Kindergarten Teachers Research Articles

Ways of self-renewal of kindergarten teachers in forest kindergartens change

ABSTRACT The study examined the self-renewal and conceptual change kindergarten teachers in Israel, underwent from a professional career perspective in the process of implementing the transition to a forest kindergarten model. Educator’s career consists of four consecutive stages: entry, building, mid-career, and the late career. In education, self-renewal is a phenomenon characteristic in the mid-career stage. Self-renewal has scarcely been studied in early childhood educators. This article examines self-renewal based on interpretations of interviews with 19 kindergarten teachers in Israel who responded to an institutional initiative to create forest kindergartens. Results show three ways that mid-career kindergarten teachers used to update their pedagogical knowledge and reframe their educational perceptions. Self-renewal reflects the professional kindergarten teachers’ background based on their past experiences and aspects of entrepreneurial behavior. The article can help policymakers improve early childhood education and launch new enterprises.

The Impact of Occupational Pressure on Integrated Education among Kindergarten Teachers

Due to the complexity and specificity of the physical and mental development of special needs children, there are significant individual differences that require special school teachers to put in more effort in their work. However, due to the imbalance between the actual teaching effectiveness of teachers and their efforts, they are prone to negative psychological states such as occupational burnout and self-doubt. With the increasing professional pressure of kindergarten teachers, it affects the implementation of integrated education. Integrated education aims to promote mutual understanding and respect among children with different abilities and backgrounds. However, in reality, current preschool teachers are facing issues such as diverse needs of young children, insufficient teaching resources, and career development pressures, which affect teaching effectiveness and learning outcomes for young children. Therefore, it is necessary for the education department and all sectors of society to pay attention, solve problems, achieve the goal of integrated education, and enable children to grow up in a good environment.

Hong Kong Kindergarten Teachers’ Satisfaction and Engagement in a Music-and-Movement Online Professional Development Course

Online professional development (PD) can be a sustainable and easily scalable alternative to provide early childhood teachers with training opportunities. However, there is limited research on teachers’ levels of satisfaction and engagement in online PD initiatives. Understanding teachers’ levels of satisfaction and engagement is crucial, as these may influence the effectiveness of online PD in benefiting teachers and ultimately young children. This study aimed to examine Hong Kong kindergarten teachers’ satisfaction and engagement in a music-and-movement (M&M) online PD course. This study involved 56 participants who received an 11-week online PD course. Questionnaires were administered after course completion. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and t-tests. Participants had high levels of satisfaction with the course, particularly those with no or some M&M background, who were more satisfied with the course content and instruction. Participants had moderate-to-high levels of engagement in the course, particularly those with no or some M&M background, who were more emotionally engaged. We conclude that sustainable and easily scalable online PD initiatives can result in high levels of satisfaction and engagement among kindergarten teachers, especially those with limited M&M background. This study supports the idea that online PD can be responsive to teachers’ needs and preferences.

Increasing teacher confidence in using universal design for learning to support students’ developmental skills through teacher education at tier 1

ABSTRACT Children’s participation and success within the school environment are dependent on developmental and school readiness skills that extend beyond academic skills, including motor, visual, visual motor integration, social, and self-regulation skills. Students enter kindergarten with a varying range of school readiness skills and developmental needs, while teachers may lack the time, support, or ability to address them. A pre-test/posttest design was used to deliver a Universal Design for Learning approach to teacher education on motor, visual, visual motor integration, social, and self-regulation skill development to 12 kindergarten and first-grade teachers using an occupational therapist-teacher collaborative teaching model. Additionally, this approach facilitated opportunities for teachers to integrate skill development within their classrooms. An author-generated survey was used to capture teachers’ self-reported confidence and knowledge of skill development. Comparing pre- and post-survey scores, using the Wilcoxon Rank Test, indicates that the method used in this study has a statistically significant effect in increasing teachers’ knowledge of developmental skills and confidence in providing classroom interventions to support student participation. These results support Universal Design for Learning’s effectiveness in supporting children’s developmental skills through occupational therapist-teacher education.

Digital Storytelling in Listening EYL Context: Students’ Responses

In the contemporary educational landscape, digital storytelling (DST) has surfaced as a promising pedagogical paradigm for facilitating the instruction of English as a Foreign Language (EFL). Nonetheless, its implementation in educational settings has yielded divergent student responses, influencing the efficacy of educational DST as an English language instructional instrument (Baehaki Wahyuni, 2023). This study aims to scrutinize the responses of kindergarten pupils engaged in the DST learning process, with a particular emphasis on nurturing students' listening proficiencies. The investigation was conducted at TK Labschool UPI establishments in Bandung, encompassing a cohort of 10 students aged 5-6 years, employing a qualitative inquiry approach and adopting a case study framework. Data accrual entails classroom observations, while thematic analysis is the methodological scaffold for discerning patterns and discrepancies within the gathered data corpus. The overarching aspiration of this research endeavor is to furnish nuanced insights into the efficacy of DST as a multimodal language acquisition tool in the milieu of kindergarten education. The findings endeavor to elucidate educational practices and enrich the ongoing dialogue of innovative language pedagogical methodologies by augmenting the extant reservoir of knowledge concerning early childhood English language assimilation. The research findings are considered favorable when students exhibit an 80% success rate in behavior and answering questions, indicating a significant response toward achieving the educational objectives.

The Perception Overview of Kindergarten and Elementary School Teachers on School Readiness

School readiness is one of important factors that is needed to help children enter the elementary education. However, the characteristic needed in school readiness remains unclear. Most of the school usually has different consideration in differentiating student admission process. This study aims to determine the kindergarten and elementary school teacher perception of student readiness entering elementary school. Cross-sectional survey designed is used as research approach involving 195 kindergarten and elementary school teacher in 5 cities in West Sumatera. 5 open-ended question were given to 91 kindergarten teachers and 104 elementary school teachers. Content analysis was carried out to analyze the answer and group them according to the themes that emerged. In general, the result of this research found that kindergarten and elementary school teacher has similar perception of school readiness. Around 81% kindergarten teacher and 92% elementary school teacher said that school readiness is crucial for children entering elementary school. In detail, kindergarten and elementary school teacher think that age is the main consideration in student admission for elementary school. Other consideration is cognitive, social, and emotional ability.

Research on the Causes and Countermeasures of Professional Stress of Kindergarten Teachers: Survey from a Kindergarten in Guiyang City

The professional pressure of preschool teachers refers to all kinds of negative emotional expriences generated by preschool teachers in the special educational environment of preschool education,including all negative emotional experiences caused by society, kindergarten, teachers themselves and parents. This thesis takes some preschool teachers of kindergarten X in Guiyang City as the research object, and investigates some kindergarten teachers of kindergarten X in Guiyang City through the Questionnaire on the Current Situation of Occupational Stress of Preschool Teachers, and interviews the preschool teachers of the kindergarten through the interview outline, the research results show that most of the preschool teachers of the kindergarten have high occupational stress or overload; the occupational stress of preschool teachers mainly comes from the preschool teachers themselves, the study concluded that in order to alleviate the professional pressure of preschool teachers.First of all, preschool teachers should correctly understand and cope with occupational stress; secondly, kindergartens should provide a harmonious working atmosphere for preschool teachers; finally, society should strengthen its concern and support for preschool teachers.

Pulled In All Directions

Kindergarten educators are experiencing tensions with pedagogical approaches for early literacy learning (e.g., Forgie et al., 2022; Pyle et al., 2018). They feel pressured to abandon play-based approaches in favour of direct instruction due to changes in provincial curriculum and school board policies (e.g., OHRC, 2022). This paper highlights themes and responses by participants in a study with kindergarten educators during the fall of 2023. Challenges expressed included changing messages from school boards, a lack of clarity regarding direction, and the introduction of prescriptive programs. Suggestions of ways educators can build knowledge and agency through collaborative conversations will be shared.

Children’s voices through teachers’ stories

We understand our lives through narratives, and the form of these narratives is appropriate for understanding the actions of others, writes MacIntyre (1981). Meanwhile, narratives and our understanding of them also inform our understanding of our own actions. In this article, student kindergarten teachers share anecdotes from their teaching practice assignments. These preservice teachers (PSTs) relay stories that are serious and important from a child’s perspective, and which they themselves experienced as serious and important while spending time with children and listening to children’s voices. Our aim here is to give even very young children a voice in their own everyday lives and to discuss how PSTs might listen more closely to what children are saying. Our narrative analysis of stories (Van Manen, 1997, 2014; Clandinin, 2013) offered by Norwegian and Italian PSTs presents a range of perspectives on life management and a desire for conversation in children aged 2–8 years. The stories are told through the student kindergarten teachers’ voices, and they were shared with and reflected upon with the children’s in-service class teachers. The article sheds retrospective light on children’s telling of, and thinking about, stories.

Effectiveness of group counselling on psychological capital intervention for kindergarten teachers in rural China

Effectiveness of group counselling on psychological capital intervention for kindergarten teachers in rural China

Burnout Syndrome Dimensions as Perceived by Kindergarten Teachers and Elementary School Teachers in Greece

The present article seeks to explore the dimensions of occupational exhaustion of primary education teachers (kindergarten and elementary school teachers), making use of the Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI) as its research tool. The data on which the article is based were drawn from a study carried out in an urban area in Greece investigating the following three issues: (1) Are there variations in the dimensions of occupational exhaustion detected? (2) Are there any differences in the dimensions of occupational exhaustion detected between kindergarten and elementary school teachers? (3) Are there any differences in the dimensions of burnout in regard to demographic characteristics? The data was collected through an anonymous self-administered questionnaire. The analysis of the findings shows moderate and high differences in the dimensions of the burnout syndrome. In particular, the scale of emotional burnout appears to be on moderate-high levels, the depersonalization scale shows moderate levels, and the personal accomplishment scale indicates high levels. Elementary school teachers seem to experience occupational exhaustion syndrome more intensely, while kindergarten teachers demonstrate higher levels on the personal accomplishment scale. Furthermore, certain demographic characteristics, such as gender, the teaching experience of teachers, and their overall satisfaction with their earned income, seem to be related to occupational burnout syndrome.

GAME BOARD TO IMPROVE CHILDREN'S DENTAL AND ORAL HEALTH KNOWLEDGE

Background: The five-year period in the stage of child development is the golden age, which is a golden period in the period of growth and development of children. During this period, everything that is poured out and absorbed in the child will become the basis and sharp memory in the child, including the maintenance of dental health. The growth of 3 to 5-year-olds has some skills such as color naming. Children do tend to prefer to play. Children's activities while playing while learning can support growth and development and absorb learning optimally. Games that can be played while learning are putting together simple puzzles, drawing and coloring, composing and stacking block games, playing sand, clay or toy candles, singing, role-playing, playing music and board games. Objectives: To develop dental and oral health game boards for kindergarten children aged 3-5 years in kindergartens in the Kersamenak sub-district, Kawalu Tasikamalaya District. Methods: The research method is carried out by research and development (R&D) methods and Quasi experiments with non-equivalent pre and post test designs. The research was conducted by conducting FGD with kindergarten teachers in the Kersamenak sub-district area, Kawalu District, Tasikmalaya City using a total sampling technique of 30 teachers. Results: The description of the conclusion to the respondents' answers is the development of dental and oral health game boards for kindergarten children aged 3-5 years in kindergartens in the Kersamenak sub-district, Kawalu Tasikamalaya District. Conclusion: Production of dental and oral health game boards and game board manuals.

A Study on the Design of Embedded Visual Image Teaching Aids to Assist Young Children's Cognitive and Fine Motor Development.

Visual development in infancy is crucial for establishing neural connections and enhancing the growth of the visual center. Adequate visual stimulation supports cognitive learning, helping children integrate images, colors, and shapes. This research examines the design and use of a visual image teaching aid to guide children in exploring image cognition and developing fine motor skills. This study involved 70 kindergarten teachers who participated in a questionnaire survey about 60 children aged from 5 to 6 years old. The results show that visual graphic aids effectively promoted coordination, control, and the integration of visual and fine motor skills in children. Furthermore, these aids supported the development of spatial and environmental relationships through hands-on activities.

Measuring the impact of concept knowledge and laboratory intervention on pre-service kindergarten teachers’ pedagogical content knowledge in science education

ABSTRACT K-12 science education is essential for cultivating students’ scientific talents, with teachers playing a critical role in this process. This study investigates the effects of conceptual knowledge and laboratory interventions on pre-service kindergarten teachers’ pedagogical content knowledge (PCK), deriving water as a topic for science activities. Thirty-three pre-service teachers were divided into three groups: Group 1 received lectures on science knowledge, Group 2 participated in lectures supplemented by laboratory experiments, and the third group served as the control group. A mapping approach is utilized to assess the development of PCK among participants. The results revealed that both intervention groups demonstrated significantly improved PCK compared to the control group (p < 0.001). However, no significant difference was observed between the two intervention groups regarding PCK enhancement. Based on these results, we argue the importance of cultivating scientific content knowledge among pre-service education students. Additionally, the science curriculum for these students should differ from common STEM programs, focusing more closely on the scientific knowledge and inquiry skills they will need in their future teaching.

Difficulties Of Kindergarten Teachers In The Blocks Of Time

Teaching kindergarten comes with its fair share of challenges, but it can also be an incredibly rewarding experience watching your learners grow and learn during their time in school. In this context, this study aimed to determine the difficulties kindergarten teachers face in the blocks of time regarding learning domains, transition activities, and musical instruments. The study targeted 65 kindergarten teachers using a self-made questionnaire that passed stringent tests of validity and reliability to collect information from the respondents. The results revealed that kindergarten teachers’ level of difficulty in learning domain and transition activities was low, while musical instruments were high. In addition, there was no significant difference in the level of difficulties of kindergarten teachers in the blocks of time in terms of learning domains, transition activities, and musical instruments when compared according to age, civil status, number of training attended, and family income. The result provides evidence that kindergarten teachers need to improve themselves in the delivery of instruction in the kindergarten program and calls for conducting an enrichment plan focusing on learning domains, transition activities, and musical instruments in the kindergarten curriculum throughout the region. Keywords: Blocks of time, difficulties, kindergarten teachers, Bindoy, Negros Oriental.

A Survey Study of Kindergarten Teachers' Use of ChatGPT to Support Instructional Design

With the rapid development of information technology, Artificial Intelligence (AI) is gradually applied to a wide range of fields, especially the powerful ability of ChatGPT to bring infinite possibilities for education, but teachers’ attitudes toward using it are not yet clear. The study investigates the use of ChatGPT by kindergarten teachers to support instructional design using questionnaires and interviews to explore the attitudes and perceptions of kindergarten teachers toward its use. The results indicate that kindergarten teachers hold positive acceptance, perceived self-efficacy, and learning attitudes toward using ChatGPT for instructional design. Meanwhile, the study argues that more research is needed in the future to focus on how kindergarten teachers can aptly use ChatGPT to improve the quality of instruction in realistic instruction environments。

Bridging the gap between preservice teachers’ theoretical and practical knowledge through simulations of teacher-parent interactions

ABSTRACT Teacher-parent communication is one of the domains in teacher education where the gap between theory and practice is evident. Although teacher-education programmes are responsible for developing preservice teachers’ (PSTs’) effective parent-teacher communication skills, such interactions are rarely practiced during the training. Simulation-Based Learning (SBL) is one of the ways to connect theory to practice. The current study analysed a PST’s language behaviour during an SBL lesson involving a parent-teacher interaction, to consider whether and in what way the SBL experience helped bridge the gap between PSTs’ theoretical and practical knowledge. A qualitative methodology was selected using a case-study approach. The PST whose language behaviour was examined was a 33-year-old woman retraining to become a kindergarten teacher. The data were collected via a workshop transcript, an interview, and a written reflection and were analysed using linguistic and content analyses. The findings demonstrate the role of SBL in advancing the crucial aspect of effective teacher-education programmes, namely, addressing the connection between theory and practice. The study’s theoretical contribution lies in underscoring the way in which simulation contributes to bridging the gap between PSTs’ theoretical and practical knowledge.

Level of Gamification Instruction in Language, Literacy, and Communication Domains for Kindergarten

This study aimed to assess the level of gamification instruction in language, literacy, and communication domains for kindergarten, in private schools, in a highly urbanized city in Central Philippines during the school year 2023-2024. Data for this descriptive study was collected from 34 kindergarten teachers using a self-made data-gathering instrument that underwent a stringent validity and reliability test with scores of 4.51 and 0.848, respectively. The results reveal that teachers’ level of gamification instruction was generally very high. Subsequent analysis indicated no significant difference in the level of gamification instruction in auditory perception and discrimination, oral language, alphabet knowledge, and study skills when grouped by age, area of concentration, length of service, and number of trainings attended. Meanwhile, a significant difference was observed in auditory perception and discrimination, visual perception discrimination, alphabet knowledge, and study skills when grouped by highest educational attainment. Likewise, there was a significant difference in visual perception and discrimination when grouped by highest educational attainment and length of service. Hence, this study recommends professional development for younger teachers, tailored gamified activities pieces of training, and the creation of a climate conducive to learning in the research environment. Keywords: Gamification Instruction, Language, Literacy, Communication, Kindergarten

Early childhood education contingencies for sustaining learning during school closures: Lessons from preschool remote education home visits in Indonesia during the COVID-19 pandemic

Maintaining kindergarten education amid emergency situations is difficult. The COVID-19 pandemic highlighted the difficulties faced by early childhood education institutions in ensuring that children continue education despite school closures and prolonged social isolation. The transition from in-classroom learning to remote learning, which was mostly online for older age groups, was especially complicated for younger pupils due to their nature and limited family resources. In contrast, numerous kindergartens in Indonesia initiated home visit programs that enabled children to learn face-to-face with their teachers and peers during the school closure periods. The purpose of this study was to examine how the home visit program for early childhood education was implemented and how teachers and parents viewed this emergency alternative to online learning. A qualitative case study was employed as a method of inquiry. Nine parents and four teachers from a single kindergarten in South Tangerang, a suburb of Jakarta, participated in this study. The data revealed the home visit program’s implementation involved the following measures: dividing children into small groups, a teacher visiting each group’s assigned home once or twice per week for 45–90 min, enforcing health measures, and giving daily activities for students to complete with their parents. Teachers stated that the home visit program was helpful but had significant faults. Among the benefits were the following: It helped children comprehend learning materials, piqued their interest, and served as a possible alternative due to a family’s lack of resources such as electricity, internet connectivity and quota, educators’ competency in implementing online learning, and parents limited or unavailable devices. Meanwhile, some disadvantages of home visits included the following: Parents felt obligated to entertain their children’s teachers and peers, some students were unable to study due to distance, additional time and energy was spent on media preparation and learning activities, and the risk of exposure to COVID-19 was increased. In the future, unexpected health hazards or other situations may occur. These findings indicate the need for early childhood education institutions to be more prepared, develop a strategy and adjust their instructional approaches to respond rapidly to changing circumstances when required.

REPRESENTATIONS OF PRESCHOOL TEACHERS ON CHILDREN'S GENDER AS A FACTOR IN DIFFERENTIATING THEIR FREE PLAY IN THE SCHOOLYARD

Gendered subjectivities are shaped within social structures, such as education, where gender inequalities intersect with other forms of social disparity. The individuals who operate within these structures play a role in both reproducing and maintaining ine-qualities, as well as in actively challenging them. However, as active agents, they can challenge gender order and inequalities, but their capacity to do so is subject to the constraints imposed by the framework in which they operate. The interaction between teachers and children in the schoolyard is a given, with the schoolyard serving as a space of socialization and interaction, thus becoming a field for the formation and nego-tiation of children's subjectivities. Teachers, through their presence in the schoolyard and their representations of children's gender characteristics, are expected to influence the formation of gendered subjectivities. The representations of preschool teachers re-garding children's gender as a factor in differentiating their free play in the schoolyard were the subject of this qualitative study, conducted through interviews. Twelve kin-dergarten teachers working in public and private schools in the Thessaloniki area par-ticipated. The thematic analysis of the data revealed that while the sample of teachers expressed opposition to gender segregation and inequalities, they adopted a neutral stance toward what occurs in the schoolyard. Moreover, many justified the differences they observed in boys' and girls' play in biological terms, among other reasons.&lt;p&gt; &lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt; Article visualizations:&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;img src="/-counters-/soc/0773/a.php" alt="Hit counter" /&gt;&lt;/p&gt;