Policies and practices of early childhood education and care during the COVID-19 pandemic: Perspectives from five countries

The COVID-19 pandemic, which affects all areas of life, has also affected children in need of education and care. It is of great importance to develop policies that take into account the best interests of children in this process. In this review article, the policies developed for early childhood education and care during the pandemic period in five countries (Australia, Croatia, Hungary, Spain, and Turkey), how they are implemented, the problems that arose, and the solutions produced are discussed. As a result, the COVID-19 pandemic has revealed that we need to focus on eliminating the educational inequalities, set policies for the welfare of children on foundations that are more realistic, rebuild teacher training, and improve the welfare of families. Priorizating the best interests of the child in the policies to be developed and building the social ecology on justice will ease overcoming the crises that will be faced

Views of female preschool pre-service teachers about male teaching colleagues

Cyprus International Conference on Educational Research (CY-ICER) -- FEB 08-11, 2012 -- Middle E Tech Univ No Cyprus Campus, CYPRUSWOS: 000342764800097In Turkey in the preschool sector there are fewer male teachers than female teachers. The views of female colleagues are one factor that affects the entry of males to this sector. This study investigated female preschool pre-service teachers' views about male teachers. The data was collected through semi-structured interviews and content analysis was used to reveal the concepts and relations that explain the data. According to the findings, three main themes were determined: the presence of male preschool teachers in the profession, factors affecting male teachers' choice of occupation and ways of decreasing society's bias concerning male preschool teachers. (C) 2012 Published by Elsevier Ltd.Cyprus Educ Sci Assoc, Acad World Educ & Res Ctr, Near E Univ, Eastern Mediterranean Univ, Ataturk Teacher Training Acad, Int Cyprus Univ, Girne Amer Univ, Cyprus Educ Sci Asso

The Influence of the Physical Environment on Early Childhood Education Classroom Management

Problem Statement: The physical environment of the classroom has an impact on various components of the teaching and learning processes. Recently, there has been research into the relationship between classroom management and the physical environment in elementary schools. However, the focus of these studies was only on one dimension of the physical environment of the classroom such as the relationship between class size or the physical environment and academic achievement. Therefore, there is a need for research into how early childhood teachers perceive the impact of the physical environment on classroom management

A Comparison of Preschool and First Grade Teachers' Views about School Readiness

School readiness is an important concern for parents and teachers because it is a multifaceted process which encompasses all the developmental areas and various skills of children rather than only focusing on cognitive and literacy skills. In particular, preschool and first grade teachers experience the positive and negative sides of the process of school readiness. In this study, basic qualitative research was used to compare teachers' views about school readiness. The participants were 35 preschool and 35 first grade teachers and a semi-structured interview protocol developed by the researchers was used to collect data. Qualitative analysis was performed at the end of the study and according to the findings, the following five main themes were determined: definition of school readiness, the effective people and institutions in the school readiness process, preschool education for school readiness, the difficulties encountered in the school readiness process and suggestions for effective school readiness. Also, the findings showed that preschool and first grade teachers tended to have similar views related school readiness

Investigating the National Dissertation and Thesis Database in the Field of Early Childhood Education in Turkey

AbstractThe importance of Early Childhood Education (ECE) in Turkey is growing and research into ECE is necessary for the development of a solid knowledge bank on which to base educational and training programs. In this study 410 dissertations and theses from the National Dissertation and Thesis database were analyzed in terms of variables including publication years, universities and departments. The outcome that ECE research in Turkey has increased, but many ECE areas have been neglected. It is hoped that future research will explore these areas and this will contribute to a greater understanding of needs and requirements of ECE programs

Investigating the National Dissertation and Thesis Database in the Field of Early Childhood Education in Turkey

The importance of Early Childhood Education (ECE) in Turkey is growing and research into ECE is necessary for the development of a solid knowledge bank on which to base educational and training programs. In this study 410 dissertations and theses from the National Dissertation and Thesis database were analyzed in terms of variables including publication years, universities and departments. The outcome that ECE research in Turkey has increased, but many ECE areas have been neglected. It is hoped that future research will explore these areas and this will contribute to a greater understanding of needs and requirements of ECE programs. (C) 2009 Published by Elsevier Ltd. Selection and/or peer-review under responsibility of Dr. Zafer Bekirogullari of Y.B

Early Childhood Teachers and Computers: Beliefs and Self-Reported Practices

There are disadvantages as well as advantages to the use of computers, and early childhood teachers have an important role to play in the appropriate incorporation of computer technology into learning. To fulfill this role, they not only need to have the skills and knowledge to implement this relatively new way of learning, but also to have a positive attitude towards and belief in the validity of the use of computer technology in the classroom. Thus, it is important to analyze early childhood teachers' beliefs about computer use, since these are keys to understanding their practices in the classroom. The current study aims to determine early childhood teachers' beliefs and self-reported practices relating to computer use in the context of Turkey. The participants in this study were selected purposefully and consisted of 16 early childhood teachers. Data was obtained via a semi-structured interview protocol and analyzed through the word-repetition technique. Following data analysis, five themes were determined: (1) the availability and use of computers and the Internet, (2) the aims of computer use, (3) the advantages and disadvantages of computer use, (4) the teacher's role in computer use and (5) teachers' suggestions for effective computer use in early childhood classrooms. The teachers who participated in this study recognized the benefits of computer technology. However; they also expressed a need for more access to technology and more training. It is hoped that, with the help of technology-development projects, the early education of children will be enhanced