The purpose of this paper is to investigate and to analyse didactic considerations and decisions made by pre-school teachers in the context of a multi-cultural pedagogical environment.

The basic theoretical perspective is social constructivism, but notions from Donald A. Schön and John Dewey's theories of thinking and reflection have also informed the study; even Hans Lorentz' definition of a multi-cultural pedagogical environment has been employed as an analytic tool.

The empirical study consists of a qualitative field study at a pre-school, where participatory observation and a group interview have been used in order to collect data. Those who participated were teachers at the pre-school.

The results of the study, when analysed in accordance with the method, shows mainly three things. First of all that the teachers at the pre-school, in their didactic considerations, make use of the following methods of knowledge formation: knowledge-in-practice, reflection-in-practice, reflection on practice, reflection on knowledge-in-practice, and reflection on reflection-in-practice. Secondly, that no reflection particularly on the learning conditions in a multi-cultural pedagogical environment takes place. Finally, that there is little time available for the teachers for reflection at all, either individually or collectively.

A conclusion I draw from the study is that, if the teachers at pre-schools should be able to reflect consciously about their work, and to transform not consciously reflected thinking about it into consciously reflected thinking, it is necessary for them to resort to explicit and focused conversations with one another. A further conclusion is that lack of time for reflection among teachers at pre-schools renders difficult a conscious discussion among them about the multi-cultural pedagogical aspect of their work context. This means that, unless they are given the time they need they are bound to end up in a kind of dilemma: In order to fulfil their special mission they need to reflect on it, but there is no time for them to do so.