Multiple Perspectives on Superhero Play in an Early Childhood Classroom
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MULTIPLE PERSPECTIVES ON SUPERHERO PLAY IN AN EARLY CHILDHOOD CLASSROOM DISSERTATION Prepared in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Philosophy in the Graduate School of The Ohio State University By Jeanne Susanne Galbraith, B.A., M.A. ***** The Ohio State University 2007 Dissertation Committee: Approved By: Professor Laurie Katz, Adviser ________________________ Professor David Fernie Adviser Professor Rebecca Kantor College of Education Professor Barbara Seidl Copyright by Jeanne Pratt Galbraith 2007 ABSTRACT This dissertation study examined the phenomenon of superhero play in an early childhood classroom. Superhero play is an understudied and sometimes controversial form of play that is sometimes banned or limited in early childhood classrooms (Holland, 2003). The limited studies on superhero play focus on the teachers’ perspectives, often of those who ban or limit it, and on developmental perspectives emphasizing either positive or negative aspects of the play. The purpose of this study was to understand superhero play from multiple perspectives including the perspectives of the people involved, particularly the children and through teachers who support this play, and through theoretical perspectives, including sociocultural and poststructural. This is an ethnographic study focusing on understand superhero play in context through a thorough examination of the school culture, the peer culture interested in superheroes, and the intersections between the school and peer culture. The primary methods were participant observation, with the researcher becoming a member of the school culture and peer culture interested in superheroes, interviews, video recording and revisiting, and document analysis. Findings of the study reveal superhero play to be complex and multifaceted phenomenon. The findings from the school culture and teachers’ perspectives highlight how superheroes and superhero play became part of almost every aspect of the school ii routines and activities. The teachers’ perspectives on supporting superhero play align with their valuing children’s interests, relationships, and using democratic practices. The findings from peer culture and children’s perspectives are presented through both a group and individual analysis. From the peer culture group, shared connections to superhero play included affiliation and inclusion, leadership, power, and the expression of care. Individual differences in the group included emotional connections, physical expression, and learning language. The intersections between the school culture and peer culture around superhero play occurred as a result of mediation from the teachers. The findings of this study have implications for classroom teachers to understand more about children’s interest in superheroes and how a set of teachers was able to mediate superhero play in the classroom context. iii Dedicated to The Teachers and Children at the Laboratory School & Steve and Audrey Galbraith iv ACKNOWLEDGMENTS First and foremost, I wish to thank Kathy and Andrea for welcoming me into their classroom. It was one of the most enjoyable experiences I have had both personally and professionally. Their passion for early childhood education and their professional commitments to the field are invaluable. Thank you to all of the children for allowing me to play with you, for sharing your personal feelings, thoughts, and sometimes your secrets with me, but most of all for developing friendships with me. I also would like to thank the director and the families for supporting this study and for all of the teacher assistants and practicum students for participating in the study. I would like to express my gratitude to all of the members of my dissertation committee. They all have provided me with guidance, support, and mentoring throughout my doctoral studies. They have had a profound influence on my development as a scholar and teacher educator. Specifically, I would like to thank my adviser Dr. Laurie Katz for her patience, support, and guidance, especially through the writing of the dissertation. I am particularly indebted to Dr. David Fernie for leading me to this dissertation topic and methodology, guiding me throughout the dissertation study, even if from a distance, and for his strong support and encouragement of my professional growth. I also thank Dr. Rebecca Kantor and Dr. Barbara Seidl for their continuous support and encouragement throughout my years at Ohio State. v I thank my fellow graduate students, Chiharu Uchida and Kristin Reninger, for their advice on scholarship and writing, but especially for making doctoral studies both professionally stimulating and personally enjoyable. I especially would like to thank my mother and father, John and Ginger Pratt, for their encouragement and support of all of my academic endeavors. I also thank my Grandmother and Grandfather Miller for their continuous encouragement and financial support for pursuing my education over the years. I thank my sister Jill and my brother Andrew for being my superhero play partners in my childhood. A special thank you to my mother-in-law Joan Galbraith for her love, kindness, and endless support. I cherish the time I was able to spend with you. Thank you to my father-in-law, Ken Galbraith, and my siblings-in-law, Jim and Anne for all of their encouragement. Finally, I wish to thank my immediate family. I thank my husband Steve for motivating me to pursue doctoral studies, the endless hours reading, editing, and discussing my scholarship, and most importantly for his enduring love and patience. I thank my daughter Audrey for her unconditional love, her smile, and her beautiful voice. You provided me with motivation to write so I could spend more time with you. I thank both of you for providing me the motivation and support to complete this dissertation, which at times seemed to be an impossible task. Thank you. vi VITA October 12, 1972…………………………… Born – Rochester, New York 1994…………………………………………B.A., Interdisciplinary Social Sciences (Early Childhood Education), University at Buffalo, Buffalo, New York 1996………………………………............... M.A., Early Childhood Special Education, Teachers College, Columbia University, New York, New York 1996-1998…………………………………...Early Childhood Special Education Teacher Gateway-Longview Therapeutic Preschool Buffalo, New York 1999-2001…………………………………...Special Education Teacher, Bangor Public Schools, Bangor, Maine 2000-2001…………………………………...Adjunct Faculty, Eastern Maine Technical College, Bangor, Maine 2001-2005………………………………….. Graduate Research and Teaching Associate, The Ohio State University 2005-2006………………………………….. Program Coordinator, Early Childhood Quality Network, The Ohio State University 2006-2007………………………………….. Visiting Assistant Professor, Early Childhood Education, Ohio University Lancaster PUBLICATIONS Galbraith, J. & Katz, L. (2007). Children’s Media. In R. New & M. Cochran (Eds). Early Childhood Education: An International Encyclopedia. Westport, CT: Greenwood Publishing. vii Katz, L. & Galbraith, J. (2006). Making the “Social” Visible within Inclusive Classrooms. Journal of Research in Childhood Education, 21 (1), 5-21 Galbraith, J. (2004). Book Review: Building academic success on social and emotional learning: What does the research say? Josephs Zins, Roger Weissberg, Margaret Wang, & Herbert J. Walberg (Editors), Teachers College Record, 7 (5) http://www.tcrecord.org/Content.asp?ContentID=11415 FIELDS OF STUDY Major Field: Education Minor Fields: Early Childhood Education, Equity and Diversity, Teacher Education viii TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ABSTRACT……………………………………………………………………….. ii DEDICATION…………………………………………………………………….. iv ACKNOWLEDGMENTS…………………………………………………………..v VITA……………………………………………………………………………….. vii LIST OF TABLES………………………………………………………………….xiv LIST OF FIGURES………………………………………………………………... xvi LIST OF PHOTOGRAPHS………………………………………………………...xvii CHAPTERS 1. INTRODUCTION……………………………………………………………….1 Topic and Purpose…………………………………………………………..1 Methodological Rationale…………………………………………………..5 Why Multiple Perspectives?..........................................................................5 Overview of the Dissertation……………………………………………….7 2. LITERATURE REVIEW………………………………………………………..9 People Perspectives on Superhero Play: Teachers, Children, and Families..9 Teachers’ Perspectives……………………………………………...10 Children’s Perspectives………………….......................................... 15 Families’ Perspectives………………………………………………20 Theoretical Perspectives on Superhero Play……………………………….. 23 Developmental Theoretical Perspectives…………………………... 23 Social Learning Theory……………………………………..24 Psychoanalytic Theory……………………………………... 26 Psychosocial Theory……………………………………….. 27 Cognitive-Developmental Theory…………………………..29 Sociocultural Theoretical Perspectives……………………………...39 Vygotsky’s Sociocultural Perspective………………………39 Peer Culture Perspective…………………………………….44 Sociopolitical Perspective………………………………………….. 50 Poststructural Perspectives………………………………………….52 Feminist Poststructural……………………………………...53 Bakhtin……………………………………………………... 58 ix Foucault……………………………………………………..63 3. METHODOLOGY……………………………………………………………….68 Ethnography………………………………………………………………... 69 Research Site and Participants……………………………………………... 73 Research Site……………………………………………………….. 73 Curriculum…………………………………………………………. 74 Daily Schedule……………………………………………………... 75 Participants…………………………………………………………. 77 Children……………………………………………………..77 Adults………………………………………………………. 78 Access and Entry……………………………………………………79 Researcher’s Role…………………………………………………………...80