Age, gender, socioeconomic status, race/ethnicity, temperament, and actual social and cognitive competence as factors contributing to preservice teachers’ perceptions of preschool children's social and cognitive competence

Abstract

The perceptions of 28 preservice early childhood teachers about the social and cognitive competence of 68 preschool children were examined. Hierarchical regression analyses revealed gender, age, and family socioeconomic stałus biases in preservice teachers’ perceptions of children's social and cognitive competence. Qualitative data from focus group discussions with preservice teachers also supported these findings. In addition, children's actual social and cognitive competence, while not the most significant, also uniquely and significantly contributed to preservice teachers’ perceptions of children's social and cognitive competence. This may indicate that preservice teachers are likely struggling with their biases as they involve themselves in their teacher preparation experiences, focused on developing more accurate views of children's social and cognitive competence. Both race/ethnicity and temperament contributions were not found, possibility due to the limited sample used.