公立A幼稚園において外国籍の３人の子どもはどのように園生活に馴染んでいるのか : うえの式質的分析法によるフィールドノーツの分析をもとに

The aim of this study was to observe three children of different nationalities to determine how they fit into preschool life in Japan, and to examine what is associated with the adaptation of young children with foreign links to a Japanese preschool. Fieldwork was conducted in one class in public kindergarten A, where there are relatively few cases of enrollment by foreign-linked children. The fieldnotes were then analyzed using Ueno's qualitative analysis. The results revealed the ways in which foreign-linked children become adapted to life at kindergarten A. They were not uniform, but rather varied from child to child. However, while all three children did adapt, there were also situations in which they did not seem to be fully adjusted to life at the school. For example, A-kun often showed signs of being concerned about his surroundings, while B-kun sometimes had problems with his friends, due to his unfamiliarity with Japanese customs. The background to their adapting to kindergarten life is thought to be related to three factors: the atmosphere of the school itself, the relationships with their caregivers and other children, and the play environment. In addition, by using Ueno’s methods to analyze the fieldnotes subjectively , it was possible to bring to light points that had not previously been made fully clear at the time of the observation and to depict latent contexts and events in the children’s lives. It is significant that this study showed how observational data can be analyzed using Ueno's approach.