Teachers as Agents of Linguistic Inclusion: A Comparative Study of Plurilingual Practices in Preschool in Spain and Israel

While teacher agency is critical for inclusive education, cross-national comparative research examining how early childhood educators navigate language education policy frameworks remains scarce. Addressing this gap, this study offers a comparative analysis of how early childhood education and care (ECEC) teachers exercise agency to address linguistic and cultural diversity across two preschool settings: a municipal preschool in Barcelona (Catalonia, Spain), operating under regional language immersion amidst urban superdiversity, and a state preschool in peripheral Israel, operating under an emerging state language education policy and creating an inclusive environment for immigrant and ethno-linguistic minority children. The study draws on (1) teacher agency and professional initiative; (2) the teacher as a sociocultural mediator; (3) linguistically and culturally responsive teaching; (4) language education policy; and (5) the early development of plurilingual and communicative competence. Employing an ethnographic approach, data were collected between 2023 and 2025 across 18 classroom observation sessions, semi-structured teacher interviews, and field notes, involving three lead educators and 82 children aged 4 to 6. Through a hybrid deductive–inductive reflexive thematic analysis, the study explores how teachers navigate between institutional language policies, curricular expectations, and the linguistic repertoires of their pupils. Findings reveal that teachers act as central agents of linguistic visibility and inclusion, through both intentional teacher-led strategies and implicit communicative practices that validate children’s diverse linguistic repertoires and create opportunities for effective language use and language awareness. Despite differing sociolinguistic contexts, teachers in both areas demonstrate similar approaches to promote linguistically and culturally inclusive learning environments.