N S
S O C I A L S T U D I E S S I M U L AT I O N S
C O N T E X T E M B E D D E D A C T I V I T I E S

17. F O L L O W I N G A C L A S S S C H E D U L E
G E T T I N G A N A B S E N C E E X C U S E
T E L E P H O N E C O N V E R S AT I O N
W R I T T E N D I R E C T I O N S ( N O D I A G R A M S O R V I S U A L S )
O R A L P R E S E N TAT I O N S
O R A L C L A S S R O O M D I R E C T I O N S
S TA N D A R D I Z E D T E S T S
M AT H C O N C E P T S A N D A P P L I C AT I O N S
L I S T E N I N G T O A L E C T U R E
R E A D I N G C O N T E N T C L A S S
C O N T E X T R E D U C E D A C T I V I T I E S
https://photos.google.com/u/1/photo/

18. A N T I B I A S M U LT I C U LT U R A L I S M
G E T T I N G T O T H E A C T I V I T Y
• How do you talk about multiculturalism in your everyday planning and
work with children?
• What ideas do people in your service have about multiculturalism?
(You might build a definition with colleagues)
• What examples of practice can you think of that reflect
multiculturalism in your service?

19. What are the stereotypes about technologists?
( A C T I V I T Y )

20. C U LT U R E
Surface Level
Food, Flags, Festivals, Fashion, Holidays, Music, Performances, Dances, Games, Arts & Crafts, Literature, Language

21. Culture
D E E P D O W N
Communication styles and rules - facial expressions, gestures, eye contact, personal space, touching, body language, tone of voice, handling and displaying of emotion,
conversational patterns in different social situations
Notions of - courtesy and manners, friendship, leadership, cleanliness, modest, beauty
Concepts of - self, time, past and future, fairness and justice, roles related to age, sex, class, family, etc.
Attitudes toward - elders, adolescents, dependents, rule, expectations, work, authority, cooperation vs. competition, relationships with animals, age, sin, death
Approaches to - religion, courtship, marriage, raising children, decision-making, problem-solving

22. Questions for Critically Reflective Practice:
• What are your experiences of having to change the way you do things
to fit in?
• What expectations do we have of children and families to change who
they are and what they believe to fit into our services?
• What experiences and activities can we provide to help staff and
families think about the different ways that people participate
without expecting them to change to fit in? (think about language,
eating practices, dress, family structure, gender, learning styles,
celebrations)

23. H O W A T E A C H E R , A S A R E S E A R C H E R I N T H E I R O W N C L A S S R O O M
A N D P R A C T I C E , B U I L D S R E S E A R C H - B A S E D C U R R I C U L U M
TA K E AWAY
Developing a philosophy to support your work
A philosophy is a statement of values, beliefs and rationales for the work you do with children and families.
Children’s services can benefit from having a philosophy that focuses on issues of social justice, equity and are
reflective of multicultural experiences.
Critical Questions for Philosophy Development:
• Does your philosophy reflect the people with whom you work? How?
• Does your philosophy reflect the families and children?
• Does your philosophy reflect the local community?
• Does your philosophy reflect Australian society?
Consulting children, families, staff and community:
• In what ways do you regularly consult children about what is fair and unfair? How do you use this information?
• In what ways do you consult families about their ideas of multiculturalism, equity and social justice?
How do you use this information?
• In what ways do you consult the local community about their ideas about multiculturalism, equity and social
justice? How do you use this information?
• In what ways do you consult and question Government policies in your philosophy development?
Policies to support your philosophy:
• Do you have a policy about multiculturalism?
• Do you have a social justice policy?
• Do you have a policy that addresses equity and anti bias issues?

24. • Barnes, S. (2001) Festivals, holidays and community celebrations. In E. Dau. (Ed.) The Anti-Bias approach in Early
Childhood (2nd Edition) pp159-167. Sydney: Addison Wesley Longman.
• Butler, J. (2004) Undoing gender New York: Routledge
• Campbell, S. (2005) Power play: The hidden curriculum
• Dau, E. (Ed.) (2001). The Anti-Bias approach in Early Childhood (2nd Edition). Sydney: Addison Wesley Longman.
• Dau, E., Hughes, P., MacNaughton, G., Hetherich, D & Baird, J. (2002). Santa In Early Childhood Services: What’s
all the Fuss? CEIEC Equity Issues Paper. CEIEC University of Melbourne.
• Davis, K. (2004). White Early Childhood Educators Re-focusing Reflection CEIEC Members Issues Paper 3.3
• Derman-Sparks, L. and the Anti-Bias Task Force (1989). The Anti-Bias curriculum: Tools for Empowering Young
Children Washington, DC: National Association for the Education of Young Children.

25. • Mac Naughton, G. (2003). Shaping Early Childhood: Learners, Curriculum and Contexts, Berkshire: McGraw Hill.
• MacNaughton, G. (2005). Doing Foucault in Early Childhood Studies: Applying Poststructural Ideas, London:
Routledge
• Robinson, K.H. & Jones Díaz, C. (2006). Diversity and Difference in Early Childhood Educaiton: Issues for Theory
and Practice Open University Press: Berkshire.
• Siraj-Blatchford, I. (1994). The Early Years: Laying the Foundations for Racial Equality, England: Trentham Books.
• Sleeter, C.E. & Grant, C.A. (2004)., Making Choices for Multicultural Education:Five Approaches to Race, Class
and Gender, Columbus: Merrill Publishers
• Vandenbroeck, M. (2004). Diverse Aspects of Diversity: A European Perspective, International Journal of Equity
and Innovation in Early Childhood 2 (2).

26. R U R I K N A C K E R U D
C O N TA C T M E
R N A C K E R U D @ E L I S A B E T H M O R R O W. O R G
@ R U R I K N A C K E R U D
Every game you play is cultural and value laden, every activity or experience you provide is cultural and value laden. Every decision you make is cultural and value laden.
Once we begin to recognise the politics of what we do everyday we can begin to see how everyday living in children’s services is a multicultural experience. This means
that we have to be conscious every day about how we include, represent, value, respect and celebrate culture on a daily basis in order to avoid perpetuating racism,
sexism, homophobia, classism and language discrimination. That’s why we need to focus on equity in our everyday practice in order to work towards social justice in the
lives of
children, their families and the communities in which we work. The nature of this work is ongoing.