• Korean Journal of Childcare and Education
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• v.13 no.5
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• pp.65-91
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• 2017

Objective: This study aims to investigate early childhood teachers' perception of STEAM and suggest activation measures for STEAM according to teachers' background variables. Methods: The researchers conducted a pilot study, and then did survey research for 5 weeks. The participants of this study included 523 teachers of early childhood education institutions in Gwangju metropolitan city and Jeollanam-do Province. Results: The results of this study were as follows. First, early childhood teachers perceived the necessity of STEAM differently according to their age, experience, and academic background. The higher their age, experience, and academic background were, the more they wanted to participate in further teacher training and education. In particular, early childhood teachers' perception and activation measures were very different according to their workplace. These results come from the fact that the conditions in conducting STEAM are different according to their workplace. Conclusion/Implications: In order to activate STEAM, a teacher training program including practical contents and methods should be conducted. Also, it is necessary to carefully organize the content and structure of the teacher training program according to their workplace. This study is meaningful in terms of suggesting activation measures for STEAM by showing how early childhood teachers think about STEAM and what they demand.

• Korean Journal of Childcare and Education
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• v.14 no.6
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• pp.205-218
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• 2018

Objective: The purpose of this study is to explore and analyze the way pre-service early childhood teachers think about teacher happiness through metaphor analysis. Methods: A total of 225 pre-service teachers were selected from 4-year universities in the Gyeongnam area and open questionnaires were distributed to the participants. A total of 207 out of the 225 questionnaires were selected for the study. Results: First, based on psychological well-being, positive interpersonal relationship, self-acceptance, autonomy, environmental control, and life purpose were derived. Pre-service early childhood teachers typified teacher happiness into five types: positive interpersonal relationships, self-acceptance, autonomy, environmental control, and life purpose. Second, pre-service early childhood teachers perceived teacher happiness as positive. Third, pre-service early childhood teachers perceived interpersonal relationships, self-acceptance, and purpose of life as positive, while environmental control and autonomy were perceived as negative. Conclusion/Implications: The results of this study suggest that it is necessary to improve the quality of teachers' education and to develop a program to raise positive awareness of future early childhood teachers. These study results can also be used as basic data for high quality teacher education.

• Korean Journal of Childcare and Education
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• v.19 no.2
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• pp.119-141
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• 2023

Objective: This study aimed to investigate Pre-service early childhood teachers' perceptions and roles regarding young children's free play time. Methods: The study utilized the photovoice method and involved 21 pre-service early childhood teachers who expressed interest in participating. Participants were enrolled in an infants teaching methodology class in B city. The study involved four virtual meetings conducted via untact teams, and the automatic recordings of these meetings were transcribed for analysis. Results: The results revealed that pre-service early childhood teachers recognized young children's free play time as a period to enjoy full freedom, develop as the main agent of their lives, and express their imagination. Furthermore, pre-service early childhood teachers perceived their roles during young children's free play time as a specialist infant observer, a connector between play and learning, and a versatile supporter. Conclusion/Implications: The findings suggest the need for a systematic curriculum to provide pre-service early childhood teachers with a balanced perspective and awareness of the meaning of free play and teacher roles. The study highlights the importance of expanding pre-practice courses for observation of play and field-oriented curriculum for incumbent teachers.

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• v.19 no.11
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• pp.454-462
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• 2018

This study examines the influence of pre-service early childhood teacher's empathy and interpersonal competence on teacher efficacy. The subjects of this study include 358 pre-service early childhood teachers. The instruments used in this study were the emotional empathy scale, interpersonal competence questionnaire (ICQ) and the teacher efficacy scale. Collected data was analyzed using the SPSS program. In order to determine the general background of the pre-service teachers, the frequency and percentages were used. For examination of empathetic ability, interpersonal competence and teacher efficacy of pre-service early childhood teachers, a descriptive statistics analysis was conducted. In addition, in order to assess the relationship among empathetic ability, interpersonal competence and teacher efficacy of pre-service early childhood teachers, Pearson's correlation analysis was conducted. Lastly, for the examination of the effects and relative explanation of empathetic ability, interpersonal competence and teacher efficacy of pre-service early childhood teachers, multiple regression analysis was conducted. The results of this study were as follows: first, pre-service early childhood teachers were shown to have higher empathetic ability, interpersonal relationships and teacher efficacy rates than average. Second, there was a positive correlation among empathetic ability, interpersonal competence and teacher efficacy of pre-service early childhood teachers. Third, teacher efficacy of pre-service early childhood teachers was influenced by their empathetic ability and interpersonal competence. The results of this study suggest that teacher efficacy improvement programs for pre-service early childhood teachers should consider their empathetic ability. Also, study results emphasize the necessity of empathetic ability and interpersonal relationship improvement program for pre-service early childhood teachers.

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• v.20 no.7
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• pp.332-340
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• 2019

This study examines the influence of pre-service early childhood teacher's social support and adaptability to college life on teacher's efficacy. The study subjects were 394 pre-service early childhood teachers. The instruments were Social Support Scale, Adaptability to College Life Scale and Teacher Efficacy Scale. The collected data were analyzed by using SPSS program. Frequency and percentage were used to determine the general background of the pre-service teachers. To examine social support, adaptability to college life and teacher efficacy of pre-service early childhood teachers, descriptive statistics analysis was conducted. To assess the relationship among social support, adaptability to college life and teacher efficacy of pre-service early childhood teachers, Pearson's correlation analysis was carried out. To examine the effects and relative explanation of esocial support, adaptability to college life and teacher efficacy of pre-service early childhood teachers, multiple regression analysis was conducted. From the study results, first, pre-service early childhood teachers had higher social support, adaptability to college life and teacher efficacy rates than average. Second, there was a positive correlation among social support, adaptability to college life and teacher efficacy of pre-service early childhood teachers. Third, teacher efficacy of pre-service early childhood teachers was influenced by their social support, and adaptability to college life. The study results suggest that a teacher efficacy improvement program for pre-service early childhood teachers should be provided for ensuring their social support. The study results also emphasize the necessity of social support and adaptability to college life improvement program for pre-service early childhood teachers.

• Korean Journal of Child Education & Care
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• v.18 no.3
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• pp.105-121
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• 2018

Objective: The objective of this study was to explore the perceptions of pre-service teachers regarding their self-image as early childhood teachers, according to their grade. The subject of this study were 167 university students in early childhood department in Jeonnam province. Methods: In order to examine self-image as early childhood teachers, semantic differential meaning scale that was consist of 40 bipolar adjective items was administrated. Data were analysed by Multivariate Analysis of Variance (MANOVA). Results: First, pre-service teachers had positive self image as early childhood teacher. Second, according to grades the appreciation self image as early childhood teacher showed significant difference. To be more specific and are revealed significantly distinctness. But, score was not distinct by grade, and mean score of was lower than mean score of other area scores. Third, self image as early childhood teacher displayed the positively developing, that is to say, the image of early childhood teachers definitely changed by grade in teacher training course. Conclusion/Implications: The effect brought about this study indicate that the need of support socio-political concern for early childhood teachers and try to form positive teachers' image through organized in-service education.

• Korean Journal of Childcare and Education
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• v.17 no.2
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• pp.143-160
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• 2021

Objective: This study explored the relationship between early childhood teachers' teaching efficacy, teacher-child interaction, and preschoolers' school readiness. Methods: The data were drawn from the seventh wave of the Panel Study on Korean Children. The subjects of this study were 1,150 preschoolers and their teachers. Early childhood teachers reported their teaching efficacy, their interaction with preschoolers, and preschoolers' school readiness. Data were analyzed using structural equation modeling. Results: First, early childhood teachers' teaching efficacy did not have a direct effect on preschoolers' school readiness. Second, early childhood teachers' teaching efficacy had an indirect effect on preschoolers' school readiness through teacher-child interaction. In other words, teachers with a high level of teaching efficacy had high-quality interactions with preschoolers, which led to preschoolers showing a high level of school readiness. Conclusion/Implications: The results of this study highlight the importance of teachers' high teaching efficacy and high-quality interactions between teachers and preschoolers to improve preschoolers' school readiness. In addition, this study contributes to a better understanding of the mechanism by which teachers' teaching efficacy influences preschoolers' school readiness.

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• v.14 no.10
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• pp.4902-4909
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• 2013

The purpose of this study was to investigate the influence of early childhood teachers' emotional regulation style and teacher efficacy to their burnout. The data was collected by questionnaires method from 157 early childhood teachers in Gyeongsangbuk-do and Ulsan city. The instruments were Scale for Emotional Regulation Styles, Teachers' Sense of Efficacy, and Early Childhood Teachers Burnout Scale. The results of the study were as follows: Early childhood teachers' emotional regulation style and teacher efficacy meaningfully influenced to their burn out. This means early childhood teachers who had higher avoidant/distract regulation style showed higher their burnout and who had higher personal teacher efficacy showed lower their burnout. This research offers further study the influence variables to burnout and find out the effective method of emotional regulation and to enhance teacher efficacy.

• Korean Journal of Human Ecology
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• v.18 no.3
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• pp.597-607
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• 2009

The purpose of this study was to investigate the perception of kindergarten teachers about which content should be included in early childhood mathematics education. Then the researcher looked into the findings according to the 2007(7th) national kindergarten curriculum. The results showed that kindergarten teachers perceived the important of balanced content areas of early childhood mathematics education. But the results also showed that kindergarten teachers perceived classification as the most important content areas of early childhood mathematics education. This implicates that the kindergarten teachers revealed somewhat conflicting beliefs about mathematics education. The results also showed that kindergarten teachers did not perceive space and data analysis as the most important content areas of early childhood mathematics education according to the 2007 national kindergarten curriculum The kindergarten teachers also suggested basic and restricted mathematics concepts. The results of this study were discussed related with the problems in early childhood mathematics education, especially the problems in teacher education.

• Journal of Fisheries and Marine Sciences Education
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• v.27 no.2
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• pp.399-413
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• 2015

This study was to validate the WSSECT (Workplace Spirituality Scale for Early Childhood Teacher) using discriminant analysis on early childhood teachers' happiness and job satisfaction. The data from 504 teachers working at kindergartens and daycare centers were analyzed statistically through t-test and discriminant analysis. The results indicated that 1) the higher group in workplace spirituality significantly gets more scores of happiness and job satisfaction than the lower group, 2) 4 factors of the WSSECT have discriminant power on early childhood teachers' happiness, and 3) 2 factors ('meaning for life' and 'calling for ECE teacher job') of the WSSECT are effective to discriminate early childhood teachers' job satisfaction. Further statistical works are supplementary needed to validate the WSSECT and to increase its'feasibility.