Possibilities and challenges of early critical literacy practices: Bilingual preschoolers’ exploring multiple voices and gender roles

Abstract

Despite the emphasis on the significance of critical literacy, there has been a startling paucity of studies examining how critical literacy pedagogies can be implemented to preschool bilingual settings. In order to address this gap in the research, this qualitative case study examines the possibilities and challenges of critical literacy in bilingual Korean preschool contexts. Based on Freire’s notion that literacy is inherently political, this study focused on six 4-year-old Korean bilingual children’s reading of picture books during a read-aloud session at the Korean Language School in a Midwestern state. The data were collected for 5 months using multiple collection sources such as audio/video recordings, observational field notes, interviews, children’s artifacts, and an informal notebook, including memos and field jottings. Findings suggest that critical literacy helps young bilingual children to explore multiple perspectives and challenge the dominant gender ideologies. For professionals in early childhood education, the study may contribute to our understanding of the significance of critical literacy conversations with bilingual preschool children.