“I don’t like girls”: Centring Young Children’s Perspectives on Gender in Early Childhood Care and Education settings.

“I don’t like girls”: Centring Young Children’s Perspectives on Gender in Early Childhood Care and Education settings.

Gender development begins in early childhood and is shaped through social interactions, cultural norms, and institutional practices. This paper explores how young children learn, reproduce, and at times challenge gender norms within Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) settings in Ireland. Drawing on Feminist Poststructuralist and Intersectional theory, the study centres children’s perspectives, addressing a gap in ECCE gender research that has largely prioritised adult voices. Using participatory, rights-based methods with children alongside educator interviews and setting observations, the study generated rich, child-led data. Preliminary findings indicate that children largely conform to traditional gender norms in play, interactions and self-expression, while educator interviews revealed limited knowledge of gender-focused Diversity, Equality and Inclusion practices. The paper highlights the importance of centring children’s voices in gender research and points to the need for targeted, gender-responsive professional development in ECCE.