The document discusses strategies for increasing cultural inclusion in early childhood education. It outlines barriers faced by Aboriginal, Torres Strait Islander, and culturally diverse families in accessing kindergarten. These include financial barriers, lack of cultural safety, trauma, and differences in cultural understandings of education. The presenters describe how the EMBRACE program promoted inclusion through educator training, community partnerships, culturally appropriate staffing, and flexible service delivery. Recommended strategies include developing cultural competence, employing bilingual workers, eliminating financial barriers, engaging families through community programs, and advocating for universal free kindergarten access.

1. Reflections on our learnings about
cultural inclusion in early childhood
Presenters:
Cherie Lamb
Ranu James
Rekha Prasad
Elle Hughes

3. L to R: Ranu James, Elle Hughes Dorothy Brown (C & K), Cherie Lamb and Rekha Prasad

4. To increase kindergarten participation for children from
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander and Culturally and
Linguistically Diverse backgrounds
Purpose:

5. • Professional development
training for educators
• Resource development and
information dissemination
• Policy development to remove
barriers to kindergarten
participation
• Supporting strong linkages
between community and the early
childhood sector
http://embracekindy.com.au
EMBRACE has promoted cultural diversity
in ECEC through:

6. Partners:

7. • Poorer health and wellbeing outcomes
• Risk of educational failure
• Exclusion in their teenage years
• Acculturation stress
• Reduced coping strategies
• Limited access to higher education &
employment
• Reduced financial opportunities
• Risk of incarceration
• Resultant cost to society (economic & social)
What happens when children don’t participate in
a high quality ECEC?

8. What are some of the barriers to
participation for families from diverse
cultural backgrounds that you have
experienced in your service?

9. Financial barriers
• Cost of kindergarten is prohibitive in Qld.
• Fragmented ECEC system
• Subsidies poorly understood by educators and parents
• Waiting list fees
• Structural poverty and Environmental stress factors:
• Unemployment/ underemployment
• Financial hardship
• Sub-standard housing/homelessness
• Transport is unaffordable/inaccessible

10. Cultural Safety is “...an environment that is
safe for people where there is:
• no assault, challenge or denial of their
identity,
• of who they are and what they need.
It is about shared respect, shared meaning,
shared knowledge and experience. Of
learning, living and working together with
dignity and truly listening”
(Williams 2008, p213-214)
Are all our children and families ‘culturally safe’?

11. Lack of cultural safety
• Cultural bias in service delivery
• Lack of belonging – no incentive to change
• Racism - enforcing conformity to dominant mainstream
culture
• Educators lack understanding of cultural diversity
 Fear of getting it wrong or offending so do nothing
• Entrenched institutional racism
Discriminatory institutional policies,
practices and procedures
(often unintentional)
No ESL provision
Interpreters rarely used

12. Structural and organisational barriers
• Lack of cultural competence prevents inclusive
practice in organisation and governance structures
• Lack of funding to embed cultural competence e.g.
ECEC can’t afford:
• staff training in cultural competence
• translated materials
• bilingual workers
• Interpreters
• Limited availability
• Restricted hours of operation

13. Trauma-related barriers
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families
• Effects of colonisation
• Oppressive legislation
• Stolen generation
Has lead to:
• Intergenerational impact on health and wellbeing of whole
communities
• Negative perception of government services including ECEC
services
• A well founded fear of having children removed

14. • Differences in educational systems
• The purpose of kindergarten not understood
• May not exist in some countries
• Adaptation may be difficult
• May not rate highly compared to basic survival
needs: food, shelter, employment
• Structured learning environment –
o behavioural requirements
o new language
o new cultural norms
Paperwork - in English, complicated & stigmatising
Limited shared understanding of ECEC

15. Families with refugee
experience
• Isolation
• Loss of family and support networks
• Differences in family composition
• Differences in childrearing practices
• Language and communication barriers
Source: Diversity in Practice: A resource kit for early childhood services working with children and families from migrant and refugee backgrounds in the
Nepean area (2011).
• Limited knowledge of systems
• May lack confidence to approach
services
• Lack of awareness of rights and
responsibilities
• Distrust and fear of professionals

16. More flexible service delivery
Development of cultural competence, meaningful relationships in
communities = increase in participation rates.
Lack of participation in mainstream services
does not indicate a lack of demand but
rather appropriateness.
National favouring “mainstreamisation”
Treating everyone the "same" is not the same as treating everyone "fairly"
or "equally" because the needs and experiences of all people are diverse.
‘Mainstreamisation’ of EC services

17. What strategies do you use to
assist families from diverse
cultural backgrounds to
participate in early childhood
services?

18. Strategies used by our community partners to
assist families to participate in early
childhood services.

19. Developing the cultural competence of all staff through:
• professional development
• resourcing
• support and advice
• participation in professional networks
• personal cultural competence journey
Strategies that work

20. Cultural
destructiveness
Cultural
incapacity
Cultural
blindness
Cultural pre-
competence
Cultural
proficiency
The Cultural Competence Continuum
• Inclusive policies and
procedures are in
place and reflect your
commitment to
cultural diversity.
• Your staff reflect the
cultural diversity of
your community.
• Continuously reflect
and improve practices
through research and
professional
development.
• Stay up to date with
research.
• Engage with the
cultural communities
in your area.
Aware Sensitive
• Hold beliefs and
engage in practices,
and have policies
that perpetuate and
reinforce historical
notions of Western
racial and cultural
superiority.
• Sufficient
knowledge, insight
and skills to operate
in less culturally
destructive ways.
• Reinforce culturally
biased policies and
practices.
• Foster paternalistic
notions of Western
superiority.
• Working towards
nonbiased policies
and practices that
implicitly or explicitly
encourage
assimilation.
• Inadequate
recognition of
cultural diversity.
• Recognise the need
for culturally
competent practices
procedures.
• Recognise the need
for continuous
professional
development in
cultural diversity.
• Practices and
policies have not
yet moved beyond
tokenism.
• Developed
knowledge and
reflective practices
and skills necessary
to genuinely accept
and respect cultural
differences.
• Your policies and
procedures are
‘living documents’
supportive of your
commitment to
cultural diversity.
• You are also aware
of your own culture
and the how this can
impact upon others.
Cultural
competence
Find more information here: http://ceh.org.au/culturalcompetence
© EMBRACE - Culture in Kindy, 2015

21. Employment of culturally and linguistically appropriate
support workers
Strategies that work
http://embracekindy.com.au/stories/family-belonging-is-supported-when-staff-
reflect-the-community/

22. Embed services in local communities
through:
• community-based partnership models &
• alliances with:
 local health services
 schools and
 community organisations
 families
Engage in continuous
community consultation
• appropriate feedback
mechanisms
Strategies that work

23. Link services with:
• People who have the cultural knowledge
 local Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander organisations
 ethno-specific cultural community groups
 Elders
Create opportunities for parents to participate in adult
programs such as:
 English classes,
 parent support groups,
 therapeutic groups or
 parenting programs run through
or linked closely to ECEC services
Strategies that work

24. Elimination of physical barriers by provision of practical and material
support directly to families through:
• fee relief
• waiting list payments
• assistance with enrolment paperwork
• transport
• lunch boxes, hats, bags, sunscreen
Engagement of families
via soft-entry activities:
• playgroups
• community barbeques
Strategies that work

25. Provision of outreach
• home visiting
• advocacy
• establish trust and build sustainable
relationships
• take the time to engage
Strategies that work

26. How did EMBRACE assist educators, families
and community partners?

27. Module 1: Cultural awareness
Module 2: Welcome to Country and Acknowledgement of Country
Module 3: Cross-cultural communication
Module 4: Working with interpreters
Module 5: Working with families with refugee experience
Module 6: Building cross-cultural relationships with parents
Embracing diversity in kindergarten
Free e-learning modules

29. Our policy messages to government
 Universal access to free kindergarten
(24 hours p/w for 3 & 4 year olds)
 Extend the Kindy Plus subsidy to refugees and
asylum seekers
 Do not link ECEC participation to parental
workforce participation
 Train and employ more Aboriginal, TSI and CALD
educators & family support practitioners
 Ongoing face-to-face cultural proficiency
training for all staff in ECEC
 Collect CALD/NESB participation data in all
ECEC services

30. Thank You
Any Questions?