2300273- ECU504
Equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI) are critical components of today’s
education, and recognising this will foster a learning environment where
all children feel valued and heard regardless of their background. This
portfolio will first show how children’s literature can be used to explore EDI
and help children understand complex topics such as socio-economic
disparities. It will then analyse two journal articles based around the topic:
decolonising the curriculum. This analysis will explore two perspectives of
decolonisation with reference to Mignolo (2011). Lastly the portfolio will
discuss and reflect on a discussion on teachers prioritising EDI in practice.
It will critically examine how teachers can be supported to prioritise EDI
through systemic changes with reference to Crenshaw (1991).
Document analysis
In this section, I will show how a children’s book (Last Stop On Market
Street by Matt de la Pena, 2015) can be used to promote equality,
diversity, and inclusion in early year education. I will analyse the book’s
themes, content and characters, exploring how it can be used to support
children’s understanding of complex topics and inclusive values.
There are many ways to support equality, diversity and inclusion in the
early years, one of these ways can be using story books. Last Stop On
Market Street by Matt de la Pena (2015) follows a boy, CJ, and his
grandmother, Nana, who are both black, as they ride
a bus through their city. While waiting for the bus, CJ
questions Nana as to why all his friends have a car
1
,2300273- ECU504
but they do not, and why their neighbourhood is not as affluent as others.
Nana responds by encouraging CJ to see the beauty and opportunity in
their community. When they are on the bus, they meet a diverse group of
passengers, including a blind man, a tattooed man and a busker who each
contribute to the vibrant community. CJ learns to appreciate the
differences and experiences of others. When they reach their destination,
a soup kitchen, CJ realizes the importance of helping others and the luxury
of the human connections he has made. This story highlights themes of
empathy and social awareness whilst addressing economic gaps and
celebrating diversity. Through Nana’s wisdom, CJ gains a new perspective
and learns to see the world with compassion.
This book has many strengths that allow it to be used to promote equality,
diversity and inclusion in the early years. The first strength is that the
book shows people from different racial, cultural and socio-economic
backgrounds interacting and living in harmony. This representation helps
children see diversity as natural and a positive part of the world around
them. Albert Bandura’s social learning theory (1977) emphasizes the
significance of observing, modelling and imitating the behaviours,
attitudes and emotional reactions of others within children’s development
(McLeod, 2024). In the book, CJ interacts with a diverse group of people
from different walks of life and by normalising diversity, the book provides
role models that can help shape children’s attitudes towards inclusion.
Bandura (1977) also highlights the importance of reinforcement.
Practitioners can use this book as the focus for a leaded discussion, such
2
, 2300273- ECU504
as discussing how everyone contributes to a community and reflecting on
their own experience of diversity. Research by MacNaughton (2009) talks
about how early year practitioners need to actively ‘scaffold’ learning to
make complex social topics easier for children to grasp, by using age-
appropriate activities.
Another strength of this book is that it challenges stereotypes. The Critical
Race Theory by Delgado & Stefancic (2017) discusses how counter-
storytelling can be used to challenge dominant cultural narratives
(Castelli, 2020). This means producing
characters in books and media that have
a representation for everyone. In the
book we see there is a racially diverse
community, with a black main character
and we can infer from her dialogue that Nana is Caribbean. By including
such characters, the book dethrones the traditional Eurocentric and
classist narratives that are often prevalent in children’s literature.
However, while the characters on the bus are diverse, their backstories
are not explored in detail. The lack of depth into the different personalities
might make it harder for children to connect or empathise with these
characters as individuals. Vygotsky’s Zone of Proximal Development
(1978) infers that with guidance from practitioners, children can better
understand and grasp complex topics.
An additional strength of the book is that it supports intergenerational
relationships. When we are discussing equality, diversion and inclusion
3
Equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI) are critical components of today’s
education, and recognising this will foster a learning environment where
all children feel valued and heard regardless of their background. This
portfolio will first show how children’s literature can be used to explore EDI
and help children understand complex topics such as socio-economic
disparities. It will then analyse two journal articles based around the topic:
decolonising the curriculum. This analysis will explore two perspectives of
decolonisation with reference to Mignolo (2011). Lastly the portfolio will
discuss and reflect on a discussion on teachers prioritising EDI in practice.
It will critically examine how teachers can be supported to prioritise EDI
through systemic changes with reference to Crenshaw (1991).
Document analysis
In this section, I will show how a children’s book (Last Stop On Market
Street by Matt de la Pena, 2015) can be used to promote equality,
diversity, and inclusion in early year education. I will analyse the book’s
themes, content and characters, exploring how it can be used to support
children’s understanding of complex topics and inclusive values.
There are many ways to support equality, diversity and inclusion in the
early years, one of these ways can be using story books. Last Stop On
Market Street by Matt de la Pena (2015) follows a boy, CJ, and his
grandmother, Nana, who are both black, as they ride
a bus through their city. While waiting for the bus, CJ
questions Nana as to why all his friends have a car
1
,2300273- ECU504
but they do not, and why their neighbourhood is not as affluent as others.
Nana responds by encouraging CJ to see the beauty and opportunity in
their community. When they are on the bus, they meet a diverse group of
passengers, including a blind man, a tattooed man and a busker who each
contribute to the vibrant community. CJ learns to appreciate the
differences and experiences of others. When they reach their destination,
a soup kitchen, CJ realizes the importance of helping others and the luxury
of the human connections he has made. This story highlights themes of
empathy and social awareness whilst addressing economic gaps and
celebrating diversity. Through Nana’s wisdom, CJ gains a new perspective
and learns to see the world with compassion.
This book has many strengths that allow it to be used to promote equality,
diversity and inclusion in the early years. The first strength is that the
book shows people from different racial, cultural and socio-economic
backgrounds interacting and living in harmony. This representation helps
children see diversity as natural and a positive part of the world around
them. Albert Bandura’s social learning theory (1977) emphasizes the
significance of observing, modelling and imitating the behaviours,
attitudes and emotional reactions of others within children’s development
(McLeod, 2024). In the book, CJ interacts with a diverse group of people
from different walks of life and by normalising diversity, the book provides
role models that can help shape children’s attitudes towards inclusion.
Bandura (1977) also highlights the importance of reinforcement.
Practitioners can use this book as the focus for a leaded discussion, such
2
, 2300273- ECU504
as discussing how everyone contributes to a community and reflecting on
their own experience of diversity. Research by MacNaughton (2009) talks
about how early year practitioners need to actively ‘scaffold’ learning to
make complex social topics easier for children to grasp, by using age-
appropriate activities.
Another strength of this book is that it challenges stereotypes. The Critical
Race Theory by Delgado & Stefancic (2017) discusses how counter-
storytelling can be used to challenge dominant cultural narratives
(Castelli, 2020). This means producing
characters in books and media that have
a representation for everyone. In the
book we see there is a racially diverse
community, with a black main character
and we can infer from her dialogue that Nana is Caribbean. By including
such characters, the book dethrones the traditional Eurocentric and
classist narratives that are often prevalent in children’s literature.
However, while the characters on the bus are diverse, their backstories
are not explored in detail. The lack of depth into the different personalities
might make it harder for children to connect or empathise with these
characters as individuals. Vygotsky’s Zone of Proximal Development
(1978) infers that with guidance from practitioners, children can better
understand and grasp complex topics.
An additional strength of the book is that it supports intergenerational
relationships. When we are discussing equality, diversion and inclusion
3
