Acquiring knowledge about a culture through children’s literature: The challenges of using Asian cinderella picturebooks

Abstract

This article examines picturebooks based on a popular folktale, Cinderella, but told from the cultural lenses of several Asian countries such as Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Philippines, and Vietnam. These variants of the well-known children’s literature have the potential to influence thinking and promote an awareness of culture among young learners. The article addresses the question about the acquisition of new knowledge of a specific culture through children literature with the use of picturebooks. Using content analysis on five picturebooks selected for the study, the researcher found that images of human and non-human characters as well as cultural artifacts promote perceptions of a specific culture. Also, culture-specific texts serve as an invitation to the reader to explore significant moments in the story, given the culture or group of people. Finally, the researcher recommends that before selecting children’s books for the classroom, teachers should engage in the process of reviewing the curriculum, collaborating with other teachers, consulting with a cultural expert, and planning for multicultural experiences.