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Mathematics education is a critical part of the curriculum for students worldwide. The foundation for understanding mathematical concepts related to number sense begins early in life, and early childhood classrooms can provide the seeds for mathematical skills that will be needed later in life. In this article, the authors make a case for meaningful and developmentally appropriate mathematics experiences for young children in diverse early learning settings. Instructional and curricular methods inspired by the Reggio Emilia Approach are described as effective ways to teach number concepts to young children from preschool through primary age. Strategies for teachers of young learners are presented in order to strengthen the mathematics curriculum in contemporary early learning settings. The authors’ analysis and recommendations are informed by their extensive experiences including studies in Reggio Emilia early childhood settings (infant toddler, preschool, and primary schools) and their work in early childhood teacher education at their respective universities.  相似文献   

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Abstract

Public preschool programs require the use of a research-based, whole-child curriculum, yet limited research examines whether curricula influence classroom experiences and children’s development. We use five samples of preschool children to examine differences in classroom processes and children’s school readiness by classroom curricular status (curriculum/no curriculum), and across classrooms using different curricular packages. When a teacher reports using a curriculum, their classroom processes are indistinguishable from classrooms where teachers report using no curriculum. Some differences in classroom activities emerged across classrooms using different curricula; however, substantial variability exists across classrooms using the same curriculum. Head Start program fixed effects models and meta-analytic regressions reveal few associations between curricula and children's skills. Findings question whether preschool curricular policy benefit child development.  相似文献   

4.
ABSTRACT

The present qualitative study explores the beliefs of Iranian early childhood English teachers regarding their roles in teaching English as a foreign language (EFL) to young learners at kindergarten and preschool age. The data were collected through classroom observations and interviews with 13 Iranian EFL kindergarten teachers who volunteered to participate in this study. More specifically, after initial introductory interviews with each participant, their classes were observed, and subsequently, verbal recollection interviews were conducted. Depending on the various administrative constraints at different kindergartens, each participant was observed two to four sessions, 36 sessions in total. Three major themes representing beliefs of the participants emerged from thematic analysis of the interview data. The themes included teachers’ beliefs about, first, the constraints affecting early childhood methodologies and pedagogical practices; second, the influence of English language on children’s native language, culture, and, identity; and third, the attempts required for achieving an ideal early childhood EFL instruction. As such, these results may provide potential implications for policy makers and curriculum designers responsible in this field to encourage reforms in kindergartens’ instructional, administrative, and marketing policies.  相似文献   

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Globally, national curriculum policies are up for renegotiation. These negotiations are shaped by international and national top-down accountability regimes, and an increasing turn towards curriculum centralization and standardization. The new Australian Curriculum (AC) is no exception. The AC is an important educational policy event, one in which understandings about teacher professional authority is being redefined. In this paper, we examine how judgements about teachers’ professional authority are used to defend, promote and explain the AC. Drawing on an analysis of policy documents and interviews with high-level policy-makers, we argue that the AC is opening space in the policy field to reposition teachers’ work by promoting a view of teachers’ professional authority as constrained and defined through the written curriculum documentation.  相似文献   

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This article considers the relationship between policy and practice in the early childhood mathematics curriculum for reception-class (RC) children of five years in England. It explores what the policy requires RC teachers to do in terms of curriculum implementation; what RC teachers’ views and understanding of the early childhood mathematics curriculum are; how RC teachers implement early years mathematics policy; and how RC children respond. A case study design included interviews with elite participants who influenced the policy-making process, survey of RC teachers and a detailed investigation of RC classes on three school sites. As elite interviews underlined, international comparison studies have had an important influence on early childhood mathematics policies by creating top-down pressure for standards. Elites and practitioners drew attention to a tension between a play-based pedagogy and a standards agenda. Tensions in policy text were reflected in mixed and ambivalent views and reported practices by elites and practitioners. RC teachers did not merely receive and implement policy expectations but brought their own values and understandings to practice. The study reveals interplay between local and global influences in a context of changing views of early childhood, early learning and early years pedagogy.  相似文献   

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This study investigated early childhood teachers’ beliefs about information and communications technology (ICT) and play in preschool, as well as their confidence in integrating ICT in the classroom. A 28-item questionnaire was compiled and administered to 190 early childhood teachers in Greece. Although ICT play (which can provide learning opportunities) has largely replaced traditional childhood play, in Greece, there is inadequate integration of ICT in early childhood education. In this study, two factors were extracted: ‘playing with ICT as an effective mode of learning and developing children's technological competence’ and ‘ICT use as free play’. The fewer the years of teaching experience and the higher the teachers’ computer self-efficacy, the stronger was the view that ICT play is not just free play. Teachers’ beliefs and confidence affect their classroom practices and, consequently, the children's learning. Viewing ICT as a mode of learning that should be embedded in the curriculum is expected to lead to ICT integration in a teacher's daily practices. The implications for in-service teacher training are therefore discussed.  相似文献   

8.
The purpose of the study was to investigate how preschool teachers in Iceland view early childhood education and the professional preschool teacher. Focus groups consisting of early childhood educators in Iceland were interviewed. Each of four focus groups comprised educators who held similar positions. They were: (1) preschool teachers; (2) preschool directors; (3) preschool consultants; and (4) educators of preschool teachers. Data were analyzed using strategies of qualitative inquiry. The analysis revealed dilemmas concerning the use of concepts such as teaching and care, cooperation with the primary schools, the organization of the preschool day, and the role of preschool teachers in children's learning. The results were interpreted in the light of postmodern perspectives of the child and early childhood institutions.  相似文献   

9.
The Finnish social pedagogical curriculum for early childhood education directs early childhood teachers to use documentation to assess and develop pedagogy and practise. This empirical study examines the challenges and benefits a group of Finnish preschool teachers experienced when they learned to document their work. Although the idea of documenting appears fine in theory, and international experiences of constructing child-centered pedagogy through documents are promoted in the literature, accomplishing this task successfully is challenging in practise. In this study, as the features of documentation in early childhood education and care practise were considered critically, ideological discord was found within the national and local policy-making process, including problems with pedagogical leadership, which reduced the power of documentation in practise. However, the study also revealed that using documentation empowered the teachers as professionals, helped them communicate with parents and children, and guided them to focus on the children’s views.  相似文献   

10.
The aim of this study was to examine teachers’ perceptions and concerns about the implementation of the preschool curriculum developed over 10 years (2005–2015). This paper reports findings from an interpretive case study design in four preschool settings in Tanzania with 12 teachers and 8 parent participants. Data were generated using interviews and documentation. The research focus was on how teachers have implemented the 2005 preschool curriculum. The findings indicate that the implementation of the curriculum was problematic due to teachers’ lack of knowledge of a child-centred pedagogy. In addition there were no teachers qualified to work with young children, overcrowded classrooms, poor teaching and learning environments, and insufficient teaching and learning materials and facilities. This study recommends that to improve the current situation and attain quality provision of early education, teachers need to develop their professional knowledge through in-service training. The government policy planners need to provide initial teacher education, professional development, and conducive teaching and learning environments with available resources for effective teaching and learning practices.  相似文献   

11.
幼儿教师工资待遇不仅关系到幼儿教师个体的生活质量,更关系到学前教育系统的供给质量,OECD(经济合作发展组织)始终把幼儿教师工资作为提高学前教育质量的一项重要杠杆。我国幼儿教师工资待遇政策经历了四个阶段:“教师身份与工资待遇的初步确定”“教师工资制度开始正式确立”“教师工资待遇政策的规范发展”“教师工资待遇的细化完善”。其政策呈现出“以公办园在编教师为主要保障对象的政策目标体系”“以多部门多层级形成联合保障主体的政策协同体系”“以公办园教师对标公务员、民办园教师对标公办园教师的政策参照体系”三大基本特点。放眼未来,幼儿教师工资待遇政策的变迁趋势将朝着“多样化财政拨款方式,完善对各类幼儿教师工资待遇的保障”“优化教师准入的政策设计,捋顺不同身份教师职称评定制度”“建立多元主体协同的经费保障机制,实现对幼儿教师工资待遇的综合治理”的发展路径推进.  相似文献   

12.
This study explored whether early childhood preservice teachers' concerns about teaching nature of science (NOS) and their intellectual levels influenced whether and how they taught NOS at the preschool and primary (K‐3) levels. We used videotaped classroom observations and lesson plans to determine the science instructional practices at the preschool and primary levels, and to track whether and how preservice teachers emphasized NOS. We used the Stages of Concern Questionnaire (SOCQ) pre‐ and postinternship to determine concerns about NOS instruction, and the Learning Context Questionnaire (LCQ) to determine intellectual levels. We found that neither concerns about teaching NOS nor intellectual level were related to whether and how the preservice teachers emphasized NOS; however, we found that all preservice early childhood teachers began their internships with NOS concern profiles of “worried.” Two preservice teachers' NOS concerns profiles changed as a result of their internships; one to “cooperator” and one to “cooperator/improver.” These two preservice teachers had cooperating teachers who were aware of NOS and implemented it in their own science instruction. The main factors that hindered or facilitated teaching NOS for these preservice teachers were the influence of the cooperating teacher and the use of the science curriculum. The preservice teacher with the cooperating teacher who understood and emphasized NOS herself and showed her how to modify the curriculum to include NOS, was able to explicitly teach NOS to her students. Those in classrooms whose cooperating teachers did not provide support for NOS instruction were unable to emphasize NOS. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 47:213–233, 2010  相似文献   

13.
Professional development for early childhood educators (ECE PD) is an essential component of supporting a professional early childhood workforce. Yet research on ECE PD frequently centers on narrow fidelity data, while teachers’ individual voices and teaching contexts are only rarely considered in order to understand teacher experiences with PD initiatives. This qualitative case study utilizes the critical ecology of the early childhood profession framework (Miller et al., Early childhood grows up: Towards a critical ecology of the profession, Springer, London) to examine process-related questions in a large urban district’s PD initiative connected with the launch of a new district-developed kindergarten curriculum. Examining teacher experiences through an ecological lens, the study focuses on two kindergarten teachers, viewing them as active agents in their own professional learning and situating them within their particular teaching contexts. Data sources included classroom observations, teacher interviews, and curriculum fidelity data. Although fidelity data provided some information about teacher responses to the PD, triangulating this data with teacher accounts of adapting the curriculum to their particular context enabled more nuanced understandings about how teachers adapt information from PD sessions to their particular teaching contexts. This study demonstrates the need for research on ECE PD to go beyond fidelity data to explore process-related questions about teachers PD experiences.  相似文献   

14.
There is surprisingly little empirical research examining issues of fidelity of implementation within the early childhood education literature. In the MyTeachingPartner project, 154 teachers were provided with materials to implement a supplemental classroom curriculum addressing six aspects of literacy and language development. The present study examines the degree of variability in three aspects of implementation fidelity – dosage, adherence, and quality of delivery – and whether these components of fidelity were associated with children's growth in language and literacy skills across the preschool year. Findings indicate that teachers reported using the curriculum fairly often (dosage) and that they were observed to generally follow curricular lesson plans (adherence). In contrast, the quality of delivery, defined as the use of evidence-based teacher–child interactions for teaching literacy and language, was much lower. Children in classrooms in which activities were observed to last for longer (dosage) and in which teachers exhibited higher quality of delivery of literacy lessons made significantly greater gains in early literacy skills across the preschool year. Also, teachers’ use of higher quality language interactions was associated with gains for children who did not speak English at home. Results have implications for teacher professional development and the supports provided to ensure that curricula are delivered most effectively.  相似文献   

15.
幼儿园课程改革的目标是促进幼儿的发展,而在幼儿园与幼儿接触最多的有生命力的个体之一便是幼儿教师,幼儿教师专业成长的过程同时也是幼儿成长的过程,因而教师是课程改革的关键因素之一。本文就目前幼儿教师专业成长中遇到的问题展开论述,并针对问题提出解决策略,以期为广大幼教工作者提供参考,更好地促进幼儿园课程改革的开展。  相似文献   

16.
Research Findings: This study examined preschool teachers’ literal talk (LT) and inferential talk (IT) during shared book readings in early childhood education (ECE) and early childhood special education (ECSE) classrooms. We aimed to characterize and compare teachers’ LT and IT in these 2 classroom contexts and determine whether differences in LT and IT are predicted by classroom type, teachers’ educational background, or children’s average language skills. We examined the shared book reading activities of 52 teachers (26 ECE classrooms, 26 ECSE classrooms). Results revealed that ECSE teachers used significantly more LT and showed more variability in their LT and IT than ECE teachers. ECSE classroom type predicted teachers’ use of LT when we controlled for teacher education and children’s language skills, whereas teacher education predicted teachers’ use of IT when we controlled for classroom type and children’s language skills. Practice or Policy: These findings have implications for best practice guidelines and policies, particularly for ECSE environments.  相似文献   

17.
In 2003, a new curriculum was enacted in Greek preschool education, replacing the previous one of 1989 and following the development of new curricula for the other rungs of compulsory education. Within this context, the new curriculum development policy aimed at an equal integration of preschool education into the unified design of primary and secondary education. A basic issue in any such educational change is how teachers make sense of the new curriculum and what impact it has on their thinking and daily practice. Considering the need to better understand the relationships between curriculum and parameters that shape practice, the study examines preschool teachers’ perspectives of the new early childhood curriculum and its implementation, as well as the extent to which the new curriculum has influenced preschool practices.  相似文献   

18.
Research Findings: This study examined the consistency between early childhood teachers' self-reported curriculum beliefs and observations of their actual interactive behaviors with children in classrooms. Also tested was the hypothesized moderation by teacher and classroom characteristics of the association between beliefs and practices. A total of 58 preschool teachers completed a survey describing their professional backgrounds and curriculum beliefs. Their classroom practices were observed using a newly developed instrument that documented teacher interactions with children. Most teachers in this sample strongly endorsed child-initiated learning beliefs, although their beliefs about teacher-directed learning varied considerably. The most frequently observed teacher behaviors in the classroom were giving directions to children, responding to children's initiations, and engaging in non-interactive classroom management activities. Overall, teachers' curriculum beliefs and observed classroom practices were weakly correlated. However, there were moderation effects. Stronger congruence between teacher-directed learning beliefs and observed teaching behaviors was found among teachers who had more professional training and more years of teaching experience. Practice or Policy: These results support the importance of early childhood teacher professional development. They suggest that teacher preparation and professional development programs should focus on the intellectual transformation between teacher knowledge and teacher practice, promoting both aspects of development.  相似文献   

19.
In this article, a preschool teacher and an early childhood teacher educator describe and analyze their work co-creating and co-facilitating an early childhood inquiry group over seven years. The group consisted of veteran lead teachers, assistant teachers, instructional coaches, and an outside teacher educator at an urban, public preschool in San Francisco, California. Using the framework of narrative inquiry and portraiture, the article tells the story of the group’s formation, its structure, and its benefits for the participants’ personal and professional growth. The authors argue that an inquiry group is a highly viable, home-grown form of professional growth that relies on the group as a forum for self-study and reflection. The inquiry group provided the teachers with an increased understanding of child development and instructional strategies, a trusting public forum for sharing and validating their inquiry and teaching, and a communal opportunity to make visible the voices of teachers, children, and families.  相似文献   

20.
This study compares the attitudes of preschool teachers and students between the Netherlands and Germany towards typical play activities in preschool. The data were responses to short video clips of preschool children's play and elicited the respondents’ attitudes through questionnaires. The data were analysed by classifying the written responses into four categories. The frequencies of the categories were tested with MANOVA with regard to expert–novice position and country. Differences between professionals and novices were found, and for professionals only, the four categories were interrelated, showing a stronger holistic view of early childhood activities. Differences were also found between the countries, and two of the categories seemed especially sensitive to cultural differences. We discuss how reflection on activities can add to a higher degree of professionalism, as well as a more profound understanding of ways to improve preschool teacher training.  相似文献   

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