Singaporean early childhood teachers’ responses to myths about child abuse

Prior to attending seminars on child abuse and domestic violence, 86 kindergarten and 64 special education (early childhood) teachers completed a questionnaire seeking views relating to the accuracy of statements relating to all forms of child abuse. This was designed to identify the accuracy of teachers’ knowledge of child abuse and neglect versus the influence of universal myths. Results show that special education teachers were less well informed than kindergarten teachers on child protection issues despite international recognition that children with disabilities are the most vulnerable to abuse of all kinds. The results of this survey will be valuable for the Singapore Government’s plan to provide preservice and inservice education relating to family violence and child abuse. It is part of a larger project.     

Inscriptions of violence: Societal and medical neglect of child abuse – impact on life and health

OBJECTIVE: A sickness history from General Practice will be unfolded with regard to its implicit lived meanings. This experiential matrix will be analyzed with regard to its medico-theoretical aspects. METHOD: The analysis is grounded in a phenomenology of the body. The patient Katherine Kaplan lends a particular portrait to the dynamics that are enacted in the interface between socially silenced domestic violence and the theoretical assumptions of human health as these inform the clinical practice of health care. RESULTS: By applying an understanding of sickness that transcends the mind-body split, a concealed and complex logic emerges. This logic is embedded in a nexus of the impact of childhood abuse experience and the medical disinterest in subjective experiences and their impact on selfhood and health. Its core is twofold: the violation of embodiment resulting from intra-familial abuse and existential threat, and the embodiment of violation resulting from social rules and the theoretically blinded medical gaze. CONCLUSION: A considerable medical investment, apparently conducted in a correct and consistent manner as to diagnostic and therapeutic measures, results in the complete incapacitation of a young physician.     

Finnish and Greek early childhood teachers’ perspectives and practices in supporting children’s autonomy

Kindergarten teachers from different cultural backgrounds attribute various meanings to children’s autonomy. There seems to be cultural differences in early childhood education curricula with regard to how a child’s autonomy is described and how it is supported. This qualitative study asks: how do teachers narrate their perspective and pedagogical support of children’s autonomy, and what kinds of similarities and differences in the pedagogy and practices can be found in Finnish and Greek early childhood education (ECEC) contexts? The data of this qualitative study consist of a semi-structured questionnaire of 14 kindergarten teachers and observations of their pedagogical practices in the day care groups of 4- to 5-year-old children. The results suggest that teachers’ overall conception of autonomy was identical, but the different cultural contexts and curriculums affected the way the teachers emphasized and valued different dimensions of autonomy.     

Wonder children and victimizing parents – preservice early childhood teachers’ beliefs about children and technology at home

In this study, written assignments from preservice early childhood teachers were examined to find answers to the following research questions: [1] What beliefs do preservice teachers have about children and technology at home? [2] How are parents represented in preservice teachers’ beliefs about children and technology? [3] What are the relationships between these beliefs and preservice teachers’ views about the role of technology in early childhood education? Preservice teachers in this study had idolized beliefs about children and discriminating beliefs about parents. Children were believed to be born-competent technology users. Parents were believed to lack the skills or will needed to regulate their children’s technology use. It was expressed to be the responsibility of early childhood education to ensure that play and social interaction are still included in young children’s lives. These findings propose that students’ beliefs about children and parents need to be afforded attention in educational technology courses.     

Greek pre-service kindergarten teachers’ beliefs about and practices of developmentally appropriate practices in early childhood education

The continuum of beliefs reported by Greek pre-service kindergarten teachers and how those beliefs relate to classroom practices are explored in this article. Considering the potentially important influence of teachers’ beliefs on their practices, the level of early childhood teachers’ beliefs about developmentally appropriate practices (DAPs) and the relationship between their beliefs and practices are regarded as important topics of study in early childhood education. This study was designed in order to investigate Greek pre-service kindergarten teachers’ self-reported beliefs and practices related to the National Association for the Education of Young Children’s policy statement for DAP. Research results indicated that participants favour DAP both as far as their beliefs and the instructional activities they implement are concerned. Even though the analysis indicated correlations among DAP and developmentally inappropriate practice (DIP) beliefs and practices, beliefs have not been found to predict practices.     

Chinese and American preschool teachers’ beliefs about early childhood curriculum

This study examined the consistency of Chinese preschool teachers’ curriculum beliefs and self‐reported practices, similarities and differences between American and Chinese teachers’ beliefs, and associations between teachers’ personal, professional and socio‐cultural characteristics and curriculum beliefs. A total of 296 Chinese teachers and 146 American teachers completed the Teacher Beliefs Scale and the Teachers’ Background Information Questionnaire. Chinese teachers also completed the Instructional Activities Scale. Also, 10 teachers in each country were interviewed in depth. Principal components analyses revealed three reliable factors with similar structures for both Chinese and American teacher beliefs. However, a discriminant analysis indicated significant cross‐national differences in teachers’ level of endorsement of specific beliefs. Moderate associations were found between Chinese teachers’ curriculum beliefs and self‐reported practices. Chinese teachers’ general education, professional training, location of school, and class sizes were all significantly associated with their beliefs. For American teachers, only the general education level was related to curriculum beliefs.     

Preschool teachers’ perceptions and pedagogical practices: young children’s use of ICT

ICT has been widely introduced to early childhood programs for young children to learn and play, but the meaningful integration of ICT into early learning and development is not strongly evident. While studies reveal that teachers are the key to the effective use of ICT in the classroom, there is to date limited research investigating how early childhood teachers perceive and support young childrens use of ICT. This paper reports on a survey study examining Chinese preschool teachers perspectives and pedagogical practices. Although there was a level of correspondence between the teachers perceptions and pedagogical practices, the teachers high positive perceptions of ICT benefits conflicted with their low frequencies of using pedagogies to facilitate the childrens ICT use. The results point to the importance of providing effective professional learning and development programs so teachers can employ a wider range of pedagogical strategies to support the childrens use of ICT.     

Digital technologies in early childhood education – a frame analysis of preservice teachers’ perceptions

Research on early childhood teachers’ perceptions of technology integration has been criticized for not paying enough attention to the unique pedagogical characteristics of early childhood education. This qualitative study contributes to resolving this need by scrutinizing preservice teachers’ perceptions of technology usage through the frames of education, socialization, and care, which form a harmonious whole referred to as the EDUCARE approach. The findings suggest that an individual preservice teacher can be for or against technology usage depending on the frame they reflect on technology integration through. Children’s ages and participants’ beliefs about the children’s access to technology at home were the most significant factors behind the variation in dynamics between and within the frames. The implications for future research are also discussed.     

Mothers’ and teachers’ perceptions of relational and physical aggression in pre-school children

A sample of 221 mothers and 48 teachers of pre-school children completed a survey in which they rated the degree of hurtfulness and importance of intervening for relationally or physically aggressive behaviours. Respondents also reacted to two short vignettes depicting aggressive peer conflicts (one physical, one relational) by indicating how an adult should respond and how quickly an adult should intervene. Ratings of hurtfulness and importance of intervening were higher for physical than for relational aggression amongst both mothers and teachers. In addition, there were differences in the type and immediacy of reactions to an act of physical versus relational aggression, with more negative and immediate consequences for the physically aggressive behaviour. Implications of results are discussed, limitations are explained, and professional development and future research needs are identified.     

Greek pre-service kindergarten teachers’ beliefs and intensions about the importance of teacher–child interactions

The experiences children have and the attachments they form early in life have a decisive, long-lasting impact on their later development and learning. The present study aims at exploring the continuum of the beliefs reported by Greek pre-service kindergarten teachers and how those beliefs relate to their intensions about the importance of teacher–child interactions. When examining how teaching beliefs influence the way in which teachers interact with children, it may be potentially important to assess teaching intensions as well. Though a vast amount of research has explored the association between teachers’ beliefs and practices, scarce research has examined the relationship between beliefs and intensions. This study is designed to examine Greek pre-service kindergarten teachers’ self-reported beliefs and intensions on aspects of early childhood educators–children interaction. Research results indicate that participants favour sensitive and appropriate caregiving in both their beliefs and intensions. Yet, data reveal that participants’ beliefs are more developmentally appropriate than are their intensions. Correlation analysis shows that pre-service kindergarten teachers’ beliefs do not correlate with their intension.     

Parenting behaviours and children’s development from infancy to early childhood: changes,continuities and contributions

This study investigated trajectories of parenting behaviours and children’s development from infancy to early childhood, associations between parenting behaviours and children’s development and how these associations vary according to socioeconomic indicators. Mothers and children were examined from an ongoing longitudinal study of families resident in the geographic area of Avon in the UK. Using growth curve modelling, four waves of data were examined when the children were 6–42 months old. Findings suggest that timing is an important factor in the relationship between parenting and children’s development. The positive association between mother–child interactions and children’s development was evident 12 months later, whereas engagement in outside activities had both concurrent and later positive associations with children’s development. Maternal education was also highlighted as a significant moderator suggesting that interactive parenting may have a protective role for children whose mothers have lower education.     

Investigating early childhood teachers’ views on science teaching practices: the integration of science with visual art in early childhood settings

This study investigates early childhood teachers’ views about science teaching practices in an early childhood settings. It was conducted in a preschool located in Ankara, Turkey. The data of the study were collected through multiple sources of information such as interviews with early childhood teachers and observations of their practices in the classroom. The findings of this study indicated that early childhood teachers believed in the importance of science activities in their practices and they claimed that they provided child-centred activities for children to enrich their science experiences. Moreover, the findings showed that they used different learning experiences that were naturalistic, informal, and structured. The findings also revealed that an integrated curriculum improved children’s developmental progress. More specifically, participant teachers used art as an assessment tool in science activities because they considered that they were able to evaluate children’s understanding on the basis of their art work such as their drawings.     

The creative environment: teachers’ perceptions,self-efficacy,and teaching experience for fostering children’s creativity

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this study was to compare the availability of a creative environment within regular schools between the academic year 2009/2010 and 2015/2016 by measuring teachers’ perceptions concerning creativity, their self-efficacy, teaching creativity, and barriers to creativity. A questionnaire was developed and distributed among 297 teachers teaching the basic primary stage (grades 1–3). The findings indicated high averages for teaching creativity in the classroom, and teachers’ self-efficacy to foster children's creativity in the classroom ranked the highest, while barriers to creativity ranked the lowest. The results showed significant differences due to teacher gender, in favour of female teachers, and teaching experience only regarding perceptions of the creativity domain. There were statistically significant differences between the academic years for the overall scale and the four domains in favour of the 2015/2016 academic year. Directions for further research and practical implications for policy and practice are discussed.     

Influences on Turkish early childhood teachers’ science teaching practices and the science content covered in the early years

The first rationale of the study was not only to determine the topics taught in Turkish early childhood settings but also to define the frequency and time allocation for teaching science (n?=?382). In the second phase, through semi-structured interview questions, the aim was to gain detailed information about Turkish early childhood teachers’ (n?=?14) thoughts concerning the effectiveness of teacher education programmes, their level of confidence in teaching science, the obstacles they face, and the support from colleagues and school administrators. The findings revealed that Turkish early childhood teachers do not feel confident in teaching science and do not believe that they received adequate teacher training. In addition to these two reasons, the scarcity of resources and training opportunities can also be considered as contributory factors that may be helpful in explaining why the science content is too narrow and time allocation for science teaching is limited in Turkish early childhood settings.     

Communities’ perceptions of factors contributing to child sexual abuse vulnerability in Kenya: a qualitative study

Abstract

Child sexual abuse (CSA) is a major global health concern. Although it is prevalent in Kenya, scant literature on factors contributing to CSA vulnerability exists. Using qualitative data from 28 focus groups and ethnographic field notes, we explored and assessed community perceptions of factors contributing to CSA vulnerability in Homa Bay County, Western Kenya. Findings suggest that people living in these communities perceived CSA as being influenced by multiple factors: developmental stage, peer pressure, huge gender disparities exacerbated by negative social norms and cultural practices, the HIV epidemic and social media platforms that circulate sexualised images. From our findings, it was clear that participants also regarded poverty as exacerbating children’s vulnerability to CSA. Minors from poor families engaged in transactional sex for survival and social status. Some community members perceived girls dressed in short skirts or tight clothing as warranting unwanted sexual advances. Although poverty and gender roles and relations were viewed as increasing vulnerability to CSA, blame was often placed on survivors’ modes of dress or behaviour. There is a need for comprehensive education of the communities on CSA, its consequences and the rights of women and girls.     

Pre‐service teachers’ perceptions and their behavioral interactions with young children from international cultures

Theory and research suggest that preservice techers’ personal teaching efficacy and their ethnic attributions contribute to their behavioral interactions with International children. Theoretical research contributions pertaining to personal teaching efficacy, causal attributions, and child‐teacher interaction are reviewed and are included as conceptual components for a model of teacher‐child interaction. Practical implications of this model are suggested for faculty and staff supervisors of teacher preparation programs.     

Parents and preschool workers’ perceptions of competence,collaboration, and strategies for addressing bullying in early childhood

The purpose of this study was to explore and compare parents’ (n?=?141) and preschool workers’ (n?=?81) perceptions of bullying with respect to preschool workers’ competence, collaboration with parents, and strategies for dealing with bullying. Whereas most participants held positive views about their collaboration, preschool workers tended to be more critical of parents than vice versa. With respect to strategies, we found that the order of preferred approaches was largely consistent across groups, yet the two groups differed in the degree to which they supported certain approaches. Among parents, lower perceptions of children’s well-being and increased exposure to bullying were associated with more negative views of collaboration and preschool competence. Parents who had little direct exposure to bullying were more likely to report that they lacked the knowledge needed to evaluate the competence of preschool workers. Taken together with previous research, these findings suggest that preschools often rely on a reactive approach to including parents in the process of addressing bullying. We argue that a more proactive stance is warranted.     

‘They only see their own child’: an interview study of preschool teachers’ perceptions about parents

ABSTRACT

The purpose of the present study is to investigate how preschool teachers see their interaction with the home. The empirical material consists of semi-structured interviews with 30 qualified preschool teachers working in Swedish preschools. The informants describe how they promote cooperation and prevent conflict by clarifying that parents’ comments are welcome. They also try to grant parents’ requests regarding their own children; however, the informants also speak about parents having views about what should happen with the whole group and how the teachers should carry out their job, such as parents telling the preschool teachers whether they should hold their activities indoors or outdoors. Highly educated and well-off parents can express comments and demands in a way as if they want to decide how the work in the preschool is planned and carried out. A contrasting challenge is when parents with a non-Swedish background have language difficulties that can hinder cooperation.