Coyote Play: A Critical Inquiry Of Power At A Nature-Based Preschool
Abstract
The distribution of power in the educational institution exists as a hierarchy from governing bodies to the masses. This causes children within the institution to align themselves with the institution rather than the institution meeting the needs of the children it serves. The purpose of this study is to examine how children engage with power at a nature-based preschool. The researcher used data from field observations and programmatic resources to analyze the power enacted by children. The researcher found that the children enact power through structures, to define place, care for themselves, and care for others. The implications of this research go beyond the nature-based program to realize that relations of power are within all educational spaces and children, teachers, parents, and administration all can manifest power.
