A basic study for the development of R-learning curriculums in the Early Childhood school system

Abstract

The objective of this study was to provide basic materials to plan effective development of curriculums for the integration of R-learning education in the early childhood school system. In order to investigate the perception and demand of R-learning, we conducted a questionnaire survey of 30 professors and 482 pre-service teachers at the Department of Early Childhood Education in colleges throughout Korea. Moreover, in order to survey the operation and current state of curriculums related to R-learning at the Department of Early Childhood Education, we analyzed the homepages of the Department of Early Childhood Education in 104 colleges offering computer and multimedia curriculums among 165 colleges in Korea. According to the results, first, with regard to the perception of R-learning curriculums, all of the early childhood education professors and pre-service teachers recognized the necessity of R-learning curriculums, and concerning problems in the organization and operation of R-learning curriculums, they mentioned the excessive number of curriculums to be completed within the course of the department and whether such curriculums would take an important part as major subjects. Second, with regard to the operation of curriculums related to computer and multimedia at the Department of Early Childhood Education, 104 (63%) out of 165 colleges were operating such curriculums at the Department of Early Childhood Education. Third, based on the analysis of the demand and current state of R-learning curriculums, we proposed a model for the integration of R-learning curriculums into existing related curriculums. From the results of this study, we expect to introduce robot-based education into the field of early childhood education early through enhancing in-service and pre-service teachers' positive attitude toward R-learning and their skills in robot-based education, and to make mid-term and long-term strategies for integrating robot-based education into early childhood education courses.