Syftet med denna studie är att ta reda på hur förskollärare aktivt arbetar med miljö- och naturvårdsfrågor i förskolans verksamhet, samt om arbetet kan påverkas på grund av förskolans geografiska placering. I studien har fyra intervjuer gjorts på fyra olika förskolor, varav alla respondenter varit examinerade förskollärare. Det som framkommit under studiens gång är att alla mer eller mindre arbetar med miljö- och naturvårdsfrågor, och att de alla anser att det är ett viktigt arbete då vi endast har en miljö och bör ta hand om denna. Alla deltagare anser att det är genom utevistelse som barnen lär som allra bäst, då de i samspel med naturen och djuren som lever där, bildar en respekt för den och på så vis kan börja förstå den. / The purpose of this study is to find out how preschool teachers actively working with environmental and conservation issues in preschool, and if the work could be affected because of the preschool geographic location. In the study, four interviews were made ​​in four preschools, of which all respondents were a preschool teacher. What emerged during the study was that they all worked with environmental and conservation issues, and they all think it is an important work because we only have one environment and we all should take care of it. All the participants believe that it is through outdoors children learn about the environment, it is when they are in harmony with nature and the animals that live there, they can begin to form a respect for the environment, and then begin to understand it.

The purpose of this study was to investigate whether implementing Success For Life in Thailand would meet the needs of Thai public policy, the Thai educational system, and Thai culture. There were 46 respondents, including 4 early childhood professionals, 4 preschool owners, 6 directors, and 32 teachers. All respondents received the Success For Life training workshop. Each participant was requested to complete a questionnaire on their understanding and awareness of brain development and function, thoughts about implementing Success For Life in Thailand, and the appropriateness of Success For Life for the Thai educational system, Thai public policy, and Thai culture. In addition, all of the 4 early childhood professionals, 4 preschool owners, and 6 directors, and 8 teachers were interviewed to expand the information provided in the questionnaires. Two preschools implemented Success For Life in November 2000. Another 6 preschools implemented Success For Life in June 2001. Participating teachers in the preschools where Success For Life was implemented in November 2000 were also asked to write bimonthly journals. Journal entries included information about how participants changed their teaching styles after receiving the Success For Life training. Research findings indicated that Success For Life was appropriate to the preschool level in Thailand. Recommendations for Success For Life implementation in Thailand were 1) clarify the meaning of “teacher-centered” to conform with Thai policy, 2) modify the mathematics curriculum to reflect higher level concepts, 3) include ethics and financial education in the curriculum, 4) include in Success For Life staff development methods for teaching children with special needs, different learning styles, and in ESL programs, and 5) clarify how, in the Success For Life curriculum, children have a right to access to the Thai dream instead of the American Dream.

The goal of the study is to examine how five preschool teachers were working with children's language development, both in their native language and in the Swedish language. The study will also examine how preschool teachers can perform their work in this area with the same quality no matter what level of knowledge they have of the different languages they encounter in their work. The study is a qualitative study and is based on the empirical of the interviews and observations of five preschool teachers in three preschools in Stockholm, Sweden. The analysis is divided into three themes; The significance of conversation, Communication with several ways of expressions and Individual way of working. In these themes we have described the different ways of work ing with language development that we encountered. The results of the study show that there are many ways, with similarities and differences, to work with children's language development. The results of the study also show that whatever knowledge the preschool teachers had in the different languages, they found ways to teach the children their language, both the Swedish language and their native language. The results also indicate that the size of the group of children could affect how the preschool teachers worked with language development.

Thesis (M.Ed.)--University of Hong Kong, 1984. / Includes bibliographical references (leaf 81-85). Also available in print.

<p>The purpose of this work is to contribute with knowledge regarding childrens influence in preschool from the perspective of the preschool teacher. To study this I have asked two questions: How do preschool teachers describe what the influence from the children could mean in preschool? and How do preschool teachers work for the children´s right to influence in preschool? I used qualitative interviews so as to give room for the interviewperson´s own words, thoughts and opinions. The study shows that it is important for the preschool teachers to listen to the children, let them express their opinions and let them have influence on their everyday in preschool. It also shows that the childrens opinions and thoughts are the foundation for the preschool teachers when planning the activities in preschool. Another result is that childrens influence in preschool is a difficult subject, but it is given priority.The preschool teacher´s opinions are that it is important to be aware of their own attitudes in order to give the children opportunity to have influence on preschool.</p> / <p>Syftet med detta arbete är att bidra med kunskap om barns inflytande i förskoleverksamheten, utifrån förskollärares perspektiv. För att ta reda på det har jag utformat två frågeställningar som är: Hur beskriver förskollärare vad barns inflytande kan innebära i förskolan? och Hur arbetar förskollärare för barns rätt till inflytande i förskolan? Jag använde mig av kvalitativa intervjuer för att ge utrymme för respondenterna att svara med egna ord och att deras egna tankar och åsikter skulle komma i främsta rummet. Undersökningen visar att förskollärarna anser att det är viktigt att lyssna på barnen, låta dem få uttrycka sina åsikter och låta barnen få vara med och påverka sin vardag. Det visar sig också att förskollärarna utgår ifrån detta när de planerar verksamheten i förskolan. Den visar också att förskollärarna anser att barns inflytande är ett svårt men prioriterat ämne i förskolan. Förskollärarna menar att det är viktigt att vara medveten om sitt eget förhållningssätt för att barns inflytande i förskolan skall kunna ges.</p>

The aim of this research is to develop a better understanding of how preschool-teachers respond to children in preschool, when they show that they want to have some influence. I have concentrated this study on how the preschool-teachers respond to the children in the gatherings and when the children are playing freely indoors, where the questions at issue are: How do the preschool-teachers respond to the children’s initiative for participation in the gathering and while playing freely? There have been four preschool-teachers and 14 children who have taken part in this study. The children who took part are in the ages of three to five. The study was done at a section in a preschool in middle Sweden. The method used in this study is unstructured observations. The collecting of material has been concentrated on how the preschool-teachers respond to children while they are playing freely and during the gatherings. Is the response positive or negative, and if there are any obstacles that might have caused the preschool-teachers’ choice of response. The result shows that the preschool-teachers are more eager to a positive response towards the children’s initiative for participation while the children are playing freely compared to the gatherings. It shows that the preschool-teachers have more control and are stricter with the content in the gatherings. During the daily routines (e.g. cleaning), at the morning gatherings and when the preschool-teachers are occupied with something else, the children tend to receive either a negative response or the word “wait” as an answer. Keywords: Preschool, preschool-teachers, response, participation / Syftet med den här studien är att utvecklaen ökad förståelse för hur pedagoger bemöter barn i förskolan, när de visar att de vill ha inflytande. Jag har koncentrerat den här studien på hur pedagogerna bemöter barnen i samlingarna och när barnen har fri lek inomhus, där frågeställningen är: Hur bemöter pedagogerna i förskolan barns initiativ till inflytande sett i både samlingen och den fria leken?   Det är fyra pedagoger och 14 barn som har varit delaktiga i studien. Barnen som har deltagit är i åldern tre till fem år. Undersökningen har genomförts på en avdelning på en förskola i mellersta Sverige. Metoden som har använts i den här studien är ostrukturerade observationer. Insamlandet av materialet har varit koncentrerat på hur pedagogerna bemöter barnen i den fria leken och samlingarna. Är bemötandet bejakande eller nekande, samt finns det något hinder som orsakar pedagogers val av bemötande. Resultatet visar att pedagoger är mer bejakande till barnens initiativ till inflytande i den fria leken än vad de är i samlingarna. Det visar att pedagogerna har mer kontroll och är mer styrda av innehållet i samlingarna. De dagliga rutinerna (tex. Städning), vid morgonmöten och när pedagogerna är upptagna med annat, får oftast barnen ett nekande bemötande eller att de möts med ordet ”vänta”.  Nyckelord: Förskola, pedagoger,bemötande, inflytande

The purpose of this work is to contribute with knowledge regarding childrens influence in preschool from the perspective of the preschool teacher. To study this I have asked two questions: How do preschool teachers describe what the influence from the children could mean in preschool? and How do preschool teachers work for the children´s right to influence in preschool? I used qualitative interviews so as to give room for the interviewperson´s own words, thoughts and opinions. The study shows that it is important for the preschool teachers to listen to the children, let them express their opinions and let them have influence on their everyday in preschool. It also shows that the childrens opinions and thoughts are the foundation for the preschool teachers when planning the activities in preschool. Another result is that childrens influence in preschool is a difficult subject, but it is given priority.The preschool teacher´s opinions are that it is important to be aware of their own attitudes in order to give the children opportunity to have influence on preschool. / Syftet med detta arbete är att bidra med kunskap om barns inflytande i förskoleverksamheten, utifrån förskollärares perspektiv. För att ta reda på det har jag utformat två frågeställningar som är: Hur beskriver förskollärare vad barns inflytande kan innebära i förskolan? och Hur arbetar förskollärare för barns rätt till inflytande i förskolan? Jag använde mig av kvalitativa intervjuer för att ge utrymme för respondenterna att svara med egna ord och att deras egna tankar och åsikter skulle komma i främsta rummet. Undersökningen visar att förskollärarna anser att det är viktigt att lyssna på barnen, låta dem få uttrycka sina åsikter och låta barnen få vara med och påverka sin vardag. Det visar sig också att förskollärarna utgår ifrån detta när de planerar verksamheten i förskolan. Den visar också att förskollärarna anser att barns inflytande är ett svårt men prioriterat ämne i förskolan. Förskollärarna menar att det är viktigt att vara medveten om sitt eget förhållningssätt för att barns inflytande i förskolan skall kunna ges.

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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.