‘What is finger knitting?’ Chinese pre-service teachers’ initial professional experience in Australian early childhood education

Professional experience in teacher education programmes is being reframed due to the growing intake of international students over the last decade. Early Childhood Education (ECE), as one of the favoured options of many international students, witnesses increasing enrolment from international students, especially those from China. However, due to the philosophical and pedagogical differences between Early Childhood Education in Australia and China, Chinese pre-service teachers can encounter multiple and complex challenges during their professional experiences in the Australian ECE context. This chapter presents the initial professional experience of one first-year undergraduate Chinese student studying in ECE, through a narrative lens. Bourdieu’s field, habitus and capital are employed to understand how pre-service teachers’ perceptions towards the field and different cultural and linguistic capitals that they possess, can inform international pre-service teachers’ success and self-confidence during their professional experiences.