Implementing Children’s Rights in Everyday Preschool Practice: Educators’ Experiences in Five Preschools

Abstract

This article presents findings from a qualitative study conducted in five preschools in Reykjavík, Iceland, exploring early childhood educators’ experiences of implementing the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) in everyday preschool practice. The primary objective of the study was to shed light on how the principles of children’s rights were interpreted and applied, as well as how the implementation process influenced professional attitudes, pedagogical practices, and organizational culture. Special attention is paid to the tensions and opportunities that arose when educators attempted to balance the child’s right to participation with adult responsibility for the child’s well-being.

The study is grounded in critical perspectives on children’s participation, drawing on Lundy’s (2007) theoretical model, which emphasizes the interrelated conditions of space, voice, audience, and influence. Additionally, the study engages with the concept of a ´pedagogy of listening´ and an ethical and professional commitment to children’s perspectives, as well as Rosenberg’s (2022, 2025) work on contextual, experience-based rights education. Sociological perspectives on power, recognition, and interpretive authority (Christensen & Prout, 2002; Correia & Aguiar, 2023) further inform the analytical lens.

Methodologically, the research adopted a qualitative case study approach. Data was collected through observations, focus group interviews, and semi-structured individual interviews with educators participating in a UNICEF-supported Rights Respecting School project. The analysis focused on educators’ narratives of change, reflections on practice, and experiences of professional learning.

Findings reveal that the implementation of children’s rights was a multifaceted and context-dependent process that challenged existing norms and routines in preschool culture. Educators reported a growing awareness of children’s agency and the need to create space for children’s voices in everyday interactions, including mealtimes, clothing choices, play, and group activities. However, this transformation did not occur automatically or uniformly. Instead, it required sustained professional reflection, peer dialogue, and leadership support.

Educators described how the process of incorporating children’s rights involved a gradual shift in power relations, where adults learned to step back and allow children to take initiative. This shift, however, often created uncertainty. Many educators expressed a lack of confidence in interpreting the UNCRC and noted that their knowledge was largely informal or derived from personal experience. They highlighted the absence of clear guidance, practical examples, and consistent leadership as major barriers to meaningful rights-based practice. These findings echo previous research (e.g., Jóhanna Einarsdóttir, 2008; Anna Magnea Hreinsdóttir, 2012), which suggests that surface-level awareness of children’s rights is common, but deeper integration requires structured professional development and collective commitment.

Importantly, the study identified several dilemmas faced by educators, particularly in reconciling the child’s right to autonomy with the educators’ responsibility for the child’s safety and welfare. Situations such as allowing children to make decisions about their food intake or outdoor clothing in cold weather illustrated the tension between respecting children’s choices and acting in their best interest. These examples illustrate how ethical judgment, rather than rigid rule-following, becomes central to enacting children’s rights in practice.

Rather than viewing these tensions as problematic, this article argues that they can serve as valuable entry points for ethical dialogue and pedagogical development. Building on the idea of a pedagogical ethics of listening (Lawrence, 2022), the findings show that everyday decision-making becomes a space for negotiating values, responsibilities, and power. In this sense, education of children’s rights is not a technical implementation of legal norms, but a relational and reflective practice embedded in the cultural and social context of each preschool.

The research also underscores the importance of leadership and institutional commitment. In cases where preschool leaders took an active role, set clear expectations, and facilitated opportunities for shared reflection, educators reported more consistent and confident rights-based practice. Conversely, in the absence of such leadership, the implementation relied heavily on individual initiative and enthusiasm, leading to uneven outcomes. These insights align with international literature on the role of school leadership in fostering democratic school culture and children’s participation (e.g., Clark, 2020; Sigrún Vatnsdal Bjarnadóttir, 2025).

In conclusion, the article highlights that implementing children’s rights in early childhood education is not merely a matter of introducing a set of principles or following guidelines. It is a transformative professional and institutional process that calls for time, ethical awareness, shared responsibility, and supportive structures. The study contributes to the growing body of literature emphasizing the need to situate education of rights within the lived realities of preschool settings and to engage educators in ongoing professional learning communities. When children’s rights become a part of the pedagogical culture, not only in words but in daily practice, they hold the potential to reshape power relations and promote social justice from the earliest years of education.