This study examined the effect of play-based practices implemented with a national project on the development of Turkish primary school teachers' perceptions of play. Thirty primary school teachers ...participated in the study, and the play-based applications lasted six days. Sample play activities were taught to the teachers, and then they were asked to produce their own. The perception of play scale was used to examine the effects of the applications on perceptions of play. In addition, semi-structured interviews were conducted to examine the changes in individuals more clearly. Teachers' perceptions of play were examined in terms of the contributions, tasks, and nature of play activities. Nonparametric tests were used in the analysis of quantitative data, and content analysis was used in the analysis of qualitative data. As a result of this study, positive changes were seen in the teachers' perceptions of play.
The implementation of early childhood education (ECE) in under-resourced education systems has sparked debate about how to balance 'child-centred learning' and 'teacher-centred didactic' approaches. ...Drawing on both Piagetian constructivism and Vygotskian sociocultural theories, this study assessed teachers' perceptions of ECE pedagogy and pedagogical practices used to implement the ECE curriculum in Tanzania. Data were collected through questionnaires, observations and interviews. Child-centred approach (CCA) and Teacher-centred approach (TCA) are considered to have unique contributions in facilitating preschool learning. To achieve a balance between CCA and TCA, teachers need to be activators and directors of learning without losing the valuable conceptual dimension of active learning.
BACKGROUND In recent decades there has been growing interest in the concept of intensive parenting. However, the literature is mostly qualitative and based on Anglo-Saxon countries. This raises the ...question of how best to operationalise the concept in a wider cross-national setting. OBJECTIVE This paper aims to operationalise the theoretical concept of intensive parenting in a cross-national perspective. METHODS The data for this study come from the CROss-National Online Survey panel CRONOS, conducted in Estonia, Great Britain, and Slovenia in 2017. The analysis is based on 18 items on norms related to raising children. Exploratory factor analyses were carried out to identify dimensions of intensive parenting. Variation by respondents' sociodemographics for the different dimensions was also analysed. RESULTS The results reveal four main dimensions regarding contemporary norms of parenting: a child-centred approach, a focus on stimulating children's development, personal responsibility to do one's best for one's children, and pressure to follow experts' advice. These four dimensions were found in all three countries. CONCLUSIONS The results partly confirm the conception of intensive parenting originally suggested by Hays (1986). They also reveal that the phenomenon is not restricted to Anglo-Saxon countries but can be operationalised in a similar way in other countries. The findings also reveal some variation by sociodemographic characteristics, but not in a systematic way. CONTRIBUTION This is the first study to use random probability population-based samples to operationalise the concept of intensive parenting in a cross-national perspective.
ABSTRAKT
Temat dzieci-migrantów jest coraz częściej poruszany nie tylko w sferze publicznej, ale również w badaniach naukowych. W Polsce stał się bardziej popularny w ciągu ostatniej dekady ze ...względu na procesy masowej imigracji. Większość prac dotyczy jednak zagadnienia na poziomie makro, traktuje o zmianach w krajowym programie nauczania, w szkołach i mówi o gotowości nauczycieli do pracy z klasami wielokulturowymi. Mniej badań koncentruje się na procesie adaptacji i socjalizacji dzieci z doświadczeniem migracyjnym. Ponadto większość istniejących prac dotyczy dorosłych. Tym samym nie oddaje się głosu dzieciom, których doświadczenia biograficzne również są ważne. Niniejszy artykuł przedstawia wyniki empirycznego badania jakościowego, opartego na podejściu skoncentrowanym na dziecku (child-centred approach). Pochodzą one z 20 częściowo ustrukturyzowanych wywiadów, przeprowadzonych z dziećmi-migrantami w Polsce. Analiza przedstawia główne aspekty postrzegania szkoły polskiej przez dzieci-migrantów dotyczące edukacji, socjalizacji oraz relacji z nauczycielami i rówieśnikami.
Polish school in the eyes of migrant children. From socialization to multicultural education
The topic of migrant children becomes more popular not only in the public discourse but also in academic research. In Poland, the topic of migrant children has become more popular over the past decade due to mass immigration. However, most of the work concentrates on the macro-level topics, such as changes to the national curriculum, schools and teachers’ preparation and willingness to work with multicultural classes. Less research has focused on the socialization of children with a migrant background. Moreover, most of the existing work deals with adult-centred research, thus ignoring the importance of giving a voice to children in assessing one’s biographical experiences. This article presents the results of the empirical qualitative research based on a child-centred approach. The results come from 20 semi-structured interviews with migrant children in Poland. The analysis presents the main aspects of the perception of the Polish school by migrant children regarding education, socialization, and relations with teachers and peers.
The presented article focuses on two main objectives. On the one hand, it presents the complex and multifaceted issues of migrant children’s education from a theoretical perspective, which have a ...significant impact on the course of their integration process, their quality of life and their chances of a better future in the country of migration. We draw attention to the importance of migrant children from the perspective of a child-centred approach, which emphasises children’s agency and subjectivity, the importance of their voice, their experiences, as well as the mission of the school and the roles of the professionals (teachers, cultural mediators, social workers) working with them and influencing their integration success. We show the school as a space that is not only institutional, formal and oriented towards intercultural education, but also a relational space in which informal processes take place to shape the future of children, dependent on significant others but also on the educational system. On the other hand we refer mainly to the contribution of the research project Children Hybrid Identity (CHILD-UP) to formulate theoretical explanations about the visibility of migrant children, their agency in school, and to uncover empirical findings about their achievements, barriers, challenges. Although these are in various locations, in different schools and educational programmes, they nevertheless bring about changes in the structure of a class and the occurrence of important processes due to their ethnic and national, cultural, religious, and language context.
Childhood obesity is a public health problem with multiple effects on children’s life. Promoting Active School Travel (AST) could provide an inclusive opportunity for physical activity and shape ...healthy behaviours. Data for this cross-sectional study were drawn from questionnaires carried out in five primary schools located in Newcastle upon Tyne, UK, in neighbourhoods chosen for their variability in IMD (index of multiple deprivation) and spatial structure of street networks (measured through space syntax measure of integration). A randomly selected and heterogenic sample of 145 pupils (aged 9–10) completed an open-ended questionnaire to state what they like and dislike about their journey to school. Thematic analysis identified four typologies (environmental context, emotions, social influences and trip factors) based on the Theoretical Domains Framework (TDF) and specific themes and sub-themes underlying children’s affective experiences of their journeys to school. This study is the first known to authors to attempt to adapt the Capability, Opportunity and Motivation Behaviour (COM-B) model into AST and children’s experiences and associated behavioural domains with design aspects. Such an insight into children’s attitudes could inform urban planners and designers about how to apply more effective behaviour change interventions, targeting an AST increase among children.
Having a parent with a life-threatening illness is challenging throughout the illness trajectory, and for some also in bereavement. Article 12 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the ...Child states a child’s right to express their opinion and have it respected in processes that affect them. The aims of this paper were to explore the child’s active participation in a family support programme, the Family Talk Intervention, in accordance with Article 12, when having a parent cared for in palliative care. Twenty families with 50 children participated. Fieldnotes were taken during the programme and later analysed with interpretive descriptions. The study shows that all children were listened to, but only a quarter reached the minimum point required in Article 12, where their views were taken into account. The Family Talk Intervention in palliative care would benefit from implementing a child-centred approach in order for all children to be active participants.
Previous research on youths' experiences with online strangers has mostly utilized quantitative designs which may result in the omission of important parts of the youths' experiences and perceptions. ...In this qualitative study, we adopt a child-centred approach and focus on the children's and adolescents' experiences with unknown people from the Internet. This is one of the most pronounced parental concerns, despite the fact that an online presence is now normative for most children. We use the data from focus-groups and individual interviews in nine European countries (N = 368) conducted with youths between the ages of 9 and 16 years. Participants were asked about their perceptions of potentially negative or problematic situations while using the Internet and digital technology. Using thematic analysis, we classified youths' experiences and reactions related to interacting with online strangers in four themes: (1) non-verbal interaction; (2) initiation of contact; (3) communication; and (4) face-to-face meeting. In all four levels of interactions, children and adolescents reported a variety of positive and negative experiences and reactions. We interpret our findings with a co-construction model which perceives children and adolescents as active participants in the online world. We conclude that children are successfully making active decisions to initiate, continue, and stop interactions with unknown people from the Internet. These findings broaden the current perspectives of youths' meetings with unknown people online.
ABSTRACT
This article argues that international human rights (quasi-)adjudicatory institutions should do better in considering the best interests of the child and freedom of religion in cases ...involving human rights aspects of alternative care and adoption. The European Court of Human Rights, particularly, has been using obscure and contradictory standards, which ultimately do not privilege the child’s best interests in matters affecting them directly. Recent Grand Chamber jurisprudence instead puts parents’ interests above the child’s. A child-centred approach where children are not objectified, but treated as autonomous, rights-bearing, legal persons, with independent interests that may override those of other stakeholders is needed. This article explores general international and European rules governing children’s religious rights in alternative care and adoption to expose the Court’s pitfalls in centring children in decision-making involving religion particularly. It generally promotes adoption of a child-centred approach in international human rights courts, and particularly highlights existing hurdles in such approach where the decision-making involves conflicting interests concerning religion.
Background:
Little is known about the health literacy of children living with long-term conditions. This study aimed to gain insight into the life of children with a long-term condition in the ...context of health literacy, specifically their understanding of their health and the barriers and facilitators to sharing information about their condition with others.
Design:
Child-centred qualitative arts-based approach with children aged 6–12 years.
Setting:
Children participating in the study came from three countries – the UK, Australia and New Zealand.
Method:
A participatory arts-based qualitative child-centred approach prompted children to draw, label and use stickers, body-outlines and collage to describe elements central to health literacy. This encompassed their long-term condition, their understanding of their condition, its management and decision-making associated with sharing information about their condition with others. The sessions were audio-recorded, and reflexive thematic analysis was undertaken.
Results:
Four central themes related to key elements of child health literacy: (1) pragmatic understanding – what it feels like and what happens in my body; (2) management regime – what do I have to do to keep on going; (3) information sharing – I don’t tell random people; and (4) benefits of sharing – they’ve got my back.
Conclusion:
Children indicated a pragmatic or process type understanding of their condition and its management. Children were discerning about who they shared information about their condition with, but tended to establish a network of well-informed peers capable of providing support if needed. Despite gaps in children’s health literacy, parents and families have an important role to play in checking children’s understandings and developing critical health literacy.
PDF
