Kindergartens in Northern Norway as semiotic landscapes.

The study investigates how kindergartens in Northern Norway create an environment that is welcoming and inspiring for transnational migrants, indigenous children and children from the majority population. The research question is: How is linguistic and cultural diversity constructed in the semiotic landscapes of two Northern Norwegian kindergartens? The researchers ask whether diversity is a shared value for all, or whether diversity is considered in the context of each individual child.

The analysis reveals tensions in how diversity and belonging are portrayed. A tension exists between creating a sense of belonging for all children and at the same time highlighting individual differences. Another tension exists between the ordinary and the exotic. Diversity related to transnational migration seems to be more integrated into the semiotic landscape, while the indigenous people, the Sámi People, are stereotypically represented in kindergartens.

The data material was collected as part of the research and development project Competence for diversity. In this study, the findings from two kindergartens in Northern Norway are used. The data includes 5.5 hours of interviews with two kindergarten coordinators and four kindergarten teachers, as well as 74 photographs from the two kindergartens and six documents (annual plans and development plans, as well as the interviewers' field notes).

Pesch, A. M., Dardanou, M. & Sollid, H. (2021). "Kindergartens in Northern Norway as semiotic landscapes". Linguistic Landscape, 7(3):314-343.