Third-Culture Kids in early childhood education

Abstract

This paper’s purpose is to introduce the Third-Culture Kid (TCK) phenomenon and seek the significant aspects of a highly mobile lifestyle, focusing on their impact on young children learning in the early childhood education programme. Such features include the potential positive and negative consequences of growing up in a multicultural environment. Furthermore, this study dissects the question of whether young children should be directly exposed to cultural awareness at a young age, thereby highlighting educators’ crucial role in achieving culturally responsible pedagogy in the preschool context. Triangulation was used based on three methods of data collection. A quantitative survey positioned the voices of 140 Adult Third-Culture Kids (ATCK) in the forefront in order to examine their TCK experience. A qualitative interview focused on ten professional childhood educators’ practical knowledge. Finally, a qualitative case study exploring a TCK experience completed the survey. This research offers both a conceptual framework and practical understanding of the complex influence of the TCK lifestyle on children participating in early childhood education.