Child-to-Child Pedagogy in Practice: A Qualitative Study of Grade 5 Facilitators inMaldivian Preschools

Abstract

The Child-to-Child (CtC) approach is well documented, yet research often emphasises outcomes for younger learners while overlooking the development of young facilitators. Using a qualitative narrative case study design, this study explores the lived experiences of four Grade 5 students serving as young facilitators (YFs) in a CtC framework implemented in Maldivian preschools. The study was guided by the research question: How do Grade 5 YFs experience and make sense of their facilitator role within a CtC approach in Maldivian preschool classrooms? The wider SIPCA project also aimed to understand whether the facilitator role could help students with low self-esteem or limited leadership confidence gain confidence, agency, communication skills, and social responsibility. YFs were initially identified through screening and teacher consultation, with attention to students showing low selfesteem or leadership hesitancy at baseline. From this wider cohort, four participants were purposively selected because their interviews, reflective conversations, and journals provided rich, sustained accounts of development across the 25-week intervention. Data were analysed thematically and presented as narrative vignettes. Findings suggest that, from the YFs’ perspectives, CtC supported relational interactions marked by emotional bonds, trust, and reduced power differentials. The YFs described using play-based and narrative activities to encourage preschool children’s participation, while also reporting gains in self-efficacy, leadership, patience, and moral responsibility. Because preschool children’s learning, anxiety, engagement, and emotional safety were not directly measured, claims about these areas are treated as facilitator perceptions and interpretive observations rather than measured outcomes. The study suggests that structured cross-age peer facilitation may support young facilitators’ holistic development while offering possibilities for relational classroom practice