Greek male early childhood educators: self and societal perceptions towards their chosen profession     

Konstantina Rentzou  Kiriaki Ziganitidou 《Early Years: An International Journal of Research and Development》2009,29(3):271-279

In choosing to become early years teachers, men are positioned in a context which is numerically dominated by women. Male early years teachers may feel they experience difficulties, being induced into a predominantly female culture. The present study intended to examine whether Greek male early childhood educators experience difficulties. More precisely it has a twofold aim: on the one hand to explore Greek male early childhood educators' perceptions of their chosen profession; on the other to explore how different social groups encountered the entry of those males into that profession. Concurrent with previous international research results, the present study suggests that there are males who love working with young children and are committed to early childhood education and thus, as in other countries, in Greece too male childcare workers experience difficulties and mistrust of their choice.  相似文献   

Becoming Globally Competent Citizens: A Learning Journey of Two Classrooms in an Interconnected World     

Angela K. Salmon  Maria Victoria Gangotena  Kiriaki Melliou 《Early Childhood Education Journal》2018,46(3):301-312

Globally competent people are aware of world issues, take perspective, are engaged and know how to communicate to different people. This article portraits a story of two kindergarten classrooms, one in the United States and the other in Greece, both working with culturally diverse children and, in the case of the American classroom, English Language learners. The teachers shared philosophical foundations reflected in their practice and discourse in the classroom as they took a learning journey through Harvard Project Zero’s Out of Eden Learn project. Out of Eden Learn serves as a platform to engage children from both settings in exploring their own neighborhoods, investigating contemporary global issues, and reflecting on how they as individuals fit into a broader geographical and historical context. Through meaningful hands-on experiences, the children in these two classrooms gained deep understandings of themselves and their surroundings, made personal connections and developed empathy as they heard stories of children around the world. In their learning journey, the two teachers used thinking routines to help the children slow down and observe the world around them. The experience not only helped the teachers comply with curriculum standards, but also allowed them to keep alive the children’s capacity to be curious and promote parental involvement. The children developed a sense of self-understanding and self-identity as a point of reference to develop perspective and understanding of other cultures.  相似文献