Emotion regulation,teaching beliefs and child–teacher relationships from the perspectives of pre-school teachers

The way how pre-school teachers perceive their relationships they formed with their students, teaching beliefs regarding the profession and teachers’ competencies to regulate their emotions are effective issues in order to enhance teacher–child relationships. The participants of this research were 94 Turkish pre-school teachers and 282 children, 142 of whom were boys and 140 of whom were girls. It has been found out the cognitive reappraisal strategy used by teachers for emotion regulation increased with positive relationship perception of teachers. A positive relationship was revealed between the scores of sensitivity and verbal participation and level of closeness perceived within the child–teacher relationship. Moreover, there were meaningful and positive relationships between the level of sensitivity and suppression of the expression and cognitive reappraisal strategies considering emotion regulation. It has been understood that teachers perceived the relationships with girls closer though, when it comes to boys, the perception of conflict was prominently much higher.     

Talking of discovery

Two thirds of the world's population is bilingual to some extent, hence from an international perspective speaking more than one language is the norm rather than the exception. Germany, Bulgaria, Iraq are only a few of the countries where more than one language is widely spoken. This study aims to analyse the socio-demographic structure and second language acquisition (L2) of a sample of Turkish bilingual children living in Germany through a survey with regard to the socio-demographic structure of the Turkish bilingual children, the socio-demographic structure of the Turkish bilingual children's parents, the Turkish bilingual children's opinions about second language acquisition and the Turkish bilingual children's opinions and thoughts about the society they live in and the schools they attended. The sample comprises 120 Turkish bilingual children attending pre-school and elementary schools in Germany. As a result of the findings, some implications and suggestions are made to the parents and the teachers that they should take necessary precautions to make Turkish bilingual children to integrate to the German society and be successful in the society they live.     

五年制学前双语教育新师资素质与能力的培养提高

师资问题是云南省幼儿园开展的学前双语教育活动存在的最主要问题：一是师资数量远远无法满足学前双语教育普遍开展的需要;二是师资水平不尽如人意,无法满足学前双语教育有效开展的需要。从事学前双语教育应当具备三种素质、八种能力和十项教学基本功。在师资培养的教育教学中,要为学生提供完整系统的相关英语知识和技能的学习,提供丰富多彩的理论联系实际的观摩与见习实习活动,还要经常组织课外活动,以增强学生学习英语的兴趣和自信心,并增加强化训练课程。     

农村学前教育师资状况的调查与分析——以河北省为例

幼儿教师是孩子进入集体教育机构的第一任教师,思想品德要求高、专业技能性强,他们的一言一行、一举一动都对孩子有着重要的影响。教师的质量决定着学前教育的质量,有限的资源应优先用于教师队伍建设。目前农村幼儿教师队伍存在学历低、工资低、培训少、技能缺等问题,这些问题直接影响农村学前教育又好又快的发展,因此,培养一支师德高尚、热爱儿童、业务精良、结构合理的幼儿教师队伍,是学前教育事业健康发展的关键。     

民族地区幼儿教师基本技能存在的问题与对策———以桂西为例简

随着经济社会的发展,广大民众对高质量学前教育的需求越来越高。要提高学前教育的质量,关键在教师,幼儿教师专业技能对学前教育质量起决定性影响。教师的基本技能是幼儿教师专业技能的重要组成部分。文章对民族地区幼儿教师基本技能现状进行了调查,分析存在的问题与原因,在此基础上提出了民族地区幼儿教师基本技能水平提升的策略。     

当前安徽省幼儿家长对男幼儿教师职业素质期望的调查与思考

男幼儿教师加入学前教育领域备受社会的期待,更为幼儿家长们所关注。在当前安徽省幼儿家长对男幼儿教师职业素质期望的调查中显示:幼儿家长对男幼儿教师的学历要求专科以上居多,专业须科班出身,同时要求有体育锻炼、游戏为主的全面教育能力,素质中要求以爱心、责任心为首,看中性格开朗而阳刚为首的男性特质优势。针对幼儿家长们的期望,培养并留住男幼儿教师,服务于安徽省的学前教育事业,提出三个方面问题的思考。     

Assessing wellbeing at school entry using the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire: professional perspectives

Emotional and behavioural disorders in early childhood are related to poorer academic attainment and school engagement, and difficulties already evident at the point of starting school can affect a child’s later social and academic development. Successful transfer from pre-school settings to primary education is helped by communication between pre-school staff and primary school teachers. Typically, in Scotland, pre-school establishments prepare individual profiles of children before they start school around the age of five years, highlighting their strengths and development needs, for transfer to primary schools. There is, however, no consistent approach to the identification of potential social, emotional and behavioural problems. In 2010, in one local authority area in Scotland, the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) was introduced for children about to start school as a routine, structured, component of the transition process to help teachers plan support arrangements for classes and individual children. The SDQ assesses emotional, conduct, hyperactivity/ inattention and peer-relationship problems as well as pro-social behaviour. In order to be an effective means of communicating social and emotional functioning, the use of instruments such as the SDQ needs to be practicable. Finding out the views of pre-school education staff with experience of assessing children using the SDQ was, therefore, essential to establish its future utility.

Aim

The purpose of this study was to explore the views of pre-school education staff about assessing social and emotional wellbeing of children at school entry using the SDQ. The objectives were to examine the opinions of pre-school workers about completing the SDQ and to elicit their thoughts on the value of doing this and their perceptions of the usefulness of the information collected.

Method

Pre-school establishments were approached using a purposive sampling strategy in order to achieve a mix of local authority (n=14) and ‘partnership’ establishments (n=8) as well as different socio-economic areas. Semi-structured interviews (n=25) were conducted with pre-school head teachers (n=14) and child development officers (n=11) in order to explore the process of completing the SDQ along with perceptions of its value. The interviews were transcribed verbatim and analysed thematically.

Results

In general, staff in pre-school establishments viewed the use of the SDQ positively. It was seen as a chance to highlight the social and emotional development of children rather than just their academic or educational ability. Most felt that the SDQ had not identified anything they did not already know about a child. A minority, nevertheless, suggested that a previously unrecognised potential difficulty was brought to light, most commonly emotional problems. Completing the SDQ was felt to be relatively straightforward even though the staff felt under pressure from competing priorities. Concerns were, however, raised about the potential of labelling a child at an early stage of formal education.

Conclusion

The findings from this small scale study suggest that, from the point of view of pre-school education staff, it is feasible to assess children systematically for social and behavioural problems as part of the routine transition process at school entry.     

Supporting children and families: lessons from Sure Start for evidence-based practice in health,social care and education

According to the relevance of teacher attitudes in the teaching process as well as to the great number of discussions among experts of pre-school education, it was interesting to examine the students of pre-school teaching about their attitudes toward the use of computer among pre-school children. The sample consisted of N = 40 students from regular study and N = 37 students of irregular study of Pre-school education from Faculty of Teacher Education in Rijeka. Their attitudes have been investigated using an 18-item questionnaire created for the purposes of this study only. Overall, it was determined that future pre-school teachers have no clear and decisive general attitude toward the use of computer among pre-school children. In addition, they have shown from neutral to more positive attitudes according to all other items but with certain conditions. The discussion resulted with the recommendations for pre-school teacher’s education.     

Differential relationships between language skills and working memory in Turkish–Dutch and native-Dutch first-graders from low-income families

In the Netherlands, Turkish–Dutch children constitute a substantial group of children who learn to speak Dutch at the age of four after they learned to speak Turkish. These children are generally academically less successful. Academic success appears to be affected by both language proficiency and working memory skill. The goal of this study was to investigate the relationship between language skills and working memory in Turkish–Dutch and native-Dutch children from low-income families. The findings revealed reduced Dutch language and Dutch working-memory skills for Turkish–Dutch children compared to native-Dutch children. Working memory in native-Dutch children was unrelated to their language skills, whereas in Turkish–Dutch children strong correlations were found both between Turkish language skills and Turkish working-memory performance and between Dutch language skills and Dutch working-memory performance. Reduced language proficiencies and reduced working-memory skills appear to manifest itself in strong relationships between working memory and language skills in Turkish–Dutch children. The findings seem to indicate that limited verbal working-memory and language deficiencies in bilingual children may have reciprocal effects that strongly warrants adequate language education.     

关于高师学前教育专业音乐教育的思考

音乐课是学前教育专业学生必修的一门专业课.主要任务是培养具备音乐教学能力的幼儿园教师.因此提高学前教育学生音乐教学能力直接影响着幼教事业的发展.分析了学前教育专业音乐教学中存在的突出问题,并从提高学生技能、教学内容、教学方法等方面提出了解决问题的主要途径和措施.     

Understanding the Gaps Between Turkish Teachers’ Beliefs and Practices for Dealing With Preschoolers’ Peer Relationship Problems

Research Findings: This study explores the beliefs, self-reported practices, and observed practices of Turkish preschool teachers toward children’s peer relationship problems as well as the gap between their beliefs and practices. Five female teachers of 5-year-old children were selected as participants for this multiple case study. Approximately 79 hr of observation was conducted on the children’s daily routines and activities in a natural classroom environment, which specifically included the teachers’ problem-solving strategies while confronting peer relationship problems. The participants were also interviewed regarding their beliefs and strategies for solving peer relationship problems. The findings of this qualitative investigation indicated that the teachers’ beliefs and self-reported practices included both teacher- and child-related factors. However, the observed practices included several teacher-initiated strategies; child-initiated strategies appeared, albeit less than teacher-initiated ones. This affirms the teachers’ stress on children’s role in managing peer problems. Although some of the teacher practices and beliefs were consistent, certain inconsistencies may indicate the presence of external constraints. Practice or Policy: The results of this study highlight the importance of teacher education programs providing preservice and in-service teachers with the knowledge and skills required to understand children’s peer relationships, guide their interactions, and apply appropriate intervention strategies for various peer relationship problems.     

Beginning early childhood education teachers’ struggle with inclusion in Turkey

The purpose of this study was to investigate Turkish early childhood education teachers’ perception of inclusion before they started their teaching profession and to explore their experiences with the children with disabilities in their first year of teaching. Sixteen Turkish pre-service teachers were first interviewed when they completed the teacher education programme about their expectations of inclusion practices in their future career. Four participants among the 16 teachers started to teach children with disabilities in their first year of teaching. Then, they were interviewed about their experiences at the end of the first and second semesters of teaching. Findings revealed that Turkish pre-service teachers displayed positive attitudes towards inclusion before they started teaching. However, they had negative experiences with children with disabilities in their first year due to the misimplementation of the inclusion policy and being inexperienced about the inclusion process, and began to question the effectiveness of inclusion. Implications for the inclusion policy and teacher education programmes are discussed.     

A comparison of social skills in Turkish children with visual impairments,children with intellectual impairments and typically developing children

The purpose of this study was to compare the social skills of five groups of children: children with visual impairments attending inclusive education schools, children with visual impairments attending schools for the blind, children with intellectual impairments attending inclusive education schools, children with intellectual impairments attending segregated special education schools, and typically developing children. A hundred and sixty-nine children aged from 7 to 12 participated in the study. The children's social skills were rated by their teachers on the Social Skills Rating System (SSRS) – Turkish Form. The results suggested significant group differences between children attending inclusive education schools and children attending special education schools. Analysis of the findings indicated that children with visual impairments and children with intellectual impairments had poorer social skills than typically developing children; however children with visual impairments and children with intellectual impairments attending inclusive education schools had higher social skills than children attending segregated special education schools. The findings of the study were discussed and suggestions for future research were provided.     

Teacher use of the interactive whiteboards in Flemish secondary education—mapping against a transition framework

Interactive Whiteboards (IWBs) are a relatively new, but increasingly more common, tool in the classrooms of Flemish Secondary schools. This paper reports on research which attempted to map not only the amount of IWB use in Flemish secondary schools but, perhaps more importantly, to assess how they are used and the progress of teachers in developing their IWB skills in the classroom. An online quantitative survey was conducted, based on a detailed IWB transition framework. The survey (n?=?433) identified the distribution and usage levels of the IWB by teachers in Flemish Secondary Education. The results show that the distribution of IWBs is affected by the educational network to which a teacher belongs. In terms of the level of IWB use, teachers classified themselves predominantly in the first two stages of the transition framework (Black/Whiteboard Substitute and Apprentice use). This would suggest that teachers in Flemish Secondary Education have been initiated (in a technological sense) in using the IWB and are beginning to initiate (in a pedagogic sense) wider usage, including incorporating pupil use of the IWB. In this process, however, teachers appeared to be more confident in technical use of the ICT skills, but less confident in developing new pedagogic approaches which may exploit the full potential of the IWB.     

评估视角下“双师型”教师队伍建设的路径--以衡水学院学前教育专业为例

在应用型本科院校转型发展过程中,“双师型”教师队伍不仅是影响人才培养质量的重要因素,也是制约应用型本科教育教学质量的重要因素。应用型本科院校普遍存在“双师型”教师队伍建设规划、考核机制欠缺,数量偏少,培养渠道单一,管理机制不完善等问题。从教育部本科教学工作合格评估关于双师型教师内涵的界定出发,以衡水学院学前教育专业为例,针对应用型本科院校“双师型”教师队伍建设存在的问题,完善“双师型”师资队伍建设机制,建立“双师型”教师考评机制,健全“双师型”教师管理机制,拓展“双师型”教师队伍培养的多种途径,有效提升“双师型”师资队伍建设质量和水平。     

Case studies of teaching problem solving

Summary Some important results that relate to classroom learning and teaching of problem solving emerge from these case studies. These are now summarized as follows. In terms of the students' potential learning experiences of problem solving, it was found that the students were mainly witnessing their teachers' demonstrations of using rules or algorithms for solution to problems. Repeated practice of solving the sorts of problems that occur in examinations was also emphatically included as part of the learning experience. The students were not exposed to a range of strategies that could possibly be used to solve the same problems. There was no explicit teaching of important problem solving skills such as translation skills (comprehending, analyzing, interpreting, and defining a given problem) and linkage skills (concept relatedness between two concepts or using cues from the problem statements to associate ideas, concepts, diagrams, etc. from memory). When teachers solve problems they use, in general, several strategies to solve the same class of problems and they are very careful and explicit about translating problem statements, making relevant linkages and checking. These absences in the teachers' teaching of problem solving (and hence in the students' range of learning experiences) are particularly interesting because they are part of the teachers' own repertoire of skills. Accordingly, it may not be too difficult to get teachers to include them in their teaching. This would mean that the students' range of learning experiences for problem solving would be very much strengthened.     

转型后专科层次学前教育专业建设存在的问题与对策

学前教育师资薄弱问题,已成为制约学前教育发展的瓶颈。转型后的专科层次学前教育专业作为培养学前教育师资的主要基地,理应发挥重要作用。面对学前教育专业建设方面存在的诸多问题,应采取以下方法与对策加以解决：一是要明确专业建设的新理念;二是要调整人才培养的目标定位;三是要调整优化课程设置;四是要更新优化课程内容;五是要探索开放创新的教学方式方法;六是要建立科学、有效的考评机制;七是要完善专业技能训练体系;八是要加强实训基地建设。     

Education for Syrian Refugees: The New Global Issue Facing Teachers and Principals in Turkey

This study addresses the educational status and needs of Syrian school-age children at Turkish public schools and the perspectives of teachers and school principals who work with Syrian refugee students. Data was collected from an ongoing qualitative interpretive case study research project using semistructured interviews with teachers and principals who worked with Syrian refugees in 2 inner-city elementary schools in Istanbul, Turkey. The findings of this study indicate that state schools provide many Syrian children with access to education that addresses the needs and challenges associated with the refugee school-age children. For example, Syrian children are thought to have rights identical to Turkish children regarding access to a free education in the Turkish public school setting, and the government has allowed Syrian students to enroll in universities without examinations or without having to show proof that they had attended universities in Syria. However, language barriers with respect to speaking and understanding Turkish must be mitigated to integrate Syrian refugees into Turkish culture. The results of the study also indicate that Syrian students are in a constant state of depression and trauma due to war and migration. Because of language-related issues and limited access to everyday necessities, Syrian children are often in need of comprehensive psychological support. Thus, this study recommends that teachers and principals participate in professional training and development programs to be able to provide psychological support to students.     

The effect of pre-school education on academic performance in primary school: a case study of grade one pupils in Botswana

Evidence abounds in the literature of a direct link between pre-primary education and academic performance in the primary school. The salutary effect of the ‘Head start’ programme inaugurated in the United States of America in the early 1960s on the academic performances of its beneficiaries in the lower primary is such a piece of evidence. Premised on this commonality between pre-primary education and academic achievement in the primary school, the study aimed at finding out whether there were significant differences in the performances of Botswana grade one pupils with pre-school education experience and their counterparts without such an experience on selected tasks in English language, mathematics and science. Using purposive sampling technique for school selection, a total of 120 grade one pupils were randomly selected for the study from four selected primary schools in Botswana. In addition, 20 grade one teachers from the study schools participated in the study. For data collection purpose, each pupil-subject was individually interviewed for about 20 min on the study tasks; and the opinions of the twenty teachers on the subject of the study was sampled by the use of a questionnaire. The results of the study indicated that pupils with pre-school education experience significantly out-performed their counterparts without such experience in all the three school subject areas surveyed by the study. This trend of the impact of pre-school education on academic achievement at the early primary school level was corroborated by the opinions of the primary school teachers. The paper concluded by observing that pre-school education equips children with pre-requisite skills which make learning in grade one easier and faster for children so exposed.