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Editorial
Get PDFThis issue of CEPSj introduces papers that are not a part of a specific focus but fall into the category of Varia. The content of the papers differs, and they comprise topics from students’ understanding of pictures in books, how sustainable development goals are integrated into the home economics context, how to evaluate students’ environmental worldviews and concerns, what the relationship between the factors and conditions of the autonomy of pre-school teachers is and how they foster the autonomy of pre-school children, what lan-guage teachers’ discriminatory practices against students are, to music educa-tion with a paper about rhyming in the context of the phonological awareness of pre-school children
Uvodnik
Get PDFO dejavnostih pri naravoslovju pišem v času pandemije,
ki je še poslabšala stanje. Zaradi različnih omejitev
so bili otroci prikrajšani za obšolsko naravoslovje
in za šole v naravi. Lahko pa bi to bila tudi priložnost
za več samostojnega domačega dela pri naravoslovju:
za dolgotrajnejše usmerjeno opazovanje, eksperimentiranje,
raziskovanje in izdelavo manjših projektov
Preschool teachers' attitudes towards orthoepy at their work with children
Get PDF: In this paper, I focused on kindergarten teachers' viewpoints on speaking in the standard language when working with children. In the theoretical part, I defined Slovene as an official language, and I determined language-related elements from the Constitution and Slovene legislation in the field of preschool education. I went on to portray social genres of Slovene, describing their classification and determining the circumstances in which they are used. I also described a kindergarten teacher's speech culture and pedagogical speech and presented the factors behind appropriate pedagogical speech. The importance of kindergarten teachers' self-assessment to improve their speech or giving a speech was also determined. In the end, I described the field of language as portrayed in the Kindergarten Curriculum and the influence of a hidden curriculum on kindergarten teachers' speech.
In the empirical part, I studied kindergarten teachers' viewpoints on speaking in the standard language when working with children. The research comprised approximately 100 kindergarten teachers of preschool children and their assistants. The descriptive method of data collection was used. The results of the research are interpreted by the means of basic descriptive statistics using tables and in text. The analysis showed that kindergarten teachers and their assistants believe it is important that they speak to children in the standard language and that education is an important factor in speech. Kindergarten teachers very often use the standard language in planned activities, and often in non-planned activities. By conducting this research, I gained an insight into kindergarten teachers' viewpoints on speaking in the standard language when working with children
Storytelling of a child using a picture book without text
Get PDFThe theoretical part of the diploma work includes speech and its functions, child's speech development and the important factors for its correct progress. The pre-language and the language period as well as the stages of the speech-language developement are defined. The influencing factors of speech development are emphasized. Furthermore, theories of speech development are described. The two phases of the speech process, thinking and speech, that influence each other, are also emphasized. The theoretical part continues with the presentation of story telling, picture books and development of picture books. We presented wordless picture books that demand reader's active part in the process of creation of the story. They offer a reader a possibility to co-create and use the primary role of the emotionally engaged picture (e.g. basic forms, creating/constructing literary characters/figures, colour). Wordless picture books allow children to develop pre-reading skills, sequential thinking, a sense of story, visual discrimination and inferential thinking. In the research part of the diploma work, a resarch on child's ability of story telling using the wordless picture book is presented. We used the wordless book for children Maruška Potepuška by Marjan Amalietti. Nine children aged five to six years participated in the research. First, children were presented the book and together we determined why it was special and how we can read it. Further, we read the book with children individually. We recorded children's interpretations of a story, and the story was also written down. In the next step, more different wordless picture books were read in the group. During five month, group readings were held once to twice a week. After each group reading, the children were again recorded individually, telling the story Maruška Potepuška. Finally, we compared the results of the first and the second readings. To analyse reading, we used the instrument evaluation of story interpretation (Marjanovič Umek, Fekonja, Sočan, Komidar, 2012) for children of the age three to six. The results showed that regular reading of wordless picture books allow children to develop their
ability to construct diverse interpretations of a story
Exhibition space design for the blind and visually impaired
Get PDFIn the first part of this diploma thesis, we presented a theoretical starting point in the field of the blind and visually impaired; the meaning of words in this area and what means to be blind or visually impaired. With that in mind, we divided the group of sensory disabled to two groups; those who rely on the visual world and those who rely primarily on helping aids. Based on these descriptions I researched their different helping aids and ways of movement. These starting points were important mainly because the knowledge is essential to then be able to successfully adapt the exhibition spaces for both of the groups. Adapted exhibition design cannot be made without the knowledge above- therefore it was only at this point that possible exhibition designs are presented including financial resources.
In the theoretical part, we mainly relied on professional sources, which gained value only in connection with the empirical work, where we came into contact with both; individuals who are working in the field of blind and partially sighted and also with individuals who are blind. We gained insight into ways that could possible help connect cultural institutions and people who are blind or visually impaired.
We came to the conclusion that there were similar points in theoretical and empirical research. We have found that people think that such adaptations would not only be used by a group of blind and partially sighted people, but by everyone. In order to be able to improve the educational aspect and also excitement of the space for everyone, including children and families, by introducing more senses in the exhibition design. We have also come to the conclusion that the needed adjustments are actually very simple to make and bring to the exhibition space, but in order to be able to implement them in the long run, we would need a better way to finance such projects
Views of students of art education on teaching art to blind and visually impaired students
Get PDFThe diploma thesis deals with the issue of adapting art education for students with visual impairment, who are included in regular primary schools. We were interested in how future art educators view the problem addressed. For this purpose, we conducted interviews with seven students of art pedagogy. With the research questions we wanted to find out, how the interviewees assess their own ability to address the issue considered, to what extent they think the subject of fine arts makes sense for students with visual impairment, how would they approach to adjusting art aducation and what questions, issues, ideas they encounter when thinking about the problem considered. The answers to the research questions were obtained with semi-structured interwievs. The collected data was then processed according to the qualitative analysis procedure. We found that the interviewees express a positive and open attitude towards the problem addressed, but on the other hand they face certain reservations and uncertainty as a result of lacking knowledge and experience. As far as the acquisition of knowledge during studies is concerned, they express suggestions and possibilities for a more concrete connection between the subject of inclusive pedagogy and the field of fine arts
The influence of Prlekija dialect on the use of the standard language during classes in elementary school
Get PDFWritten and spoken language is part of our identity since childhood as it is daily used by our family circle and in our local environment. Children most often use regional colloquial speech or dialects in their day-to-day communication. The standard variety is seldom a speaker’s first language or mother tongue. Children come in close contact with contemporary standard Slovene at different milestones, e.g. when starting kindergarten, whereas a more systematic approach to learning it is implemented in primary school. The teacher plays a vital role in the overall education process and sets an example for students in various aspects, including the use of standard Slovene. Nevertheless, non-standard language varieties, such as dialects, are still present in the classroom. The aim of this master’s thesis was to determine whether the Prlekija regional dialect influences the student’s spoken language and their use of the Contemporary Standard Slovene (CSS) in the first and second primary school educational circle and whether it has any effect on the class teachers’ pedagogical speech in the classroom setting. Firstly, a voice recording of two lessons, Slovene, and Science and Society, per class in grades 1, 3 and 5 was carried out. Then questionnaires were distributed to teachers and pupils taking part in lesson recordings and an online version of the questionnaire was designed for other respondents included in the empirical part of the thesis. A total of 17 pupils and 37 teachers took part. The analysis of the data yielded the following results: pedagogical speech predominantly shows features of CSS, namely the formal and informal varieties of CSS; grade 3 and 5 pupils use a higher percentage of CSS vocabulary than first graders. First grade teachers and their pupils thus showed the largest discrepancies in CSS use, whereas higher-grade pupils and teachers displayed far less differences in language use. Teachers react to the use of non-standard vocabulary in class in different ways. Teachers’ speech analysis showed no major differences in CSS use regarding interactive and cognitive speech. More experienced teachers rated their knowledge of CSS higher thank those who have been teaching for a shorter period of time (0–4 years). Teachers deemed the learning of CSS as essential, whereas their opinions on the use of dialect in the classroom setting varied. There were no major discrepancies in the use of CSS regarding individual school subjects. Only a slight variation was exhibited in the speech of first-grade teachers, whereas differences were barely detectable in the speech of first graders. Outside of the classroom, teachers adapt their language use according to the communicational circumstances. The findings of this master’s thesis are most pertinent to elementary education teachers and might motivate them to reflect on their role in the pupil’s speech development and thus further ameliorating their pedagogical work
Differences in the frequency of preschool childrens' contact with animals between urban and village kindergartens in Slovenia
Get PDFThe aim of the dissertation project was to determine whether there are differences in the frequency of preschool children’ contact with animals between urban and village kindergartens in Slovenia. In the theoretical part of this paper, I presented the role of animals in a child's life, both the positive effects of coexistence with an animal and the negative ones. I also wrote about the increasingly important task of kindergarten, which encourages contact with nature and animals in preschool children, and about the consequences that arise if this contact with nature is insufficient. I highlighted the main goals and guidelines for nature activities from the Kindergarten Curriculum. At the end, I also wrote about the importance of including animals in kindergarten playrooms and gave some instructions, which the educator must follow when including animals in the playroom. In the empirical part, I conducted a quantitative research using an online survey questionnaire. The sample included 308 pedagogical workers from Slovenian public and private kindergartens, who decided to solve the questionnaire anonymously voluntarily. I used a causal-non-experimental method of data collection. I interpreted the results on a descriptive and inferential level, with words and graphs and tables. By analyzing the results, I found that between village and urban kindergartens in Slovenia, there are statistically significant differences in the frequency of contact with animals and in the choice of activities involving animals. There are also statistically significant deviations in the frequency of contact with different animals for individual time periods. I have found that urban kindergartens are more likely to have their own animals than village kindergartens
Fostering the development of character strengths and mindfulness to promote student well-being
Get PDFExperts in the field of education are increasingly emphasizing the importance of children's well-being. The results of numerous studies show that well-being has a significant impact on students' academic and personal development. Well-being is also one of the fundamental areas of study in positive psychology. Researchers in the field of positive psychology mention, among other things, that the development of, and knowledge about, character strengths and mindfulness are two factors that would greatly contribute to the promotion of well-being. This was also the focus of this master's thesis. We focused mainly on the connection between character strengths and mindfulness, as we reviewed the professional literature and found that this correlation has not yet been sufficiently researched, especially not in the field of education. In the theoretical part of this master's thesis, we first presented positive psychology and related theoretical models of well-being. We presented the concepts of mindfulness and character strength, which were placed in the context of school. We defined positive education, that incorporates knowledge from the field of positive psychology into traditional education. In the empirical part of the thesis, we designed and implemented a program to encourage the development of character strengths and mindfulness in primary school students. Using The Stirling Children’s Well-being Scale and a questionnaire about character strengths (The Character Strengths Inventory for Children), we explored how character strengths and mindfulness are related to the well-being of students in the primary school. We also researched how the activities were experienced, which were designed to promote the development of character strengths and mindfulness, by students and the author of this program. The latter was determined by using ongoing evaluation questionnaires for students and written self-reflections of the author of this program. The research was based on a quasi-experiment with elements of action research. We used a causal-experimental method of pedagogical research with several measurements. Students from fifth grade from two different primary schools in Ljubljana in the 2020/21 school year were included in the research. One school was a private school while the other was a public school. The results showed that before the program, students’ had higher results on character strengths of gratitude, love, curiosity and forgiveness than after the program. After the program, however, students had statistically significantly higher result on the character strength of hope. Students’ well-being was higher after the program. Boys and girls did not significantly differ in recognizing the importance of selected character strengths and in well-being. We found that students attending a public and a private school did not statistically differ character strengths and well-being. Students perceived the workshops as interesting and mostly enjoyable. After every workshop, the students were mostly feeling good. The students reported that the workshops were not demanding. After being asked, if they learned a lot of new things, most of them answered “medium”. In her reflections, the author of the program wrote that she experienced the workshops more positively at the public school than at the private school, as the students at the public school participated more during the workshops and showed more enthusiasm; also, boys had greater difficulty calming down during mindfulness exercises compared to girls. The research was carried out during the COVID-19 epidemic, which caused students face several challenging circumstances: schools were closed for a longer period, lessons took place online, classes were quarantined; all this greatly impacted the results of the research
The Child as a competent being and active member of society
Get PDFThe thesis The Child as a competent being and active member of society consists of two parts, a theoretical and an empirical one. In the first, theoretical part, we define the position of the child in society then and today, continuing with the definition of competent child and its importance for further success of the individual, focus to the importance of children's participation in the educational process and influence educators on the development of a competent child and active participation of children in daily routines.
In the second, empirical part, we present the results of a research we obtained by conducting an interview. We were mainly interested in the views of educators on the importance of children's participation in kindergarten with an emphasis on daily routine, play and planning activities. The results showed us: educators are aware of the importance of children's participation in kindergarten and also enable it; educators have (mostly) a positive opinion on participation for children's development; educators are aware of the importance of children's participation in planning activities and believe that children's activity and participation in free play are important for children