Exploiting traditional ethnic costumes from Northern mountainous regions of Vietnam in teaching preschool children mathematical patterns: potential and barriers

Abstract

Education based on a cultural approach is a dominant perspective in many preschool education programs worldwide. In the context of globalization, besides providing learners with many opportunities to acquire common knowledge and values ​​of humanity, culture-based education helps preserve and promote the cultural values ​​of ethnic groups. Based on field research, the study has collected 19 traditional costumes of ethnic groups in the Northern mountainous region with different patterns demonstrating appropriate mathematical patterns in teaching preschool children. The laws expressed in traditional costumes are repetition, symmetry, and development patterns. In the next part of the study, the research team conducted a thematic analysis of interviews with ten preschool teachers from Northern Vietnam and identified two main themes: (1) the pedagogical potential of traditional costumes in enhancing children’s engagement, pattern recognition, and contextualized learning; and (2) five key barriers hindering implementation, including lack of awareness and training, difficulty analyzing patterns, limited access to physical materials, perceived disconnect between math and culture, and cultural-communication challenges - particularly for younger or non-local teachers. The study also uncovered contextual differences across teacher backgrounds, classroom demographics, and teaching experience. These findings underscore the need for culturally responsive training, locally grounded curriculum design, and stronger integration of tangible cultural artifacts into early mathematics education.