Independent Kindergartens Research Articles

A Scale Development Study to Determine Preschool Teachers' Perception of Gender Roles in the Classroom

The aim of this study is to develop an in-class gender role perception scale for preschool teachers. The study group of the research consists of 493 pre-school teachers working in independent kindergartens, kindergartens within primary schools and kindergartens within secondary schools in Nevşehir, Kırşehir, Niğde and Aksaray provinces of Turkey. The content validity of the scale was ensured by expert opinions. Construct validity was ensured by both exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses. KMO and Bartlett tests were used to determine the suitability of the created items for factor analysis, and these tests were found to be significant at the p <.05 level. With the factor analysis performed to reveal the factor structure of the scale items, a structure consisting of 4 sub-dimensions and 42 items was determined: "general gender discourses in fairy tales and stories, gender role characteristics, gender-specific behavioral reactions and gender". In the reliability analysis of the scale items, Spearman-Brown and Guttman Split-Half reliability coefficients were calculated and these coefficients were found to be suitable for all sub-dimensions. Cronbach's Alpha (α) values were calculated and the resulting coefficient value was found suitable for reliability. Confirmatory factor analysis was performed and the fit indices confirmed the structure created by the factor analysis.

Investigating the Effect of the Media Literacy Family Education Program on the Media Literacy Levels of 48-60-Month-Old Children and Their Mothers

The research aimed to examine the effect of the media literacy family education program on the media literacy levels of 48-60-month-old children and their mothers. The research was conducted as distance education with 48-60-month-old children and their mothers attending independent kindergartens affiliated with the Çankırı Provincial Directorate of National Education during the 2019-2020 academic period. In this context, 18 mothers and children formed the experimental group and 22 mothers and children formed the control group. The quantitative part of the study, which was carried out with a convergent parallel mixed method model, consisted of a 2 x 3 mixed plot semi-experimental design with experimental and control groups consisting of pretest- post-test-permanence-test, and the qualitative part consisted of interviews with mothers after the program. In the study, the “General information form”, “Media literacy scale parent form”, “Media literacy scale child form” and “Semi-structured interview form” developed by the researchers were used as data collection tools, and the “Media literacy family education program” was prepared within the scope of the study. As a result of the research, a significant difference was found in the post-test scores of mothers and children in the experimental and control groups in favor of the experimental group. No significant difference was found in the comprehension dimension in the post-test-permanence-test scores of the mothers in the experimental group. In the interview held after the program, the mothers stated that there was a change in themselves and their children after the program, and that they found the training program effective. Based on the results obtained from the research, it can be recommended that parents act consciously about media and implement a media literacy family education program.

Upaya Meningkatkan Kemampuan Motorik Halus Anak Dengan Kegiatan Mewarnai Gambar Melalui Metode Pemberian Tugas Pada Anak Kelompok B TK Mandiri Serai Wangi Peranap Tahun Ajaran 2022/2023

Children's fine motor skills have not shown good results, in performing fine motor movements, children also need the support of other physical skills and mental maturity. Picture coloring activities at Serai Wangi independent kindergarten are still lacking. When the activity of coloring pictures is carried out there are still many children who play with their friends rather than completing the task. The media provided by the teacher is too large causing children to get bored. The media provided by the teacher is also less varied. The time limit given by the teacher is not appropriate, so that children lack responsibility for image coloring activities. The way the teacher conveys how to color the picture is less precise. Some children still color the picture in two directions. In fact, there are still children who color pictures out of the predetermined pattern lines and are very monotonous. And there are more children who color pictures with only one color. Coloring pictures usually uses crayon media. The focus in this study was group B children of Mandiri Serai Wangi Kindergarten with a total of 10 children consisting of 6 girls and 4 boys. This study uses classroom action research with coloring pictures through the assignment method which is carried out through four stages, namely: planning, action, observation and reflection. This research was conducted in two cycles and each cycle consisted of two meetings. Based on the results of the analysis in cycle I meeting 1 children who were predicated Developing very well only 20% increased in the second meeting to 30%. In cycle II, the first meeting of children who were predicated on developing very well from 30% increased in the second meeting to 60%. The occurrence of an increase from cycle I and silkus II can be concluded that there is an increase with the activity of coloring pictures through the method of giving assignments to children in group B of Mandiri Serai Wangi Kindergarten Peranap Academic Year 2022/2023. Keywords: Fine motor skills, coloring pictures, assignment method

Music education in early childhood in Türkiye: How do school types affect the implementation of musical activities?

This research aims to determine how the implementation of music in early childhood differs by the types of preschool institutions. The sample of the study, which was conducted with the qualitative research approaches, consists of 22 participants, 18 preschool teachers, and 4 school administrators working in four different types of public preschools. Research data were collected through semi-structured interviews. The school types in the study are 1 independent kindergarten, 1 primary school with preschool classes, 1 girls’ vocational high school with practice preschool classes, and 1 special education kindergarten. According to the research findings, music is used in all types of preschool institutions, and similar musical activities are carried out. However, while richer musical activities are carried out in independent kindergartens, the use of music in special education kindergartens is more limited. Independent kindergartens seem more advantageous than other school types in terms of implementing musical activities. Individual efforts of preschool teachers and their interest in music are more important in implementing musical activities. Although the participants highlight the importance of music in special education, the low skills of preschool teachers regarding the use of music in early childhood special education and the special needs of children make it difficult to use music in special education kindergartens.

PENGEMBANGAN MODEL PROJECT BASET LEARNING UNTUK MENSTIMULASI KEMAMPUAN BERPIKIR TINGKAT (HOTS) ANAK USIA DINI USIA 5-6 TAHUN

Problems with the learning model used in schools, where the learning model used is the conventional learning model which is still teacher center in nature and in learning it still uses children's worksheets (LKA) without concrete objects so learning is not yet high level thinking skills (HOTS) early childhood aged 5-6 years. The type of research used is Research and Development which adapts the Borg & Gall model with 10 steps which are simplified into 5 steps, namely conducting preliminary research, developing initial products, conducting product validations, conducting trials, products. The limited trial subjects involved group B teachers at Pembina State Kindergarten 2, Jambi City, namely 4 teachers and Independent Kindergarten, Jambi City, namely 1 teacher. Research and development data were obtained from several sources, namely: material expert validation questionnaire, media expert validation questionnaire. Product feasibility is obtained from the results of limited field trials. The results of research conducted by material experts at the final stage obtained a percentage of 100% with the category very feasible to try out. The results of the assessment were obtained from media experts at the final stage obtaining a percentage of 96.15%. The level of validity of the project based learning model to stimulate higher order thinking skills (HOTS) for early childhood aged 5-6 years from teacher respondents as product users scored a percentage of 87.5% in the very decent category. The conclusion of this research is that the Project Based Learning Model to Stimulate Higher Order Thinking Ability (HOTS) for Early Childhood Children Aged 5-6 Years is very feasible and can be tested.

Effect of Parental Interest on the Self-Regulation Ability of Preschool Children

This study was conducted to examine the effect of parental attention on the self-regulation ability of children aged between 48 and66 months who have just started their preschool education. For this purpose, an example of a training program to improve parental interest was prepared for the parents of the children participating in the study. The study group consisted of 40 children who attended an independent kindergarten affiliated to the Ministry of National Education in Nilüfer District of Bursa Province in the 2019–2020 academic year and their mothers (40) and fathers (40), totaling 120 people. The “Parental Interest Scale for Children” and the “Preschool Self-Regulation Scale (OÖDÖ)” have been used as data collection tools. In addition, the “General Information Form” was used to obtain information from the participants. The obtained data were analyzed with ’Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS)’26 package program. In light of the findings; it was seen that parental attention has an effect on the self-regulation ability of children aged between 48 and66 months who have just started their preschool education, and this positively observed effect is due to an increase in parental interest. As a result, when the correlation test analyzes between parental interest scores and self-regulation skill scores are considered. Parental interest has a positive effect on the self-regulation skills of 48-66-month-old boys and girls who have just started preschool education. Training aimed at improving parental interest is effective in achieving this.

THE EFFECTS OF INTERACTIVE BOOK READING ACTIVITIES ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF PRESCHOOL CHILDREN

Early childhood is one of the irreversible periods of life. Especially this period is the foundation of the learning future of the child. The first years of childhood are a period when cognitive, physical and language development is faster than other years. For this reason, it is very important to determine the achievements of interactive book reading activities to be done with children in the preschool period and to manage the process accordingly. The purpose of this research is to determine the effects of interactive storybook reading activities in and out of school on the developmental areas of children, according to the opinions of preschool teachers, preschool teacher candidates and parents. The study group of the research is affiliated to the Ministry of National Education in Konya City Center in the 2020-2021 academic year; It consists of an independent kindergarten, 5 preschool teachers in this school, and 15 pre-school teacher candidates, a total of 20 people. Qualitative research method was used in this study.

Using a Koppitz Human Draw Test for Guidance in Preschool Period

This study is based on the limited number of studies on recognizing and evaluating preschool children; It aims to be a guide for families and teachers regarding the developmental problems and social and emotional maturity levels of children who continue their preschool education online during the pandemic process and to evaluate the results in terms of children and turn them into opportunities. This qualitative study is carried out in a case study pattern using the “Koppitz Draw a Person Test” for 5-year-old preschool children. The Working group consists of children a total of 100 students, 50 girls and 50 boys, attend official and independent kindergartens through distance education in Akdeniz, Mezitli, Toroslar and Yenişehir districts in the center of Mersin, affiliated to the Ministry of National Education (MEB) in the 2020-2021 academic year. Pictures obtained by the “Koppitz Draw a Human Test” were used as data tools. The data were coded and analyzed by the “Koppitz Draw a Human Test.” The data obtained in the study were interpreted in tables according to Koppitz (1968). In the study, the participant children drew the indicators for academic failures as 8%; and 98% of the indicators expressing social and emotional inadequacy and representing at least one or more anxiety states in the child were drawn. In addition, this study determined that children with self-confidence problems, showing emotional weakness, recessive, and lack of motivation develop negative attitudes when faced with obstacles and rules in response to their expectations during the pandemic process.

Misconceptions in 5-6 Year Old Children: Formation of a Cloud

Many phenomena and events in which children are included are suitable to be researched and discovered by children within the scope of science education. Children ask many questions while researching the scientific facts and phenomena they are curious about and learn new concepts. In this process, it is essential to teach the concepts children will learn and the new education to be formed. Therefore, this study aimed to examine the concept of cloud, which mainly attracts children's attention, and the current conceptual knowledge and misconceptions about cloud formation. For this purpose, the phenomenology pattern was used in the research. The study group consisted of 60-72 month-old children studying in an independent kindergarten affiliated with the Ministry of National Education in Antalya. A total of 12 children and one teacher were included in the study. The research used the 'Personal Information Form', ‘Children's Scientific Concepts Evaluation Form' and 'Teacher Interview Form for Science Education' as data collection tools for children and their teachers. The data were analyzed by the descriptive analysis method. Findings obtained from children were presented in the form of themes by coding. As a result of the research, it was determined that children had concept deficiencies and misconceptions about the formation of the cloud and that there were errors in the formation of meaning. In addition, teachers' suggestions were made to evaluate and change children's misconceptions.

An Action Research on Strengthening the Communication Skills of Foreign Children in the Context of Culturally Sensitive Education

This study aims to strengthen the communication skills of foreign children within the scope of multicultural education, improve their language skills with the support of their peers, and support the adaptation process to school. In an independent kindergarten affiliated with the Ministry of National Education in Gaziantep, the study involved 22 Turkish, two foreign-born children, and the parents of those children. One of the qualitative research techniques used in the study was action research. The research's data collection methods included the sociometry scale, observation notes, home visits, family interviews, checklists, and document reviews. The process was cycled through until the achievements and indicators determined in the checklist were attained after the two-week observation period. Then the researchers developed an action plan. Achieving target achievements and indicators was completed by implementing a five-week action plan. At the end of the process, while the importance of a positive classroom climate, teacher support, and home visits were revealed, it was concluded that peer support significantly affected communication and language skills. In addition, the reflections of working in cooperation with the family were seen.

Okullarda Yaşanan Akran Zorbalığının Okul Yöneticisi, Öğretmen ve Psikolojik Danışman Açısından Değerlendirilmesi

The main purpose of this research is to evaluate peer bullying in schools from the point of view of the school administrator, teacher and psychological counselor. In this context, this research, which is based on the investigation of teachers' views on peer bullying in schools and how to deal with it, is a qualitative screening type study, as it tries to reflect the existing situation as it is. The research team of the study consists of teachers working in Kahramanmaraş province. Within this scope, a total of 16 people, including 8 teachers and 8 psychologists working in Kahramanmaraş, have been included for the 2022-2023 academic year. In the research, the sampling method showing the maximum variety from the purposeful sampling methods was selected. According to this model, only administrators, teachers working in independent kindergartens and parents whose children study in these schools were included in the research. The interview method was used to identify the solutions that teachers have developed to explore their views on bullying in schools and its solutions. The survey data were collected using the semi-structured interview method. The interview questions were created by taking into account the functions in school administration as a result of literature review. “Content analysis”, a qualitative research method, was used in the analysis of the data. Content analysis, one of the qualitative analysis methods, was used while analyzing the research data. Content analysis is the systemization of similar data in a way that the reader can understand, combining them within the framework of certain concepts and topics. The aim here is to reach concepts and relationships that can explain the collected data. For this reason, the written texts obtained from the interviews with the teachers were read and the problems were grouped separately and coded under the headings of management functions. The generated codes were checked and their accuracy was confirmed. The problems related to peer bullying and its solution in the schools where the interviews were held were examined and presented with descriptive analysis. As a result of the study, teachers proposed inclusive research and differentiation of actions related to bullying. Key Words: School, Classroom, Peer Bullying

Çocuğun Öz-Düzenleme Gelişimi: Okul Öncesi Eğitim Süresi ve Öğretmenlerin Öz-Düzenleme Düzeyi Bağlamında İncelenmesi

This study was conducted to examine the self-regulation of teachers working in preschool education institutions, their practices to support self-regulated learning, and the relationship between preschool education status and children's self-regulation skills. The sample of this study, in which the relational survey model, one of the quantitative research methods, was used, consisted of 316 teachers and 213 children working in primary school preschool classes and independent kindergartens affiliated with the Ministry of National Education in Mersin province. The demographic information of the participants was collected through the Demographic Information Form prepared by the researcher. Teachers' self-regulation was assessed with the "Self-Regulation Scale", while the practices they used to support self-regulated learning were assessed with the "Scale for Evaluating Preschool Teachers' Practices to Support Self-Regulated Learning" (SC-SRLS). Children's self-regulation skills were assessed with the "Preschool Self-Regulation Scale" (PSRS), which requires face-to-face practice with each child. As a result of the study, it was found that children's self-regulation skills differed significantly in favor of children older than 68 months. In addition, it was determined that children's self-regulation and emotion regulation differed in favor of girls according to gender. In the study, the self-regulation skills of children with more than one year of preschool education were significantly higher than those of children with less preschool education. As a result of the study, it was determined that there was a positive and significant relationship between teachers' self-regulation and classroom practices to support self-regulated learning. In addition, there was a positive and significant relationship between teachers' self-regulation and the practices they used to support self-regulated learning and children's self-regulation skills.

Investigation of the Predictive Effect of Parents' Life Positions on Preschool Children's Behavior Problems.

The aim of the study was to examine the effect of parents' life position on the prediction of behavioral problems of preschool children. The sample of the study consisted of 364 children enrolled in independent kindergartens and preschools of primary schools affiliated to Altındağ District Directorate of National Education in Turkey and their parents (290 mothers and 97 fathers). In the study, the survey model, which aims to determine the current situation among quantitative research methods, and the relational model, which aims to reveal the link between two or more variables and the strength of the link, were used (Frankel et al., 2011). The data obtained from the study in which "Family Information Form, Preschool and Kindergarten Behavior Scale and Life Positions Scale" were used as data collection tools were analyzed with Pearson Correlation Coefficient and Multiple Regression analysis methods. When the findings of the research were examined, it was found that as the "I am Okey, You are Okey" life position of the parents increased, the children's total behavior problems, which consisted of internalizing, externalizing and a combination of internalizing and externalizing behavior problems, decreased whereas "I am not Okey, You are Okey" and "I am not Okey, You are not Okey" life positions increased, the children's internalizing, externalizing and total behavior problems increased. Moreover, the regression analysis results of the study showed that parents' life positions had a statistically significant effect in predicting their children's behavior problems.

Examination of Creativity Levels of Preschool Children

The study aims to examine whether the interaction of parents' education and income levels has a significant effect on the creativity scores of preschool children. The research was conducted in a district of Ankara, where parents are thought to vary in terms of income and education level. 123 children studying in independent kindergartens affiliated with the Ministry of National Education participated in the research. “Early Childhood Creativity Scale” was used as a data collection tool in the study. In the study, a 2x3 two-way analysis of variance was preferred because it was aimed to examine the possible effects or interaction effects of categorical independent variables on the continuous dependent variable. Test procedures were run after ANOVA assumptions were checked and it was observed that the assumptions were met. As a result of the research, it was determined that the interaction between parents' education levels and income levels had an effect on their children's creativity. When looking only through the main effects, independent of the interaction effect, it was determined that the level of parental education was influential on the creativity scores of the children, but the income level alone was not.

Investigating the relationship between visual literacy and rapid automatized naming skills in 5-6-year-old children

This study aimed to determine the relationship between the visual literacy levels of children attending preschool education institutions and their rapid automatized naming skills. A total of 160 children, 77 girls, and 83 boys, aged 5-6 years, attending independent kindergartens, took part in the research. The "Personal Information Form," the "Visual Literacy Assessment Tool for Children Aged 5-6 Parent's Form," and the Rapid Automated Naming Test (HOTIT) were used to collect the data. The predictive correlational research design was used in the study; Pearson's correlation coefficient and "multiple regression" analysis were used to determine the predictors of visual literacy skills. It was found that there was a high negative correlation between the skills of the Rapid Automatized Naming Test and the picture sub-dimension and a similarly high negative correlation between the Rapid Automatized Naming Test color skills.

The Effect of Project Approach-Based Education on Children’s Early Literacy Skills

In this study, it was aimed to determine the effect of project-based education on children's early literacy skills. Experimental design with pretest-posttest control group was used in the research. The study group of the research consisted of a total of 36 children in the experimental (n: 18) and control (n: 18) groups, who attended independent kindergartens affiliated to the Ministry of National Education in the city center of Afyon, which were randomly selected from the population. As a data collection tool in the study, the "General Information Form" developed by the researchers to collect personal information about children and families (gender, number of siblings, duration of pre-school education, parents' ages, educational status, occupation) and to evaluate early literacy skills the “Test of Early Literacy” (TEL) developed by Kargın, Güldenoğlu and Ergül (2015) were used. A project-based education program was applied to the children in the experimental group, 3 days a week for 8 weeks. A statistically significant difference was found between the pre-test and post-test mean scores of the children in the experimental and control groups from all of the TEL and its sub-dimensions, in favor of the scores they got from the posttest. Due to the positive change in the experimental and control groups, the pre-test and post-test score differences of the children in the experimental and control groups were compared. As a result of the comparison, a statistically significant difference was found in favor of the experimental group.

Problems about the Duties of the School Administrators in the Kindergartens and the Solution Suggestions

This research aims to reveal the problems about the work fields of school administrators in kindergartens and the solutions suggestions related to these problems based on the opinions of the administrators. The research was carried out in the case study (multiple case study), one of the qualitative research designs. The data used in the research were obtained by using semi-structured interview forms. The data obtained were analyzed using the descriptive analysis method. The study population consists of the administrators working in the independent kindergartens in Sanlıurfa centrum in the 2018-1019 academic year. The maximum diversity sampling was used in the study. The research study group consists of 29 school administrators and 26 deputy managers working 29 independent kindergartens in Sanlıurfa centrum. First of all, regarding the problems experienced in the research, it has been inferred that enough support staff to perform the cleaning and security tasks were not provided to the schools. The administrators have indicated that the number of substitute teachers is high in the system and they do not have the necessary field knowledge as another problem. The fact that dual education is a problem in itself and that the Ministry does not provide a subsidy to kindergartens is one of the findings of the study. Providing schools with a sufficient number of support staff, ending dual education and switching to regular education, abolishing the practice of substitute teachers, and having the Ministry transfer subsidies to schools are proposed solutions developed by administrators.

Improvement of soft skills in preschool teachers through gamification

With the use of education in technology, many applications in the field of education are among these teaching methods and techniques in gamification. Gamification provides many skill acquisitions. In this study, it is aimed to examine the opinions of teachers about the social skills gains of gamification for the application of gamification in preschool education. The qualitative method was used in the research. The study was conducted using the case study design, one of the qualitative research methods. Interviews were conducted with 35 preschool teachers working in independent kindergartens. The data obtained, as a result of the research, were analysed in detail using the content analysis method. As a result of the research, it was concluded that gamification education is especially effective in the preschool period and is effective in gaining skills for children. In the same way, it is seen that there are some problems in the implementation of gamification training. These problems can be eliminated with in-service training. It can be solved by providing technological support tools at school.
 Keywords: Gamification, acquisition, preschool, teacher, education;

Examination of the Executive Function Skills of 5-Year-Old Children Receiving Pre-School Education According to Some Variables

The aim of this study is to examine the executive function skills of 5-year-old children receiving pre-school education in terms of gender, duration of pre-school education, parental education and age status, maternal employment status, children's digital game playing status and digital game playing frequency variables. The study was carried out through the descriptive survey model, which is among the quantitative research methods, and the convenience sampling method, which is among the non-random sampling methods. The population of the study consists of 5-year-old children receiving pre-school education and the sample group consists of 332 children in the 5-year-old group who attend independent kindergartens affiliated to the Ministry of National Education in Ağrı and who are allowed by their parents to participate in the research. 'The Childhood Executive Function Inventory (CHEXI)-Teacher Form' and the Child Information Form prepared by the researchers were used within the context of the study. As a result of the study, no significant difference was found in CHEXI-Teacher Form scores in terms of the variables of duration of preschool education, parent education and age status, and maternal employment status. However, it was observed that CHEXI-Teacher Form scores were significantly higher for boys compared to girls, for children who play digital games compared to those who do not, and for children who play digital games more than once a day compared to children who play less frequently.

INVESTIGATING THE QUALITY OF PRESCHOOL EDUCATION INSTITUTIONS REGARDING THE VIEWS OF THE EXISTING STAFF

Institutions enter into a fierce struggle in order to prove themselves and to be popular among the public. In order to be more successful in this competition, it needs to raise the quality level of its institution to the highest level. This study aims to measure the quality of education of 37-66 months old children attending pre-school education institutions in Aksaray province. 73 personnel participated in the research. In this study, the Early Childhood Classroom Surveillance scale was used. During the analysis of the questionnaires, significant differences were observed in the physical environment and health safety items in independent kindergartens and primary school kindergartens in Gülağaç district, and Aksaray province.