| Daily observations and interviews of preschool children, teachers and parents in three distinct, socioeconomically diverse populations highlight differences of attitudes regarding popular culture. This study is specifically concerned with parents and teacher's attitudes as they construct rules and expectations or "strategies" for popular culture and how children interpret and sometimes rebel against these rules banning or limiting popular culture. Preschools in this study were stratified: a working class early childhood block grant preschool, a middle class faith based preschool and an upper-middle class Montessori preschool. In all preschools the manner that popular culture was limited reflected goals, means and ideological differences of the preschool. Children were aware of rules governing these popular cultures and used different tactics to subvert these rules. Tactics such as hiding evidence, lowering voices, waiting until the teacher was out of sight or object reappropriation were common in the preschools Children within these sites are acknowledged to detect and discern messages regarding popular culture and use the ideas at their own discretion. |
