Early Childhood Education Settings Research Articles

Leadership emergence and development: Organizations shaping leading in early childhood education

Early childhood education (ECE) effects positive outcomes for children, but outcomes depend upon the quality of the program with which children engage. Program quality is positively influenced by effective leadership; yet we do not fully understand how effective leadership emerges and develops within ECE sites. This lack of knowledge potentially compromises the development of effective leadership and, subsequently, a child’s right to high-quality ECE. This paper, therefore, contributes to the field of research on ECE leadership development by describing a qualitative Australian study that investigated leadership cultivation. The mini-ethnographic case study examined the emergence and development of leadership in three high-quality, diversely governed ECE settings. Findings of the study suggest the practice of leading is foundational for positional leadership roles and is enabled by the practice architectures of an organization. Practice architectures comprise cultural-discursive, material-economic and social-political arrangements. Arrangements, found within organizations, included cultures of trust, use of professional knowledge and language, collaborative development of philosophy, democratic allocation of resources, sharing of power and openness to activism, disruption and creativity. Such arrangements play an important role in the emergence and development of leading and therefore offer organizations alternative ways to consider leadership cultivation.

Exploring types of educational classroom talk in early childhood education centres

ABSTRACT Educational classroom talk is beneficial for children’s learning and communicative development (Alexander 2018); however, current research has focused predominantly on classroom talk starting at the primary school level. This study explored types of educational classroom talk between teachers and children as early as in early childhood education (ECE) in the United Arab Emirates. It also examined variations in the occurrence of different types of classroom talk, depending on activities and content areas. Twenty-nine video-recorded and transcribed sessions from 11 ECE classrooms serving three- to four-year-old children were analysed; the analysis was partly theory driven and partly data driven with respect to communicative acts, events, and situations. Four types of educational classroom talk were identified: initiation–response–feedback (IRF), open naming, open informal discussion, and teacher-directed exploration. IRF dominated the interactions across all content areas and activities. More extended exchanges between teachers and children occurred predominantly in small-group activities. No strictly defined educational teacher–student dialogue was found. The study showed variations in educational classroom talk in ECE settings and suggests that there is an urgent need to increase extended educational classroom talk between teachers and children in the early stages of pre-primary education to support children’s development and learning.

Adaptation and evaluation of a nutrition and physical activity program for early childhood education settings in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities in remote Far North Queensland.

Good nutrition, physical activity and adequate sleep are essential for the healthy growth and development of young children. Due to complex cultural, historical, social factors, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children face additional challenges to optimal health, particularly in remote areas of Australia. 'Learning, Eating, Active Play and Sleep' (LEAPS) was a Queensland-wide professional development program designed to support early childhood education and care (ECEC) educators to implement and reinforce healthy nutrition and physical activity in their services. This article describes the adaptation, implementation and evaluation of LEAPS for remote ECEC settings in Cape York. An Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Reference Group was commissioned to provide advice about the appropriateness of the existing program for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander ECEC settings. Based on the advice of the Reference Group, the program was adapted for use in Cape York and was evaluated using the RE-AIM framework and a combination of data sources. Quantitative data provided information about changes to participant knowledge and confidence regarding nutrition and physical activity and in-depth interviews allowed further insights into enablers and challenges for successful program implementation. A tailored LEAPS program increased participants' knowledge and confidence regarding nutrition and physical activity in ECEC settings. The importance of community consultation, building relationships and face-to-face delivery of training were highlighted as key enablers. The evaluation identified a number of challenges relating to competing priorities, limited support for ongoing implementation and adoption of improved practices. SO WHAT?: Poor nutrition and growth in children in remote Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities indicates the need for the ongoing commitment to and investment in nutrition and physical activity across a range of community settings. To achieve success, this requires a dedicated preventative health workforce supporting evidence-informed, coordinated programs driven by community priorities and developed via community development approaches.

The Coronavirus Pandemic and Lessons Learned in Preschools in Norway, Sweden and the United States: OMEP Policy Forum

The novel coronavirus, also known as COVID-19, has moved rapidly across the world in 2020. This article reports on the recent consequences of the pandemic for early childhood education in Sweden, Norway, and the United States. The authors illustrate the effects of the pandemic on preschools in their countries, against a backdrop of frequent changes in infection and mortality rates, epidemiological understandings, government strategies, and mitigation strategies regarding preschool closures. Teachers report their experiences and actions in specific early childhood education settings, across the three national contexts. These experiential snapshots identify program priorities, parents’ and children’s reactions, and the commitment and concerns of teachers. The conversations reveal culturally situated similarities of early childhood educational practices but also differences across contexts. Teachers report on the challenges of their experiences but also benefits for their practice and how they engage with children and their families. Ideas about future preparedness for such pandemics are also discussed.

Joy as a practice: performing joy in children’s everyday relations in early childhood education settings

ABSTRACT The purpose of this study is to examine children’s performed joy in their everyday peer relations in early childhood education (ECE) settings. The theoretical and methodological frameworks draw on a narrative approach, the postmodern formulations of emotions and Erwin Goffman’s dramaturgical perspectives in children’s everyday social relations. The research material was gathered by video observations and diary notes in open ECE groups in Finland, with children from 2 to 6 years. The findings imply that children’s joyful performances act as a dynamic practice in their peer relations. Joy as a practice both generates the emotion of joy and promotes different relational goals, such as making friends.

Status gizi dan perkembangan anak usia 3-5 tahun di Kabupaten Bogor

Background: Malnutrition in children under five causes a variety of developmental disorders. The nutritional need for children aged 3-5 age is very critical to reach optimum growth and development. Objectives: The purpose of this study is to analyse the association between nutritional status using WAZ, HAZ, WHZ index with gross motor, fine motor, passive communication, active communication, cognitive, self-help ability and social behavior development childred aged 3-5 years old. Methods: Data was obtained from a study entitled Improving Child Growth and Development through Nutrition and Psychosocial Intervention in Early Childhood Education (PAUD) Setting in Rural Areas and was fully funded by the Nestle Foundation (NF), Switzerland. The study design was cross-sectional, with 120 children aged 3-5 years old as subjects. Locations and subjects were selected purposively in Bogor District. Nutritional status was assesed by WAZ, HAZ, and WHZ index. Child development was assessed by using Bina Keluarga Balita questionnaire.Results: Most of the subjects had good nutritional status dan development level. WAZ indicator significantly associated with gross motor dan cognitive development (p<0.05). HAZ indicator significantly associated with gross motor, active communication skills and cognitive development (p<0.05). WHZ indicator significantly associated with fine motor and cognitive children (p<0.05). Conclusion: Nutritional status is associated with child development.

Converged play characteristics for early childhood education: multi-modal, global-local, and traditional-digital

ABSTRACT This paper discusses characteristics of converged play for early childhood education. The characteristics were derived from a four-year study of teachers’ interpretation and use of ‘web-mapping’ as an explicit conceptual tool, designed to mediate teaching practices and learning outcomes according to a definition of pedagogy as the relationship between teaching and learning. Three characteristics of converged play were identified via detailed analysis of ten core converged play ‘episodes’ drawn from teacher exemplar cases. The characteristics were ‘multi-modal’, ‘global-local’, and ‘traditional-digital’. The characteristics of converged play presented can help teachers understand teaching and learning in the digital age, providing a starting point for an early childhood pedagogy in which children and teachers can engage in well-established opportunities for play-based learning alongside multi-modal, global-local, and traditional-digital activities in early childhood education and care settings.

‘I don’t really like the thing what you do, I like it more because you get the stickers’: the impact of rules and rewards on children’s transition experiences

ABSTRACT Children’s early experiences of educational transition can be a critical step in their life-long learning journey, yet we know very little about their perceptions of this experience. This paper draws on the findings of a participatory study, which identified rules and rewards as being significant factors for children transitioning from an early childhood education setting to the first year of primary school in a European school in a major city in Belgium. This case study accessed the voices of six children, their parents and the teaching staff. The findings indicated that the children perceived both sanctions and rewards to be important in the enforcement of classroom rules. However, the children expressed concerns about their ability to adapt their behaviour to meet the cultural expectations of the setting and were troubled about the impact this could have on their social belonging. Furthermore, learning dispositions were found to be inhibited by both ambiguous criteria for success and the desire to earn rewards. This paper recommends that educators give careful consideration to the ways in which rules and rewards impact upon children’s experiences of transition.

Implementation of policy, system and environment changes in early childhood education settings

BackgroundChanging Policy, System, and Environmental features focused on physical activity and healthy eating behaviors can play a key role in obesity prevention strategies in early childhood education settings because of their broad reach and because they can be sustained over time. The primary aims of this study were to examine the implementation and sustainability of health-promoting PSE changes after facilitation of an innovative strategic planning process in child care settings.MethodsThe evidence-based policy, system, and environment change process is a strategic planning tool derived from intervention mapping that involves convening interdisciplinary wellness teams at child care settings to implement healthy eating and physical activity-related policy changes. The process was conducted with 43 wellness teams representing 68 child care centers.ResultsThe average number of health-promoting evidence-based changes implemented across all child care centers was 5.07; the most common type of changes were environment changes. Overall, 42% of changes were partially implemented and 47% of changes were fully implemented at 6 months. Head Start wellness teams implemented 1.52 fewer health-promoting changes compared to private fee-based wellness teams (p < .05).ConclusionsIdentifying health-promoting policy, system and environment changes that are most readily implemented and sustained in child care centers can inform systems-level interventions and resource allocation related to early childhood obesity. This strategic planning process is a successful tool to translate sustainable changes related to healthy eating and physical activity, improve the quality rating of diverse child care centers, and promote healthy behaviors in early childhood.

Valuable everyday encounters in early childhood education: narratives from professionals

ABSTRACTThis article presents professionals’ narratives about valuable encounters with young children in early childhood education (ECE) settings. The study aims to provide an in-depth perspective on how professionals talk about ethics in practice, and the values addressed in the narratives. Initially, professionals in Swedish ECE settings defined their understanding of a valuable encounter with a child and then used a digital app to self-register 10 such encounters during one day. After the self-registration, we interviewed the professionals and they told us about the encounters they had experienced. We identified three themes concerning who was the focus of the encounters: the professional, the child, or both reciprocally. By using a narrative approach and Nussbaum’s ethical theoretical perspective, we show how different rationales were interwoven in the stories and that situated emotions were enacted and reflected. Finally, we noticed that many valuable encounters took place in ‘in-between spaces’. They were not planned for or organised, but occurred spontaneously through professionals’ sensitive employment of an ethics in practice.

Examining early childhood teachers’ attitudes and responses to superhero play

Research highlights that early childhood teachers (ECTs) hold varied opinions on the value of superhero play (SP) to young children’s learning and development. This study sought to investigate how ECTs in Victoria are responding to superhero play, and to examine the beliefs that underpin their responses. Interviews were conducted with eight ECTs from the Bayside area in Melbourne. The study revealed that while the majority of the teachers interviewed responded to children’s superhero play in a variety of ways, there were a number of barriers to supporting superhero play in early childhood education and care settings. This paper concludes by identifying the value of ECTs engaging in critical reflection to ensure that their responses to superhero play are based on professional knowledge that is informed by theory and research.

Gender equality work in preschools and early childhood education settings in the Nordic countries\u2014an empirically based illustration

This article aims to describe and find ways to understand the practical gender equality work that is going on to promote gender equality in preschools in the Nordic countries. Gender equality in this article is broadly understood as a process of developing higher “gender awareness” (Lahelma, 2014 Educ Res 56(2): 171–183; Subrahmanian, 2005 Int J Educ Dev 25(4): 395–407) in a preschool organization and the analysis is performed through a poststructuralist understanding of gender. The material consists of 59 interviews, policy document analyses and preschool visits in the Nordic countries and autonomous territories. In order to address the work concerning gender equality in preschools, practices and processes have been analysed in order to achieve deeper understanding of what is done practically. The results are presented as an illustration of how to understand the work done and using this illustration further as a tool for reviewing existing work could be one way of developing gender equality.

Using metaphor to illuminate quality in early childhood education

This paper reports on a study in which educators from four early childhood centres used metaphor to discuss their provision of high-quality early childhood education. Qualitative mining of focus group data confirmed ‘quality’ to be complex, multi-dimensional and value-laden. Findings contribute to understandings of quality in early childhood education through four key themes: ‘quality’ as a synergetic flow; the facilitative stance and impact of leaders in the enactment of leadership; children as active contributors to quality; and the role of love. Metaphor is shown to be a valuable tool that can highlight tangible and intangible quality contributors, how these contributors link together and the contextual specificity from which quality in individual early childhood education settings emanates.

Directors' stress in day care centers: related factors and coping strategies

PurposeThis study aims to explore what causes stress to day care center directors and what their coping strategies are. In addition, the study examined the extent to which directors experience work-related stress and burnout, and the factors associated with their work-related stress, engagement and recovery from work.Design/methodology/approachA mixed method approach was used.FindingsThe results showed that the main sources of directors' stress were connected to leading oneself, leading others, managing change and lack of social support. Moreover, the main coping strategies with stress were leading oneself, social support and leading others. In addition, both pre- and in-service leadership training played a significant role in the experience of stress. The nature of factors causing stress and coping strategies with stress may imply that directors need further support in self-management and developing their internal competences.Research limitations/implicationsThe present study has limitations that need to be considered when making generalizations. First, a small sample size limits the generalization of the findings. Second, the study relied solely on one source of information, i.e. directors' self-reports. Third, data were collected only at one time point at the end of the year when stress levels might have accumulated. Finally, the study has been done in the Finnish educational context where day care center directors' job description varies depending on municipality.Practical implicationsThe findings provide important information about the causes of directors' work-related stress as well as their coping strategies and about factors that might be related to those.Social implicationsBecause directors' stress impact on children’s development and well-being through teachers' well-being, it is crucial to pay attention on directors' well-being and provide more support for them.Originality/valueThe current study is among the few ones focusing on the stress of directors at early childhood education (ECE) settings.

Nourishing Compassion in Finnish Kindergarten Head Teachers: How Character Strength Training Influences Teachers\u2019 Other-Oriented Behavior

Compassion refers to noticing, feeling and acting to alleviate suffering in others. Being one of the crucial socio-emotional and cultural skills, surprisingly little is known of early childhood education (ECE) teachers’ compassionate behavior and their ability to teach it to children. Overall, research on compassion in early childhood education and care (ECEC) settings is scarce. However, existing studies show that compassion skills can be acquired through training, and a collective compassion capability can be cultivated by everyday practices. As part of the positive psychology movement, compassion can be viewed as one of the character strengths (Peterson and Seligman 2004), generic skills, or “soft skills” that are underlined in the latest curricula and pedagogical documents (OECD 2017). In our present study, 95 ECE head teachers participated in the interventions, the aim of which was promoting compassion, character strengths and a supportive organization culture. A classic controlled pre/post-measuring protocol was applied to monitor progress. Additionally, qualitative material was collected from 33 participants. The intervention participants showed a significant increase in their identification and usage of strengths and in creating a supportive organizational culture. Content analysis of the qualitative statements revealed three main themes, Caring professionalism, Warm presence and Positive feedback, evidencing strivings toward an emotionally and professionally supportive ECEC organization.

The Influence of the Early Childhood Education and Care Environment on Young Children's Physical Activity: Development and Reliability of the PLAYCE Study Environmental Audit and Educator Survey.

(1) Background: Participation in physical activity is crucial for the healthy growth and development of young children. More robust measurement of environmental influences on children’s physical activity in early childhood education and care (ECEC) settings may help resolve inconsistencies in the literature. This study evaluated the reliability of an environmental audit and educator practice survey for assessing ECEC physical, policy, and social environments related to young children’s physical activity. (2) Methods: A convenience sample of 20 ECEC centres participated in this PLAYCE (Play Spaces and Environments for Children’s Physical Activity) sub-study. Trained auditors conducted audits and educators completed surveys, two weeks apart. Test-retest reliability of the survey (n = 32), inter-rater (n = 20 pairs) and intra-rater reliability (n = 38) of the audit was assessed using intra-class correlation coefficients (ICCs), Kappa statistics and percent agreement. (3) Results: Intra-rater and inter-rater reliability ICCs for outdoor equipment, spaces and features were good to excellent (ICC = 0.70–0.94), while ratings for indoor equipment, media and spaces varied from fair to excellent (ICC = 0.46–0.78). The majority of items were rated by Kappa as moderate or above for intra-rater, inter-rater and survey test-retest reliability. (4) Conclusions: The PLAYCE Study instruments provide reliable measures of ECEC physical activity environments which can help to better understand influences on young children’s physical activity.

Environmental Influences on Children's Physical Activity in Early Childhood Education and Care.

To examine the relationship between attributes of early childhood education and care (ECEC) settings and children's physical activity and sedentary behavior. Cross-sectional study involving 490 children aged 2-5 years from 11 ECECs. The ECEC routine, size of the outdoor environment, and time spent in the outdoor environment were calculated for each center. Children's physical activity and sedentary time were measured using accelerometers. Multivariate linear regressions were used to examine associations of the attributes of ECEC centers with the outcome variables, adjusting for the effects of center clustering and gender. Children in ECECs that offered free routines (where children can move freely between indoor and outdoor environments) had lower levels of sedentary time (28.27min/h vs 33.15min/h; P = .001) and spent more time in total physical activity (7.99min/h vs 6.57min/h; P = .008) and moderate- to vigorous-intensity physical activity (9.49min/h vs 7.31min/h; P = .008). Children in ECECs with an outdoor environment >400m2 had less sedentary time (28.94min/h vs 32.42min/h; P = .012) than those with areas <400m2. Modifiable practices such as offering a free routine and increasing time spent in outdoor environments could potentially offer an easy and sustainable way for ECEC centers to promote physical activity and reduce sedentary time among children.

A socio-constructivist approach to developing a professional learning intervention for early childhood education and care practitioners in Wales

ABSTRACT In 16 Flying Start early childhood education and care (ECEC) settings within a Local Authority in Wales, observations of adult-child interactions, using the Sustained Shared Thinking and Emotional Wellbeing Scale (SSTEW), highlighted that interactions that support children’s problem solving, curiosity, concept development, and higher-order thinking were the least well developed aspects of practice. A two-day professional learning intervention ‘Talking Science’, underpinned by a socio-cultural understanding of science learning in ECEC was designed. The intervention was delivered via a collaborative, socio constructive model of delivery en masse to all 64 practitioners in the 16 Flying Start settings. This qualitative mixed method research project adopted an interpretivist paradigm; the aim was to better understand ECEC practitioners’ perceptions of science and how these perceptions both shaped provision and supported children’s concept development in their settings. Data collection took the form of scribed notes from group discussions, feedback from practitioners during discussions and evaluation feedback about ‘Talking Science’. The experiential professional learning programme with a focus on science in everyday practice appeared to be supportive of practitioners’ developing confidence and subsequent engagement with science provision for young children. ‘Talking Science’ also provides a model which may have wider implications when designing ECEC professional learning.

The Impact of Block Play on Children’s Early Mathematics Skills in Rural Papua New Guinea

In this study, we explored whether access to block play is beneficial to mathematical learning for young children in a low-income country. The research, conducted in Papua New Guinea, explored if access to Duplo Lego blocks, across a 7-month period, in early childhood education settings facilitated mathematical learning for children, aged from 5 to 7 years. The research design of the research involved an intervention group (n = 23) with children from three playschools who had access to the blocks across a period of 7 months. A comparison group (n = 26) included children from three elementary schools who had usual programming and resources across the period of the intervention. Learning outcomes were assessed using the Schedule for Early Number Assessment. Findings from this exploratory study indicated that children in the intervention group had stronger mathematics skills at the end of the intervention period than children in the comparison group. Findings indicated that access to block play had potential to improve mathematics skills in early childhood settings in Papua New Guinea. Greater access to block play could provide a feasible and affordable intervention to support early mathematical learning with potential to improve mathematical skills through primary school.

Developing young children’s empathic perception through digitally mediated interpersonal experience: Principles for a hybrid design of empathy games

AbstractThere is an emerging concern that modern technology‐saturated environments, particularly computer games, are inhibiting the development of children’s empathic behaviour and social skills. We argue that the solution is embedded in the problem when hybrid learning design blends real‐life social interpersonal interactions with digital representations. We present theory‐informed design principles for creating tablet games with a focus on promoting empathic perception—a building block for the ability to see, sense and understand other’s internal states. Based on these principles, the gameEmpathy Worldwas developed and trialled in a naturalistic three‐month study in an early childhood education setting. Children learned to perceive empathy‐worthy cues in various scenes and interacted with the tablet game to further their perspective‐taking and to associate emotions with social contexts. The findings from this study show an increase in the selective tendency of children’s in‐game perception of empathy‐worthy stimuli and enhanced empathic concern. We argue that future design for learning can utilise the strengths of hybrid design for social development at a larger scale: integrating theoretically informed and rigorously tested digital tools in existing educational and social environments.Practitioner NotesWhat is already known about this topicResearch has examined various developmental benefits of empathy and shown that empathy can be learnt.Digital games can be productive, easy to scale, tools that support learning.Sound design, based on theory‐informed principles, can improve the effectiveness of digital learning games.What this paper addsIt synthesises theories and research evidence of empathy and its development.It shows how empathy‐related theoretical ideas and evidence were translated into hybrid design principles for developing empathy games and embedding them into children’s social learning environment.It illustrates how theory‐ and evidence‐informed design principles were used to create a digital game to enhance empathic learning of young children in a hybrid technology‐mediated environment.It explores and validates the effectiveness of a hybrid design approach by implementing the digital empathy game in children’s natural learning environment and analysing the data by capturing emerging patterns of development stemming from gameplay.Implications for practice and/or policyPre‐schools could enhance children's empathy learning by integrating specially designed empathy games in existing learning environments.Teachers and parents should be informed about how to create game‐mediated hybrid environments that enhance children’s empathy.