Child participation in intercultural education
Empowering diverse kindergarteners as rights-holders
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 23310873 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Angela K Salmon (0000-0002-3411-9398, Florida International University, corresponding author), Kiriaki Melliou (0000-0002-7297-7852, Directorate of Piraeus Primary Education) |
| Year | 2026 |
| Pages | 1-22 |
| Publication date | 2026-07-23 |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | European Journal of Intercultural studies (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0952-391X • E-ISSN: 1469-8439 |
| Publisher | Informa UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1080/14675986.2026.2705659 |
| OpenAlex | W7170582577 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 18 |
This qualitative comparative case study integrates participatory action research and narrative inquiry to explore how children from diverse and immigrant-origin backgrounds in two low-income Greek kindergarten classrooms understand and enact their rights. Children were engaged in cycles of storytelling, dialogue, reflection, and collective action. Guided by Lundy’s Participation Model, the study illustrates how children’s rights education can transition from policy discourse to lived classroom practice. Findings show that storytelling and dialogue deepen children’s understanding of rights and foster transcendent thinking, enabling them to connect emotional experiences with civic and moral meaning. Through developmentally appropriate pedagogies, children developed empathy, inclusion, and agency as they engaged with issues of fairness, justice, and belonging. These findings underscore the significance of intercultural education in promoting children’s well-being and social participation by cultivating classroom communities where learners feel seen, valued, and included. The study also highlights that children’s rights are culturally situated, calling for rights-based approaches that respect diversity while empowering children as rights holders. Findings challenge shielding young children from sensitive issues, showing that emotionally grounded, participatory learning strengthens engagement, well-being, and agency. Centring children’s voices reveals the transformative power of culturally responsive rights education for building inclusive, democratic learning environments for all learners.
Action research · Agency (philosophy) · Citizen journalism · Cultural diversity · Democratic Education · Diversity (politics) · Early childhood education · Narrative · Participatory action research · Transformative learning · Children's Rights and Participation · Global Education and Multiculturalism · Peace and Human Rights Education
Humanizing Research
Working With Young Children as Co-Researchers
Purposeful Sampling for Qualitative Data Collection and Analysis in Mixed Method Implementation Research
Co-participatory multimodal intergenerational storytelling
It is Really Important That We Sometimes Remember the Children and Their Views Rather than Just Our Own’
Human Rights Group Intervention in Primary School
Voice’ is not enough
Experience and Education
Child development
| Highly cited | No |
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