Tricia van Rhijn

Research interests: early childhood education & care, inclusion, children with disabilities, parent-child relationships, lifelong learning, mature students and student parents in postsecondary study

Area: Family Relations and Human Development

I am an interdisciplinary social scientist and Registered Early Childhood Educator with research interests related to early childhood education and adult education. I am a mixed methods researcher with a goal of producing socially useful knowledge. Accordingly, much of my research focuses on policy- and practice-based considerations and applications.

I have two distinct areas of research interest that I investigate utilizing quantitative, qualitative, and mixed-methods approaches. My first area of research is early childhood education. In particular, I am interested in the experiences of children with disabilities and their families, inclusion, the impacts of curricular and teaching practice in early childhood settings on child development and well-being, and the professional development of pre-service Early Childhood Educators. Some examples of this research include projects examining the inclusion of children with disabilities in early learning settings and the use of technology in the classroom. As a Registered Early Childhood Educator, my work has a strong applied focus related to not only child outcomes, but also the needs of the workforce.

My second area of research is adult education, with a focus on the experiences of non-traditional students (in particular, student parents and mature students) pursuing formal post-secondary study. Some examples of this research include projects examining national-level data to determine the prevalence of mature learners and student parents in post-secondary education, conducting a longitudinal study of the experiences of mature learners focused on their multiple roles, and interviewing partnered mature students about the relationship between their partner and school roles. A goal of this work is to improve the provision of supports to enable this unique population to complete their studies and have positive experiences while studying.

The majority of my research is conducted with student collaborators, both at the graduate and undergraduate level, and my goal is to mentor student researchers and facilitate their interest and engagement in the research process.

PhD (FRAN-FRHD) – University of Guelph, 2012

Recent Publications*:

Coghill, M., & van Rhijn, T. (2026, early online access). The prevalence of risky play at naturalized and traditional playgrounds in Ontario, Canada. Children's Geographies, 1-17. https://doi.org/10.1080/14733285.2026.2704523

Squires, K., van Rhijn, T., Harwood, D., & Haines, J. (2026, early online access). Young children's social and cognitive play behaviours on equipment-based playgrounds and naturalized playgrounds. Journal of Research in Childhood Education, 1-17. https://doi.org/10.1080/02568543.2025.2607411

Squires, K., van Rhijn, T., Harwood, D., Haines, J., & Barton, K. (2026). Exploring early childhood educators' perceptions of children's learning and development on naturalized playgrounds. Early Childhood Education Journal, 53, 599-613. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10643-023-01614-4

O'Leary, S., Burnham Riosa, P., van Rhijn, T., & Beaton, J. (2025). Parenting a transitional age youth with autism: Mental health and relational experiences. Canadian Journal of Family and Youth, 17(1), 170-196. https://doi.org/10.29173/cjfy30100

Underwood, K., Balter, A., Duvage, T., Kollar, C., van Rhijn, T., & Jones, M. (2024). Understanding Speech-Language Pathology from the standpoint of families: A systematic analysis. Social Sciences, 13(12), 656. https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci13120656

Squires, K., van Rhijn, T., Breau, B., Harwood, D., Haines, J., & Coghill, M. (2024). A quasi-experimental investigation of young children's activity levels and movements in equipment-based and naturalized outdoor play environments. Journal of Environmental Psychology, 97, 102364. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvp.2024.102364

Wilke, A., van Rhijn, T., Squires, K., & Barton, K. (2024). Digital bonds: Exploring the impact of computer-mediated communication on parent–educator relationships in early childhood education and care. Education Sciences, 14(2), 123. https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci14020123

Maich, K., van Rhijn, T., Hall, C., Mallabar, S., Vause, T., Squires, K., Hatt, A., & Ahi, M. (2024). Employing intensive teaching triads to enhance the impact of a peer-mediated social skills program. International Journal of Inclusive Education, 28(11), 2510-2528. https://doi.org/10.1080/13603116.2022.2115155

Balter, A., & van Rhijn, T. (2023). Child sexual abuse prevention. In L. Allen & L. Rasmussen (Eds.), The Palgrave handbook of sexuality education, Palgrave Macmillan. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-95352-2_54-1

van Rhijn, T., Osborne, C., Gores, D., Keresturi, A., Neustifter, R., Muise, A., & Fritz, V. (2023). "You're a mature student and you're a tiny, tiny little fish in a big massive pond students": A thematic analysis investigating the institutional support needs of partnered mature students in postsecondary study. Education Sciences, 13(11), 1069. https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci13111069

Balter, A., Feltham, L., Parekh, G., Douglas, P., Underwood, K., & van Rhijn, T. (2023). Re-imagining inclusion through the lens of disabled childhoods. Social Inclusion, 11(1), 1-12. https://doi.org/10.17645/si.v11i1.5722

Roots & reflections: Investigating the implementation of anti-bias education training in post-secondary curriculum (University of Guelph Learning Enhancement Fund; Co-I; PIs Dr. Kim Squires & Dr. Jane Robson, University of Guelph; 2026-2029)

Reimagining the playground: A comprehensive investigation of affordances in naturalized playground environments (SSHRC Insight Development Grant; Co-I; PI Dr. Kim Squires, University of Guelph; 2025-2027)

Learning2gether: Implementing 2gen, community-based educational programming with student-caregivers and their school-aged dependents (NSERC College and Community Innovation Program; Co-I; PI Dr. Pamela Ingelton, Mohawk College; 2023-2026)

What is the best policy mix for diverse Canadian families with young children? Reimagining family policies (SSHRC Partnership Grant; Co-I; PI Dr. Andrea Doucet, Brock University; 2020-2027)

Please connect with me to set up a time to meet and discuss potential supervision in our graduate PhD or MSc programs. I would like to learn more about you and the research you are interested in pursuing!

Prospective international students: Unfortunately, I do not have the funding required to take on international students at this time.