Children’s Peer Interaction While Playing the Digital Emotion Detectives Game

Collaborative learning and collaborative use of digital technologies are essential skills in the twenty-first century. The aim of this study was to explore the features and types of interaction that can be identified during children’s digital gameplay while playing in pairs. The following research questions were addressed: 1) What are the interactional play features that characterize the play sessions? 2) Which play types can be identified based on these interactional play features? 3) How do the interactional features and play types change during the eight-week play period? In this study, 16 children aged 5–6 years played the Emotion Detectives (ED) game in pairs at day care centres for 15–30 minutes per week. During the eight-week period, the children’s gameplay was video-recorded, and three play sessions from each pair were explored using content analysis. The results of this study deepen our understanding of the features of children’s playing in pairs and extend our knowledge of the suitability of the ED game for joint gameplay. On this basis, we make some recommendations for educational settings

Digital Stories with Children: Examining Digital Storytelling as a Pedagogical Process in ECEC

Modern digital technologies have become common in educational settings of all levels. This has made the use of digital storytelling (DST) more applicable in early childhood education and care (ECEC). This paper examines the implementation of DST, aiming to answer the following questions: 1) How to support children’s active participation throughout the DST process in ECEC, and 2) how do 21st century skills manifest in the DST process? The study was conducted between 2017 and 2018, when two cycles of DST projects were implemented in four Finnish ECEC centres as part of a European project. The data consist of interviews with educators (N=15) and children (N=51), as well as documentation of the DST activities (project sheets, N=37, and yearly summary documents, N=18) produced by the educators. The data were analysed using inductive thematic analysis. Firstly, our results highlight aspects that are important for supporting children’s active participation in DST, divided into the following categories: premises on starting DST with children, interpersonal processes during DST activity, affordances of digital tools and the meaning of DST activity and products. Secondly, we present how the 21st century skills such as digital skills, collaboration and problem-solving manifested in the DST process

Murrosikä – kehitysvaihe lapsesta aikuiseksi : Ohjausmateriaali kouluterveydenhoitajan työn tueksi

Murrosikä on kehitysvaihe, jonka jokainen käy läpi kasvaessaan lapsesta aikuiseksi. Kehitystä tapahtuu niin fyysisesti, psyykkisesti kuin sosiaalisestikin. Murrosikää lähestyvä lapsi kaipaa asiallista tietoa murrosiän mukanaan tuomista muutoksista, jotta hän kykenee liittämään itsessään tapahtuvat muutokset osaksi normaalia, yksilölliseen tahtiin etenevää kehitystä. Terveydenhoitajalla on tärkeä rooli tiedon ja tuen antajana tässä usein hämmennystä herättävässä elämänvaiheessa. Tämän opinnäytetyön tarkoituksena oli tuottaa ohjausmateriaali murrosiästä Järvipohjanmaan kouluterveydenhoitajien käyttöön. Opinnäytetyö on toiminnallinen ja se toteutettiin tilauksesta. Materiaali käsittää teoriaa sisältävän kansion ja Power Point -esityksen. Kansiossa käsitellään murrosiässä tapahtuvia muutoksia fyysisestä, psyykkisestä ja sosiaalisesta näkökulmasta, joskin pääpaino kohdistuu fyysisiin muutoksiin. Power Point -esitys toimii runkona kouluterveydenhoitajan pitämille oppitunneille alakoulun 5.-6. -luokkalaisille. Terveydenhoitaja voi käyttää kansiota opetustilanteessa Power Point -esityksen lisänä, mutta se soveltuu myös kahdenkeskisiin vastaanottotilanteisiin. Raportin teoriaosuudessa käsitellään murrosiässä tapahtuvia fyysisiä, psyykkisiä ja sosiaalisia muutoksia. Fyysisellä kehityksellä tarkoitetaan kehon kasvua aikuisen miehen tai naisen vartaloksi. Psyykkiseen kehitykseen kuuluvat persoonallisuuden ja kognitiivisen osa-alueen kehittyminen, ja kasvua luonnehtivat myös ajoittaiset taantumavaiheet, autonomian saavuttamisen tarve sekä seksuaalisuuden herääminen. Murrosiän myötä nuoren sosiaalinen maailma muuttuu, kun vanhempien huolenpidon sijaan kaverisuhteiden merkitys korostuu. Vastakkaisesta sukupuolesta kiinnostumisen myötä myös seurustelu voi tulla ajankohtaiseksi. Raportin teoriaosuudessa käsitellään myös terveydenhoitajan roolia ja tehtäviä kouluterveydenhuollossa sekä ohjaamisen merkitystä hoitotyössä.Puberty is a stage of development that every individual goes through when growing up from childhood to adulthood. This development occurs physically, mentally and socially. A child approaching puberty needs factual information of the changes involved in puberty so that he/she is able to attach the changes as a part of normal development which advances in a unique pace. A public health nurse has an important role in the exchange of information and as a supporter in this often perplexing stage of life. The purpose of this practice-based bachelor´s thesis was to produce guidance material about puberty to school nurses of Järvipohjanmaa. The material consists of a folder and a Power Point -presentation. The folder includes information about the changes from physical, psychological and social point of view, although the emphasis is on physical changes. The Power Point -presentation helps the school nurses in telling about the puberty to the pupils in grades 5 and 6. School nurses can use both the folder and the Power Point -presentation in the classroom. They can also be used during individual appointments. The theoretical part of the report deals with physical, psychological and social changes of puberty. The physical development refers to the growth of the body into an adult male or female body. The mental development consists of personality and cognitive aspects. The growth is characterized by occasional stages of recession, the need to achieve autonomy and the awakening of sexuality. During puberty the social world of a youngster changes when relations with friends are more important than the parental care. When interested in the opposite sex the adolescent might also start dating. The report also deals with the role and duties of a school nurse in school health care and the importance of preception in nursing

Varhaiskasvatuksen tiedelehti rakentaa varhaiskasvatustiedettä: Journal of Early Childhood Education Research constructs the science in early childhood education

Suomalainen varhaiskasvatustutkimus on vuosi vuodelta lisääntynyt määrällisesti ja samalla se on kiitettävästi kehittänyt varhaiskasvatuksen ja lapsuuden tieteellisiä tutkimusmenetelmiä. Varhaiskasvatuksen tiedelehti (JECER) avaa uuden sivun varhaiskasvatuksen akateemisella taipaleella ja on siten omalta osaltaan on mukana rakentamassa varhaiskasvatusta omana tieteenalanaan. Lehti on ensimmäinen Suomessa ilmestyvä varhaiskasvatuksen kansainvälinen tiedelehti. Tavoitteenamme on varhaiskasvatusta koskevan tutkimustiedon levittäminen sekä keskustelun aktivointi varhaiskasvatustutkimuksesta ja sen tieteellisistä menetelmistä. Lehden ensimmäinen numero − ja samalla sen ensimmäinen vuosikerta − koostuu suomenkielisistä artikkeleista. Lähtökohtanamme kuitenkin on, että tieteen tekemisellä ei ole kansallisia rajoja, ja sen vuoksi jatkossa haluamme tarjota julkaisufoorumin laajalle kansainväliselle lukijakunnalle julkaisemalla varhaiskasvatustieteellisiä artikkeleita myös englannin kielellä.The volume of Finnish research on early childhood education (ECE) has increased year by year, and at the same time research methods on ECE and childhood as the whole has been excellently developed. The Journal of Early Childhood Education Research JECER turns over a new leaf on the academic journey of ECE, and that way contributes to the construction of early childhood education as its own branch of science. This journal is the first international scientific journal on ECE published in Finland. Our aim is to disseminate information of ECE research and activate discussions around ECE research and its methodology. The first number − and at the same time the very first volume − of JECER consists of articles written in Finnish. Our standpoint is, nevertheless, that there are no national borders for doing research, thus we want to offer this forum for a broad international readership by publishing articles in English as well

Using the Storytelling Method to Hear Children’s Perspectives and Promote Their Social-Emotional Competence

This study investigated the use of a playful, narrative, vignette-based method, called Story Magician’s Play Time (SMPT), in supporting children’s social-emotional reasoning and in helping children practice their social skills. We set out to examine (a) in what ways children use SMPT sessions to explore social interaction situations and to practice social skills, and (b) what story content and narrative play behavior during the SMPT sessions reveal about the social-emotional competence of children, in terms of acquisition and performance skills. The data were collected during SMPT storytelling sessions where 5- to 6-year-old children narrated stories of familiar but challenging daily situations and enacted their story in play. The data were analyzed using thematic analysis. The results suggest that the children had knowledge of socially responsible behaviors, but that they also had difficulties executing these behaviors in play. SMPT enabled the children to participate, experiment, and reflect on the emotions and strategies needed for developing socially sustainable solutions.peerReviewe

Pedagogy-related tensions in flexibly scheduled early childhood education and care

In flexibly scheduled early childhood education and care (ECEC), the timing of care depends on parents’ non-standard working hours. Multiple individual schedules and care times in a child group may cause irregularity in a child’s daily structures, and a child may miss a standard hour’s activities that are led by teachers with a pedagogical education. In this context, the significance and definition of pedagogy is vague and tensional. This study aimed at disclosing discursive tensions related to pedagogy in flexibly scheduled ECEC constructed in interviews by Finnish teachers and childcare nurses (n = 31). The analysis of the interview data followed the principles of discursive psychology. Consequently, three discursive tensions related to pedagogy were found: (1) children’s right to learn vs. their need for care, (2) educators’ educational background vs. personal strengths as a standpoint for pedagogical work and (3) pedagogy as standardised vs. meeting children’s individual needs. As an implication, it appears problematic if we consider education and care as opposites. Instead, they should be viewed from a holistic pedagogical perspective, as each child has the right to high-quality pedagogy despite the timing of care. Moreover, children’s individuality should be at the core of planning pedagogical activities.peerReviewe

How educators commit to enhancing children’s participation in early childhood education pedagogical plans

Background: This is a descriptive study of children’s participation plans in early childhood education (ECE) settings in Finland. The study adopted a multidimensional approach to find out how practices of children’s participation were conceived in pedagogical plans made by ECE staff, representing a focus that is rare in the existing body of research. Aim: Aim of the study was to investigate educators’ commitments to enhancing children’s participation in pedagogical practices in their ECE settings. Setting: Ten centre-based plans for children’s participation composed by ECE staff at ECE centres were selected for the document data in this study. Methods: This study employs the categorisation of the prerequisites and dimensions of children’s participation in deductive qualitative content analysis (Turja 2017). Results: Results of the analysis concludes that in early childhood education plans, there were comprehensive notions of prerequisites for participation. However, the study indicates that the level of participation varied between plans for different activities; it was highest in play and limited in terms of time and effect in other pedagogical and caregiving activities. Conclusion: Understanding the prerequisites and dimensions of children’s participation is fundamental for planning and enacting participative pedagogy in child groups at ECE centres. In conclusion, this study suggests how to support ECE staff in interpreting and implementing children’s participation in early childhood education.peerReviewe