Abstract
European policy has seen a number of changes and innovations in the field of early childhood preschool education over the last decade, which have been reflected in various forms in the policies of individual EU countries. Within the Czech preschool policy, certain innovations and approaches have been implemented in the field of early children education, such as the introduction of compulsory preschool education before entering primary school from 2017, emphasis on inclusive education, equal conditions in education and enabling state-supported diversity in the education concepts of kindergartens. The aim of our study was to assess the influence of various preschool education systems in the Czech Republic in the context of psychological variables reflecting selected children’s outcomes which may contribute to future school achievement. The monitored variables were the attitudes, motivations and executive functions of children in the last year of preschool education. A comparison was made between the traditional preschool education program and the so-called alternative types of preschool education, such as Montessori, Waldorf and religious schools. The total sample was divided into four subgroups, namely a group of children attending traditional kindergartens (731, 84.9%), religious (65, 7.5%), Montessori (35, 4.1%), and Waldorf (30, 3.5%) kindergartens. To determine empirical data, the following research methods were used: Attitude Questionnaire, School Performance Motivation Scale, and Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Function (BRIEF). The results of our survey show the fact that the type of kindergarten attended has a significant effect on the child’s level of school performance motivation, attitudes toward school as well as executive functions. Significant differences were found between the different types of kindergartens attended in the monitored variables.
Highlights
The policy discourse in EU countries around early childhood education has changed significantly over the past twenty years, from childcare to education, from childcare as a policy mechanism to increase women’s employment to the focus on children’s outcomes
In the context of the Czech preschool policy, innovations and approaches were implemented in early children education including for example the introduction of compulsory 1-year preschool education before enrollment in elementary school, emphasis on inclusive education and equal conditions in education as well as state-supported diversity in kindergarten education systems
We examined several key predictors of school achievement in a cohort of children from traditional and three different alternative types of kindergartens
Summary
The policy discourse in EU countries around early childhood education has changed significantly over the past twenty years, from childcare to education, from childcare as a policy mechanism to increase women’s employment to the focus on children’s outcomes. The result was an increased acknowledgment of the role of preschool education in “laying the foundations for learning at school,” and emphasizing the good quality, effectiveness and inclusiveness of early education as being beneficial for all children. Countries within the EU have adopted such a policy approach and made changes in congruence with the recommendations of the EU Council. There are still discrepancies between countries and/or regions within the European landscape influenced by different factors, such as specifics of the cultural and social context, different educational systems, parameters of practice for preschools, different teacher education quality, etc. In the context of the Czech preschool policy, innovations and approaches were implemented in early children education including for example the introduction of compulsory 1-year preschool education before enrollment in elementary school (from 2017), emphasis on inclusive education and equal conditions in education as well as state-supported diversity in kindergarten education systems. There is a lack of knowledge about the influence of kindergarten including different kindergarten education systems on later school achievement, in the Czech Republic and in other countries
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