An Examination of Turkish Early Childhood Teachers’ Challenges in Implementing Pedagogical Documentation

Abstract

This study examined the challenges of pedagogical documentation from the perspectives of Turkish early childhood teachers. Pedagogical documentation was initially introduced as a teaching, learning, and assessment tool in early childhood education settings in Turkey through a three-year project. A total of 22 early childhood teachers working in a variety of early childhood programs participated in the study. Data were gathered via semi-structured and focus group interviews at the end of an intervention on the use of pedagogical documentation. The data analysis was based on an inductive approach, revealing that teachers encountered functional and attitudinal challenges in implementing pedagogical documentation. Three major themes or challenges emerged in this study: (a) challenges originating from contextual elements, (b) challenges originating from the nature of pedagogical documentation, and (c) challenges related to the adaptations of teachers to the pedagogical documentation process. The findings underline the need to transform teachers’ perspectives so that they are more amenable to child-centered practices while acknowledging the importance of collaboration with all stakeholders. In-service and pre-service training should be planned to support teachers’ understanding of pedagogical documentation and to ensure that teachers employ the pedagogical documentation process in their own practices.