Kyunghwa Lee

Drawing on Giyoo Hatano and Naomi Miyake’s (1991) idea about “a double-sided effect” of culture, I examine various sociohistorical constraints, including taken-for-granted beliefs and practices, that support and hinder the process of teaching and learning in early schooling. My recent research is focused on investigating early childhood teachers’ beliefs about typical and atypical child development in general and their perspectives on young children with Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) in particular. In this line of research, I examine the intersections of race, class, and disability in the current policy context of high-stakes accountability standards. Linking the increasing prevalence of ADHD among young children to disembodiment in today’s early schooling, I also explore robotics education as a possible pedagogy to bring blocks and children’s bodies back into early childhood classrooms.