Environment as mediator – a discourse analysis of policy advice on physical environment in early childhood education

The study investigates how physical environments in Swedish kindergartens are used as governance tools through policy documents published by the authorities. The researcher analyses how the environment in kindergartens is designed to influence children’s behaviour and promote independence and self-regulation without direct adult intervention. In addition, the study aims to uncover how the policies include or overlook the needs of children with different requirements, especially those who need adaptation without being formally diagnosed.

The results show that Swedish authorities view the physical environment in kindergartens as a form of disciplinary power aimed at promoting children’s independence and social behaviour. The term ‘the environment as the third teacher’ is used to highlight how environments are structured to facilitate self-regulation, but without adults directly intervening. The study also finds that adaptation for children with different needs is limited to cases where the children are formally defined as disabled. The policy discourse reveals an inherent tension between the ideal of the independent child and the need for flexibility and adaptation to children’s various needs. This can result in the invisibility of children who require support but do not have a diagnosis.

The study used a discourse analysis to investigate how five policy documents published by the Swedish authorities represent and problematize children’s learning environment. By applying Carol Bacchi’s WPR approach, the policies’ assumptions and representations of challenges related to the kindergarten environment are analysed. The analysis maps the qualities that the environments are expected to promote in children and how the physical design of kindergartens influences their health and development.

Andersson, E. (2023). Environment as mediator – a discourse analysis of policy advice on physical environment in early childhood education. Children's Geographies, 21(2), 242–256.

Online year: 2022

Issue year: 2023

Review year: 2022