• Korean Journal of Human Ecology
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• v.20 no.3
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• pp.561-582
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• 2011

The purpose of this study was to investigate the current status of pre-service curriculums for child care teachers at universities and colleges in Korea. To accomplish this, a survey was implemented to gather the lists of courses from each department training pre-service child care teachers. A total of 225 departments at universities and colleges across Korea participated in the survey. The results showed that the 37 different courses offered for child-care teacher licensure were different by school type (university or college) and major. Departments in colleges with specific majors such as early childhood education and social welfare offer courses that are also required for other certificates, including kindergarten teachers or social workers, so pre-service child care teachers may not have the opportunity to take courses specifically designed for their specific teaching needs or interests. Accordingly, there may be a restricted number of courses from which to choose during pre-service training periods. Based on the findings from this study, several political implications for improving child-care teacher professionalism were suggested.

• Korean Journal of Childcare and Education
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• v.16 no.4
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• pp.93-110
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• 2020

Objective: The purpose of this study was to explore the early childhood education teacher's ability to implement play-centered curriculum that is recognized by an early childhood education expert based on an analysis of focus group interviews. Methods: Two professors of early childhood education, two directors of daycare centers, and two early childhood education teachers participated in the focus group interview. The interview was conducted three times. The interviewed data were categorized and compared. Results: The action competence of the play-centered curriculum required for early childhood teachers were categorized into the following categories; comprehending play, recognizing play, and practicing child-centered play. Detailed factor competencies were required for understanding play, reflective thinking, reading play, recording play, playing like a child, and supporting play. Conclusion/Implications: For actualizing play-centered curriculum, early childhood education teachers needed to comprehend, recognize, and practice for child's play. Furthermore, we discussed the necessity and direction of teacher education to improve the teacher's action competence for play-centered curriculum.

• Korean Journal of Childcare and Education
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• v.9 no.3
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• pp.95-119
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• 2013

The study uses a qualitative research method for an in-depth study on child care practice for preliminary child care teachers. The study shows firstly that prior to practice, a preliminary child care teacher expects to perform a dual role. The preliminary child care teacher conceives an unequal, vertical relationship with a practice guidance teacher and serves as someone between a teacher and a friend to children, while perceiving the facility head as a mediator and practice colleagues as companions. Secondly, the preliminary child care teacher performed a triple role, while the practice guidance teacher played the role of a preliminary child care teacher. A preliminary child care teacher has mutually supportive interaction with a practice guidance teacher and serves as someone between a teacher and a friend, while acting as an important supporter to the facility head and as an uncomfortable competitor to a practice colleague. Thirdly, when a practice is completed, a preliminary child care teacher feels satisfied and sorry, while emphasizing a balance between theory and practice in a curriculum. The purpose of the current study lies in figuring out the needs for child care practice for a preliminary child care teacher who is the subject in child care practice to suggest improvements for a qualitative enhancement of child care practice.

• Korean Journal of Childcare and Education
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• v.8 no.6
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• pp.99-125
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• 2012

Teacher-child interaction was included in kindergarten and child care center accreditation evaluation and is considered as important as teaching and learning methods in the newly implemented Nuri curriculum. The purpose of this study was to confirm the difference of levels (emotional. verbal, behavioral) for the style of the interaction between teachers and children in kindergarten and child-care centers and to analyze direct effect and interaction effect, according to institution(kindergarten, childcare center). teacher(age, educational career, academic career), and child group(child number, child age) variables. The subjects in this study were 191 teachers in kindergartens and child-care centers in G region in Seoul. The overall average of the teacher-child interaction (emotional, verbal and behavioral interactions) was significantly higher, and there were not significant differences depending on the institution type and child group. According to the results of this study, factors of teacher characteristics affected the teacher-child interaction more than child-concerned variables.

• Journal of the Korean Home Economics Association
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• v.48 no.3
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• pp.87-97
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• 2010

The purpose of this study was to investigate the basic materials for enhancing the professionalism of 51 infant/toddler teachers through in-depth interview about the actual condition of child care centers. The results were as follows: First, the infant/toddler teachers got less credits of young child care and education subjects than day care teachers did. The current criteria for qualification of infant/toddler teachers was not appropriate for providing the child care services. An efficient and substantial curriculum must be designed to facilitate the day care services for infant/toddler teachers. Second, the infant/toddler teachers recognized that their roles were similar to child care teachers. The curriculum and practice must encourage and nurture the characters, beliefs, and dispositions of infant/toddler teachers. Third, it is necessary to review the various problems to enhance the professionalism of infant/toddler teachers. Several suggestions for enhancing the professionalism are discussed.

• Korean Journal of Childcare and Education
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• v.18 no.2
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• pp.1-18
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• 2022

Objective: A teacher learning community was developed in order to implement a play-centered curriculum at a child care center, and teachers' experiences during the process were explored. Methods: The teacher learning community was carried out for a total of 23 sessions. One researcher and six teachers participated in this study. Data including the transcripts of recordings of the teacher learning community, transcripts of individual teachers' interview recordings, teachers' reflective journals, and social media posts were collected. Data were analyzed according to the qualitative data analysis procedure. Results: The teachers recognized their experiences of the teacher learning community as follows: (1) encouraging and empowering each other to find a way together, (2) self-reflection, communication and sharing with experiences, (3) becoming a teacher who practices change. Conclusion/Implications: The results of this study show the importance and effectiveness of managing the teacher learning community in a way that teachers interact with each other in a collaborative manner within the community based on initiative and spontaneity, and to provide help to each other in the process of understanding and practicing the play-centered curriculum. The teacher learning community supports the professionalism of teachers for the practice of a play-centered curriculum.

• Korean Journal of Childcare and Education
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• v.18 no.6
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• pp.101-126
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• 2022

Objective: The purpose of this study was to investigate the implementation experiences of the 「2019 revised Nuri curriculum」 of early childhood education teachers and special education teachers at inclusive child care and education centers. Methods: Individual interviews with 14 teachers at seven inclusive settings in Seoul were conducted. The collected data were transcribed, and six categories and 42 sub-themes in early childhood education teachers and six categories and 37 sub-themes in special education teachers were derived through qualitative-comparative content analysis. Results: The teacher in-service education conducted prior to the implementation of the 「2019 revised Nuri curriculum」 gave substantial aid in the applied practices of cases. The perceptions of teachers related to the 「2019 revised Nuri curriculum」 were heightened. The inclusive settings had been changed according to the principles of play, case, and children's interest. As the 「2019 revised Nuri curriculum」 progressed, children also changed. The implementation of the 「2019 revised Nuri program」 allowed the positive and the negative experiences to coexist at the inclusive settings. For the successful implementation of the 「2019 revised Nuri curriculum」 , calls for the improvement of the child care and education center and national level must be stressed. Conclusion/Implications: Based on the results, discussions and recommendations were presented to solve the difficulties.

• Korean Journal of Child Studies
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• v.28 no.5
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• pp.233-251
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• 2007

This study explored the contents of practical knowledge about educational planning in early childhood curriculum as constructed by kindergarten teachers at early career stages and then developed a collaborative model of educational planning. Subjects were 6 teachers at early career stages. Using the ethnographic method, data were collected by in-depth interviews. Research outcomes were : (1) teachers specifically worked on 'difficulties in adapting to the teaching job', 'age of children that the teacher cares for', 'integration of theory and practice', and 'variety of actual teaching situations.' (2) A model for collaborative educational planning was constructed on the basis of review of the literature on teachers' knowledge, educational planning for early childhood curriculum, and learning of community.

• Korean Journal of Childcare and Education
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• v.12 no.4
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• pp.131-149
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• 2016

Teacher's practical knowledge is potentially relevant to the teaching practice in his/her classroom. The research explored early childhood teachers' practical knowledge of 'curriculum' via conceptual metaphors. The participants (N=348) completed a prompt, "Curriculum is like A because B" and then the metaphors were analyzed according to the procedure proposed by Moser (2000). The analysis found that 8 themes (i.e. 'educational basis', 'learning opportunity', 'educational material', 'difficulty', 'change', 'pre-determination', 'discordance', and 'reconstruction') were the underlying conceptions signified in those metaphors. The implications regarding early childhood teachers' practical knowledge were discussed on the perspective of post-modern curriculum. Moreover, it recommended the practical knowledge based approach for early childhood teacher education, and transformation of current policy for program evaluation relevant to curriculum conceptualization.

• Korean Journal of Childcare and Education
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• v.12 no.5
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• pp.17-45
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• 2016

This study aimed to investigate the effect of a young children's happiness program in relation with the Nuri curriculum on young children's happiness and self-esteem. Study subjects included 37 children aged 5 (experimental group 20, comparative group 17) enrolled in A day care center and D day care center located in K district, Seoul. As for the research procedure, an experiment was conducted 48 times in 18 weeks, and the experimental group carried out the children's happiness program linked with the Nuri curriculum. In contrast, the comparative group conducted general activities focusing on the subjects according to the Nuri curriculum. Study results show that there was a significant difference amongst 9 sub-domains related to young children's happiness (health, emotion, immersion, recognition and achievement, parent-child relationship, teacher-child relationship, peer relationship, spirituality, life satisfaction) and 3 sub-domains related to self-esteem (start and spirit of independence, sociality emotionality, academic achievement). Results of this study prove that the children's happiness program in relation with the Nuri curriculum is effective for increasing young children's happiness and self-esteem, and could be used as preliminary data for the possibility of a happiness program in early childhood education settings and happiness education in the future.