Mathematics as a Form and Medium of Education in the Greek Kindergarten

The education of young children in mathematics is very important, as mathematics, more so than any other field, is inextricable from our lives, giving us the rationale and practical tools to engage in our daily activities. Research is active in this area, conducted mostly by psychologists or mathematicians and less so by early childhood educators, who are engaged in the practice of mathematics in young childrens classrooms. In Greece, specifically, there is lack of relevant data about the application of mathematics during early childhood and especially in the kindergarten. Contacts with kindergarten teachers and informal observations in their classrooms have shown that they do not occupy children systematically with mathematical activities and they do not recognize mathematical elements in the daily life of the kindergarten. This preliminary investigation led to the initiation of the current study. The goal of this investigation is to study the conclusions and make certain proposals for the improvement of the methods of teaching mathematics in our kindergartens. In order to collect the necessary data for this study, three hundred kindergarten teachers, from urban and non - urban areas of Greece, were given a questionnaire, consisting of forty mostly closed questions relevant to the research. One hundred and ninety one of these teachers responded and the conclusions drawn from their answers form the basis of this study. In order to gain greater data validity the recorded answers were cross-referenced with informal observations, made in classrooms of teachers who participated in the study. © 1994, Taylor & Francis Group, LLC. All rights reserved

Social Studies as a form and medium of education in the Greek kindergarten

It is known that one of the major goals of preschool education, if not the most important one, is the socialisation of children. In kindergarten socialisation is mainly achieved through social studies activities. There is worldwide research concerning the application of social studies to kindergarten. In Greece, specifically, there is no relevant data about this subject. Therefore, the current study was carried out in order to find out, interalia, 1) whether kindergarten teachers occupy students with social studies activities, 2) if they do occupy them, in what social studies activities children engage more frequently and 3) the self-assessed adequacy of the kindergarten teachers’ training and their attitudes concerning the application of social studies activities to kindergarten. In order to collect the necessary data for this study, three hundred kindergarten teachers, from urban and non-urban areas of Greece, were given a questionnaire and the conclusions drawn from their answers form the basis of the study. In order to gain greater data validity, the recorded answers were cross-referenced with informal observations in classrooms of teachers who participated in the study. © 1995, Taylor & Francis Group, LLC. All rights reserved