162 research outputs found
Sort by
Pluralist proximity: Speculation for an antiracist pedagogy in Swedish and Norwegian early childhood education
Full text linkThis article builds on findings that racism significantly affects the well-being of minoritised students in early childhood education in Sweden and Norway. We understand the lack of a specific antiracist early childhood education in a colourblind society as impacting the development of young children and the future of the Earth when racial disparity amplifies the instabilities caused by predatory capitalism and the climate crisis. We challenge the assumption that education in the arts is inherently beneficial and speculate on a future where critical awareness of differences and colonial understanding are integral in early childhood education. Our aim with this article is to enhance the abilities of early childhood education students and teachers, as well as early childhood teachers, to develop visual racial literacy. We unpack the Solmaz collective\u27s emerging concept of pluralist proximity: a state of collective professional development that can scaffold a practice of emancipatory antiracism needed in early childhood education contexts. It is a speculative, emerging pathway for students and teachers to develop antiracist pedagogy for early childhood education in Sweden and Norway. The notion of pluralist proximity investigates how zones of racial discomfort can be acknowledged and harnessed to develop antiracist teaching practices. The authors of the article use performative research, which is entangled with postcolonial thought. By identifying how stereotypes are subtly perpetuated through colonised lenses, the image thus becomes a theoretical and methodological tool for critically thinking about our entanglements in racialisation processes. It aligns with the concept of visual racial literacy
Ethical leadership: Early childhood center directors’ perspectives and practices in a migrant community
Full text linkThis study explores dimensions of ethical leadership within the context of early childhood education (ECE) centers that serve families with migration experience in Florida, USA. The purpose is to understand what values and ethical principles are prioritized by the ECE center directors and how these principles are implemented. The datasets included interviews with six leaders at three centers about the directors’ leadership, observations of the center’s daily practices and reviews of policy documents. The data in this case study were analyzed by reflective thematic analysis. The findings indicated the directors’ commitment and values regarding quality education to eliminate poverty, and their awareness of the cultural and experiential background of children in migration. However, some misalignments surfaced between the expressed values, ethical principles and the centers’ daily operations, such as the limited presence of culturally responsive teaching. This research contributes to a deeper understanding of how ECE directors balance systemic policies with the holistic understanding of children in migration
Exploring Hong Kong student teachers’ perspectives on children’s play and learning
Full text linkThe concepts of learning through play and a play-based curriculum have gained widespread recognition and popularity in the 21st century. However, in Hong Kong (HK), parents, teachers, and other stakeholders still exhibit limited confidence and capacity in applying these notions to the field of early childhood education (ECE). Moreover, how ECE student teachers perceive and understand these concepts remains largely unknown. To address these issues, this research adopted the ecological system theory as a theoretical framework to 1) investigate HK ECE student teachers’ views on implementing a play-based curriculum and 2) understand the associated difficulties they encounter in the HK context. The study employed a mixed-methods approach, including a Play Belief Survey and a qualitative focus group interview. In total, 200 survey responses and 100 minutes of interview data were collected from a group of ECE student teachers from teacher education institutes in HK. The findings revealed a salient contradiction and concern among student teachers, who expressed positive beliefs about a play-based curriculum yet faced insufficient support in terms of its practical implementation in local ECE settings. This finding underscores the need to closely scrutinise a play-based curriculum in terms of the uniqueness of the HK ECE context. In addition, the implications of this research for the wider Asia-Pacific region are discussed
Teacher’s perceptions of usefulness of online PD resources
Full text linkDespite the rise of online professional development (PD) for early childhood educators, few studies have examined their perceptions of the usefulness of learning resources. We developed an online PD centered on teacher-child interactions, based on the critical features of high-quality PD. The PD was composed of 10 units with a variety of learning resources, including video lectures, research notes, testimonials, classroom videos, quizzes, reflection activities, and sharing activities. We examined teachers’ perceptions of the usefulness of such learning resources and explored potential differences based on key demographic variables. Participants were 137 in-service Hong Kong kindergarten teachers. Evaluation surveys and semi-structured interviews were utilized after course completion. Classroom videos, which provided real-life examples, were perceived as most useful resource to improve teaching practices. Participants also considered video lectures, research notes, and testimonials as extremely useful resources, and reflection activities and sharing activities as useful resources. Quizzes emerged as the least useful resource, especially when these involved fact-based questions. Teachers’ perceptions were not influenced by their demographic backgrounds. We conclude that teachers place a higher emphasis on online PD resources that offer practical examples compared to those focus on theoretical knowledge and self-reflection. The current study filled an important gap in the early childhood teacher education literature, specifically in the area of online PD, offering theoretical, practical, and policy-related insights
Assessing social studies competencies of 5-year-olds across different early childhood education programs in Slovenia
Full text linkThe main objective of the research was to analyse the differences in children\u27s competencies in social studies among the various kindergarten programs in Slovenia. The assessment of competencies of five-year-old children enrolled in full-day, half-day, and shorter (240-hour) early childhood education programs were compared. The study included teachers’ assessments of 955 five-year-old children, with a balanced distribution by gender and homogeneous age group, with a special focus on evaluating children\u27s competencies in shorter programs. The results regarding the differences at the beginning and end of the shorter programs for the social studies competencies show statistically significant improvements in competencies, even though the duration of the program is only 240 hours. Comparisons between programs revealed significant differences on all items for the social studies between children in shorter programs and those in full-day or half-day programs, with children in shorter programs scoring lower compared to children in full-day or half-day programs. No significant differences in social studies competencies were found between children in full-day and half-day programs. The study results are crucial for developing teaching and learning strategies in early childhood education as they highlight the need for an approach that considers both the quality and duration of early childhood education programs
We didn\u27t know it was that bad: Unearthing parent perspectives on Universal Pre-K policy
Full text linkFamilies are the ultimate recipients of the effects of policy, but seldom get a seat at the policymaking table. This study investigated how parents perceive the impacts of unequal teacher compensation policies on New York City’s (NYC) Universal Pre-K (UPK) expansion. Utilizing Bronfenbrenner\u27s (1979) ecological systems theory and Schneider and Ingram’s (1993) theory of social construction and policy design to create a rich conceptual framework, this qualitative study analyzed parents\u27 voices through document and social media discourse analysis expanding from 2014 to 2021, and semi-structured interviews (n=15). Participants reflected the demographic diversity found in NYC, the largest school system in the country. The data analysis occurred in three sequential stages: (a) content analysis of documents, (b) thematic analysis of interview data, and (c) compilation of findings from these analyses to draw comprehensive conclusions. Findings revealed that while parents had limited engagement with policy, they were able to articulate the detrimental effects of compensation policies—particularly the effect of teacher turnover on their daily lives—with a disproportional effect on parents of racially minoritized backgrounds or living in low-income neighborhoods. The rich interviews unearthed the dissonance between the policy’s intent and its effect on perpetuating racial and socio-economic biases. Recommendations for advocacy and engagement are provided
Children’s everyday lifeworlds out of school, in Hong Kong, Melbourne, and Singapore: Family, enrichment activities, and local communities
Full text linkChildren’s everyday lives beyond school need to be considered holistically, in a way which moves beyond time use. In this article we draw on our adaptation of Sarah Pink’s (e.g. 2012) video re-enactment methodology for considering children’s out-of-school lifeworlds with Year 4 children (9 and 10 years old) in the global cities of Hong Kong, Melbourne, and Singapore. The data presented and discussed here was part of a larger Global Childhoods Project with children in the three global cities of Melbourne, Hong Kong, and Singapore. We use video re-enactment methodology to ‘think with’, to open up lines of inquiry and create conversations about children’s lives in and between the cities. Through these we consider the specifics of each city context, as well as socioeconomic and sociocultural contexts and factors that may impact differently on children’s everyday lifeworlds out-of-school within the same city. In order to focus the scope of the article, we consider family routines, enrichment activities and local communities, as aspects that we find useful to reflect on when exploring what children’s lives look like, in and across locations. We focus on these as we are interested in how they might add to the complexities of thinking about children in each location. We move between thinking about the re-enactments themselves and broader literature to explore children’s out-of-school lifeworlds in the three cities, painting a picture of children’s lives and considering the contexts which make particular activities and practices possible and desirable
Unintentional injuries at home and in the preschool setting: Greek ECEC professionals’ and preschoolers’ parents’ knowledge and attitudes towards first aid
Full text linkAlthough safety of home and preschool setting is a key quality indicator of the two main environments in which preschoolers spend most of their day, most unintentional injuries during early childhood take place in these two settings. Thus, despite the frequency of accidents during early childhood, scarce research has explored both the epidemiology of childhood injuries and the knowledge and attitudes of ECEC professionals’ and preschoolers’ parents towards first aid. Acknowledging this gap in literature, the present study aimed at exploring 74 Greek ECEC professionals’ and 213 preschoolers’ parents’ knowledge and attitudes towards first aid. In addition, the study aimed at mapping the most frequently occurring accidents both at home and at preschool, as well as the places withing these two settings where most of the accidents happen. Results of the present study indicate that although participants have positive attitudes towards first aid, and most of them have been trained in first aid, their knowledge of handling accidents and other health related issues is limited. In addition, the results showed accidents rarely happen at home and at preschool. The accidents that have been reported to occur take place during children’s free play. The most common places where accidents occur are in the living room and the kitchen. The results highlight the need for frequent training both for parents and ECEC professionals, for intersectoral collaboration between health and education organizations to design interventions and for awareness raising campaigns
A systematic review of studies investigating quality of inclusive preschool classrooms
Full text linkInclusion of young children with disabilities in early childhood settings that are primarily designed for typically developing children is a recommended practice. Although several reviews have summarized the literature focused on the quality of preschool classrooms in general, extant literature does not include a study that specifically summarized results of studies focused on investigating quality of inclusive preschool classrooms. The purpose of this systematic literature review was to identify studies focused on examining quality of inclusive preschool classrooms, determine characteristic features of these studies and summarize information about the overall quality of inclusive preschool classrooms. Twenty-five articles met the inclusion criteria and were analyzed using a 27-item coding system developed by the researchers. The findings reveal a lack of consistent reporting of classroom demographics and teacher characteristics across the studies. Furthermore, the review identifies inconsistencies in reporting practices related to the roles and training of individuals conducting classroom quality measures, raising concerns about data reliability and validity. Additionally, the findings suggest areas for improvement in instructional support in inclusive classrooms, calling for strategies to enhance teacher training and professional development. The results underscore differences in preschool classroom quality across countries, emphasizing the necessity for global efforts and tailored interventions to improve early childhood education quality
Silent and oral reading methods on improving English reading comprehension among generation alpha pupils
Full text linkReading comprehension enables each child to make meaning of the world. Therefore, it is important to develop this during the child’s primary years in school. Using ex post facto design, this study investigated the effects of reading methods on English reading comprehension of randomly selected 75 Grade 2 pupils in a private school in the Philippines. The scores of pupils who read two comparable narrative passages in oral and silent were compared. Paired t-test results revealed a significant difference between oral reading and silent reading. Silent reading had a greater positive effect on the comprehension of the pupils. Likewise, it was the most preferred reading method among the respondents. Focus group discussion with English teachers\u27 results suggested that silent reading was preferred specifically because it helps in understanding the story better, remembering words, and concentrating given its quiet and peaceful nature. It is recommended that teachers employ sustained silent reading classroom practices such as Silent Reading Activity (SRA) Reading Laboratory, Genuine Love for Reading activities through the Four-pronged approach, and Drop Everything and Read time. These methods will help to support the reading needs and preference of the generation alpha pupils and to further strengthen the positive effects of silent reading on improving their reading comprehension