Children’s experiences of empowerment in relation to preschool peers and in child–adult interactions were studied, involving 25 four-to six-year-olds from four Swedish preschools. Group interviews using puppets comprised pre-constructed scenarios to examine preschools’ activities. Children took photos of indoor and outdoor preschool environments, followed by a photo-elicitation interview. Data were analysed by content analysis. Results showed that authority was expressed in relation to teachers and parents. Children negotiated about handling situations and described relations with teachers as uncomplicated; the contrary was the case with peers. Structure meant that children could choose between courses of action within set frames, describing empowerment as decision-making within limitations. Results indicated the importance of preschool teachers stimulating children to reflect on their own ability by discussing issues concerning children’s sense of empowerment, using methods similar to the ones in this study.
Early reading and writing skills are important in order to develop and succeed, both in school and later on in life. The aim of this study was to shed light on influential factors on children's reading and writing development from the perspective of parents. Bronfenbrenner's bioecological model for human development was adopted as a theoretical framework. The researchers made use of retrospective life-history oriented interviews with 27 parents conducted as part of a larger research project in Sweden. In the interviews, the parents described factors that can be interpreted as being influential. A thematic analysis technique generated nine themes: Child's abilities and engagement; Genetics and parents' abilities; More able siblings and peers; Involved parents and grandparents; Teacher competence, attitude and collaborations; Social climate in preschool and preschool class; Free play and child-initiated reading and writing activities; Toys and books; and Extra support provisions and stimulation. Implications are discussed.
This comparative study investigated the perspectives of preschool teachers in Australia, Denmark, Estonia, German, Greece and Sweden aboutlearning and participation in preschool. A structured survey questionnaire investigated four main questions: What situations can be characterised as learning? What activities are important for learning? What are the best conditions for children's learning? How do preschool teachersunderstand participation in relation to children's learning in preschool? Results suggest that play, interactions with other children and adults, the provision of different activities and teacher support are important for children's learning. While similarities were noted, results indicate some disparity between countries and a further in-depth interview-style study is recommended to provide a deeper understanding of teachers’perspectives and practices around children's learning.
The focus of this study has been to examine a number of municipalities that work to recruit more men to work in preschools. The aim of the study has been to identify ways of working conducted by municipalities aiming to recruit more men to work in preschools. The study includes seven municipalities, all included in one network specifically aiming at the raising the number of men working in preschool. Interviews and discussions were carried out with key persons involved in the local work to recruit more men to preschools. This analysis can show trends in initiating the concrete work. The results show that an organization is needed and the formulation of objectives provides the organization. The organization and objectives contribute to continuity in the work, something that long-term areas for change often need.
The overall interest is to understand how men who study preschool teaching negotiate masculinities. Earlier research shows how male teachers negotiate masculinities when being in and entering a predominantly feminine work area, such as early childhood education [see, for example, Brody, D. L. (2015). The construction of masculine identity among men who work with young children, an international perspective. European Early Childhood Education Research Journal, 23(3), 351–361; Pirard, F., Schoenmaeckers, P., & Camus, P. (2015). Men in childcare services: From enrolment in training programmes to job retention. European Early Childhood Education Research Journal, 23(3), 362–369; Simpson, R. (2014). Doing gender differently. Men in caring occupations. In S. Kumra, R. Simpson, & R. J. Burke (Eds.), The Oxford handbook of gender in organizations (1st ed.). Oxford: Oxford University Press)]. It this article Connell's notion on hegemonic masculinity is reflected on in terms of negotiation. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 38 men attending the preschool teacher-training programmes at three Swedish universities. The result shows two main themes for negotiation that were called ‘Becoming and being a “breaker”’ and ‘Coping with sticking out’.
The website of the Swedish National Agency for Education states that preschools are to promote entrepreneurial learning. Many Swedish preschools, therefore, have started to work consciously with entrepreneurial learning as a way of fostering pupils' creativity and ability to make their own decisions. This article investigates whether and how children in different preschool settings receive support and recognition in their efforts to make sense of the world around them. Nine preschool teachers and children from three preschools participated. Three video observations were conducted focusing on the work of each team of teachers. Our study challenges the assumption that an entrepreneurial learning design enhances pupils' learning, creativity, and decision-making. Even though the ambition is to encourage such abilities, our observations demonstrate that the learning design and setting do not always give children the opportunity to be creative. © 2015 Taylor & Francis.
In Swedish teacher education, all preschool teacher students have to include a school-based element and to take part in a local educational practice, in a preschool or in another form of educational setting, such as a preschool class or after-school recreation centre. In this study, we have asked a group of supervisors about their perception of the content in learning, knowledge development and supervision and also what is going on in learning and knowledge development situations in practice. The theoretical bases for our analysis are theories of interaction and intersubjectivity. The results show that the content of learning and knowledge development is highly integrated with the situation and practice. A preschool teacher student's learning is understood by the supervisors as something that occurs in interaction, where children and preschool teachers are of great importance. The content of learning is related to practical exercise, observation and reflection together with other preschool teachers. Trying new theories and being curious are also associated with learning
Background: Traditional disability categories may reveal little of the functional characteristics and social competence of a child. Objective: To compare the social competence of typically developing children, children with established disabilities and undiagnosed children identified by a functional approach to be in need of special support. Methods: Observations were conducted during free play using the Child Observation in Preschools, COP. Results: The variables positive emotion, social emotional warmth, teacher rated engagement and verbal to other children significantly discriminated the three groups. In a discriminant analysis based on group membership only 68% of all cases were correctly classified. Conclusions: Difficulties in classifying undiagnosed children in need of special support and children with established disabilities leads to the question of the fruitfulness of using traditional categories when assessing social competence. Instead a functional approach sensitive to the individual profile of each child is recommended.
This study aims to investigate preschool staff's view of emergent literacy approaches in Swedish preschools with the following research question: How do preschool staff describe and explain the approaches they use in the emergent literacy environment of preschool? Focus-group interviews were conducted with 52 participating preschool units. Manifest content analyses were used and the interviews were systematically analysed relying on socio-cultural theory and the ecological development approach [Barton, D. (2007). Literacy an introduction to the ecology of written language. London: Blackwell; Vygotsky, L. S. (1962). Thought and language. Boston, MA: MIT Press], in accordance with Whitehurst and Lonigan's [1998. Child development and emergent literacy. Child Development, 69, 844-872] components of emergent literacy. The results show that preschool staff apply both outside-in and inside-out approaches; however, outside-in approaches such as play and supportive communication are described most frequently in the focus-group interviews.
The purpose of this study was to investigate, analyse and describe preschool staff's concepts of children's participation in everyday preschool life, as well as preschool staff's experiences and concepts of what characterises the children who participate. Furthermore, it addresses the conditions that preschool staff consider as crucial in promoting children's participation in preschool. This study has a mixed methods design in which the definitions of participation given by preschool staff were initially analysed using a qualitative content analysis approach. The definitions provided by the preschool teams were then matched to interviews with staff from 20 preschools. Results from the questionnaire show that self-determination and management of everyday life are strong indicators for high participation according to the staff. The interview results show that preschool staff share the understanding that giving children a sense of coherence and comprehension of their surrounding world consequently supports children's management of and participation in everyday life in preschool.
This study examined social interaction as a mediator between externalized behaviour difficulties and children's engagement in preschool. Data from 663 children (340 boys), aged 18-71 months, were collected at 81 Swedish preschool units in six municipalities to test a path model that included child, teacher, and child groups. The results indicated that behaviour difficulties and engagement may occur simultaneously. Hyperactivity had a direct negative influence on engagement, which was not the case with conduct problems. Teachers' responsiveness as well as positive interactions with peers had an indirect influence on the relationship between hyperactivity and engagement. Responsive staff and positive interactions within the child group seem to contribute to children's engagement despite hyperactivity. Children's engagement, as well as special support to stimulate engagement in preschool, is discussed.
Younger children are common users of health-care services. Their perspective on a health-care situation and their ways of communication differ from that of adults. There is a shortness of research of younger children's perceptions of health-care situations. The knowledge that exists indicates the importance of involving the child's perspective to enable understanding and to offer appropriate support. This paper aimed to describe how younger children perceive to be in a health-care situation. Semi-structured interviews, analysed phenomenographically, were used. The main findings revealed that children view themselves as actors, as either main or co-actors, in a health-care situation. Parents and professionals are also understood as actors. The children's perceptions enable professionals to create a mutual understanding which will give openings for increased involvement of the children and an improved level of the children's health literacy.
This article aims to explore parents’ perspectives on, and experiences of, home and preschool collaboration in a Swedish context. The research question is: How do parents perceive the process of building good relationships with preschool practitioners? The data consist of interviews with 10 parents with one or more children attending preschool. The research process follows the procedures significant to constructivist grounded theory. In the results, parents stress the necessity of continuity in building trusting and authentic relationships with preschool practitioners in order to shoulder parental responsibilities from afar and facilitate children’s well-being, development and learning at preschool. Parents attempt to create prerequisites for collaboration when choosing a preschool. The relationship-building process is described in different ways; some see it as effortless, while others see it as a struggle.
The purpose of this article is to analyse and discuss preschool teachers' views regarding competence within their profession in the context of home and preschool collaboration. The question addressed is as follows: In what situations do preschool teachers perceive that their competence becomes visible for parents? The results, based on interviews with 30 preschool teachers, show that preschool teachers work consciously to draw attention to specific competencies related to children's learning and development and the preschool curriculum. The ability to establish dialogue with parents and gain their trust is seen as particularly important for establishing and maintaining collaboration between preschool and the home. Furthermore, the participants recognise that parents seek their competence in daily matters concerning the child's well-being. The competencies that preschool teachers emphasise and those they believe parents ask for do not, therefore, always coincide. The results of this study can contribute to a better understanding of the prerequisites for preschool–home collaboration.
This educational science article illustrates education for sustainability in a theme about Earth Hour (energy conservation) in one Swedish preschool. This case study is based on audio recordings of dialogues between children aged five to six years and preschool teachers. It is guided by critical theory, which is also used as a conceptual tool to explore participation, agency and shared meaning-making. The main findings show that children are engaged and active as equal participants in the dialogue, being eager to understand and take part. However, the intended knowledge content fades into the background when other topics are brought up and as educational framing with purposefully framed play imposes regulations on the constructs of the dialogue content. Further consideration needs to be given to how communicative action together with participation and listening, as well as knowledge development and play, can be intertwined.