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ECEC: Personnel perspectives on supporting families with an immigrant background living in Finland
Book chapter

ECEC: Personnel perspectives on supporting families with an immigrant background living in Finland

Lassi Lavanti, Arniika Kuusisto and Heidi Harju-Luukkainen
Handbook on Families and Education: Theory, Research and Practice, pp.176-190
Elgar Handbooks In Education, Edward Elgar Publishing
04/02/2025
DOI: https://doi.org/10.4337/9781035300686.00020
Appears in  Recent Faculty of Education Publications

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Abstract

This study examines by what means do early childhood education and care (ECEC) personnel support families with an immigrant background in their societal membership. The theoretical framework of the study reflects the politics of belonging. The empirical material was gathered through semi-structured interviews with five ECEC unit leaders interviewed individually, and nine ECEC teachers interviewed in four focus groups, each comprising between two and four teachers. The interviews were analysed inductively, and the reported content analysis draws on constructivist grounded theory (CGT). The results indicate that actions by the personnel aimed at supporting the families could indeed be supportive and inclusive, or they could further contribute to ‘othering’. This implies a need to problematize and reconsider what is understood as belonging to Finnish culture. Findings from this process could then be applied in the development of policies and political systems aimed at supporting immigrant families to achieve a sense of belonging. Analytical facets such as social location, identification, and emotional attachment, as well as ethical and political values, would facilitate this process.

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