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No description available.

No description available.

No abstract available. / Thesis (M.A.)-University of Durban-Westville, 1987.

No description available.

This thesis examines the constructions of childhood by seven early childhood teachers and twenty young children (ten boys and ten girls) in two private early childhood centres catering for children below Grade R in urban KwaZulu-Natal. An ethnographic approach is used to present childhood as a complex socially constructed process. On the methodological front, this study argues for the practice of responsive researching to engage with moment by moment realities that are sensitive to the particularities of young children and their circumstances when they are positioned as participants in research. In the analysis of teachers’ constructions of childhood for young children, the findings of this study suggest that the lack of public funding in early childhood education, for children below Grade R, sets the conditions for early childhood centres to operate as commercial enterprises trading commodities in a free market. Given this context, teachers position themselves in the dominant market discourse. The study suggests that the focus on the purchasing power of parents determines the type of childhood young children experience at the centres. Teachers access normalising images of young children as property and essentialised adults-in-the-making to support the processing of children as human capital for a fee. As such, the social project of early childhood, as space for democratic practices for public good, is weakened. The focus on the doings of childhood by young children (boys and girls) contrasts the normalising images presented by teachers. The findings of this study suggest that the complex struggles within the temporal zones of growing up and relations in race and gender, present young children as powerful social actors who actively construct their childhoods. The study illuminates how young children use the limiting discourses freely available to them to constitute themselves in familiar ways, and also how they find spaces to loosen the power of these discourses. In concentrating on the lived realities of childhood, this study enters some unfamiliar spaces that provide a base to ask more questions about early childhood centres, teachers, and young children in early childhood education. / Thesis (Ph.D.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, 2006.

The two principal aims of this study were: (a) to evaluate the effectiveness of existing pre-primary education for Indian children and (b) to determine the relative effectiveness of three current school readiness programmes. Random samples of pupils, with varying preschool backgrounds, were drawn from Class i children attending selected Indian primary schools in the Greater Durban area. Information relating to the four groups formed in this way are given below: Sample A: pupils who had attended registered private pre-primary schools (N = 50); Sample B: pupils who had attended departmental bridging module classes (N = 40); Sample C: pupils who had attended community-run preprimary classes (N = 50) ; and Sample D: pupils who had had no formal preschool education (N = 30). To make the four groups comparable, variables such as age, sex, intelligence and socio-economic status were controlled. In keeping with the abovementioned aims the following sets of comparisons were made: (a) the performances, on a test of school readiness, of those pupils who had had some form of formal preschool education (Groups A, B and C) were compared with those who did not receive any such education (Group D); and (b) the performances, on a test of school readiness, of pupils who came from the three different types of preschool backgrounds (A, B and C) were compared with one another. Questionnaires were also completed by a sample of Class i Junior Primary teachers in the Greater Durban area (N = 35). Teachers were asked to comment and report on issues relating to pre-primary schools and classes, the extent of pupil readiness for Class i, the effectiveness of school readiness tests, and matters relating to the Class i curriculum. The purpose of this part of the study was to identify problems in subject areas related to preschool education so that appropriate remedial action could be suggested. There was consensus among Class i teachers that preschool education promotes school readiness. This was confirmed by the results of this study. Groups A, Band C which had received preschool education performed significantly better than group D which comprised pupils who had had no preschool education. The findings also indicated that the preschool programme offered by the departmental bridging module classes was more effective in promoting school readiness than the programme offered by either the registered private pre-primary schools or community-run preprimary classes. Teachers rated the programme offered by Departmental bridging module class to be the most effective for preparing children for formal education. The registered, private pre-primary schools came second, and the community-run classes, third. This rating was again confirmed by the findings of this study. When it came to rating the various subjects in the Class i curriculum in order of difficulty, the following rank-orders were obtained: English (most difficult) followed by Mathematics, Writing, Environmental Studies, Art and Music. They also identified specific short-comings among Class i pupils in each subject area. A number of recommendations are made so that the problems identified by the investigation can be addressed. These relate to pre-primary educational provision, resources and support services, the environment as a resource, teaching, testing and the curriculum. Education authorities, pre-primary teachers, parents and Junior primary teachers are urged to adopt a team approach in the solution of problems relating to young children's education. / Thesis (M.Ed.)-University of Durban-Westville, 1993.

In this research an attempt was made at establishing the value of the Reception Class programme. Bridging the gap between home and school has received a lot of attention in the past decade and although numerous suggestions have been put forward, a pattern of hit-or-miss has developed. This research aims to present a suggestion of successful entry into the formal phase of education for every child, regardless of colour, at a much lower cost for both authorities and parents. In an attempt to determine the success of the Reception Class programme, three measures were used: the First Grade Screening Test (AGS), the HSRC Test for 5-6 year olds and as a qualitative measure a questionnaire completed by the class one teachers of the school where the Reception children entered the formal phase of education in 1990. Results of these tests showed that the Reception Class programme was the most successful in achieving a high level of school readiness and on all three measures these pupils did significantly better than their peers who had attended pre-primary schools, crèches, day-care centres and those who had come straight from home. An analysis of test items showed that the Reception Class pupils had excelled in areas involving concentration and listening skills, fine muscle control and application of knowledge. The HSRC Test for 5-6 year olds showed evidence of well developed problem solving skills and a sound knowledge of mathematical language. Although the sample as such was found to be sufficient, a limitation of this study is the fact that all four the Reception Classes could not have been included in this research. / Thesis (M.Ed.)-University of Natal, Durban, 1990.

The purpose of the study was to determine the attitudes and judgments of public school superintendents in the State of Indiana in regard to the public school system and early childhood programs. Early childhood education was defined as: parent education for parents of young children, nursery school (prekindergarten) for children of ages three and four, kindergarten for five year olds, and day care programs for children.A questionnaire containing forty-five items was developed and refined with the aid of the Northeastern Indiana School Study Council serving as the pilot study group. A questionnaire was sent to all 289 superintendents of public school corporations in Indiana. Two hundred five, or 71 per cent of the superintendents replied to the questionnaire. The data were analyzed and reported as raw numbers, percentages, and totals.Major findings included:1. Approximately 51 per cent of the superintendents indicated the present educational services available to all three, four, and five year old children were not adequate in the school districts represented.2. Approximately 80 per cent of the schools did not provide educational programs for adults relating to the role of the parent.3. Approximately 78 per cent of the superintendents strongly agreed the early childhood programs should have been concerned about all aspects of a young child's development.4. Over 95 per cent of the responding superintendents indicated strong agreement or agreement that the family had the primary responsibility and the rest of society had a supplemental responsibility for providing adequate health, education, and care of young children.5. Approximately 64 per cent of the respondents strongly agreed or agreed that teaching people ways to be better parents was an educational need in the community.6. Approximately 63 per cent of the superintendents disagreed that day care and nursery school programs in the community might have been best provided by the public school.7. Approximately 97 per cent of the superintendents strongly agreed or agreed the availability of revenue for financing programs for young children was limited.8. Approximately 87 per cent of the superintendents expressed agreement that an enriched experience in a planned educational program was important to a young child's development.9. A total of approximately 63 per cent of the respondents agreed or strongly agreed early childhood services could be effective when delivered through the public school system.10. Approximately 57 per cent of the responding superintendents disagreed or strongly disagreed that the nursery school for three and four year old children should have been operated as an integral part of elementary education in the public schools.Conclusions were:1. Early childhood programs, outside the home, were a need in the State of Indiana. Kindergarten programs were not available for all five year old children. The educational needs for all three, four, and five year old children were not being adequately met.2. A program teaching high school students and adults how to be competent parents was a need in the State of Indiana. A t the same time competency as a parent was judged to be an important element for the provision of meaningful experience in a young child's life.3. Approximately 75 per cent of the superintendent's attitudes and judgments concerning the philosophy of early childhood development was in agreement with the review of research and related literature.4. Superintendents expressed agreement that a Planned educational program was important in a young child's development and the public schools could effectively deliver the early childhood services. However, over one-half of the superintendents expressed disagreement that the educational programs for three and four year old children should be operated in the public schools.

This research study focused on early childhood education programs that were implemented by public school districts in Indiana. The research questions addressed in this study were as follows: 1. What benefits related to student achievement does an investment of financial and human resources in preschool and/or full-day kindergarten programs show for students and for a school district? 2. What means of funding do school districts utilize to implement an early childhood education program? 3. What characteristics do successful early childhood programs possess, as determined by school district administrators? The online survey, which was utilized to collect this data, was developed by the researcher. This survey was distributed to public school superintendents of 164 small and mid-sized school corporations in Indiana, of which 43 were small school corporations (0 to 1,000 students) and 121 were mid-sized school corporations (1,001 to 5,000 students). Of the total sample of 164 school districts, 48 surveys were returned, which resulted in a 29.3% response rate. The data collected in this study showed the following results: 1. Students in the preschool programs showed increased acquisition of socialization skills and improved motivation in school. 2. School districts utilized a combination of federal funds, state funds, and federal grants to support their preschool programs. 3. The preschool programs were designed to incorporate the best practice characteristics of a curriculum based on the state early learning standards. The programs also were staffed with teachers who have four-year college degrees and have small class sizes of 20 students, with a staff-to-child ratio of ten students per adult (10:1). These school districts could serve as a model for other school districts that are planning to implement a preschool program through a review of their experiences in designing the program, staffing the program, funding the program, and supporting the academics in the program. / Department of Educational Leadership