Abstract
As Korea has undergone rapid modernization, urbanization and industrialization, women's social participation has increased. Accordingly, child care facilities have shown continuous growth in numbers. However, according to research, child care facilities in Korea lag behind those in other nations in terms of quality. Given that, it seem urgent to enhance the quality of child care facilities and improve their indoor environment. Above all, overall atmosphere, colors and finishing materials are connected directly with educational effects as well as feelings and health of facility users. This study assesses the current state of child care facilities and preferences by focusing primarily on interior atmosphere, materials and colors. For This Study, 7 facilities were surveyed, and 46 subjects were participated for this study. The findings suggest that "pretty" style is preferred to "natural" style. As regards flooring material, wood floor is preferred. It is recommended to lay pastel colored carpet or PVC flooring material to the wood floor. As for wall, it is desirable to divide the wall spaces by adding wood and painting to simple wallpapers. In case of the ceiling noise absorptive material is recommended to use instead of wallpapers. For the doors, it is desirable to use contrasting materials and colors given accessibility for children. In the meantime, rather than strong primary colors, soft color or pastel colors are desirable for furniture. This study has limitations because of insufficiency of case study samples. However, it is significant in that the study results may be used as primary source of information to improve the environment of child care facilities.
