Early Childhood in Postcolonial Australia: Children's Contested Identities [Hardcover]

Early Childhood in Postcolonial Australia is a critical narration of how Australian children use cultural markers such as, skin color, diet and religious practices to build their identity categories of "self" and "other."Introduction: Who Am I? Who Is My Ganga? 1. My Ganga: Our Beginnings, Our Context, Our Stories 2. My Ganga "Speaks": othering, Othering, ?thering Australian/not Australian 3. My Ganga "Speaks": Complex(ion) of Australian/not Australian 4. My Ganga "Speaks": Forbidden Fs of Australian/not Australian 5. My Ganga "Speaks": Tongue Ties of Australian/not Australian 6. My Ganga "Speaks": Terra Strikes of Australian/not Australian 7. Contesting Australian with Children: In othered/Othered/?thered Voices Epilogue: (Re)contesting Identities with ?ther and Other Australians

Srinivasan turns to 'Ganga' the river of India as a schizophrenic voice of reason, strength and enlightenment during this cultural identity quest. It is here that she challenges the constant 'race talk' between children, teachers and families. Early childhood teachers struggle with these situations, often choosing to discard the existence of 'race talk', silence the discussion, or justify the intent through multicultural and nationalistic ideologies. This book will help to unlock these conversations giving permission to speak and permission to trouble and engage with the highly stimulating and unique insights. - Tracy Young, Lecturer in Early Childhood Education, Swinburne University of Technology, Australia

This is a must read book that attempts to depict the post-colonial reality for the Australian who wonders about 'being Australian' and the meaning of it in one's own identity claiming as 'boundary speaks'. Srinivasan makes a useful contribution to the academic literature that sheds light on culture, mono-culture, and multi-culture inlĂ)