Playing with power: An ethnography by proxy study of de/colonial play habits in UK Froebelian early childhood environments

This paper presents findings from our project entitled ‘Diversity in Unity: Developing an anti-racist framework within Froebelian pedagogy’. We apply an ethnography by proxy approach informed by the work of Jones and Okun on colonial and decolonial habits. Drawing from two nursery settings in England and Scotland, we engage with the methodological practice of classification and wonder to propose more open-ended ways of attuning to the complexities of de/coloniality at play. Based on our data, we propose that these frameworks allow deeper engagement with the precursitivities of race/ism and may facilitate practitioner commitments and confidence to pay continuous attention to how play can liberate children from racialised ways of knowing and being known. Our research reveals how children, even in symbolic play, replicate and resist colonial habits such as exclusion, perfectionism and power hoarding. Through the lens of Froebelian pedagogy, which values free play as a space for the authentic expression of ideas, we explore how practitioners can attune to these precursivities of racialisation and exclusion. We argue that by being critically reflective of these often subtle dynamics, practitioners are better equipped to challenge ingrained colonial patterns and support more inclusive, liberatory play environments for children. Our study concludes by reflecting on the challenges and opportunities presented by such an approach, offering a roadmap for educators to engage in sustained anti-racist and decolonial practices in early years settings.