Norm? Power? Neutrality? – Critically shaping educational spaces with diversity awareness
You shape spaces every day – not only physical ones, but also through language, routines, and attitude. In this unit, you look behind the facade of apparent neutrality and realize: Every educational space is shaped by norms and power relations. You learn how you can act in a discrimination-sensitive way, take responsibility, and make your pedagogical everyday practice more inclusive – together with the people you work with.
Warm up
Imagine you are entering an educational institution for the first time. You do not know anyone, and you do not know anything about customs.
– What do you pay attention to?
– Which cues show you whether you are meant to be included?
– What would help you to feel safe, welcome, and effective?
Learn
"The space is not neutral"
Spaces as a mirror of social norms
Spaces in educational institutions are never neutral – they reflect social, cultural, and institutional norms. Murals, furniture arrangement, notices, rituals, or access controls subtly convey which bodies, languages, topics, and lived realities are desired – and which remain invisible.
Example: A school with the guiding motto “Diversity makes us strong,” but exclusively pictures of white personalities on the wall, conveys a contradictory message – especially to children with experiences of racism.
Invisible routines and “normality traps”
Many routines seem self-evident: e.g., that all children are punctual, that parents understand written information, that working quietly is a sign of concentration. But this apparent “normality” is culturally and socially shaped – and privileges certain groups.
Example: A child with auditory processing difficulties is constantly admonished to “not be so loud” – even though, from their perspective of perception, their behavior makes sense.
Power in space, gaze, and control
Who decides what is shown? Who designs? Who is allowed to change something in the classroom? Who decides on seating arrangements, proximity, or possibilities for withdrawal? These, too, are powerful questions. Spatial design and interaction say a lot about whose perspectives are regarded as co-shaping.
Example: A daycare room with rigid rules for spatial order leaves children hardly any opportunities for appropriation or individual design – self-efficacy remains limited.
Pedagogical implications
Shape spaces dialogically: together with children, young people, and colleagues Make implicit expectations visible: What is “good participation”? Who is measured against it? Represent diversity at all levels: images, languages, materials, forms of expression Remove structural barriers: visual accessibility, orientation, sensory needs, multilingualism
Work assignment:
Reflect on your own educational space (daycare, school, social space, project group):
Which rituals, greetings, seating arrangements, wall designs, etc. apply there? For whom are these self-evident, and for whom are they not? Which unwritten rules prevail? Who helped develop them?
Dive in 1
Is being professional automatically neutral?
Find out more and read this:
Neutrality – a deceptive ideal
Done?
Together with your buddy:
Which power relations are maintained through "not taking a position"? Which children feel protected by this, and which are left alone? What could a responsible stance look like?
Transfer 1
Make notes for yourself – preferably also in exchange with your buddy:
What does “professional stance” mean to you? Which implicit values are embedded in it for you?
In which situations have you yourself already remained silent, even though you perceived injustice? Why?
Which “blind spots” do you recognize in yourself in retrospect?
In which pedagogical context would you like to take a clearer position more consciously in the future – and what do you need for that?
Which concrete words, gestures, or interventions could you use in the future to show your stance?
Which support structures (e.g., professional development, peer consultation, supervision) could help you feel more secure?
Reflect
Plan a concrete change for your professional environment:
Choose one area (e.g., morning circle, parent conversations, notices, rules in the group room).
Reflect: Which implicit norms are at work there? Who feels seen – and who does not?
Develop an alternative design – together with colleagues, children, or parents.
Document initial feedback and derive a next course of action from it.
Share your process with the team – as a contribution to a learning, discrimination-sensitive practice.
Plan a short presentation or photo documentation in order to include other team members as well and to encourage reflection.